Saturday 24 December 2011

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!


Christmas will be here tomorrow and I’ve been doing my best to get into the holiday spirit and celebrate in Germany.
Here’s What We’ve Done:
Step One: Set up little 10 Inch Christmas Tree that Matt’s parents sent us.
Step Two: Hang Christmas window decoration.
Step Three: Buy a poinsettia, baking pans and track down Canadian equivalent ingredients (this also included e-mailing home to get additional Christmas recipes and looking them up on the internet).
Step Four: Bake lot’s of delicious treats
Step Five: Go to the Nürnberg and Bamberg Christmas Markets
Step Six: Make a gigantic Christmas grocery shopping list
Step Seven: Figure out how to cook a Chicken
….By this time it was still 3-4 days before Christmas and I still forget that it’s even December.
Step Eight: Put wrapped Christmas presents around little tree and clean up apartment.
..It looks a little more festive in here now. But one thing is still missing. Besides the fact it’s just the two of us, the SNOW is missing! It looks like November outside. It was so mild yesterday, I didn’t need to wear mittens and was getting too warm in a fall leather jacket. We had snow once this month! It came, it covered the ground, it rained, it melted. To be fair, it sounds as though Canada isn’t having a white Christmas either, or maybe they are. I can’t keep track with all the “It Snowed! Looks like it will be a white Christmas after all!” followed by the “We got rain and it was washed away”
The Nürnberg weather forcast is calling for mixed Snow and Rain or Snow followed by Rain so it doesn’t sound very promising.

However, I must say the Christmas Markets have been helping. Over 150 carts selling Christmas Ornaments, Gingerbread Cookies and Glühwein! I’ve decided I am going to try and collect Christmas ornaments from every country I visit. So far, I haven’t been able to just pick one. From Ireland, I brought home two leprechaun’s, one holding a pot of gold and the other holding a pint of Guinness. From Germany, I bought a Nutcracker, a cuckoo clock, and a little German girl wearing a dirndl. I also bought a Santa on Skies which has nothing to do with Germany but I was walking past 1000’s of Christmas ornaments and couldn’t help it.

Glühwein: one cup is never enough!
You cannot go to a German Christmas Market without getting a cup of Glühwein (mulled red wine, served warm and in a mug). I paid the fond and kept the Nürnberg Christmas mug. I purchased a second cup in Bamberg solely for the mug with the detailed Bamberg Rathaus and I purchased a bottle to bring home and drink over the holidays!

Matt and I are planning to have a proper Christmas dinner. We bought everything to cook a small chicken, stuffing, broccoli salad, and mashed potatoes. Neither of us have cooked a chicken before, but the Christmas baking turned out so there is hope! Hopefully it won’t turn out like that scene from the movie The Santa Claus when Tim Allen’s turkey sets on fire.

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas! If you are cooking your first Christmas Dinner as well, Good Luck!!!

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