After three weeks of Christmas music, Christmas lights and Christmas candy it’s time to write about this amazing time and about some differences between American X-Mas and German “Weihnachten”.
In Germany, the Christmas time starts around December 1st with our advent calendar. It’s actually for kids to pass time of waiting until Christmas Eve. There is a Christmas picture with 24 little windows with each a number on it. Children open one window every day and find a piece of chocolate, a Christmas picture or a poem.
In addition to the Advent calendar, you can find an Advent wreath in most homes, which is made out of bound fir twigs and four candles on the top. We start by lighting one candle the first Sunday in December and continue throughout the month each Sunday. The last candle is lit on Christmas Eve or the last Sunday before Christmas Eve.
Typical German is the “Weihnachtsmarkt”, (Christmas market). The market place is full of booths and stalls where you can buy almost everything you need for Xmas: from candles and crib figures to Christmas tree decoration. In addition to listening to Christmas songs, people like to drink a glass of hot spiced wine (called Glühwein) to warm up from the cold.
What I miss here in the US is our “Nikolaus” who is coming during the night at December 5. Children in Germany leave a boot outside for St. Claus so that he can leave candies in their shoes. When I was a kid, St. Claus came to our house, read some stories in his red book about us children (of course, our mum told him some stories when she opened him the door). We sang a song for him or we recited a poem about St. Claus and than we got a bag full of candies, nuts, tangerines, a little chocolate Claus and a present like socks, books or toys.
Unlike American traditions, Germans put up their Christmas trees a few days before Christmas, (my family is always late; we put it up on the 23rd or even on the 24th). We decorate our tree with just one color: gold, so it’s not as colorful as an American Christmas tree. Presents are usually placed under the tree. By the way, have you known that the Christmas tree originated in Germany?!? While Americans get their candies in a stocking, every family member in Germany has its own Christmas plate with fruits, nuts, chocolate and biscuits.
While Americans celebrate Christmas Day on December 25, Christmas Eve is for Germans the preceding day. Christmas Eve starts with a big holiday dinner with the whole family. We eat a lot food so that you feel to full to pass out Christmas presents…(I remember that we had just French fries and chicken when we were kids so that we could go into the “Christmas room” quickly). Entering the living room with all the candles on, the smell of Christmas, Christmas presents and candy is amazing every year.
As I read about Christmas in the U.S. I found out that they take over carols from England and Australia, Santa Claus and stockings of the Netherlands and Santa’s sleigh drawn by reindeer began in Switzerland. But Americans gave Santa Claus an old man look with a white beard and red cheeks, dressed in a red suit departing in a sleigh drawn by reindeers.
As I know that Santa Claus brings presents during Christmas Eve, in Germany Christkind (it’s actually the Christ child as an angel in a white dress) brings presents in the afternoon of December 24. When we were kids my dad drove around the streets with us to “look for the Christkind” but the real reason for driving around was that my mum had time to bring the presents and candies in the living room and to light the candles.
So, this is X-Mas in Germany…
Look, how X-Mas is in the AutoCom office:
It all started when Andi brought her Xmas tree and a stocking… So Emily brought her Xmas tree and her stocking… As an effect of that, Maggie had the idea of a Xmas decoration contest. We started to decorate our office with bells, trees and garlands. It seems like Andi and Lauren are the winning team. They decorated our office plant with Xmas lights, decorated the wall with paper Xmas trees and reindeers and hang up Xmas bells.
But this is not enough… We are playing the Secret Santa in the office. Everybody drew a name for whom they’ll buy a gift for. Presents are then exchanged anonymously. Secret Santa gives a present, candy, chocolate or cards once a week or how often he wants to. Friday before Christmas we’ll get a Christmas present from our secret Santa. Woohoo!
In this spirit:
Merry Christmas and a happy New Year
Fröhliche Weihnachten und ein frohes neues Jahr (German)
Vrolijk Kerstfeest en een Gelukkig Nieuwjaar (Dutch)
Quvianagli Anaiyyuniqpaliqsi suli Nakuuluni Ukiutqiutiqsi (Inupiaq Eskimo)
En frehlicher Grischtdaag un en hallich Nei Yaahr (Pennsylvania German)
Comments
Merry Christmas to all, past, present and future and to everyone:
Bless us all with a safe, prosperous and happy new year!
And Silke, you will enjoy the American Christmas, it is a little different than the German as you already wrote, but at least as much fun!
Merry Christmas again to everybody!
Susanne