Traveling for the holidays

The first question people invariably asked when we announced our plans was, just where in Germany were we going? Our response — a little village in the middle of Germany you’ve never heard of, called Tiefenort. This then caused them to ask what big city is it closest to? Frankfurt isn’t really close, but that’s where one flies into. From there, though, we still had a two-hour train ride, followed by a half-hour drive, pretty much due northeast.

Tiefenort is a picturesque little village tucked in among rolling hills on the edge of the Thuringian forest. It consists of a cluster of midsized houses, a church and just a few basic shops. There are no hotels, few restaurants and little else. But the people are warm and friendly, and it is a picture-perfect place that feels quintessentially German.

We arrived too late to experience Tiefenort’s own small Christmas Market, so we took a day trip to Erfurt, which is the largest city in the state of Thuringia. Erfurt’s large Christmas Market was still underway and proved delightful. These markets are entirely out-of-doors and are constructed just for the season in the city’s open squares. The market consists of a series of stalls, all matching in style and materials, manned by mostly local vendors. From them you can obtain a wide variety of gift items, from simple trinkets to expensive clothing and jewelry. Many of the stalls sell food and drink, so it is very common to see shoppers wandering around with glasses of beer, wine or glühwein (a lovely mulled wine just perfect for a cool winter evening). And I do mean glasses: drinks come in a glass you pay for in advance. You either keep the glass as a souvenir, or you return it to the stall from where you got it, for a refund. This is delightfully civilized, and a great way to keep from having to recycle foam or paper cups.

After visiting a number of stalls in Erfurt’s Christmas Market, we cut the experience a bit short when it was time for another German tradition: afternoon coffee and cake. At around 3 p.m., many Germans head to a nearby bakery to have a piece of cake and a beverage of their choice, usually coffee or tea. This is one tradition I wouldn’t mind importing to the states, although my waistline would certainly suffer.

Although there are still a couple of days until Christmas, so far I’ve seen few significant differences in how the locals celebrate the season. Christmas music on the radio? Most of it is familiar. And most, I was surprised to hear, is in English. Perhaps the most significant difference, I’ve noticed so far, is that Germans, in this part of the country at least, don’t make a big deal of decorating their houses. Although the home we’re staying in has a Christmas tree that would fit right in anywhere in America, I’ve yet to see a single inflatable snowman or Santa in any of the villages and towns we’ve been through. In fact, I haven’t even seen a single string of lights on the outside of a house. The only decorations I’ve  seen — and they are few — are the interior decorations visible through the windows of various homes, plus a few tastefully decorated shop windows meant to entice shoppers.

So far, this year’s trip to Germany hasn’t revealed any magical traditions that I’ve just got to bring back home. However, the trip is serving to emphasize how many people around the world are more alike than they are different. And that is a lesson that we all could stand to learn.

Greg Wilson is the creator of Walking Redwood City, a blog inspired by his walks throughout Redwood City and adjacent communities. He can be reached at greg@walkingRedwoodCity.com. Follow Greg on Twitter @walkingRWC.