The title of this blog post, for those you who don't speak German, is "Winter has arrived."
What prompted this seemingly outdated and/or obvious title? This:
That is a shot out of my apartment window, and this is the first winter snow we have had in Eichstätt. Otherwise, it has been very sunny with a few days of looming, Stephen King-esque mist... Which occasionally settles in my beard and freezes... I have no pictures of those hilarious instances.
What I do have pictures of are other winter-related things, like Christmas! So let us get on with German Christmas Events Time!
1.) Krampus Night/ St. Nicholas Day
So, I don't have any pictures of my own for this, but I did experience it first hand. SO, Krampus is the dark, goblin-like, St. Nicholas (Sankt Nikolaus auf Deutsch) counterpart; an anti-Claus, in so many words. He punishes the children on the "naughty list." (No list is actually present in the folklore.) So, there is a festival/parade on the evening of the 5th called Krampusnacht in which guys, most of them firemen and policemen in training who have also had quite a bit to drink that night, dress up like this:
And they walk past the groups of on-lookers and beat them with braided switch whips, like these:
The idea is this: they beat beat the sin out of you for the year so that you can enjoy the gifts from St. Nicholas the next day, which is St. Nicholas day. He leads the posse after all.
So, how does old Saint Nick know that you have been cleansed of your sins via his horned, hair, and/or hay-bailed chronies (yes, some demons where hay bails and cowbells. I have no explanation, nor does any German I have met)? Well, they all smear oil and coal dust on their hands. After they beat you, they smack your face and rub the black gunk all over your face to mark your redemption. That's what happened to me:
"What did you get when you went to Berchtesgaden, Daniel?"
"I got a lash across the arse, a whip wrapped around my leg, and coal smeared on my face."
Don't worry. I didn't suffer alone:
My brother-in-law, Clark, was relieved of his sin as well.
That's about all I have for Krampus/St. Nicholas' Day.... That coal is really hard to get out of facial hair.
2.) Christmas Markets:
These are all over Bavaria. This where one can buy ornaments, nutcrackers, statues of Santa, wooden Nativity scenes, hot nuts, 1/2 meter bratwursts, Glühwein ("Glow Wine." It lives up to its name. Trust me.), and many, many other Christmas-y things including my absolute favorite: LEBKUCHEN, the absolute best ginger cookie on the face of the planet. I LOVE THEM!
Despite the picture I just provided to you of me with a chocolate Lebkuchen smeared all over my face while looking quite crazed, I do not have a problem. I can stop anytime... But I think I'll just have one more....
I digress.
The Christmas Markets are really neat and they are a good social gathering activity/place. Here are some of the ones I have been to:
Eichstätt's Adventsmarkt:
It just closed this week. Though it was small, it was very nice, those crepes were quite good.
Nürnberg's Christkindlmarkt:
This is only the front end of the market. This part extends all the way to that orange-roofed building directly below and in front of those spires in the background. It then sprawls up the street behind the row of the buildings on the right. It's huge. There are a ton of people. That's what happens at one of the largest Christmas Markets in Germany. And this does too:
Let the lights guide your way. It makes navigation a breeze. That way, you can also find this guy:
Yes, Virginia. Santa is real, and he plays an accordion with a dog on top of it in Nürnberg.
München (Munich) Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market)
Granted, I only have one okay picture of this:
But you get the gist, dear reader. This is the central market on Marienplatz. It has the most stalls and shops, but small Christmas market tendrils also sprawl out into the many surrounding side streets. Here's a good stock photo for your complete intercultural understanding:
BAM! Weihnachtsmarkt'd!
That's about as much Christmas experience I have had before actual Christmas next week, which I will actually be spending with the family of a former German exchange student at MC! So, I am greatly looking forward to that.
I will keep you on the interwebs apprised of my adventures, for the day after Christmas, I am heading to Poland and then on to the Czech Republic for New Year's. Thus, until next time: L'Shalom.
P.S.- I kept my word about pictures (finally), and I will take some more while I'm in eastern Europe.
What prompted this seemingly outdated and/or obvious title? This:
What I do have pictures of are other winter-related things, like Christmas! So let us get on with German Christmas Events Time!
1.) Krampus Night/ St. Nicholas Day
So, I don't have any pictures of my own for this, but I did experience it first hand. SO, Krampus is the dark, goblin-like, St. Nicholas (Sankt Nikolaus auf Deutsch) counterpart; an anti-Claus, in so many words. He punishes the children on the "naughty list." (No list is actually present in the folklore.) So, there is a festival/parade on the evening of the 5th called Krampusnacht in which guys, most of them firemen and policemen in training who have also had quite a bit to drink that night, dress up like this:
The idea is this: they beat beat the sin out of you for the year so that you can enjoy the gifts from St. Nicholas the next day, which is St. Nicholas day. He leads the posse after all.
So, how does old Saint Nick know that you have been cleansed of your sins via his horned, hair, and/or hay-bailed chronies (yes, some demons where hay bails and cowbells. I have no explanation, nor does any German I have met)? Well, they all smear oil and coal dust on their hands. After they beat you, they smack your face and rub the black gunk all over your face to mark your redemption. That's what happened to me:
"What did you get when you went to Berchtesgaden, Daniel?"
"I got a lash across the arse, a whip wrapped around my leg, and coal smeared on my face."
Don't worry. I didn't suffer alone:
My brother-in-law, Clark, was relieved of his sin as well.
That's about all I have for Krampus/St. Nicholas' Day.... That coal is really hard to get out of facial hair.
2.) Christmas Markets:
These are all over Bavaria. This where one can buy ornaments, nutcrackers, statues of Santa, wooden Nativity scenes, hot nuts, 1/2 meter bratwursts, Glühwein ("Glow Wine." It lives up to its name. Trust me.), and many, many other Christmas-y things including my absolute favorite: LEBKUCHEN, the absolute best ginger cookie on the face of the planet. I LOVE THEM!
Despite the picture I just provided to you of me with a chocolate Lebkuchen smeared all over my face while looking quite crazed, I do not have a problem. I can stop anytime... But I think I'll just have one more....
I digress.
The Christmas Markets are really neat and they are a good social gathering activity/place. Here are some of the ones I have been to:
Eichstätt's Adventsmarkt:
It just closed this week. Though it was small, it was very nice, those crepes were quite good.
Nürnberg's Christkindlmarkt:
This is only the front end of the market. This part extends all the way to that orange-roofed building directly below and in front of those spires in the background. It then sprawls up the street behind the row of the buildings on the right. It's huge. There are a ton of people. That's what happens at one of the largest Christmas Markets in Germany. And this does too:
Let the lights guide your way. It makes navigation a breeze. That way, you can also find this guy:
München (Munich) Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market)
Granted, I only have one okay picture of this:
BAM! Weihnachtsmarkt'd!
That's about as much Christmas experience I have had before actual Christmas next week, which I will actually be spending with the family of a former German exchange student at MC! So, I am greatly looking forward to that.
I will keep you on the interwebs apprised of my adventures, for the day after Christmas, I am heading to Poland and then on to the Czech Republic for New Year's. Thus, until next time: L'Shalom.
P.S.- I kept my word about pictures (finally), and I will take some more while I'm in eastern Europe.