While it’s meant to be a season that’s merry and bright, the fact of the matter is, Christmas time can bring out the worst in people. Crazed shopping, binge drinking, and excessive eating are just some of the unsavory behaviors that manifest around the world during the days leading up to Christmas.
In The States it’s a season of shopping mania. It begins with Black Friday when without fail chaos unravels on the steps of Walmarts the country over. It ends in the final hours of Christmas Eve when getting the final mall parking spot becomes a competitive sport.
In London the competitive sport of the season is binge drinking where eating is cheating. The shift in mentality that sets in on December 1st across the city is a fantastical cultural phenomena. Suddenly, it becomes perfectly acceptable to leave work early and go to the pub every single day of the week. It’s commonly understood that any productivity that was going to happen in the year has happened, and the month of December will be dedicated to binge drinking and hangover nursing.
Of course, the Christmas season isn’t all doom and gloom in my mind. When we lived in Chicago, one of my absolute favorite holiday activities was a post-work outing to the Daley Plaza German Christkindlmarket. I love everything about this place: steaming mugs of gluhwein, the mouthwatering smell of sausages on the grill, and being bundled up against the December chill. In my opinion it’s Christmas season as it was originally intended.
So when we moved to Europe last year, checking out the real deal in Germany was on the tippy top of my list. A weekend getaway to explore the Christmas markets in Nuremberg and Munich was quickly locked in. Our old friend Colleen and her friend who quickly became our new friend, Brooke, were game for the excursion as well.
Upon arrival, our first taste of the German Christmas season was at Nuremberg’s main market square. The imposing Frauenkirche loomed above all of the Christkindlmarket hustle and bustle already in full effect. Within moments a brass band began to play Christmas carols. A shiver of festive excitement ran up my back and we quickly got swept up in all of the merriment.
After several loops around the Nuremberg market and visits to Munich’s Marienplatz Market and English Garden Market, my going-in hypothesis was confirmed. German Christkindle markets are Christmas done just right.
The seasonal food on offer like gingerbread cookies and spiced nuts served alongside the German standbys like sausage and bretzels had me feeling like a kid in a candy shop.
The beverage options are equally festive – gluhwein served in signature mugs and steins of weissbier. The latter always seems to call my name.And the retail offerings provide the perfect opportunity to find a one-of-a-kind something or other for that person who has everything. Sure some of it is a little tchotchke-esque, but isn’t that what Christmas decor is all about?
Unlike the mass hysteria of the U.S. Christmas shopping scene or the drunken debauchery of London’s Christmas party season, the German Christmas market atmosphere is civilized, but still merry and communal. Sure there is food, booze, and shopping aplenty, but it all seems to be consumed at the perfect pace and to the optimal level. I seemed to find myself leaving the markets with a wonderfully cozy gluhwein buzz and just a few special knick-knacks in hand. I’d be full of sausage – but not stuffed like one.
For a final bit of German holiday cheer, Jeff and I spent our last night at the Aiynger Brewery and their charming on-property hotel. After discovering Aiynger beer in Chicago about five years ago, it’s firmly reigned supreme as my favorite beer. So when I learned the brewery was just a short trip from Munich, I knew an outing had to find a place on our itinerary.
And let me tell you, it was certainly worth the detour. We indulged in a private brewery tour, a sensational steak dinner, and more than our fair share of Aiynger.
Everything about German Christmas time had us wanting to stay for the season. And then I wondered, ‘Would a full season of gluhwein be overkill? Would I tire of the crowds and knick-knacks?’ Likely yes.
Generally by December 26th, I shiver at the thought of going to a mall. I’m yearning for Dry January and already plotting my New Year’s diet scheme. And while it’s absolutely lovely for a weekend, I sort of suspect even in Germany where Christmas is seemingly just right, everybody is equally as happy when it’s all over.
Until then, I wish you and yours a very happy holiday season that is full of good cheer and much love!
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