Christmas in Germany and France

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German Christmas Market

Magical. Cold. Festive. Charming. Quaint. Beautiful. Warm-cider-wine-that-warms-your-soul. Breathtaking. Memorable. Colorful. Twinkley.  Delicious. Surreal. 

Just a few words to describe Christmas in Europe.  I've been to 4 different markets this year and each one has gotten better and better.  It's a very different experience to be in Europe for Christmas.  It feels more special.  Less commercialized.  More memorable in some ways.  Perhaps it's just the novelty of cobblestone streets or being surrounded by an array of foreign speakers with lovely accents or the ancient architecture of nearly every building reminding you of the rich cultural history or the street performers playing their accordians and clarinets. 

[caption id="attachment_1022" align="aligncenter" width="518" caption="Noël à Strasbourg"][/caption]

 European countries in and of themselves are oozing with cuteness and charm.  But add Christmas sparkle and music and it's just dreamy. 

 Nearly every city and town in Germany participates in a Weinachtmarkt, or Christmas market for us English speaking folk which takes place outside.  Where it is cold.  Freezing cold to be exact.  (about 20 F tonight) And there is nothing better to warm your hands and your soul then a steaming cup of Glühwein. 

[caption id="attachment_1024" align="aligncenter" width="412" caption="Glühwein, cheers!"][/caption]

If you've never heard of Glühwein (vin chaud in France) or even tasted it, you are missing out!  It tastes like warm red wine mixed with apple cider.  I believe that is essentially what it is.  

Of all the markets I've been to thus far Strasbourg, France is by far my favorite.  I think I may be bias in a few ways.  For one I understand the language better.  I took 5 years of french once upon a time and remember enough to get by and converse decently.  (Except for the one time I told a guy I am a toilet.  I'll share that story another time).  But also the wine is much better than German wine in my most unprofessional sommelier opinion.  I could guzzle the vin chaud in France.  But aside from all that the city is just beautiful.  And even more so during Christmas. 

[caption id="attachment_1026" align="aligncenter" width="491" caption="Noël à Strasbourg"][/caption]

 The buildings, streets and churches are dripping with seasonal decor and the city is illuminated at night by the pretty glow of thousands of Christmas lights. 

[caption id="attachment_1031" align="aligncenter" width="491" caption="Noël à Strasbourg"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1032" align="aligncenter" width="491" caption="Noël à Strasbourg"][/caption]

The vendor huts (for lack of a better term) offer so many different types of trinkets and goodies.  From ornaments and candles to chocolate and woodcrafts. 

[caption id="attachment_1028" align="aligncenter" width="430" caption="Noël à Strasbourg"][/caption]

Check out what I bought.

 You put little tea light candles inside them.  So pretty! 

 I am offcially warm and fuzzy inside with Christmas cheer.  And not just because of all the vin chaud I drank :)

Hope everyone is having a Happy Holiday season!  Christmas is only 12 days away!

B

Peppermint Nutella Cookies

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I have a few confessions.

1) These cookies are semi-homemade

2) Despite the fact they are semi-homemade they were still yummy.

3) It only took me 2o minutes to make these and only 2 dishes to clean! (the cookie pan and a knife)

4) It's noon and I'm still in my pajamas.

Ok.  I feel better for being honest.

I've mentioned before how I suck at baking.  But that was before I started using my food processor.  Which seems to be a magic machine that mixes all the ingredients together to create perfect pie crust and sugar cookies. (And salsa, pesto and soup, but those have nothing to do with baking of course).

Yesterday when I was strolling through the frozen section and I saw a tub of Otis Spunkmeyer Sugar Cookie dough.  Even though I don't fear baking so much anymore, I still couldn't resist the idea of a super easy cookie. 

I considered them for a minute and then thought, nah I'll make my own from scratch.  But right as I was about to walk away I saw boxes of candy canes. 

And then I had an epiphany. 

I've been wanting to make a cookie involving nutella somehow.  Because nutella is just one of the greatest foods to exist in my opinion.  Sugar cookies, nutella and candy canes?  How could that not taste heavenly?

So the verdict?

Yup.  They were good.  And they were easy.  And the fact that there were only 4 left this morning, says it all. 

You could of course make a homemade sugar cookie.  But for those of you in a crunch for a time or who don't have a baking cell in your body, the premade stuff works nice.

All you need is:
Sugar Cookie Dough
Nutella
Crushed candy canes or peppermint sticks

Bake cookies according to directions.  Let cool for 5-10 min.  Spread nutella on each cookie.  Sprinkle with crushed peppermint.

Enjoy

B

Homemade hand print ornament…easy!

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Now that I have two little ones, the holidays seem even more special.  As we get older as a family I want our tree to be a reflection of memories of years past. 

I remember making a handprint ornament when I was a kid and thought it would be fun to do with my own kiddos this year.  Something we can put on our tree each year to remember how small they were when we lived in Germany. This is such an easy way to create a memory and a keepsake for your Christmas tree!  It would also make a great gift for grandparents.  I found the recipe here.

I didn't use food coloring, but instead just painted the handprint after the mold had dried.

Enjoy!

B

Mein Deustch ist nicht sehr gut

Pin It Now! So I've lived in Germany for a year and a half now.  I would say I know maybe 50 words.  Maybe more than that.  Rosetta stone taught me "Das auto ist rot" but really when will that ever help me?  And I can count to 11.  You know...really important stuff.

It's interesting how much I am able to pick up from mannerisms and body language though.  For example when I first went to the german grocery store, they would always ask a question after I would pay. 

After the first time they asked me a question I realized they were asking if I would like my receipt.  I couldn't even tell you what it sounded like or what the question was.  I just knew based on previous experience and body language they would ask if I would like my receipt to which I would always reply "nein".

After awhile I started to recognize the word for receipt which is "rechnung".

There was another  time when baby Wright was only 5 weeks old that some older lady had stopped me asking about the baby and all I picked up out the the sentence was Mädchen and Junge.  She was asking if he was a girl or a boy.(you can never tell with a newborn)  And then just based on her tone of voice and body language I could tell she was saying how tiny and cute he was.

Most people I know say german is the hardest langauge to learn.  I've also been told it's the closest to english.  I really think a lot of the words and sentences sound like english to me.  I've always been weird like that though.  Things most people get, I'm clueless. And then the things most people don't get, like german, I don't think is so difficult. 

The hard part about trying to learn and speak german where I live is that most people speak english.  Even when I try to speak german, like at a restaurant for example, the people just come back to me in english. 

There are many, many times when knowing german would have been highly beneficial to me.  But for the most part when I say "Mein deutsch ist nicht sehr gut" (my german is not very good) people will either respond in english or we will point and signal our way through conversation.  I haven't had any really rude encounters.  I've dealt with the occassional person who seems annoyed, but that is to be expected. All in all the people are far more friendly that I would have expected.  I know back home spanish speakers or people with a thick indian accent aren't treated so nicely.  Ever seen the fb page that says to like "I live in America I shouldn't have to press 1 to speak english"?

So glad it's not like that here.

But today was one of those days where I really wish I knew how to speak and understand more.  Two repair men came to my house and didn't speak any english at all. (duh I live in Germany!)  They were here to fix our heaters because it has been freezing.  (side note: We don't have central heating here.  We have radiators in each room.  I actually like that better.  Saves money to centralize the heat in the rooms you spend time in).  I knew a few words like "kaput" and "danke".  And that's how we communicated.  I pointed to the radiator and said "kaput".

They kept saying something to me in german even though I said I don't speak it and then would speak louder as if that would somehow magically make me understand.  Thank God for internet because I was able to have the guy type into google translate. 

And then tada!  I learned why the heat wasn't working.

So lesson of the day: I won't always have google translate with me.  Wifi doesn't work everywhere.  I should learn to speak the language of the country in which I live.

Breakfast Burrito Buffet for the Holidays

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I have a good idea for a breakast brunch this holiday season!  A breakfast burrito buffet!

It could be as fancy or as simple as you like.  The reason I like the burrito buffet idea is because it's simple and doesn't take much time at all.  Here's what I included in my buffet:
Homemade salsa made the day before (store bought is ok too, but I highly recommend homemade!)
Breakfast sausage
Bacon
Eggs
Breakfast Potatoes
Shredded Cheese
Flour tortillas
Saricha hot sauce (best stuff ever)
Orange juice in fun champagne glasses

Guests can add whatever they like, roll up and enjoy.  MMM!

I set the table up first. It makes things much less stressful this way. If you want to create a festive holiday table, gather items from around your house or even purchase a few pieces for your buffet table.  This can be as fancy or simple as you like.  But I do recommend at least having some fresh flowers.  Flowers and brunch just seem to go together.

Arrange the plates and servingware where you'd like them to go.  I put out the shredded cheese, salsa and tortillas on the table ready to go while I prepared the potatoes, sausage, bacon and then the eggs.

I recommend cooking the eggs last because everything else can hold up fine for 30min or so whereas eggs get cold.  And cold eggs are just not good.

Next time I will add avocados and jalapenos though.  Some fresh fruit on the side would be nice too.

A burrito buffet is so versatile and can easily be made into your own.  For example add sauteed vegetables like red and yellow peppers with onions for vegetarian guests.  The world is your oyster.

Hope everyone is having a happy holiday season!

xoxo

B

Cast Iron Breakfast Potatoes

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If you want to take your breakfast burritos to a new level add some seasoned potatoes!  It really makes a difference and they are so simple.

Ingredients:
3-4 baking potatoes
3-4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup chopped parsely
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Heat cast iron skillet over medium heat.  While pan is heating, chop potatoes into bite size pieces
and then chop parsely.

Melt butter in the cast iron skillet.  Once butter has melted add potatoes.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Stir potatoes frequently with a wooden spoon so they don't burn.

Cook through until potatoes are nice and brown.

Remove from heat and toss in the parsely.  Add more salt/pepper if needed.

Enjoy!

B

Snowy Days the German Way

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It's been snowing since Thanksgiving Day.  Not a whole lot.  Maybe 2-3 inches at the most. But enough to add some extra charm and a sense of novelty to the holiday season.

Except for when it's enough to require the driveway and sidewalk be shoveled.

You see, here in Germany there are very specific and direct laws in regards to snow removal or Straßenreinigungssatzung (street cleaning statute).  Say that 1 time fast.

As soon as it starts to snow, you’re supposed to shovel and keep your walkways clear.  Especially between the hours of 7am and 8pm during the week.  Even if you are sick or out of town, you are responsible to have someone clear the snow for you. 

Most people oblige because if anyone falls on the snow or ice in front of your house, you can be sued and are liable.  Even as a renter.

Soooo since hubby had to be at work early this morning and since I was awake anyway and since I have a pound or two or five to lose, I decided to go ahead and shovel the sidewalk and driveway. 

I made a very specific point to start shoveling while it was still dark.  It’s kind of like parallel parking.  I know I suck at it and I’d prefer no one watch me make a fool of myself as I hack and scrape at the sidewalk. (It had been snowing since last Thursday and since we had not shoveled since today there was a nice thick layer of ice underneath the snow). 

It was sort of fun except my toes and fingers were frozen and I realized if this is to become my new responsibility I definitely need some new boots.  Preferably these beauties

[caption id="attachment_979" align="aligncenter" width="165" caption="Sorels Cate the Great"][/caption]

A friend introduced me to Sorels today and now I just can’t get these out of my head! Seriously.  I must get these.

So the lesson learned today was if we want to avoid a lawsuit I need these boots. 

Oh and also that I suck at shoveling.

Our driveway is on the bottom.  My neighbor’s is on the top.

 Hehe.   :)

xoxo

B