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German Christmas
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Frohe Weihnachten, Merry Christmas, Joyeux
Noel, Buon Natale, Bonne Anne, Bones Navidaes, Buone Feste Natalizie, Feliz
Navidad, Feliz Natal, Prettige Kerstdagen, Hyvaa joulua, Sretan Bozic,
Kala Christouyenna, Mo\'adim Lesimkha, Vrolijk Kerstfeest, God Jul,
Boze Narodzenie
Wish you a merry Christmas
and a peaceful New Year, filled with happiness,
joy and love.
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 Christmas
season in Germany starts with the 1st Advent, which is the 4th Sunday
before Christmas Eve. "Advent" means "arrival" and is the time up to Christmas.
It is a time of contemplation, anticipation and joy. People have their
homes and gardens festively decorated and meet family members and friends
by candle light and Christmas music.
A special and exciting highlight is the Christmas
market. The place is dominated by a gigantic, richly illuminated
Christmas tree. Traders offer Christmas decoration, handicraft (see below)
and all sorts of other things in festive decorated rustic, wooden stalls.
Christmas music is heard and of course food and drink is provided. The
air is filled with fragrances from gingerbread, roasted nuts, mulled claret
and countless condiments just as with the smell of fine fresh roasted meat
and sausages. You never could resist all the tempting offers :-)
Christmas service Nikolai church Leipzig |
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Leipzig Christmas market
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Christmas decoration
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| Christmas is celebrated
on
Christmas Eve, by tradition in the circle
of the family. It is a feast of contemplation and joy, on which also the
presents are exchanged. The churches offer festive divine services with
Native plays as well as free concerts with Christmas music and songs, as
to be seen at the picture above, and it is difficult, to get a seat. In
the afternoon then the little children are impatiently looking forward
to the great moment, when father Christmas (Santa Claus) knocks at the
door with a big sack on his back (mainly in Protestant areas). He'll put
it down and question the little ones, if they were well behaved over the
year and expect them, to recite a poem or to sing a song, before handing
them over their gifts. It is such a pleasure, to watch, as they answer
his questions and fulfil his wishes full of awe. In other areas the children
will find their presents under the Christmas tree. The Christmas tree is
by tradition a natural spruce or fire. For this reason it is decorated
only shortly before.
Christmas Eve is followed by two national nolidays,
which are used for visits with other family members and friends and usually
are crowned by festive dinners with roast goose, turkey or venison. |
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candle bows
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Christmas
pyramid
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smoke man
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music box
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nutcracker
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Christmas
around the World
German
Christmas Markets
German
Christmas Carols
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