Celebrate Christmas in Style: With the Germans

Sniff the heady aroma of gluhwein (hot mulled wine), spicy gingerbread, roasted nuts, and grilled bratwurst in the frosty air, and browse the garland-strewn stalls selling handicrafts, tree ornaments, wooden toys, and scarves, surrounded by thousands of lights. You're at one of 2,500-plus Christmas markets held throughout Germany in December. Most end Christmas Eve, the majority are held in the town's main square, and regional variations prevail. In the north, Bremen has a medieval-themed torchlit riverside market, plus another one in the main square, while Lubeck has a market depicting Grimm's fairy tale scenes and a market featuring artisans from nearby Scandinavia and the Baltic in the magnificently-frescoed Hospital of the Holy Ghost. Picturesque Bavarian towns like Rothenburg, Dinkelsbuhl, and Bad Tolz that look storybook-like enough year-round become positively magical in Christmas season. Indoor and outdoor concerts and festively-decorated evergreens abound: Germany, after all, is where the tree-trimming tradition began.

Photo Credit: Leipzig Christmas Market (Joachim Messerschmidt/Germany National Tourism Office)

Experience Germany: MainFest

Originally celebrated to by fisherman and boatmen to pay homage to the river and its bounties, the annual MainFest in Frankfurt, Germany, is now a gathering at the banks of the Main River to feast upon a grandiose display of firework set against a soundtrack of live music. The summer highlight is rounded off with gourmet German treats, and all the typical fanfare of a summer festival including fairground rides, carousels, and games.

Photo Credit: MainFest, Frankfurt, Germany (Frankfurt Tourism)

Munich—Welcome to Bavaria

The capital of the ancient and proud European region of Bavaria, Munich is so different from the rest of modern Germany that its natives hardly consider themselves Germans. Until the early 20^th century, Bavaria retained its identity and rights as a monarchy, and even to this day it’s almost like a different country. It has its own constitution, a strong sense of native pride, and some unique cultural distinctions from the rest of Germany. In Munich, this evinces itself in the structures, the clothing, the food, and the layout of the city. Bavarian pride is at its height during Oktoberfest, but it powers the city year round, and gives a unique identity.

To appreciate some of Munich’s distinctive architecture, head straight to Marienplatz, the commercial center of the city since knights used to fight exhibition tournaments there in medieval times. The centerpoint of the square is the Mariensäule (Marien’s Column) erected in 1632. Twice a day at 11 AM and noon (or more frequently during high season), crowds gather to gawk as the giant Glockenspiel cuckoo clock bursts into a loud mechanized spectacle, with little figurines reenacting famous scenes in Munich’s history. After about 15 minutes, the show ends with all 40+ bells chiming different tunes in tandem.

Oktoberfest

There is perhaps nothing that better epitomizes the perception of German and Bavarian cultures as that of Oktoberfest. Each year nearly eight million people flock to the event, which is a huge part of the culture of this region and often conjures up visions of beautiful beer maids skillfully hoisting enormous jugs of foamy beer. An estimated one million gallons are guzzled during the course of the event. Given this fact, it’s not surprising that Oktoberfest has more than its fair share of "Bierleichen" (meaning “beer corpses”), or folks who tipped back a few too many. Be careful not to become one yourself.

Photo Credit: Munich (Michael Nagy/Munich Tourist Office)

Berlin—After the West Came East

Known as one of the most forward-looking, innovative, culturally provocative cities in the Western world, Berlin has transformed itself from the divided, somewhat forbidding symbol that it was before the Wall fell. In those days, West Berlin was the modern, more-or-less free-thinking friend to the US, while East Berlin was bleak and Communist and industrial. Now, East Berlin is super-modern and super-artsy, thanks to an influx of money, people, and creativity that swept in when the Wall came down. Visitors today are charmed by East Berlin's courtyard cafes and theaters, and its galleries and nightclubs housed in former warehouse buildings.

Must See: Germany's Once-Destroyed Berliner Dome

Almost completely burned due to a phosphorous bomb in 1944, the Berliner Dom, or Berlin Cathedral, has undergone extensive renovation.  It was not until 1993 that the renovations were considered complete, and the main nave reopened.  Today, this 19th-century cathedral is viewed as one Germany’s most striking and important ecclesiastical buildings.

Photo Credit: Berliner Dome (PhotoDisc)

Oktoberfest in Munich: Six Million Exuberant Beer Lovers

Each year, more than six million exuberant beer lovers pack Munich’s streets for Oktoberfest, the world’s largest public festival, which began last Saturday and continues until October 7. Besides overflowing Maßs of beer, veal sausage, whole-roasted chicken, and Lederhosen-clad men and Dirndl-donned women will be a familiar sight by the time you stumble out of this rowdy bacchanalia of Bavarian brews and culture.

Photo Credit: Marienplatz Square, Munich (Photodisc)