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Published: November 17th 2010
Christmas begins about the first of December with an office party and ends when you finally realize what you spent, around April fifteenth of the next year.
P.J. O'Rourke, Modern Manners
Well in Germany Christmas begins as early as mid-November with the building of Christmas markets! The first signs of them were already popping up here and there over the weekend. My brother and I spent Saturday on an improvised tour around Cologne, from the first to the last of its three remaining city gates. I chose to leave England in November for a reason - to get away from the dreary greyness of English winter, but on that Saturday afternoon the North of Germany was no better. It was chucking it down with rain and my boots were soaked through, an unfortunate circumstance considering I only brought two pairs of boots with me to survive the winter. But as we waddled our way through the puddles towards the central squares Christmas spirit was already in the air, brightening up this gloomy day. Despite the continuous downpour, workers were busy all over the place constructing wooden huts and putting up the decorations that will form the central core of the market, stretching throughout the central area of the city.
Germans take their Christmas markets very seriously and dedicate the whole week to building a perfect little fairy tale in
Aachen Cathedral
It looks a bit like a fairy tale castle, despite the bad weather!the centre of every city, no matter how big or small. On Monday I went to Aachen, probably one of the most beautiful towns in this, if we're being honest, not the most charming region of Germany. It has a magnificent cathedral and, once you escape the monotonous concrete area surrounding the station, a maze of enchanting little streets. But in this time of year the markets dominate every single one of the German cities and bring a very special sort of buzz that cannot be compared to anything else.
It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air.
W. T. Ellis
Yet I would say that Christmas in the air puts Christmas in your heart. And, as I realised while walking around Aachen at dusk, nothing awakens the festive spirit quicker than the sight of men busying themselves with planks of wood and colourful decorations, dragging around drinks equipment and cooking machinery, filling the counters with an assortment of presents, sweets and baked goods. As a child my favourite part of the holiday season was decorating the Christmas tree. That was the official start of Chritmas and my cue to start getting excited. Seeing the process of preparation for the Christmas market was a unique experience, akin to decorating a Chritmas tree, only on a much much grander scale. I can't wait for the end of the week, when the magic show will finally begin its annual cycle, providing continuous entertainment to the public until just a few days before Christmas Eve. That's more than a whole month of continuous merriment and celebrating! Germany is certainly the place to be for Christmas.
Monday was a big day for me, and apart from going to Aachen I also spent my first day at the school where I will be doing a work experience a few mornings a week until I leave Bonn. My class is called
The Frogs or
Die Frösche, 8 years old (I think?) and absolutely adorable. It's amazing how quickly children become attached to their carers, and already on the first day one of the little girls told me she was my "biggest fan". On the second day the hugs started. I know there will be tears when I have to leave, both on my part and on theirs. What a great experience, being at a German school at Christmas!
Despite waking up at 6.30 in the morning the work is easy - the kids have quiet working time for the first hour and my main duties consist of helping the slow ones with their maths work and staying in the classroom when the teacher need the toilet. German children aren't worked too hard - they are currently adding to a 1000, although the bright ones have progressed to multiplication. After their initial hour and announcements by the teacher they each get a bottle of chocolate milk and it's time for breakfast, followed by a run around in the yard. On both of my first days I was finished by 11.35 in the morning, leaving me with most of the day free, and I don't think the little ones ever stay at school past 1 pm. All in all it is a fun and flexible way to gain a bit of experience, albeit unpaid, yet with the additional perk of free coffee. And how could I forget the multiple presents I have already received from a couple of the more enthusiastic little ladies? The current trend is to give away colourful pages from their notepads with animal cartoons, which everyone seems to collect, me included from now on, of course!
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Anna Z
non-member comment
YES!
I read your blog regularly Anna, so happy you're enjoying it. And well done on the school job! I remember the exchanging cartoon notebook pages and collecting them! It was THE thing to do when I was in primary school, we would have hundreds of those! Isn't the beginning of Karnival in Cologne amazing? I was so shocked when I saw all these people dressed up- old and young. And most of them were already drunk by 10:30 am! I forgot to say- go to Siegburg to see the Medieval Market! and enjoy all the Gluhwein!