Christmas Markets

I'm writing this at the end of January. The whole country seems more disgruntled than usual. It's cold. It's dark. The streets are covered in a nasty brown salt-and-slush mixture that soaks my boots and leaves white stains on them. I am constantly cold despite the fact that I keep the radiator in my room cranked up to 5. (Radiators are standard here and 5 is as high as any of them seem to go- I keep wishing some one would invent a Spinal Tap-style heater for me. One that could go "up to 6" would be a dream come true.) I run to catch the tram every day not just because I'm running late, but also because I want to spend that much less time outside.

All of this has made me realize just how pleasant Christmastime was in Graz. Picture this: a city square dotted with little huts selling various gifts, foods, and warm drinks, and the entire city gathered around to shop, chat, and enjoy the gemütlich Christmas atmosphere. This was the scene at the Christmas markets -Christkindlmärkte in German- that sprang up throughout the city, which was covered in white lights and various decorations (a giant Advent calendar was even projected onto the outside of the town hall).

Graz had 6 or 7 Christkindlmärkte throughout the city center. The markets can be divided into two categories: 1) those selling Austrian things to mostly foreigners 2) those selling foreign things to mostly Austrians. Really every one went to the markets for the same reason- to buy unique Christmas gifts, and of course Austrian gifts wouldn't seem like anything new or special for Austrians. But the first type was the type that I frequented and have part of pictured here.


Most traditional markets will basically sell a few standard things. There are always stands selling Lebkuchen, which is like gingerbread but milder and with a honey flavor (I can live without it) and often comes in hearts that say various mushy gushy things in German like "Komm Kuscheln" ("come snuggle").

There are also always stands selling wood-cut, mercury glass, and orange- and cinnamon-scented  ornaments.

 Plenty of stands sell various types of Schnapps, oils, and vinegar (preferably organic because Austrians- who smoke like chimneys- just can't IMAGINE putting preservatives into their bodies).

I thought roasted chestnuts were a figment of Nat King Cole's imagination, but stands selling them can be found throughout the city. Chestnuts are huge over here. On the Feast Day of St. Martin, the Name Day of St. Martin, or some sort of holiday having to do with some one named "Martin", Laura (Italian roommate) and some of her Italian friends came over and made an Italian chestnut flour cake for this mysterious day. The cake looked chocolatey and delicious but turned out to taste liken hardened paste. The only ingredients were chestnut flour and water.
I haven't cared for chestnuts since, but Austrians buy "heisse Maroni" wrapped up in newspaper ranging in size from 1/4 liter to an entire liter.

There are also always stands inexplicably selling puppets.

It's really easy to get swept up in the charming, old-world feel of the markets, but as you're shopping you also have to keep in mind that Austria is part of a 21st century global economy, so it's easy for them to buy and sell hecho in China products. This is best demonstrated by stands like "Engelwelt" ("Angel World"), where you could buy the same products you'd find in an Oriental Trading catalogue.

Luckily the question of whether the products at the Christkindlmärkte are "authentically" Austrian or not ceases to bother you after a few glasses of Glühwein. Glühwein is mulled wine, served at every Christkindlmarkt, and is wonderful for a number of reasons.
First, It's is delicious. It's spiced and sweet and tastes like Christmas.
Second, It's is practical. Austria is cold. The cup of Glühwein is warm and alcoholic.
Third, Glühwein is profitable. You can KEEP the mug that it's served in! When you buy a cup of it you pay an extra 2-3 Euros that you get back if you return the mug. If you want another cup they just refill the mug you already have and charge you for the price of the Glühwien, but not for the mug again. Because the price of the mug is absorbed by the price of your first glass, it's almost like you're getting the mug for free. I absolutely love free things (I look forward to going to the dentist so I can get the mini toothpaste and Dr. Bradley Bath, D.D.S. toothbrush) and because of this I now have set of 6 Christkindlmarkt mugs.
 They're nice-looking enough to make my mom, who doesn't drink coffee, only drinks tea seldomly, and has more mugs than she could ever use, have a minor break down when she saw one at Christmas and found out that I didn't get one for her. Luckily my roommate came to the rescue and picked one up for her in Vienna.

Even during Advent it was dark, and it was definitely cold, but the streets were a little brighter when they were covered with Christmas lights, and the weather was a lot more bearable with a Glühwein crutch.

Note to Self: Classroom Time Is Not a Therapy Session

I'm slowly settling back into my routine after the best trip home ever. I got to meet Owen (!!!) and spend some quality time with him. I know we'll be best friends when I get back. I also met Reese, who, aside from her penchant for peeing on people's beds (bet you'll put "a door" at the top of your birthday list this year, won't you Ellie Bear?), is also very sweet. We had a great trip up to Chicago, complete with bread dumplings, I got to see all of my Evansville family, and I watched as many DVRed shows with Mommy as possible. I spent an entire week with Joel (which is unprecedented since we graduated) and even got to see Meggy O'Roark. I wasn't quite ready for it to be over.

My suitcase was lost on the way back, as I had a sneaking suspicion it would be. After three days of wearing the same clothes I became convinced that I would never see my wonderful blue Samsonite again and started compiling a list of the contents so I could hopefully be reimbursed by KLM (whose motto, ironically, is "the reliable airline"). As the list grew longer and longer I grew sadder and sadder. Coming to terms with the fact that you'll never see things like "Christmas presents from Grandpa and Uncle Sonny" and "Cabbage Patch Doll/Childhood Best Friend" again is a difficult task.
Luckily KLM eventually called to let me know that a suspect "matching my description" had been apprehended in Amsterdam, and a day later my rogue suitcase and all its contents were delivered to my door. So the saga of my suitcase had a happy ending, but I think all the worry I experienced because of it, combined with jet-lag and readjusting in general, contributed to my little incident in class 5c on Thursday.

The day's topic was unemployment in the US. We started with the facts and figures and then progressed into more personal territory. I told the kids about people I knew who had lost their jobs and how hard it was for my very-qualified friends to find jobs right now. Then it got REALLY personal. As I talked more and more the hour transformed into "Emily touchy-feely sharing time" and I poured my heart out to a group of 15 year olds, telling them how scared I was to not have a job next year, how awful it was to not have a plan, what a rude awakening it is to realize that it really isn't what but who you know that matters, and about how I really don't even know how to search for a job. I don't think they understood most of this (although whether it was because of the words I used or the fact that I showed emotion I'm unsure), which only made me more sad. Somehow this snowballed into me feeling like no one in the entire country of Austria understood me.

6 Ferrero Rochers and a nap later, though, I felt like a new person.

Arnold Was Here

One restless Saturday in December I took the bus out to Thal, which is notable for two reasons: it is the home of a famous church designed by Ernst Fuchs, and it is the home of Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The town was small, but because I decided to go on an impulse, and because I'm not very good at being impulsive, I had no idea how to get to the church or any Arnie sights. I stopped in a Gasthaus (a restaurant/bar/local hangout) and asked for directions. The moment I stepped in, every person in the Gasthaus, all middle-aged men, turned to look at me. I asked for directions really quickly, said thank you, and left pretending not to understand the guys who were asking/yelling for me to have a drink with them. I probably should have expected the town that produced the terminator to seep testosterone from its pores.

The church turned out not to be too far away. It also turned out to be just as much of an acid trip as it looked like in pictures. The theme seemed to be "under the sea", with the floor and pews curving like waves and covered in pebbles that looked like they had come from the ocean floor. The glass in the windows was full of tiny bubbles, and all this was illuminated by reflecting lights and psychedelic colors. Sebastian and Flounder would have been more at home here than St. Jakob. The whole time I was there I had to suppress the urge to sing "Part of Your World" (it wouldn't have been the same without Meggy anyway). It's very Little Mermaid, but also looks like a place that might play music by the Doors and reek of patchouli, doesn't it?

Outside the church there was a little museum celebrating Arnold Schwarzenegger, and I heard that somewhere in the town you can see his childhood home and the row boat in which he proposed to Maria Shriver, but the best Schwarzenegger sight, in my opinion, was his school. It was locked so I couldn't go in, but I hope artistic execution of the painting/giant photo of Arnold's head on the outside (which basically says you can move mountains if you believe in yourself) makes your day just as much as it made mine.