Christmas in my family tends to be a very German affair. We have all the decorations my parents brought back from Germany in the '80s, as well as contributions from Oma, my German grandmother. Therefore we have a lot of things that seem absolutely normal to me, but weird to anyone else.
First: The Räuchermänner!!
Also known as Smoking Men, these little wooden men are hollow to allow a cone of incense inside. They have holes in their mouths so when the incense burns, it looks like they are smoking!
I remember hating the smell when I was yonuger, but now it is so nostalgic to me. This tradition comes from the Ore Mountains, in between Germany and the Czech Republic, where my Oma was from (as she always said, she was Bohemian, not just German)!
And what was that strange thing in the background of the first picture? My second favorite decoration, the Weihnachtspyramide, or Christmas Pyramid! It is a pointy arch shape with small candles on the base, and helicopter-like arms on top that spin around when the heat from the candles rises. I just love the tiny wooden carvings of toys and the painted gold stars. This tradition is also from the same area, but has now spread all over Germany; history suggests that these pyramids came before Christmas trees!
Speaking of Christmas trees... I figured out how to use manual-focus on my new camera to create that cool bokeh effect.
And finally, Heidschi Bumbeidschi! Of course, Christmas would not be complete without our traditional German carols. Here is my all-time favorite Christmas song!!
Download 06 Aber Heidschi Bumbeidschi
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