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Last Updated: 03. Mai 2000
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A German Christmas
Weihnachten in Germany
Winter Comes Early to Kaiserslautern
Weihnachten in Germany
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December 1998
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We had an American and German holiday celebration. We missed the traditional Saint Nicholas Day on December 6 when Saint Nicholas comes to fill children's shoes with candies and little presents but we enjoyed Weihnachtmarkt in 3 different cities: Mannheim, Mainz, and of course, Kaiserslautern. These cities have smaller Christmas markets than Nurnberg and they all offer a different flavor. In Kaiserslautern, we enjoyed walking around our city, listening to music and watching our shopping district transformed into a Weihnachtmarkt with very small amusement rides and Saint Nicholas too.
Someone suggested the Mannheim Weihnachtmarkt because it seemed kid-friendly with many amusement rides such as a small bumper car ride and a very small Ferris Wheel. We brought some presents for Erika's friends because there were so many booths with various kinds of toys. Then we found some "pastry balls" which we enjoyed greatly with hot chocolate or hot coffee. It was so cold that we did not stay long - only long enough for our toes to get frozen.
When Tiffani arrived (our friend from the States who is studying art in Southern France), we took her to the Mainz Weihnachtmarkt and to see St. Stefan's Church, again. We experienced a true German Christmas tradition - Gluehwein. Unfortunately, it was a little bitter, so it wins the last place in our beer-and-wine-rating list. Erika enjoyed a fun swing ride and then we brought some Belgium chocolate.
We had a quiet Christmas. After Christmas Eve service and Weinnachtslieder (Christmas caroling), we opened our presents on Christmas Eve. This is also a German Christmas tradition. We had some new friends over for an early Christmas dinner and then spent the rest of the evening playing games.
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Winter Comes Early to Kaiserslautern
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November 1998
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When we arrived home from Italy, winter arrived. It got very cold and started to snow a little bit almost every day. The weather made getting around Kaiserslautern more challenging. We did learn how to use the public transportation system - both buses and trains. Fortunately, we are very close to the downtown shopping district in Kaiserslautern, so we could walk to most stores to get groceries, warm clothing, or to do the laundry. We even found a reasonably priced camping store but it is nothing like REI though.
The snowy days were fun. We made a small snowman - or Schneemann - on our balcony and played in the snow a little bit. In this area of Germany, it is either very cold but partly sunny or very cloudy but mostly rainy. If you are lucky enough, it will snow. I look forward to the snow because it brightens the day and makes everything look more beautiful. However, Chris only looks forward to warm spring weather and especially summer.
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Die Fotogalerie von die Deutschland
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See you all later.
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