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'Tis the Season - Christmas and Weihnachtsmärkte / Weihnachtsmarkets in Germany

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With the end of the year 2002 fast approaching, you need little reminding from me of the upcoming holiday season. Stores aplenty overflow with festive merchandise friends boast at the completion of their Christmas shopping, and many of my neighbors have put lights and displays in their windows. Though I feel a bit behind the curve, I will catch up eventually. Besides, I am anxiously awaiting the opening of the annual Weihnachtsmarktes-German Christmas markets. A tradition that dates well over 400 years, the Weihnachtsmarktes not only inaugurate the Christmas season in Germany, but also offer a fascinating blend of arts, crafts, browsing, shopping, music, food, and general merriment. Should you be in Germany during the next month, you would be wise visit one or more of these extraordinary markets. Perhaps you can exercise more will power than I have in the past.

The German Christmas markets originated in the late medieval period, although historians have had difficulty affixing dates to the annual tradition. 1434 marked the first mention of the Dresdner Streizelmarkt, indicating that Dresden may have the country's oldest ongoing market. Since records are either ambiguous, or non-existent, it is possible that other markets, such as Rothenburg, Regensburg, Stuttgart, and Frankfurt, could be just as old. The world famous Christkindelmarkt in Nürnberg dates back definitively to 1628, evidenced by a 19cm oval wooden box inscribed as a gift given on the occasion of that year's Christmas market.

Despite the inability to trace the written history of the German Christmas markets, the tradition nevertheless remains strong and vibrant today. Even the smallest town and village fills its main square with vendors and booths to celebrate both the holidays and community pride. Cities boast about their markets' distinctiveness, whether it is favorite local pastries or regional wood crafting. It may come as little surprise that a friendly rivalry exists between some markets, each offering a greater and more unique attraction than the other. For example, the Dresdner Striezelmarkt is unique in that it possesses Germany's largest Christmas pyramid, documented as well in the Guinness Book of World Records.

In the end, I believe it is the intoxicating atmosphere of a Weinachtsmarkt that continues to invite visitors. Larger markets, such as those in Berlin, Munich, Nürnberg, and Rothenburg, draw millions of people every year. Even if you attend smaller markets, the experience can be just as overwhelming. Fragrant scents of glühwein-hot spiced wine, gingerbread, roasted nuts, teas, and various würsts fill the air, which I think lessens the sting of winter just a bit. The stalls spill over with crafts, toys, clothes, ornaments, pottery, food, and anything and everything else that can be displayed. All and all, the Christmas markets are a feast for the senses.