A sweet craft for vacation time

Anyone else like to ride this ship?

Feeling thankful for local Christmas cards!

Bavarian Christmas Holiday Time... ... is upon us again, so in my now annual attempt to pre-empt the regular series of questions that are often asked, here are some holiday-time tips for what, and when you can do it, during the Christmas holiday time, although to be honest this year is nothing special. - Friday 22nd December - Bavarian state schools close at about midday and are pretty much the last in Germany to do so (many other German states already finished on Wednesday or Thursday). This likely adds to the rush to the mountains for people starting Christmas vacations so Autobahns in all directions will be busy. This year might not be quite so bad because of the Saturday buffer. Anybody flying with school-age children in the hours or days before this time will likely be asked by border police to show proof that their children do not need to attend school. Few state schools will allow children to take time off at this time, without a VERY good reason (like certified sickness or a death in the family) - Saturday 23rd December – a “normal” Saturday, but for many stores the last day they will be open before Wednesday, so expect stocks of basic foods to exhaust early as the Germans appear to stock up in preparation for the onset of World War 3, and anticipate some very special offers at the end of the day to clear the shelves of what is finally left. - Sunday 24th December – this is a bit of a strange one this year. §15 of the Ladenschlussgesetz (the regulation governing shop opening hours) allows stores/supermarkets that sell primarily foodstuffs, bread and cake shops, flower stores and (curiously) places selling Christmas trees to open for up to 3 hours when December 24 falls on a Sunday, but they must close latest 2pm. While some supermarkets WILL open, Aldi, Lidl, Rewe and Penny have already announced they will stay closed, some supermarket franchises such as some Edeka stores WILL be open as they can decide on an individual basis. The Munich Christkindlmarkt will close at 2pm and the 2017 Christmas market finally ends on this day. This is a close family time for most folks in Bavaria and during the afternoon and evening many exchange presents. Very few bars or restaurants will be open after midday so make sure you have plenty of beer and chocolates at home. The city will be dead after 2pm as all the locals go back to and stay at home, set fire to the Christmas tree, exchange presents in the family and munch on their goose and nutroast. - Monday 25th December - Christmas day and a formal public holiday so all stores are closed. Many bars and restaurants WILL be open on this day (some only at lunchtime), but call to check or make reservations if you plan to visit any. Often the day when Germans visit their relatives. - Tuesday 26th December – the second day of Christmas and also a public holiday - all shops will be closed, but tourist travel routes will be busy again, especially if there is snow in the south. Most bars and restaurants open. - Wednesday 27th December - this is a normal day - most (all?) shops and stores open. Unless they have a generous employer, workers must take this day (and the rest of the week) from their vacation allowance if they want to take it as a holiday. - Thursday 28th December - a normal day, although this is the first day that fireworks can be sold for the New Year celebrations. Expect the shops to be full of them and busy selling the best ones to the first-comers (I recommend Aldi and LIdl for the best value and often the largest firecrackers). Note that legally you are not allowed to ignite any class II fireworks before midnight on December 30th and not after midnight on January 1st - Friday 29th December- a normal day, such as it can be. - Saturday 30th December – a normal Saturday, and your last chance to buy fireworks for tomorrow. - Sunday 31st December- in theory a normal Sunday, but of course also New Years Eve, otherwise not much going on, It'll be quiet again around town but bars and restaurants will fill up quickly for the new Year celebrations. A reservation in any restaurant is almost a must. Watch the perennial "Dinner for One" on German TV for the umpteenth time so you can discuss it with all your Bavarian friends, but still laugh as you repeat "always the same procedure" 3 times, and wonder why. From midnight all hell breaks loose across the city as residents celebrate the New Year. If you are at home expect neighbours or even strangers to maybe rattle on your door to share a glass of sekt, and be nice to you for maybe the only time this year. - Monday 1st January - a public holiday, so all shops and stores closed as usual, Pretty quiet as people try to nurse their heads better from the night before. Try to be a nice citizen and clean your firework detritus from the night before off the streets. Few do and it can become a hazard for drivers and pedestrians alike. - Tuesday 2nd January - a normal day, and for many the first day back at work. - Wednesday 3rd-Friday 5th January - normal days. But make sure you get your supplies in early on Friday as there is a public holiday the next day and there will be no more chances to buy anything before Monday. - Saturday 6th January - public holiday (but only here in the Catholic south) - everywhere closed except bars and restaurants (of course!). Expect to get visits during the day and early evening from groups of small children dressed as the 3 Kings celebrating Epiphany. They will sing a song, read some text and expect you to make a donation for a local charity - they may want to chalk on your door to signify their visit and bring you luck for the rest of the year - Sunday 7th January - a normal Sunday - Monday 8th January - state schools return to lessons and normality, such as it is, descends on Bavaria again... but the madness of Fasching is around the corner (middle of February) and the good news is that ALL the remaining TEN public holidays in Bavaria in 2018 fall during the week, so none are lost at weekends and as three fall on Thursdays they offer the opportunity for an especially long weekend.

Get out your skates it‘s time for winter sport! Iceskating in Planegg!

So cool!

Ancient knowledge

For all you prego‘s