Advent in Germany

For people all over Germany the time before Christmas is very important. The first Sunday in December is the first ?Advent? Sunday and the first candle on the Adventskranz (wreath) is lit. On Dec. 1st, all children open the first little door on their ?Adventskalender?. Nowadays they are filled with little chocolates, in former times little pictures could be found behind the doors.

On December 6th Nikolaus comes to the houses: either during the night ? then he fills the children?s boots that wait for him in front of the front doors ? or during the day when he appears in person, reads out the children misdeeds and achievements. He sometimes waves the ?Rute? at them, but they always get presents from his sack.

Most families have their generation old recipes for ?Gutsle? (Suabian word for Christmas cookies). Boxes are filled and very often hidden, so that nobody can get at them before Christmas. Others eat all their ?Gutsle? before Christmas.

Christmas decorations are put up everywhere, nativity scenes are put up in homes, living nativity scenes can be found in towns, ?Adventskränze? are seen at all places, but not yet Christmas trees. You will find them in public places, like our school. But in private homes they are hardly ever put up and decorated before ?Heiligabend? (Christmas Eve).

But the absolute highlight of this time are all the Christmas markets. The Stuttgart Christmas market is the biggest in Europe: you can stay there for hours, do your Christmas shopping, admire the decorations, eat a variety of food and ? of course ? drink ?Glühwein? (mulled wine). You can also go the more romantic Esslingen Christmas market which has a medieval section with all sorts of attractions: jugglers, medieval clothing, hemp bread, arrow-shooting?As a special event for ?Nikolaustag?, the world?s biggest gingerbread Nikolaus was baked and then sold for charity.

These Christmas markets are open all through ?Advent? and are most romantic in the evening.