Once upon a time in the 70s, Neil Young...
No, just kidding! This post isn't about Neil, it's about that other great cultural icon from the 70s... my mom!
You see, back in The Day, Mom visited the Christkindlesmarkt in Nurnberg and bought a load of neat-o Christmas ornaments that would be admired by her female offspring for years to come. (P.S. According to Mom, she was not dressed appropriately for outdoor Christmas market shopping and remembers being quite cold. I'm sure we can all learn a lesson from this).
Anyway, now it's 2006, it's the Holiday Season, Mom and I are in Germany, and so we had no choice but to take a little nostalgic trip to Nurnberg and make sure the right kinds of ornaments are still being sold. Our mission was three-fold: buy cute wooden angels, consume lebkucken and gluhwein, wear weather-appropriate attire.
No, just kidding! This post isn't about Neil, it's about that other great cultural icon from the 70s... my mom!
You see, back in The Day, Mom visited the Christkindlesmarkt in Nurnberg and bought a load of neat-o Christmas ornaments that would be admired by her female offspring for years to come. (P.S. According to Mom, she was not dressed appropriately for outdoor Christmas market shopping and remembers being quite cold. I'm sure we can all learn a lesson from this).
Anyway, now it's 2006, it's the Holiday Season, Mom and I are in Germany, and so we had no choice but to take a little nostalgic trip to Nurnberg and make sure the right kinds of ornaments are still being sold. Our mission was three-fold: buy cute wooden angels, consume lebkucken and gluhwein, wear weather-appropriate attire.
Mom: She hath returned.
We were lucky (a.k.a. crafty) enough to hit Nurnberg on the day that the market started. There is an opening ceremony of sorts after dark when the Christkind appears to the crowd and declares the market open. Chirstkind actually literally translates as "Chirst Child," but the Nurnberg Christkind is actually a teenage female angel. Go figure. The event takes place in front of the Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady). First, they turn off all the outdoor lights; there's a bit of narration, and a children's choir sings...
And then...tada! The Chirstkind appears in a blaze of light up on a balcony of the Frauenkirche, surrounded by two angel attendants and a brass band! And the kids siiiiiing their little hearts out.
Then the Christkind makes a speech, reciting a traditional poem that welcomes everyone to the market. And she spreads her arms/wings for dramatic effect. And the kids sing some more. And lots of people in the crowd get tears frozen to their cheeks.
And lo, there appeared before two Moreys a few of the heavenly host, some chilly kids, and some German trumpeters, praising God and saying, "Go shopping!"
2 comments:
I am humbled to be represented (dare I say immortalized?) on such an auspicious blog - of course, it should be noted that, in order to protect my identity, a quite common-looking stand-in was used for all potentially incriminating photos :)
Monica's mom
Hi Monica! Sandy and I were just keeping up to date with your blog. We wanted to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a ton of fun in 2007! We really like reading about all your adventures so we can know when to meet with you at the next big European extravaganza! Sandy and Mo
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