Dear ,
Sorry if you aren't into them, as this is a Christmas Market report. It'll be the only one for the year - I promise!
I visited two different markets at the weekend, one on Saturday and one on Sunday. Both times I was with a mother and her young (2 year old) son. It was an interesting experience ...
There're a lot of things I don't need to tell you about, like all the normal Christmas Market stalls (I had potato fritters 😋 and the boy liked them, too 👍). Or the rides (I ended up on the children's train ride 😳). Or the number of people (Saturday in Darmstadt, it was quite pleasant, Sunday afternoon in Frankfurt, there were heaps of people!).
Moving at 'child speed' was interesting. The little boy slowed right down and stared at the things around him, often moving away from his Mum. I was worried that he might disappear in the crowds.
That didn't happen, but because he was walking alone sometimes, totally focussed on things, he got in the way of other people.
It wasn't just an amazing experience for the lad (1). His Mum was pretty impressed, too. She is not from here and so had never seen a Christmas Market before, or even most of the business part of Frankfurt (she's used the Central Station a bit).
The craziest thing for me was when someone came up and handed the mother the boy's boot! I'd heard something hit the ground, but hadn't realised it was connected to us. Even worse was when I saw that his other boot was missing, too!
I felt sick for a moment, but thankfully we didn't have to back-track too far to find the boot (she'd been carrying him for less than a minute). Also good - no-one else had picked it up and walked off with it!
A bonus for the day was the timing. Waiting for their S-Bahn, he started his ''I'm tired" behaviour. So hopefully he had a lovely nap (2) on the way home 😴.
Are you a Christmas Market person? What is your favourite thing - a particular stall or the atmosphere or something else? Also, have you been to a Christmas Market (or other busy place) with a small child? Did the trip go smoothly, or were there crazy moments? As always, please share any stories you may have.
Don't drink too much mulled wine (3)!
Andrea
(1) lad - boy, common in Scottish English (a girl is a lass)
(2) nap - a short sleep, usually during the day
(3) mulled wine - warmed wine that has some spices added. A Christmas Market specialty!
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