The idea is always lovely: wooden chalets strung with lights, the smell of cinnamon and roasted chestnuts, carols in the air, a cup of mulled wine warming your hands. The reality can be different: crowds, queues, elbows, and the vague pressure to buy something, anything, before you leave.
Christmas markets have a long history. Strasbourg, in Alsace, proudly traces its famous Christkindelsmärik back to 1570, and German-speaking towns have held winter markets for centuries. They were never meant to be shopping malls. They were places to gather, to warm up, to see the town lit up in the darkest season.
Here's how to enjoy one the way it was meant to be enjoyed.
Before you go
- Choose your moment. Weekday evenings, or right at opening time, are usually calmer than Saturday afternoons. - Decide not to shop. Or set yourself one small, specific thing to look for. It changes the whole experience. - Dress warmly. Cold feet ruin everything. Good shoes, a hat, gloves.
How to wander slowly
1. Walk the whole market once without stopping. Just look: the lights, the decorations, the faces. 2. Choose one thing to taste. Mulled wine, hot chocolate, a gingerbread heart, a waffle. Find a quiet corner and enjoy it slowly. 3. Watch a craftsperson at work. A glassblower, a woodcarver, a candle-maker. Ask a question. 4. Listen. Carols, the hum of conversation, the crunch of feet, a child's delighted shout. 5. Look up. Strings of light against the night sky, the church spire above the stalls. 6. Leave while it's still magical. Before you're cold, tired or overwhelmed.
If you do buy something
Choose something made by hand, small and meaningful, and ask the maker about it. A gift with a story is worth ten gifts in a bag.
A gift without the crowd
If you'd rather give something that doesn't require queuing in the cold, the Letter & Magazine bundle brings together a season's letters and an issue of "(meditating) On Art", each letter carrying a meditation and a story about art. A gift to open slowly, long after the market lights are switched off.
Remember to take as much time as you need, and meet me at the next one.
Love, Evi