Strasbourg, the Capital of Christmas
Before leaving the
U.S. there was one place I wanted to make sure I visited, and that place was Strasbourg. One of the girls who had participated in this program before me had informed me that the largest Christmas market in France was located in Strasbourg and was supposed to be fabulous, which definitely perked my interest. I decided that no matter what I did, I was going to go to Strasbourg. Originally I had planned to find someone on the internet through couchsurfing.com where I could sleep for the night, so as to not pay anything for my lodging, but it just so happened that one of my French friends who I met at North Central College moved to Strasbourg for his studies, so I really lucked out with a great place to stay. He and his girlfriend were so great to let me stay with them. I mean, they were amazing, paying for tram tickets and food, etc. Really unnecessary, but wow, really wonderful. I am just so fortunate to have friends like him who want to welcome me into their lives without any question or problem. I hope that I will be able to welcome them someday into my home, once I am settled somewhere and have renounced this vagabond life that thrills me right now. 
Someday I know that I will have the occasion to meet them again, to show them a little of my life. For now, I am content to have shared my perspective with them and to have seen theirs and to have exchanged ideas and to have made memories. I think that this trip to Strasbourg is one of my favorite memories from this time in France. I have many, but it is the friends, I realize, that really make the memories extraordinary. I mean, I made a lot of great memories this summer, alone and seeking adventure, but it is true that my friends and the activities I did with them far outweigh anything I did alone. Funny how people can make that much of a difference, isn’t it?
So, Strasbourg! It is a lovely city. I could happily settle into Strasbourg, with its German influences and its simple and typical downtown center. It is a little expensive….well, the cheese is really expensive! I looked at the prices, and wow, I did not buy anything. I am not really used to paying eight euros for a block of cheese. I am sure that it was good, but whatever, I did try a little of the very interesting yellow cheese they make in the area. There are a total of 416 AOC cheeses in France, which means, the names of the che
ese are controlled by the government to control the quality and the production. I am not sure how many come out of this region, but I am guessing a solid percentage since it is very mountainous and full of cows and goats…just what one needs for good cheese. Well, sorry for the cheese tangent, I would delete it, but I much prefer to just go with the flow.
My friends are in a master’s program in Strasbourg, so we explored the town around their schedule of classes, one of which I visited with them. I immensely enjoyed the professor who talked about the French language and its political transformation, from being a language of the kings to becoming more standardized and more approachable for the masses, replacing Latin in official documents. Currently, there is an official surveillance system over the French language called the French Academy, which monitors all that could possibly affect the
integrity of the French language, and it is this group who decides whether they should allow a change to be made official…I suppose kind of like Webster, except that it is much more formal and resistant to change. Anyway, the relevance of this tidbit of information is that it was created in 1635, during the period where the French language was becoming more expansively useful. In fact, thanks to the work of standardization that the Academy did, French became the language of diplomacy and really spread all over Europe. I found it very interesting, how people use language to communicate and how those languages spread, etc. I have become much more fascinated by languages since arriving in France becau
se I have seen how important it is to communicate with just the right words and the right intonation. I have never taken for granted the ability to communicate before living here in France since I have traveled quite a lot, but I think that the notion of communication has become much more pronounced since my stay here.
It seems as if I have digressed long enough, so as for what I actually did in Strasbourg, I will move onto that now J Just as I wrote in the title to this entry, Strasbourg is the “Capital of Christmas,” and I must say, they are right. I mean, there are Christmas decorations all over the city, which surround small Christmas markets spread all over the city. I was not expecting to see several small Christmas markets, but instead expected one large Christmas market maybe in the center of town or somewhere else, but regardless, just one massive space. Instead, the markets were scattered all over the town, which I found to be a lot more pleasant since the Christmas mood was consequently also draped over the whole city. It is kind of comical, but my first two days in Strasbourg, I did not see it during the daylight, only after the sunset; this is not really that hard to do considering the sun sets around 5 pm or even before. The lights were truly brilliant, casting a lovely glow on the sides of very old homes and stores, in the timber frame German style.
This is what you will find at a Ch
ristmas market: hot, spiced wine, pretzels, crêpes, waffles, churros (I know, that is a little strange, but the French call them chichis and you can eat them with Nutella…delicious), gingerbread or spiced bread (pain d’épices), chocolate in many different forms, candied nuts, roasted chestnuts, ornaments, garland, even Christmas trees, crafts like hand-knitted gloves and hats, leather and wood-carved goods, pottery, hand etched glass, candles, handmade toys, and many other interesting things that I cannot describe with precision. However, the importance is that the market is much more than just Christmas ornaments. You could honestly buy all your Christmas presents in one swoop at the market. Fortunately, we went on Thursday and Friday when it was not too crowded because Saturday was ridiculous, so crowded, I could not even imagine trying to find something to buy. I hate crowds and refuse to push my way through in order to find something. I find it to 
be a waste of time and too stressful that I do not even appreciate the blessing of being outside and buying gifts for people I love. It was definitely a good choice since I also was downtown on Saturday, and it was a madhouse! I went into the Strasbourg cathedral, which has a very German feel to it, and it was packed full of people. I have never seen a church so full of people before. The sad thing was that everyone felt like they had to keep moving and I was not able to take my time like I normally enjoy doing. Oh, well.
There are two rivers in Strasbourg, the more famous of the two being the Rhine, which actually separates France from Germany; the other is much smaller, and more like a little canal or stream than a river. It is called the Lille. It runs throughout the city, and also winds around the European Union Parliament; that was quite cool to see. I forgot that the EU Parliament is in Strasbourg. It formed a little district of EU buildings and complexes. My friends told me that the Rhine was not really worth visiting because there were no pretty bridges nor really anything to see, so I took their word for it and just enjoyed the small stream, which wound throughout the downtown, particularly lovely in the very old center, dubbed the “Small France.” I am still not sure why it is called that, but there were many restaurants and stores that capitalized on this name, plus it was written on the map, meaning it is quite well-known. I find it interesting how places develop nicknames. Maybe it was someone famous who once said that this small area of Strasbourg was so beautiful and full of typical houses that it seemed as if it encapsulated all of France. Who knows…it was just a question I asked myself but never bothered to utter aloud.
It did not snow while I was in the city,
but it was so cold. We walked around for several hours each day, and it just took the energy right out of us. I could not stop myself from yawning. One of the best moments was the concert that we attended on Saturday night. All throughout Strasbourg for the month of December there are free Christmas concerts; this particular concert was held at St. Thomas’s Church near the “Small France” district. Oh, was it charming. I did not understand many of the words of what they were singing, but I sure did appreciate the music and the ambience – soft lighting, melodic voices, and people wrapped up in their jackets with packages at their feet – and even recognized several of the tunes toward the end. I could not help myself from murmuring the lyrics to some of the songs, even though I was singing in English and they were singing in French. The conductor invited us all to join in at the very end with two songs that are very well-known “Silent Night” and “Amazing Grace,” which the French turned into a Christmas song…what tranquility!
Besides drinking in the stunning buildings and the cozy Christmas shacks where all the products were being sold, I so enjoyed our evenings together. We cooked in their minuscule kitchen, well, in their minuscule apartment, which was more or less an attic, which they had so pleasantly decorated an
d which they kept so clean and tidy. I would love to have a little place just like theirs, well, maybe not for a long time, but I found it so warm and cozy. I brought my canned pumpkin that my mom brought me from the U.S. and I made a pumpkin pie or tart, since it was in France and in a tart pan. We had fondue, which I have decided is one of my absolutely favorite things to eat in the winter, with delicious cookies we bought in town at one of those shishy stores where you can make your own gift packages, with a lovely tin or basket, then with candy and cookies, etc. Anyway, it was a real treat! We talked over wine and food, sharing our opinions and stories, talking about Christmas traditions, divorces (both my friend’s parents and mine are divorced), our governments, the right to work on Sunday (in France, it is illegal for the majority of stores to be open for the whole day, except some restaurants and bakeries and maybe some grocery stores, but only for half of the day), and many others things, speaking frankly and openly. I think that one of
the best things about being young, and hopefully about being alive in general, is that one can discuss things, one can open his/her heart and one can learn. I learned a lot of French words this weekend and worked on becoming more precise with my own handle on the language.
This trip to Strasbourg was my last trip in France. I have four assignments left to complete then I am off to Paris and back home. How fast six and a half months have passed. I suppose that is the thing with life, you just never know how quickly it is going to pass until you are standing at the other end of whatever you were experiencing and you can say…”Wow, I never thought it was going to be like that.”
U.S. there was one place I wanted to make sure I visited, and that place was Strasbourg. One of the girls who had participated in this program before me had informed me that the largest Christmas market in France was located in Strasbourg and was supposed to be fabulous, which definitely perked my interest. I decided that no matter what I did, I was going to go to Strasbourg. Originally I had planned to find someone on the internet through couchsurfing.com where I could sleep for the night, so as to not pay anything for my lodging, but it just so happened that one of my French friends who I met at North Central College moved to Strasbourg for his studies, so I really lucked out with a great place to stay. He and his girlfriend were so great to let me stay with them. I mean, they were amazing, paying for tram tickets and food, etc. Really unnecessary, but wow, really wonderful. I am just so fortunate to have friends like him who want to welcome me into their lives without any question or problem. I hope that I will be able to welcome them someday into my home, once I am settled somewhere and have renounced this vagabond life that thrills me right now. 
Someday I know that I will have the occasion to meet them again, to show them a little of my life. For now, I am content to have shared my perspective with them and to have seen theirs and to have exchanged ideas and to have made memories. I think that this trip to Strasbourg is one of my favorite memories from this time in France. I have many, but it is the friends, I realize, that really make the memories extraordinary. I mean, I made a lot of great memories this summer, alone and seeking adventure, but it is true that my friends and the activities I did with them far outweigh anything I did alone. Funny how people can make that much of a difference, isn’t it?So, Strasbourg! It is a lovely city. I could happily settle into Strasbourg, with its German influences and its simple and typical downtown center. It is a little expensive….well, the cheese is really expensive! I looked at the prices, and wow, I did not buy anything. I am not really used to paying eight euros for a block of cheese. I am sure that it was good, but whatever, I did try a little of the very interesting yellow cheese they make in the area. There are a total of 416 AOC cheeses in France, which means, the names of the che
ese are controlled by the government to control the quality and the production. I am not sure how many come out of this region, but I am guessing a solid percentage since it is very mountainous and full of cows and goats…just what one needs for good cheese. Well, sorry for the cheese tangent, I would delete it, but I much prefer to just go with the flow.My friends are in a master’s program in Strasbourg, so we explored the town around their schedule of classes, one of which I visited with them. I immensely enjoyed the professor who talked about the French language and its political transformation, from being a language of the kings to becoming more standardized and more approachable for the masses, replacing Latin in official documents. Currently, there is an official surveillance system over the French language called the French Academy, which monitors all that could possibly affect the
integrity of the French language, and it is this group who decides whether they should allow a change to be made official…I suppose kind of like Webster, except that it is much more formal and resistant to change. Anyway, the relevance of this tidbit of information is that it was created in 1635, during the period where the French language was becoming more expansively useful. In fact, thanks to the work of standardization that the Academy did, French became the language of diplomacy and really spread all over Europe. I found it very interesting, how people use language to communicate and how those languages spread, etc. I have become much more fascinated by languages since arriving in France becau
se I have seen how important it is to communicate with just the right words and the right intonation. I have never taken for granted the ability to communicate before living here in France since I have traveled quite a lot, but I think that the notion of communication has become much more pronounced since my stay here.It seems as if I have digressed long enough, so as for what I actually did in Strasbourg, I will move onto that now J Just as I wrote in the title to this entry, Strasbourg is the “Capital of Christmas,” and I must say, they are right. I mean, there are Christmas decorations all over the city, which surround small Christmas markets spread all over the city. I was not expecting to see several small Christmas markets, but instead expected one large Christmas market maybe in the center of town or somewhere else, but regardless, just one massive space. Instead, the markets were scattered all over the town, which I found to be a lot more pleasant since the Christmas mood was consequently also draped over the whole city. It is kind of comical, but my first two days in Strasbourg, I did not see it during the daylight, only after the sunset; this is not really that hard to do considering the sun sets around 5 pm or even before. The lights were truly brilliant, casting a lovely glow on the sides of very old homes and stores, in the timber frame German style.
This is what you will find at a Ch
ristmas market: hot, spiced wine, pretzels, crêpes, waffles, churros (I know, that is a little strange, but the French call them chichis and you can eat them with Nutella…delicious), gingerbread or spiced bread (pain d’épices), chocolate in many different forms, candied nuts, roasted chestnuts, ornaments, garland, even Christmas trees, crafts like hand-knitted gloves and hats, leather and wood-carved goods, pottery, hand etched glass, candles, handmade toys, and many other interesting things that I cannot describe with precision. However, the importance is that the market is much more than just Christmas ornaments. You could honestly buy all your Christmas presents in one swoop at the market. Fortunately, we went on Thursday and Friday when it was not too crowded because Saturday was ridiculous, so crowded, I could not even imagine trying to find something to buy. I hate crowds and refuse to push my way through in order to find something. I find it to 
be a waste of time and too stressful that I do not even appreciate the blessing of being outside and buying gifts for people I love. It was definitely a good choice since I also was downtown on Saturday, and it was a madhouse! I went into the Strasbourg cathedral, which has a very German feel to it, and it was packed full of people. I have never seen a church so full of people before. The sad thing was that everyone felt like they had to keep moving and I was not able to take my time like I normally enjoy doing. Oh, well.There are two rivers in Strasbourg, the more famous of the two being the Rhine, which actually separates France from Germany; the other is much smaller, and more like a little canal or stream than a river. It is called the Lille. It runs throughout the city, and also winds around the European Union Parliament; that was quite cool to see. I forgot that the EU Parliament is in Strasbourg. It formed a little district of EU buildings and complexes. My friends told me that the Rhine was not really worth visiting because there were no pretty bridges nor really anything to see, so I took their word for it and just enjoyed the small stream, which wound throughout the downtown, particularly lovely in the very old center, dubbed the “Small France.” I am still not sure why it is called that, but there were many restaurants and stores that capitalized on this name, plus it was written on the map, meaning it is quite well-known. I find it interesting how places develop nicknames. Maybe it was someone famous who once said that this small area of Strasbourg was so beautiful and full of typical houses that it seemed as if it encapsulated all of France. Who knows…it was just a question I asked myself but never bothered to utter aloud.
It did not snow while I was in the city,
but it was so cold. We walked around for several hours each day, and it just took the energy right out of us. I could not stop myself from yawning. One of the best moments was the concert that we attended on Saturday night. All throughout Strasbourg for the month of December there are free Christmas concerts; this particular concert was held at St. Thomas’s Church near the “Small France” district. Oh, was it charming. I did not understand many of the words of what they were singing, but I sure did appreciate the music and the ambience – soft lighting, melodic voices, and people wrapped up in their jackets with packages at their feet – and even recognized several of the tunes toward the end. I could not help myself from murmuring the lyrics to some of the songs, even though I was singing in English and they were singing in French. The conductor invited us all to join in at the very end with two songs that are very well-known “Silent Night” and “Amazing Grace,” which the French turned into a Christmas song…what tranquility!Besides drinking in the stunning buildings and the cozy Christmas shacks where all the products were being sold, I so enjoyed our evenings together. We cooked in their minuscule kitchen, well, in their minuscule apartment, which was more or less an attic, which they had so pleasantly decorated an
d which they kept so clean and tidy. I would love to have a little place just like theirs, well, maybe not for a long time, but I found it so warm and cozy. I brought my canned pumpkin that my mom brought me from the U.S. and I made a pumpkin pie or tart, since it was in France and in a tart pan. We had fondue, which I have decided is one of my absolutely favorite things to eat in the winter, with delicious cookies we bought in town at one of those shishy stores where you can make your own gift packages, with a lovely tin or basket, then with candy and cookies, etc. Anyway, it was a real treat! We talked over wine and food, sharing our opinions and stories, talking about Christmas traditions, divorces (both my friend’s parents and mine are divorced), our governments, the right to work on Sunday (in France, it is illegal for the majority of stores to be open for the whole day, except some restaurants and bakeries and maybe some grocery stores, but only for half of the day), and many others things, speaking frankly and openly. I think that one of
the best things about being young, and hopefully about being alive in general, is that one can discuss things, one can open his/her heart and one can learn. I learned a lot of French words this weekend and worked on becoming more precise with my own handle on the language.This trip to Strasbourg was my last trip in France. I have four assignments left to complete then I am off to Paris and back home. How fast six and a half months have passed. I suppose that is the thing with life, you just never know how quickly it is going to pass until you are standing at the other end of whatever you were experiencing and you can say…”Wow, I never thought it was going to be like that.”
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