To Market, To Market: Christmas in Europe

A skier's Christmas tree in Colmar

Gingerbread is available in all the markets. 

Christmas is a special time of year for me.  I love all the traditions that my family has built up around the season–and, believe me, we have many! Certainly, Canada is the place I want to spend Christmas day, but the weeks prior to it are pretty fantastic you happen to live in Europe. The lights in every city and the charm of street markets are very special indeed.

Megan and Mara pose in front of the Christmas tree in Place des Halles in Neuchâtel

To be honest, I am just a little obsessed with the Christmas markets which pop up in cities around Europe as soon as the Advent season begins. Last year, I traveled to Germany, France and several places here in Switzerland to enjoy the market atmosphere and to shop for gifts. This year, I managed to see even more destinations, combining my travel for work and leisure with time spent in front of a wooden kiosk.

Festive Carnaby Street

When I was in London on November 22nd, I did not expect the festive atmosphere that I encountered in the city, but, by the time of my visit, decorations were festooned everywhere and a little market had popped up in front of St. James Church in Picadilly. Here I bought the first of many stocking stuffers for my family back home.

One of the booths in the little market in London

On a Sunday a week later, I traveled 30 minutes to Bern to visit the two market locations there. The larger market in the Weisenhausplatz was merely a variation of the one that stands in this area year-round. It was made more seasonal with the addition of some lights and evergreens, and, of course, since Bern is German speaking, vendors selling sausages and beer.

Entering the Weisenhausplatz

Crowds at Munsterplatz.

The other Bernese market next to the Munster was the place to acquire unique gifs made by local artisans, and more sausages and beer, of course. It was very crowded that day.

In Vienna, even the trees are decorated

In early December, as I documented in my last blog post, I traveled to Vienna with the NESDA team. On our walking tour around the city, we encountered markets in four locations.  Each had its own charm. We lingered in the one near Stephenplatz at lunchtime that day and shopped for about a half hour in the market in Maria-Theresien Platz. The next morning we spent an hour and half in the largest one in front of the Rathaus, when our hosts took us there by bus.

Kiosks at Maria-Theresien Platz

We all enjoyed exploring the Viennese markets. I picked up more stocking stuffers and a parchment paper journal for my "Secret Santa" recipient. I love these homemade gifts–good thing, since my "Secret Santa" (Terry) bought me the same thing.

Night-time Viennese streetscape at Christmas

More Viennese lights

In December, Vienna's pedestrian main streets are a feast for the eyes. Brightly lit decorations abound. I particularly loved exploring the city after dark. It put me in the Christmas spirit, for sure.

Sundried tomato products on sale in Neuchâtel

I picked up some Titanium jewelry here

Back in Neuchâtel the following week, I decided after school one day to visit the city's indoor Christmas Market, a set up very much like Toronto's One-of-a-Kind Show, but on a much smaller scale. Here the goods are from towns close by. In fact, I had made a trip to one of those outlying communities a few weeks beforehand to shop for treasures in a private home. There I ended up buying items made by one of the women who houses two of our students: these were gifts to myself.

Gifts for myself

On the final Sunday in Switzerland before we all headed home for the holidays, a group of staff traveled to Colmar in the Alsace region of France. This day was the highlight of my Christmas shopping experience.

Jen, Terry, Adam and Bill at the Colmar train station. Patti and Jacob were with us too.

Decorations along the canal in Colmar

Horse ride at the Children's Market

The city has five market areas, and on this day, we were blessed with beautiful sunshine as we made our way through the town. As is common in the region, houses were often cleverly decorated too.

Beautiful Colmar

A decorated house

Crowds gather

It was fun to share the day with my colleagues, as we stopped for lunch in the "La Petite Venise" district for a local specialty, the Tarte Flambée, before tackling the important business of shopping.

Cups and pots for sale

The Alsace region is known for its markets so it was no surprise that these ones were the best I experienced this year. They were beautiful in both the daytime and the evening when the entire town is illuminated.

Another decorated house

The Children's Market at night.

In my final week of classes, I could not resist going to even more markets. (I really am obsessed.) I had heard that the one in Montreux was the best in the country, so I hopped onto a train after my last class on Monday in order to spend an hour there.

A glass-blower's products for sale in Montreux. The man himself is in the middle of the photo.

The beauty of this market is in its setting on Lake Geneva, and its children's playground. It does not cover a large area but it is very charming.

Kiosks in front of the lake

The children's area - a small park.

I got a kick out of two kiosks in particular, both run by Montrealers: one sold maple syrup products while the other offered poutine. Apparently Ti-Jean and his friend come to Montreux for a few weeks every year to give the Swiss a taste of French-Canadian culture.

No business for Ti-Jean at this moment.

On the Wednesday, I squeezed in another market visit, this time to nearby Solothurn. It was the smallest of the ones I saw. Still, I found some more stocking stuffers here as well.

Fires warm up the customers in Solothurn

Finally, as I was heading to the airport the night before my return to Canada for the school holiday, I visited the Zurich market housed in the train station. It is notable for its beautiful tree adorned with Swarovski Crystals and colourful lights on the brick walls. Apparently it is the most expensive Christmas market in the world. All I spent my money on though was some raclette, a Swiss cheese and potato dish.

Crystal tinsel on the tree

The "Welcome" sign is part of the light show on the wall of the train station in Zurich

By the time I boarded my flight home on Friday morning, I had a suitcase full of gifts for family and friends. I was ready for Christmas Day!

Open for Dialogue

Terry and I pose with our team in front of the magnificent Austrian Parliament Building

One of my responsibilities at NJC is selecting and coaching the NESDA team. Last year I worked alongside Dan Martin, but with his departure from the school in June, I became the lead teacher, although I was ably assisted this fall by Terry Reynolds. The New European Speech, Debate and Acting Association celebrates the spoken word in a unique speech arts competition that takes place twice during the school year. We had tryouts early in the semester in acting and debate, whittling down fourteen talented prospects to the requisite number of ten. Then we got together twice weekly to prepare the students in five events.

Terry and the team pose upon arrival in Vienna

Happily for us, the competition was hosted by the American School of Vienna. Although we would not start our performances until Friday, we travelled after school on Wednesday. That allowed us a full day to visit this magnificent city. Lyn, our school's travel planner, suggested we start by taking in the Spanish Riding School's morning exercises. Then, it would be up to me to conduct a tour of the city. No problem, I thought, I had visited Vienna in May and (sort of) knew my way around.

Horses and riders at the Spanish Riding School

The weather on Thursday was ideal, and thanks to a very helpful hotel concierge, we found our way to central Vienna with ease. Although they lacked the pageantry of the show, the morning exercises were interesting. Clearly the Lippizan horses are impressive to look at and very well trained, but after an hour and half of watching them go through their manoeuvres, we were eager to get outside and explore the city.

Our group outside the Imperial Palace

Our walk took us by most of Vienna's "must see" sites. I really enjoyed being the guide, and only got us lost once.

Vienna's opera house

The group and I pose at the Hapsburg Gate in the Imperial Palace

One of the highlights of the day was a spontaneous game of frisbee, thanks to Terry's foresight. He pulled one out of his knapsack and within a few minutes, he and the students were burning off energy on the Heldenplatz (the Hero's Square). What a wonderful thing to do on a December afternoon!

Frisbee game in front of the statue of Archduke Charles.

Another bonus of the day were the many Christmas markets we encountered along our route. These pleased and delighted us all, and were the source of many gifts, and delicious street food and drink over the weekend. The largest of these was the one in front of the Rathaus, which we walked through very quickly since we knew that our hosts had organized a visit there the next morning.

Emma and Jennie enjoyed shopping at the Christmas Village at Maria-Theresien Platz

The Viennese Christmas Market in front of the Rathaus

The last stop of our tour was the iconic Café Central, where notable Viennese inhabitants like Trotsky and Freud had once gathered with friends. On my advice, many of us sampled the famous local cake there, the Sachertorte.

Inside Café Central

Amazingly, we found a space for twelve at the Café Central.

Our Thursday evening was spent at dinner near our hotel and then the students prepared for the big show the next day. They were very committed to excellence!!

For thespians, the focus of this competition is serious drama. To that end, our acting teams chose three strong pieces. In Madeleine Martin's "Something Happened Here", Jennie and Emma brought to life the aftermath of the rape of a teenager whose timid friend struggles to advise her.

Jennie and Emma put on their game faces.

In another two woman piece, Sasha embodied a well-meaning social worker confronted by Laura as a desperate mother who has lost custody of her son in a scene from "Final Placement" by Ara Watson.

Laura gets in Sasha's face in "Final Placement"

In "The Sniper" by Anthony David and Elaine Romero, Grace played an ambitious Moroccan journalist who is in a complicated relationship with Kieran's conflicted Israeli sniper.

Clearly Grace wants this relationship more than Kieran

You will notice that all acting pairs were attired in "theatre blacks". The competition forbids props and costumes, so that the performances themselves are the entire basis for judging.

Alana and Taylor looking professional

Meanwhile, our two debate teams worked together to prepare their arguments on the following resolution:" The pharmaceutical industry creates more problems than solutions." The rules of the competition are such that teams must defend both the affirmative and the negative sides of the resolution, so they must do extensive research, and make copious notes.

Brianna and Graham hide their competitive nature under smiles

Only one of our debaters had experience in the field before the competition, so there was a steep learning curve of debate rules and etiquette as well. The ability to think on one's feet is required too, since all teams must participate in an impromptu debate during the competition.

Brianna and Graham: ready to go!

Beyond these team events, all of our students took part in individual competitions too: Alana, Taylor, Kieran, Graham and Jennie tried their hand at impromptu speaking, where, given a topic, they had 90 seconds to organize a short speech; Grace, Brianna and Emma read very funny pieces in the oral interpretation event; and Graham, Emma and Laura all wrote and delivered speeches.

Eight teammates support the debaters in the quarter-finals.

By the afternoon of the Saturday, quarter and semi-finalists were announced. Imagine our delight when we discovered that our students' numbers appeared on every list!! All our actors and all our oral interpreters were included. In impromptu speaking, both Kieran and Jennie advanced, and in original oratory, Emma and Laura did the same. Brianna and Graham were our only debate team to move on but Taylor and Alana also did well in the competition, winning two of their three debates and placing in a four way tie for 6th. A scoring tie-breaker left them out of the quarter-finals, however.

A toast from some of the coaches.

Terry and I beaming at the coaches' dinner

By Saturday evening at the coaches dinner, Terry and I had lots to celebrate. Our students had secured themselves a spot in every final–and we were guaranteed a medal in debate as there were only two teams left. Emma, impressively, would compete on Sunday morning in all three events she had entered.

Winners: Jennie, Brianna, Graham and Laura

By the end of the competition, we came away with a gold in debate, and silvers in impromptu speaking and original oratory. With their articulately expressed and thoughtful arguments, Brianna and Graham impressed the crowd, also winning the audience's choice award. Jennie's positivity and warmth shone through as she spoke about "Fortune Favouring the Brave", thus securing her a silver in impromptu speaking while Laura also placed second in original oratory with her passionate and moving speech about her brother's experiences as a sufferer of Tourette's syndrome.

The best team!!

Truly, the entire group was part of this success. From the moment we selected them, we knew we had a strong team. Their solidarity as a team made our time with them in Vienna an absolute pleasure. They could not have supported each other more! Terry and I left the city as extremely proud teachers and coaches. And the students made new friends from all over Europe. After all, the theme of the competition was "Open for Dialogue" and there certainly was lots of that.

London Calling

These elves greeted me outside of Hanley's Toy store in London. I felt just as happy as they were.

When I learned that NJC would not be organizing a theatre excursion to London this year, undaunted, I planned my own trip. One of the things I miss most about Toronto (besides the people, of course) is live theatre, so this weekend escape was like a tonic for me.

My hotel was in this townhouse in the Bayswater area of the city. Great neighbourhood.

I was able to get away early on Friday (you may remember that I have a plum timetable that frees me up at about noon), and make my way to Geneva for my EasyJet flight north. Due to the time difference, I was in London less than an hour later. I had to ask for help several times to figure out how to get to my hotel by Express train and tube, but I did it! 

The Aldwych Theatre is one of the many gems in the West End.

Shortly afterwards, I found my way to the theatre district for my first show of the weekend: Beautiful–the Carole King Musical. I grew up with her music and had heard good things about the this play. I was not disappointed; in fact, I loved every minute. 

Arriving at Burlington House.

The next day, my only full one in the city, was a busy one. While planning this trip, I did my best to lure friends in England to join me in London for part of the weekend. I am very grateful that some made the effort to meet me. 

Janet and Tom at the gate of Burlington House

Janet and Tom came in from Canterbury Saturday morning. They had suggested we meet at The Royal Academy of Arts at Burlington House in order to view the Jean-Etienne Liotard exhibit. I had never heard of this artist or this gallery, but I was intrigued. I soon discovered that he was a Swiss who worked primarily in watercolours. He made his reputation in portrait painting, and deservedly so, as he was brilliant. The fine detail of his works is most impressive.

Liotard self-portrait

It took about an hour to see the exhibition, and then afterwards, the three of us enjoyed lunch in the Royal Academy's restaurant. Our visit was short, but lovely.

The John Guilgud Theatre

Shortly after 2:00, I met Woburn grad, Emily, at the John Guilgud Theatre to see my second production of the weekend, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. This was a very creative and intriguing production of a book that we both had enjoyed. 

Emily in a bookstare

The rest of the afternoon was spent visiting some of London's bookstores and shops with Emily. I very much enjoyed being in an English speaking country, where I could read the latest titles and understand them! The London bookstores are beautiful too, with lots of wood and creative displays everywhere. 

Fortnum and Mason display

Because it was the Christmas season, we had to check out Fortnum and Masons. I was very tempted to buy something–anything–there, but the line-ups were too long, so I resisted.

Fortnum and Mason Window

Eventually, Emily and I made our way to the Soho area in search of a place to eat. We chose an Italian place that advertised itself as a vermouth bar; afterwards, we strolled through the illuminated streets towards the tube station that would take us to our respective destinations. I very much enjoyed my six hours with Emily. It was very sweet of her to make the time to see me.

Selfie in Soho

Carnaby Street was particularly festive

On Sunday morning, I woke up to an absolutely beautiful day. With several hours free before I had to check in at the airport, I decided to go for a walk in my neighbourhood. I headed south ten minutes and found myself in Kensington Gardens. I had not visited this spot for over thirty years.

A fowl feeder in front of the Serpentine

Preening ducks

As my photos can attest, the sky was blue, the water of the Serpentine was shimmering, and the ducks, geese and swans were in a very good mood, as they received a lot of attention that morning. 

Formal Garden

Statue of Victoria in front of Kensington Palace

I walked toward Kensington Palace, once the residence of Princess Diana, and by the Orangery, now a restaurant. A new feature of the area is the Diana, Princess of Wales Children's Playground, a delightful space only open to little ones and accompanying adults. Needless to say, I did not get in, but I was able to take a photo through rhe fence.

The Orangery

Pirate ship in the playground.

After a delicious Lebanese lunch on Bayswater, I picked up my bags and headed to the airport for my return flight. My time in London was much too short. What a fabulous city it is!!