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Around the end of
November / beginning of December, the "Klees'chen" (cf picture below)
can be seen on many occasions as he comes to all the shops, and receives the
children for photosessions. Legend has it that "Klees'chen" brought
back to life 3 children who were savagely killed by a butcher, ready to be turned
into sausages. Being a good-natured children-loving sort of a guy, he promptly
resurrected the kids with God's allmighty help ...
"Klees'chen", in fact, is none else but St. Nicholas. During the night
of the 5th to the 6th December (his day) he and his counterpart "Hoùseker"
(=Black Peter) enter the houses and bring the children presents in the guise
of (originally oranges and nuts and the occasional pair of socks) toys which
can range from simple Lego to complex computers. The children put out plates
on which the legendary figures bestow their gifts. But already days, nay weeks
beforehand the children put their shoes daily on the windowsill or in front
of their bedroom door, so that "Kleeschen" -who goes his rounds to check on
children to see whether they deserve any presents- can drop chocolates and other
sweets into them. Hoùseker is dressed in coarse black clothes and he
carries sticks with which he is said to chastise naughty children.
On the afternoon of the first Sunday preceeding December 6th, "Klees'chen"
(and "Hoùseker") arrive in town (at the railway station) and dole
out sweets to kids on their parade to the City Town Hall (cf picture below)
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As for Christmas itself, you can see that with "Klees'chen" around, Father Christmas has a lot of rivalry. In Luxembourg, the baby Christ is said to bring the Christmas gifts overnight, although the custom probably differs from family to family. In the early evening on Christmas Eve the whole family gathers around the Christmas tree for snacks and talks (A Christmas tree is almost a Must in our country). At midnight many a family goes to Midnight Mass, always a welcome excuse for children to stay up long. The presents which lie under the tree are opened either before or after church.
Since we have our own language in Luxembourg (Lëtzebuergesch),
we say "Schéi Chrëschtdeeg" for "Merry Christmas", which transliterates
into 'have nice christmas-days'.
Traditional foods over the Christmas period are "Stollen", a kind of fruit loaf
with rum as cake and "Bûche de Noël" as icecream (both are in the
shape of a log). On Christmas Day the traditional dinner often features Black
pudding or civet of hare, or venison, or ..., but it may also consist of turkey
like in Britain or the States (The main thing seems to be that there must be
millions of calories). After the meal the whole family likes to go for a walk
which is particularly nice if there is snow. Boxing Day is spent in a similar
fashion, eg eating vast quantities of food, which is done -more often than not-
whilst visiting friends and relatives.
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During
the weeks before Christmas, markets flourish all over the country. From
wooden huts that are set up on town and city squares, all sorts of christmassy
goods are on sale: locally produced arts and crafts (candles, Christmas trees
and decorations, cribs, music, etc), and of course plenty of food and drink
to warm you from the inside. The latter include the obligatory mulled wines,
as well as the stronger stuff (eg Schnaps, known as "Drëpp"). Foods
on sale include various soups (with or without Mettwurscht [a local sausage
speciality]), pancakes, Thüringer, ... , plus the unpronounceable: "Gromperekichelcher".
The bandstand in the centre of the square is also very much in use: A whole
host of local bands, fanfares, choirs, etc, are performing, bringing to life
the true Christmas atmosphere.
Christmas
Markets 2007 in Luxembourg City were as follows:
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Several
more Christmas markets are held in towns and villages throughout the country.
More info on Christmas Markets throughout the country is also at: ont.lu
Several
"Shopping Sundays" are usually programmed before Christmas.
In 2007 shops were open from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Luxembourg City on the following
Sundays: December 2, December 9, December 16, and December 23 (i.e. every Sunday
before Christmas) Again, we expect similar dates for 2008.
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New
Year
is very much celebrated on New Year's Eve. There are a good dozen different
"Bal"s (=dancing) in Luxembourg-city, and many more outside the capital. Around
midnight, fireworks reign supreme in the skies, as many a family adds to the
general bangs and flashes. We don't so much sing "Auld Lang Syne", 'though of
course some gatherings do. The New Year itself is brought in by champagne corks
mixing into the general fireworks clatter. There is a lot of kissing and hugging
amongst the well-wishing for the New Year, which is of course at midnight sharp.
There is hardly anybody who would not socialise on New Year's Eve, and if there
is no family to go to, you can always join one of the dancing crowds, or join
one of the many parties that are held all over the country. In fact it often
is quite difficult to choose which party to go to, as there are so many, and
as one does want to be with the nicest possible crowd on this first night of
the New Year. Hence, many a reveller will not decide where to go to until all
the options have been heard and offered, which may not be until late in the
afternoon of the 31st of December.
The dancings are mostly organised by University students, and even though there
is now a 'native' university in Luxembourg,
the students from major Universities abroad traditionally tend to organise these.
Thus there is a "Bal de Liège", a "Bal de Strasbourg", a "Bal de Zurich",
and others. These go on to the wee hours of the morning as the Scots would say
(5 or 6 am) and a number of cafés (that is the continental version of the pub,
not the English eating houses) are open this late too, whereas others might
have closed at say 10 pm, but are opening again at 6 am, so you really can revel
around the clock.
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last update: January 19, 2008
