Frohes Fest und einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr!

Hello friends and family! I'm sorry I have not written anything in almost a month...time really flies by and as things become more and more routine, I think of posting less often (reminders are not unwelcome!). Things have been going quite well for me here and I am officially on Christmas break! Dorina and Raffael (her boyfriend) and I traveled to Germany beginning Saturday around noon and got to our destination (Baunatal) at about 8:30pm. Instead of typing out a potentially long post, I've decided to make a Christmas Video! I hope you enjoy it!



Lots of love from Germany (and Switzerland)!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas
Everywhere you go;
Take a look in the five-and-ten, glistening once again
With candy canes and silver lanes aglow." -Michael Bublé


There are several reasons why this is true. First of all, it's starting to feel like Christmas, because, although Thanksgiving isn't really a thing here, my Christmas Spirit doesn't really kick in until after that 4th Thursday in November. Dorina and I were talking about what brings us into the Christmas spirit, and for me, it really does have to be after Thanksgiving. (Not that there's anything necessarily wrong with you early birds).

Christmas markets (Christkindlmärkte, as I came to know them in Vienna, or Weihnachtsmärktli, as they are called around these parts) have popped up everywhere! Last weekend, I went to Luzern on Saturday with Dorina, her boyfriend, and his parents. There was a gospel choir concert that we wanted to see in the evening, but before that, we explored the Weihnachtsmärktli. Dorina and I fell in love with some knitted hats (and I had forgotten my hat at home, so my cold head made the idea of buying one even more appealing), so we bought matching ones but in different colors. Boy, was it a pain to find one that went nicely with the sort-of-green of my jacket and the various colored scarves that I have. We also enjoyed a nice cup of Glühwein (mulled wine), which makes standing outside for an hour (or however long you're staying) quite bearable.

Dorina and I in our matching hats :-)

 Dorina and I also went out to dinner together in Winterthur (a rare thing, since EVERYTHING is so expensive here), and afterwards, we wandered through Winti's markets as well.

Weihnachtsmärktli in Winterthur!

It also has been snowing. A LOT. And I'm from Michigan, which means I'm used to a lot of snow. Luckily, it doesn't stick around for very long here, but it doesn't really have time to melt when it just keeps snowing. (Thank you, Winterthur, for making me feel at home, but I wasn't really a big fan of snow to begin with...)

and snowing, and snowing, and snowing...

I haven't been outside in a couple of days (I was sick--I'm not just being lazy or snow-scared) but Dorina measured it yesterday and said it was 20cm (almost 8in). And I'm pretty sure it's snowed since then.

Taken from my window. If you think I'm going outside just for a picture...think again.

For now, the snow is okay (as long as the buses are still running). The cities are decorated with lights, which just make the heart a little warmer.

The final, and possibly best, reason why it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, is a very special advent calendar that Dorina and I have been given. Ingrid, the mother of Dorina's boyfriend, bought Dorina and I small presents, all wrapped with a number on them. For 18 days, we have something small to open and celebrate the Advent season with.

A "Merry Christmas" Santa Wreath and some star/snowflake decorations

Strings of Christmas-colored stars and reindeer

Since I obviously couldn't bring all my Christmas stuff with me, it's nice to have these little things to decorate our rooms with and feel a little bit more at home and in the Christmas Spirit. (I just hope I'll have the room to bring it!)

Thirteen days until I leave for Baunatal, Deutschland with Dorina and her boyfriend, Raffael to celebrate Christmas! :-) In the meantime, you'll catch me drinking Nutella Hot Chocolate and listening to my favorite Christmas albums: Michael Bublé and Sounds of the Season '98 (yes, 1998--Thanks Mom and Dad!).

Stay warm! (unless you're Sara or Anna...I know, I know, there's no snow in L.A. or Honduras :-P)