Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

Winter 2013 | The Christmas magazine for the free state of Saxony
saxony
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland
Thomaner
The advent time is exciting for the
choir boys, but also exhausting.
A house visit at the boarding school.
Erich Kästner
As a child, the Dresden writer had to
be the ultimate diplomat
at Christmas.
Christstollen
Grandmother Zeidler bakes following
the secret recipe from a princess, which
was at some point stolen by a relative.

When the sun goes down,
even the busy Leipzig folk
wind down at the Christmas
market. From the 26 November
over 250 stalls invite you
to stay a while, – and five days
later, the first window of the
largest freestanding advent
calender in the world opens
– its frontage is 857 square
metres.
2
Title: interTOPICS / W, J.Mehl; producer: Knuth Neuber Seiffener Candle arches Ore Mountains; Photos: Joerg Glaescher / laif; Sebastian Arlt
Saxony

Welcome to the Winter Wonderland
Of course the Saxons didn't invent Christmas. Even they would shy away from
actually trying to steal the copyright from the almighty in heaven. But you
could still almost believe that advent and the whole Christmas celebration were
thought up in the heart of Saxony, between Upper Lusatia and the Vogtland.
There is hardly another spot in Germany that can boast such a wealth of Christmas
traditions as the free state of Saxony. This booklet will guide you through
Christmas country, leading you to magical places where you can immerse yourself
in the Christmas festivities. It will give you an insight into how the Saxons
keep their old traditions alive – and how they have come up with new ones too.
The tour starts at one of the most enchanting Christmas markets in Saxony and
leads us to the Ore Mountains, where Bettina Bergmann still uses her grandfather's
creations for inspiration for her own carvings. Then we carry on to the
kitchen where top chef Benjamin Unger has reinvented the cuisine of the mountain
region in Aue. A visit to Herrnhut is also on our schedule – this is where the
most beautiful Christmas stars in the country are hand crafted. In the Baroque
castle Moritzburg visitors can travel back in time to the recent past: the fairytale
"Three gifts for Cinderella" was shot here in 1973. Nowadays this film is not only
obligatory viewing at Christmas in Saxony but in many countries around the
world. With just as much cult status and still cosy: the advent time in the hip
and trendy Neustadt district of Dresden, where "advent windows" are opened
every day in the Christmas countdown. We will also be speaking to a dancing
"nut cracker" from the Ukraine before spilling a carefully guarded secret. But
that's all the clues we are going to give you about this reading odyssey...
3
The editorial team
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

1 Annaberg:
Blaze of light
The Christmas market
at Annaberg-Buchholz is
considered to be one of
the most beautiful in
Saxony. Page 6
2 LeiPzig:
Advent in a box
The members of the
Thomaner Choir enjoy
Christmas most at
boarding school. Page 8
4
3 GrünhAinichen:
The lady who brings
angels to life
Carver craftswoman
Bettina Bergman uses
old patterns for her
creations. Page 10
4 Aue: Simple dishes
filled with symbolism
Top chef Benjamin
Unger reinterprets dishes
from the Ore Mountain
region. Page 12
5 Herrnhut:
Let the stars shine
What must be the most
beautiful Christmas
accessory is created
in this little twinkle
town. Page 15
Illustration: Artur Bodenstein / Caroline Seidler
6 Dresden:
Claiming three places
under the Christmas
tree
Christmas Eve brought
calamity to Erich Kästner.
Page 16
7 Freiberg: "Glück
auf, Glück auf, der
Steiger kommt!"
The miner's associations
still uphold the Christmas
traditions of the
miners. Page 18
Saxony

8 Moritzburg:
Three stories about
Cinderella
"The" Christmas cult film
was shot at the Baroque
castle – and its ghost still
remains to this day.
Page 20
9 Markneukirchen:
The singing
soul of wood
Ekkard Seidl builds his
violins with character in
the music corner. Page 22
10 Dresden:
A window for every day
The culture hotspot Neustadt
celebrates advent
in its own unique way.
Page 24
5
11 Dresden:
Magic in a snowstorm
The ballerina Anna
Merkulova dances in
the "Nutcracker" – and
loves the Christmas atmosphere
in Dresden.
Page 26
Where Christmas
is at home
Advent turns the free state
into a winter wonderland.
Discover it for yourself!
12 Coswig:
The secret purloined
from the strict princess
Christine Zeidler follows
a special recipe for her
Dresden "Christstollen"
cake. Page 28
Saxony's Christmas
markets
The most peaceful places
in the free state over
advent:
Ten tips Page 30
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

6
Photo: Franz Marc Frei
Saxony

Annaberg
ablaze with
lights
Looking for handcrafted carvings from the Ore Mountains?
Third stand on the right. Plauen lace? Just opposite. Genuine
Pulsnitzer gingerbread? Just here. Here you are. A friendly chat
and a glass of punch? At just about every other stand – you're
welcome! Every region of Saxony has its own specialities, its
own dishes which are there for you to discover at the market
stalls. What they all have in common though, is the idea of
making the advent time into something really special, a time
of reflection and spending time with one another. This is seen
for example at the Christmas market in Annaberg-Buchholz in
the Ore Mountains, where 1200 men in traditional costume
and uniform and 300 musicians get together for a massive parade
on the fourth Sunday of advent. Together they bring the
old mining traditions to life. And they want everyone to enjoy
themselves – with a glass of mulled wine at the Christmas
market, which is usually deep in snow. To find out which other
markets are worth a visit, turn to page 30
7
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

The elite boys' choir, the
Leipzig Thomaner Choir
was founded 801 years
ago. Advent is the most
exhausting time of year
for Max Gläser (right) and
Jakob Schöbel (right bottom)
– but also one of
the best: The halls of the
boarding school building
are filled with a very special
Christmas spirit.
8
Advent
in the box
The Thomaner Choir boys
Max Gläser (13; soprano) and
Jakob Schöbel (15; alto) on…
...advent:
Max: Our most stressful time of year! We already sing
three times a week in the Thomaskirche, and now we
have extra rehearsals, trips and carol singing evenings.
For example at the Schloss Bellevue, at Mr.Gauck. I
have already had the honour of shaking his hand at the
800-year celebration of the choir.
Jakob: But it is still the best time of the year somehow
– there is just something very special about the atmosphere.
And that's because we have a lot of little traditions.
The boarding school is beautifully decorated; we
sing Christmas carols and we even spend Christmas
Eve here.
... life at boarding school:
Jakob: There are currently 103 boys. We call the boarding
school the "box". We live in small "houses", the
"dorm rooms" , where there is a mix of boys from all
school classes.
Max: And they are decorated by the "sixth formers" for
the first of advent. They put the decorations up at
night, when everyone is asleep. In my first year here
I heard this clattering and rattling, but I didn't know
what was going on. When I woke up in the morning,
the windows were covered in pictures. There were advent
wreaths, branches of pine and a lot of Christmas
decorations. When you've never seen it before – it's just
awesome!
Photos: Sebastian Arlt; Picture-Alliance / ZB / Waltraud Grubitzsch
Saxony

9
… Bach's Christmas Oratorio:
Jakob: Most people associate this piece with the
Thomaner Choir – which makes sense, because Bach
wrote it especially for our choir nearly 300 years ago.
We just call it the "WO" – which is short for the German
title, the Weihnachtsoratorium and is less of a
mouth–full. It is not all that hard, because as a choir
singer you get to rest quite a bit during the arias and
recitatives. Pure concerts are more tiring.
Max: We start rehearsing about two weeks before the
first performances; and then later on we rehearse with
the Gewandhaus Orchestra. I don't know if I would
get the whole WO right if you were to wake me up one
night in the summer. But as a Thomaner you always
have the basics off pat.
.... Christmas day:
Jakob: We spend this in the "box". In the morning we sing
vespers, then the 16 best singers have performances, at old
people's homes, for example. In the evening we celebrate
together – and it's almost better than at home. The oldest
boys stand there with candles, Mr Biller, the Thomaskantor,
which is what we call the musical director, makes
a speech and plays something on the piano. Later on we
hand out gifts – all around a big table heaped with presents.
Max: On my first Christmas Eve at boarding school I
missed my family to start with. But when we went through
the Waldstraßenviertel (the Forest Street Quarter) in Leipzig,
ringing at the doorbells and carol singing, it was so
much fun that I forgot all about feeling homesick.
All dates are
available to
view at
www.thomaner
chor.de
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

Saxony
The lady who brings
angels to life

Bettina Bergmann is following
in big footsteps in her little
carving studio.
Photos: Sebastian Arlt
During the war Emil Helbig sent
his son boxes to the front, with
build-your-own Christmas scenes
(top picture). His granddaughter
Bettina Bergmann (55) still uses
her grandfather's designs for
her work.
A "Dippel" (mug) for
the favourite drink in
Saxony – coffee. The
word comes from "Töpfchen"
(little pot).
If old Emil Helbig came into her studio with the sign on
the door saying "the oldest carving workshop in the Ore
Mountains", he would cast his critical eye over everything.
He would find fault with a thing or two – that is something
Bettina Bergmann is sure about – and then he would
shake his head and ask: "So where is the boss?"
Well, that's Bettina herself, actually. Just like her grandfather,
Emil Helbig, she is a wood carver, and just like him
she produces little figures and toys in Grünhainichen, one
of the centres of folk art in the Ore Mountains. In a little
house, just opposite the oversized musical box of the
world-renowned company Wendt & Kühn
Emil Helbig will, however, never set foot in his
grand-daughter's workshop – he died in 1976. But his
ghost is ever present: Helbig trained as a sculptor and was
a great craftsman. He trained at the local arts and crafts
school and at the toy maker's school in Seiffen, where
there is now an exhibition dedicated to him. Bettina Bergmann's
grandfather was also a businessman and built up a
company with 40 woodcarvers. And he could be quite surly
if he got the feeling that his art wasn't being taken seriously
– and he quite often felt like that.
"I was always asking him about carving", she tells us,
as she puts her „Dippel“ of coffee down, "but he always
muttered: It's not for girls." Her right thumb is bound
thick with plasters for protection when she is carving. She
takes up a blank for an angel figure, only half the size of
her little finger. The carving knife slices into the lime wood
– and facial features start to emerge. "There is this moment",
she says, "when the figures start to come to life.
That never ceases to amaze me."
She carves using the designs made by her genius but
difficult grandfather. Her "good and great Emil", explains
Bergmann, developed his own unique designs: "He tried
to reflect what is essential with only a few, simple cuts".
Looking at Helbig's miniatures, toys and nativity figures
you can't help but think that he must have been a good
observer who was not without a sharp sense of humour.
But they are never cute: His style of carving left edges and
corners, "unlike the rounder figures that are made in the
Ore Mountains".
Helbig's company was dispossessed in the 1970s. Walter
Helbig, Emil's sun and Bettina's father, however, continued
to work in the company for many years after. After
the reunification of Germany he wanted to make a fresh
start at the age of 72. So he put his daughter – who had
trained in the profession, but never really worked in it – to
task. With perseverance and a dose of good luck she managed
to get back the 600 samples that Emil Helbig had
once designed.
Bergmann is now sitting in front of a glass plate covered
in splats of paint. The angel that has just come to life
is to have golden hair and red wings.
When her father died, Bettina Bergmann carried on with
one other employee. "My grandfather never praised anyone",
explains the woodcarver. But maybe he would just
be a little bit proud of his granddaughter today.
11
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

12
Benjamin Unger is a little bleary eyed – he has hardly
set foot out of the kitchen over the last 24 hours. Unger
is head chef at the hotel "Blauer Engel" in Aue, whose
restaurant "St. Andreas" is currently listed with 17
points in "Gault & Milau". The 350 year anniversary
of the hotel is looming in the next few days, and the
34 year old is expecting not only guests, but also top
chefs for the culinary competition at a "kitchen party".
While the phone is frantically ringing in the foyer,
Unger is sitting in the wine bar talking about the cuisine
of the Ore Mountans, the value of tradition and
modern interpretations of the classics.
Mr Unger, what is the cuisine of the Ore Mountains
like?
This is a poor people's cuisine here. Have a look
at the classics: for example, "Kartoffelfratzen in
Schwammebrie“ – literally ugly potato faces in
mushroom purée – which is basically a kind of
potato dumpling in mushroom sauce. What is
missing?
The meat.
Exactly. The mountain folk here couldn't afford
what would actually fill them up.
You trained with Ralf. J. Kutzner in the "Bülow-
Palais" in Dresden and you then took to the
road and worked in many renowned restaurants.
Why did you come back to a region with a cuisine
like this?
Firstly because of my family: my father took over
the restaurant after the reunification after he had
worked here as a chef since 1977. But also because
I felt at home in this region – not everyone is destined
to leave. I want to develop something here: I
can't teach people, but I can show them that you
can sometimes sit down for a meal for three hours,
to talk and eat.
The chef has his roots in Aue, that is something you see
straight away. And what does he think about the fact
that the Erzgebirge Aue football club recently lost its
match: "Unbelievable! The other side's goal was just
pure fluke!" And how come he is able to hold engaging
lectures on local history, considering he is only in his
mid-30s? "Well, you know, I did history as a specialist
subject at school". In the long history of the hotel – Unger
says it has seen fires, renovations and has frequently
changed hands – having a landlord family handing it
over to the next generation is a first.
His brother Claudius, ten years his junior, also runs
the business alongside Benjamin Unger.
What do you eat in the Ore Mountains at
Christmas?
The traditional dish is Neunerlei (literally nine different
things) – we call it „Neinerlaa“. It is made
differently in every household, but it is always a
After training as a chef in
Dresden and cooking his way
across Germany's gastronomic
temples, Benjamin
Unger returned to his
hometown of Aue.
Neinerlaa: A Christmas dish
from the Ore Mountains.
A penny is placed under the
plate to ensure that money
doesn't run out the following
year.
Simple
dishes
filled with
symbolism
The mountain folk
in the Ore Mountains
liked their food to be
hearty. But it doesn't
have to be like that:
Top chef Benjamin Unger
presents a modern
version of the traditional
Christmas dish
"Neunerlei".
Saxony

Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

14
Benjamin Unger making
"Sauerkraut air“ (top), part
of his interpretation of
"Neunerlei“ (centre). The
350-year old building of
the "Blaue Engel" is
always decorated for
advent (bottom).
dish that is full of symbolism. There should be a
bit of everything in it – with the meat it has to be
something from the air, usually goose, something
from the water, carp, for example, and something
from the earth, like rabbit. Potato dumplings symbolise
large coins, that should bless the house, while
lentils stand for smaller coins. Celery is the fertility
symbol. Beetroot is added for red cheeks. And it
has to have sauerkraut, so that the straw grows high
in the fields.
And you're really supposed to eat all this in
one go?
Yes – three times actually. Here in the Ore Mountains
we have several Christmas evenings: Christmas
Eve, then New Year's Eve and then "Hohneujahr
-Heiligabend", as we call the Saturday before
Epiphany.
Is the tradition of the "Neunerlei" still alive
and well?
Definitely. We put it on the menu starting on the
first advent Sunday and then we serve it on traditional
plates with nine separate sections. In our
family we have it every year on Christmas Eve as
well. Only goose, now that's something I really
have had enough of after 11 November, when
everyone eats goose for St. Martin's feast. I have
just cooked it, smelled it and tasted it too many
times by then.
In the kitchen the staff are just drinking coffee as
Benjamin Unger starts on his modern interpretation
of the "Neunerlei". Within minutes six gas burners
are burning in a row; and he quickly juggles pots and
pans on them.
Unger stirs, seasons, fills foams into little tuilles. He
lays a big sliver of a red, transparent material onto the
work surface. "Beetroot, rammed through a few compounds",
he explains.
Mr Unger, what is your contemporary
"Neunerlei" composition going to be?
This is a goose breast, laid onto some red cabbage
– I like this best done the classic way. Then beluga
lentils, done with balsamic vinegar – they are a little
finer than the normal lentils from the Ore Mountains.
They are topped with a potato thaler made of
buttermilk pastry – buttermilk stands for pure skin
and is also important in the "Neunerlei". Then I
have placed a green dumpling on top of that.
And what's that on top of the dumpling?
Sauerkraut air, a type of foam. The white dots,
that's a celery mousse, and the red dots are made of
beetroot. I also made the wafer out of beetroot, that
looks like a sail.
So it's just the fish that's missing.
Can you see the ring there on the right? That's an
anchovy.
LEGAL NOTICE
Saxony – welcome to the
Christmas Wonderland
as a supplement in the
"Frankfurter Allgemeine
Zeitung“, the "Frankfurter
Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung",
the "Süddeutsche
Zeitung“ and the "WELT“
and "WELT kompakt".
Published by
Freistaat Sachsen
Sächsische Staatskanzlei
01095 Dresden
Tel. +49 351/564-0
info@sk.sachsen.de
www.sachsen.de
Overall coordination
Ketchum Pleon GmbH
Goetheallee 23
01309 Dresden
Publisher TEMPUS
CORPORATE GmbH –
A member of the
ZEIT Verlag
Managing Director
Ulrike Teschke,
Manuel J. Hartung,
Büro Hamburg:
Buceriusstraße,
Eingang Speersort 1,
20095 Hamburg
Project Management
Yvonne Baumgärtel
Conceptional
consulting Dr. Christian
Ankowitsch
Chief copy editor Roman
Heflik, Fenja Mens
Art direction
Andreas Volleritsch
Editing Moritz
Baumstieger
Picture editing Barbara
Pütter, Stefan Scholtz
Final editing
Frauke Franckenstein
Printing Prinovis Ltd. &
Co. KG, Betrieb Ahrensburg,
Alter Postweg 6,
22926 Ahrensburg
Production
Dirk Schmoll
Repro Martina Drignat
The publisher accepts no
liability for documents sent
that have not been requested.
There is no entitlement
for compensation in the
event of failure to appear
as a result of a force majeure
or strike. Use of the
proprietary magazine and
all of its reports and images,
in particular by copying
or distribution without
prior written agreement by
the publisher is prohibited
and considered a criminal
offence, if no other provisions
of the copyright law
are applicable. Event dates
are published without guarantee.
Saxony

Sterneln : Making stars together
on the first of advent in Herrnhut
Herrnhut lights up: The famous stars are
hand-crafted. Yvonne Lehmann has the
skill to make a miniature version of just
13 centimetres.
Let the stars shine
What must be the most beautiful Christmas accessory
is created in a workshop in Upper Lusatia.
15
Photos: Sebastian Arlt; Hotel Blauer Engel
Yvonne Lehmann must have a natural
talent – there is no other way to explain
it.
When the 41 year old moved to Herrnhut
she had never even heard of the
famous stars. "Where I came from
in North Saxony we hadn't heard of
them", says Lehmann as she folds a
piece of paper over the blade of a kitchen
knife. Six years after she arrived there
she is considered to be one of the most
talented craftswomen in the
Herrnhut workshop. She can do what
only two other of her colleagues can
do: make miniature versions of the famous
stars only 13 centimetres across.
This takes a steady hand and a great deal
of skill.
Lehmann folds the tiny piece of paper
along the prepared fold, dips a brush
into glue and glues the whole thing.
Now one of the 25 points that make up
the Moravian star is ready. It takes an
hour and a half – you just can't make an
original star any faster than that.
The tradition of the Moravian stars
has its roots in 1821 – and ironically
it stems from a generally sober subject
– maths lessons. There was a teacher
at the Herrnhut boarding school who
wanted to teach his pupils an exercise in
geometry and got them to make a star
for advent, which was to be designed to
be like the Bethlehem star. The pupils
made the first Moravian star and put
a light into its paper body. And while
their parents, Evangelical brethren missionaries
were spreading the light of belief
across the globe, the boarding school
pupils sat down together to make stars,
or to „Sterneln“, as they called it, to
get into the Christmas spirit.
The tradition survived and spread
successfully because the stars shine with
Christmas warmth with their pure, simple
design transcending fashion and featuring
as a stylish accessory, even in the
livings rooms in the cities. Now the stars
are made all year round, with a production
of up to 400,000 in a range of sizes
and colours. The classic is red and white,
the symbols for purity and the blood of
Christ. When East and West Germany
were still spilt, models with yellow
points were very popular in the East,
maybe because nobody wanted to see
red stars in their living room as well.
Yvonne Lehmann has glued eight
points to form a ring, then added another
made of four parts, and then the
last point is added on the top. In the
gaps that form she has to put little paper
balls. Then she picks up the delicate
construction with tweezers. "If I am only
a millimetre out, I can chuck it in the
bin", she says. Then she has to concentrate
so that she gets it right. And she's
hit the target. Well, she is blessed with
natural talent, after all.
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

No, the boy in the picture is not
Erich Kästner. But he must have
looked a bit like that when the
writer, born in 1899 in Dresden,
inspected the Christmas tree full
of hope and expectation. In the
book “When I was a little boy”, he
reminisces about his childhood at
Königsbrücker Straße 66 with a
finely tuned sense of irony – and
how too much love sent him on
an emotional rollercoaster one
Christmas Eve.
16
Sachsen

Textauszug gekürzt aus: „Als ich ein kleiner Junge war“ von Erich Kästner (c) Atrium Verlag, Zürich 1957; Foto: TV-Yesterday
Nur einmal in jedem Jahr hätte ich sehnlich gewünscht,
Geschwister zu besitzen: am Heiligabend! Am ersten Feiertag
hätten sie ja gut und gerne wieder fortfliegen können,
meinetwegen erst nach dem Gänsebraten mit den rohen
Klößen, dem Rotkraut und dem Selleriesalat. Ich hätte sogar
auf meine eigene Portion verzichtet und stattdessen Gänseklein
gegessen, wenn ich nur am 24. Dezember abends nicht allein
gewesen wäre! Die Hälfte der Geschenke hätten sie haben können
und es waren wahrhaftig herrliche Geschenke!
Und warum wollte ich gerade an diesem Abend, am
schönsten Abend eines Kinderjahres, nicht allein und nicht
das einzige Kind sein? Ich hatte Angst. Ich fürchtete mich vor
der Bescherung! Ich hatte Furcht davor und durfte sie nicht
zeigen. Es ist kein Wunder, dass ihr
das nicht gleich versteht. Ich habe
mir lange überlegt, ob ich darüber
sprechen solle oder nicht. Ich will
darüber sprechen!
Also muss ich es euch erklären.
Meine Eltern waren, aus Liebe zu
mir, aufeinander eifersüchtig. (…)
Wochenlang, halbe nächte hindurch,
hatte mein Vater im Keller
gesessen und zum Beispiel einen wundervollen Pferdestall
gebaut. Er hatte geschnitzt und genagelt, geleimt und gemalt,
Schriften gepinselt, winziges Zaumzeug zugeschnitten
und genäht, die Pferdemähnen mit Bändern durchflochten,
die Raufen mit Heu gefüllt, und immer noch
war ihm, beim Blaken der Petroleumlampe, etwas eingefallen,
noch ein Scharnier, noch ein Beschlag, noch ein
Haken, noch ein Stallbesen, noch eine Haferkiste, bis er
endlich zufrieden schmunzelte und wusste: »Das macht mir
keiner nach!« (…)
Es waren Geschenke, bei deren Anblick sogar Prinzen die
Hände überm Kopf zusammengeschlagen hätten, aber Prinzen
hätte mein Vater sie nicht geschenkt.
Wochenlang, halbe Tage hindurch, hatte meine Mutter
die Stadt durchstreift und die Geschäfte durchwühlt. Sie kaufte
jedes Jahr Geschenke, bis sich deren Versteck, die Kommode,
krumm bog. Sie kaufte Rollschuhe, Ankersteinbaukästen,
Buntstifte, Farbtuben, Malbücher, Hanteln und Keulen für
den Turnverein, einen Faustball für den Hof, Schlittschuhe,
musikalische Wunderkreisel, Wanderstiefel, einen Norwegerschlitten,
ein Kästchen mit Präzisionszirkeln auf blauem Samt,
einen Kaufmannsladen, einen Zauberkasten, Kaleidoskope,
Zinnsoldaten, eine kleine Druckerei mit Setzbuchstaben und,
von Paul Schurig und den Empfehlungen des Sächsischen Lehrervereins
angeleitet, viele, viele gute Kinderbücher. (…)
Es war ein Konkurrenzkampf aus Liebe zu mir und es
war ein verbissener Kampf. Es war ein Drama mit drei Personen
und der letzte Akt fand, alljährlich, am Heiligabend statt.
Die Hauptrolle spielte ein kleiner Junge. Von seinem Talent
aus dem Stegreif hing es ab, ob das Stück eine Komödie oder
ein Trauerspiel wurde. Noch heute klopft mir, wenn ich daran
denke, das Herz bis in den Hals. (…)
For
legal reasons Eine
the extract Dresdner is
unfortunately Weihnachtsnot
available geschichte von
online Erich
KÄstnEr
Ich stand also am Küchenfenster und blickte in die Fenster gegenüber.
Hier und dort zündete man schon die Kerzen an. Der
Schnee auf der Straße glänzte im Laternenlicht. Weihnachtslieder
erklangen. Im Ofen prasselte das Feuer, aber ich fror.
Es duftete nach Rosinenstollen, Vanillezucker und Zitronat.
Doch mir war elend zumute. (…)
Und dann hörte ich meine Mutter rufen: »Jetzt kannst
du kommen!« Ich ergriff die hübsch eingewickelten Geschenke
für die beiden und trat in den Flur. Die Zimmertür stand
offen. Der Christbaum strahlte. Vater und Mutter hatten sich
links und rechts vom Tisch postiert, jeder neben seine Gaben,
als sei das Zimmer samt dem Fest halbiert. »Oh«, sagte ich,
»wie schön!«, und meinte beide Hälften. Ich hielt mich noch
in der nähe der Tür, sodass mein
Versuch, glücklich zu lächeln,
Dreierkonferenz
unterm
Christbaum
unmissverständlich beiden galt.
Der Papa, mit der erloschnen Zigarre
im Munde, beschmunzelte
den firnisblanken Pferdestall.
Die Mama blickte triumphierend
auf das Gabengebirge zu
ihrer Rechten. Wir lächelten
zu dritt und überlächelten unsre
dreifache Unruhe. Doch ich konnte
nicht an der Tür stehen bleiben!
Ach, wenn ich allein gewesen wäre,
allein mit den Geschenken und
dem himmlischen Gefühl, doppelt
und aus zweifacher Liebe beschenkt
zu werden! Wie selig wär ich gewesen
und was für ein glückliches Kind! Doch
ich musste meine Rolle spielen, damit
das Weihnachtsstück gut ausgehe. Ich war
ein Diplomat, erwachsener als meine Eltern, und hatte dafür
Sorge zu tragen, dass unsre feierliche Dreierkonferenz unterm
Christbaum ohne Missklang verlief. (…)
Ich stand am Tisch und freute mich im Pendelverkehr. Ich
freute mich rechts, zur Freude meiner Mutter. Ich freute mich
an der linken Tischhälfte über den Pferdestall im Allgemeinen.
Dann freute ich mich wieder rechts, diesmal über den Rodelschlitten,
und dann wieder links, besonders über das Lederzeug.
Und noch einmal rechts, und noch einmal links, und
nirgends zu lange, und nirgends zu flüchtig. Ich freute mich
ehrlich und musste meine Freude zerlegen und zerlügen. Ich
gab beiden je einen Kuss auf die Backe. (…)
Nebenan, bei Grüttners, sangen sie »O du fröhliche, o du
selige, gnadenbringende Weihnachtszeit!« Mein Vater holte ein
Portemonnaie aus der Tasche, das er im Keller zugeschnitten
und genäht hatte, hielt es meiner Mutter hin und sagte: »Das
hätt ich ja beinahe vergessen!« Sie zeigte auf ihre Tischhälfte,
wo für ihn Socken, warme lange Unterhosen und ein Schlips
lagen. Manchmal fiel ihnen, erst wenn wir bei Würstchen und
Kartoffelsalat saßen, ein, dass sie vergessen hatten, einander ihre
Geschenke zu geben. Und meine Mutter meinte: »Das hat ja
Zeit bis nach dem Essen.«
17
Willkommen im Weihnachtsland

"Glück auf, Glück auf, der Steiger kommt!"
(Good luck, here comes the foreman!)
18
Soon noble metals are to be mined
again in a few spots in the Ore
Mountains, but in Freiberg the
heyday of mining has passed. So
why does the miners' guild carry
on?
Dieter Joel: Because all the old
friends and colleagues come together
here. Lounging around on the sofa
at home, that's really not my cup
of tea.
Maximilian Götze: I was born into
this. My father studied mining here,
and is now involved in the association.
And I also think it's important
to keep traditions going, as they will
otherwise be forgotten. It simply belongs
to the
region.
Mr. Joel, when did you start wearing
this uniform?
Joel: In 1991. I was an electrician
in the mining industry; nowadays
I look after the association's wardrobe.
The club has 440 members,
and almost 230 of them are joining
in in the parade. That's a whole
lot of trousers, jackets and swords.
If buttons fall off the members will
mercifully usually sew them back on
themselves.
Maximilian, how long have you
been a member?
Götze: My mother made me my first
miner's uniform when I was three.
Joel: I can remember you back then:
You sat on the pavement in your
uniform and bashed away at the kerb
with a hammer. You probably wanted
to burrow in a mine shaft.
The traditions really come into
their own during the advent time.
Joel: We are on the road every weekend.
The highlight is our shift before
Christmas Eve. This used to be
the last shift before Christmas. Nobody
worked all that much, but spirits
were high. The foreman – who
was in charge of the pit – gathered
Photos: Sebastian Arlt
Saxony

There are six decades between them: Dieter Joel (77) and
Maximilian Götze (16), members of the historical "Freiberg
Berg- und Hüttenknappschaft", the miners' guild, on the
traditional last mining shift on Christmas Eve and the
not-very-sophisticated mining vocabulary.
With sword, pit hat and uniform: Dieter
Joel (far left) and Maximilian Götze (3rd
from the right) with comrades in the
Freiberg guild room.
Dates for Christmas Eve shifts in the
Ore Mountains are available at
www.bergbautradition-sachsen.de
Tzscherper: little leather bags
that the miners used to use for
their "Tzscherper knife", which
they would use to check the condition
of the wooden construction
in the mine.
his miners together. Everyone would
bring something to eat from home.
Götze: That's what it is that makes
the Christmas Eve shift – food, food,
food...
Joel: But something happens before
that: On the Saturday before the second
Sunday in advent we get together
at 5 in the afternoon and then the
parade starts. We parade through the
town to the Nikolai Church, and we
pay our respects to the Freibergers in
the Albert Park and two bands play.
Götze: Then we stand on the stairs
outside, sing the foreman's song and
the whole audience joins in. "Glück
auf, Glück auf, der Steiger kommt!"
When you have such a large crowd
singing the song – it's exhilarating.
And the food?
Joel: That's afterwards, when we are
among ourselves. This is when the
new colleagues join if they can answer
three questions: their name,
their status and their life motto.
Then they have to drink a beer with
the examiner – to show that they can
handle jumping over the bum leather
afterwards.
Sorry, over what?
Joel: Miners used to wear a kind of
leather apron, but for the back. It
was so that the seat of your trousers
didn't get wet. Do you see? The term
is a little direct, but then miners
aren't really all that genteel.
So what do you keep in these little
bags at the front on your belt?
Götze: The Tzscherper is part of the
uniform. Miners used to keep things
in it to make light, like matches,
hemp or flint. Some people put their
mobile in it now, or their camera.
My bag is empty at the moment.
Joel: I've got a pestle and a knife in
mine, just like the chief blaster used
to have. And some medicine for
headache. It's a pure coincidence
that it looks like liqueur.
19
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

20
Three stories
about Cinderella
40 years ago, the Christmas
cult film "Three
gifts for Cinderella"
was shot at the Moritzburg
Castle. And visitors
are still swept away by
the fairytale ambience
in the castle.
Erich Weber,
now 69, likes the
music, alongside
the window scene.
"Well? Have you seen my window?", I
ask everyone, when "Cinderella" came
on the TV. You can see it for a few seconds
in one of the scenes. Lit up, which
earned me 50 marks – which was a lot
of money back then. I was working as a
decorator in the castle and had a flat at
the top in the tower. The film team put
a floodlight in my room and covered
the window with parchment so that the
old castle didn't look as if nobody lived
there. And they paid rent to do that.
We sometimes sat in the café with Rolf
Hoppe, who played the king, and the
prince and the princess in the shooting
breaks. Everyone was swooning about
the pretty princess afterwards – but unfortunately
she never visited again."
Marion Becker,
now 65, likes
"everything"
best about
"Cinderella".
"At the start of the seventies I often played
a double if they needed riders during the
filming. "Cinderella" wasn't anything special
really. I was waiting with Kalif, an old
circus horse at the top of the steps. I was
waiting for the signal to go down the steps
for the escape scene and then ride through
the gate. The stairs were covered in ice, Kalif
didn't want to gallop, and you can see in
the film that I really had to drive him on. I
was 25 back then and had a normal figure,
but the actress was very slight. So we had to
leave Cinderella's costume open at the back
– but nobody noticed because I was wearing
a cape over it. My husband always used to
watch the film at least five times at Christmas
until I told him: "Do you know what? I
can't stand to watch it any more!"
Photos: Sebastian Arlt; Moritzburg Castle and Fasanenschlösschen (Pheasant
Castle) /Gabriele Hilsky; DEFA-Stiftung, Jaromir Komarek
Saxony

Idyllic comfort, love and Christmas:
The beautiful Cinderella finds her
prince charming (below), with the
help of three hazelnuts (centre bottom).
Rolf Hoppe and Karin Lesch
played the old royal couple (bottom)
in an unforgettably funny performance.
A special exhibition at the
Moritzburg castle is running until 2
March to celebrate the filming and
the myth of Cinderella.
For more information, see
www.schloss-moritzburg.de
21
Margitta Hensel,
48, is the curator
for the Cinderella
exhibition. Her
favourite parts are
where the king and
queen fight like an
old couple.
"I don't know how many proposals of marriage have been
made on those steps. There was once even a sandal at the
bottom of the steps with a telephone number and the note:
"Prince charming wanted". We are making the fans' affinity
with the film the subject of this year's exhibition. The
film is not only well made, it seems to get under your skin
and to awaken longing. Love, childlike naivety, humour, a
world intact – these are things that people clearly feel are
missing nowadays. Interestingly the film makers hardly use
any special effects, which is why the film comes across as
realistic, but has a fairytale feel about it. The 40 original
costumes on show are the highlight for many of the visitors.
For decades there was hardly any interest in the film
props – then the fans started researching what had happened
to the costumes. Ta dah! Many of them were still
hanging up in the studios in the Czech Republic. Some of
them have even taken on the status of national cultural assets
over there."
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

22
Discovering what it
means to be slow: anyone
walking into Ekkard
Seidl's workshop in Markneukirchen
inevitably
falls in pace with the
rhythm of the place. It is
only with this peace and
quiet that the 50-year old
violin maker can create
his bespoke instruments.
The singing
soul of wood
EKKARD SEIDL
FROM THE VOGT-
LAND MUSIC
CORNER EXPLAINS
WHY THERE IS ONE
THING YOU REALLY
NEED IF YOU
ARE BUILDING
A VIOLIN:
EMPATHY.
The most exciting thing in my work is to
hear one of my violins in a concert. It is only
then that its character unfolds, or you
could say where it bares its soul. Because
every instrument has a soul – and every violin
too, of course. And its soul comes from
various sources: First of all, it is in the wood
it is made from. Then the violin builder
puts part of his own soul into it. And then
the musicians do the same – and of course,
the composers, whose works are played on
the instruments. I usually have to travel to
hear my violins: My customers come from
far afield and many play in symphony orchestras.
I have very few customers from this region.
Despite the fact that we have a great musical
tradition in the Vogtland... and not only
at Christmas. We also have a long history
of producing instruments: Anyone in the
Vogtland who wants to play music usually
has someone in the family who can build
him a violin, trumpet or flute. If a coach
full of musicians stopped here, every musician
on board would be able to find a master
craftsman here to build him an instrument.
Markneukirchen is unique in this
respect.
As well as contact with good colleagues,
this area gives me the peace and quiet that I
need for the 200 working hours it takes to
make a violin. I could never work in a town.
I see myself as an artisan: 95% of my work
is precision handicraft, and the other 5%
is difficult to describe in words. You know,
when I build a violin, there are a lot of decisions
I have to make: Which piece of wood
should I choose? What shape should it be,
what should the proportions be? The combination
determines what sort of instrument
I will have made in the end.
My violins are almost all special orders
for musicians. Before I start, I ideally need
to make an accurate picture of how they
play. Most customers come to me in the
Vogtland to my little workshop for this. To
offer them the best possible service, I need a
good ear, all my experience from 34 years of
work – and a lot of empathy. But at the end
of the day my violins are just objects: art is
a separate entity in its own right; violins are
used, they are played on. I am a toy maker,
as it were.
Photos: Sebastian Arlt
Saxony

Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

Dresden
lights up
Stopping and staring in wonder – always
a good idea when you see the
rebuilt Dresden Frauenkirche. For
the last few years there is another
reason to stop piously in front of the
church, even in winter, and to drink
a mulled wine. The "Advent on the
Neumarkt" recreates the time between
1830 and 1920.
There is no stress and no hustle and
bustle at the historic Christmas market.
Instead it is a haven of high
quality craftsmanship, delicacies and
a nativity scene with real animals.
Saxony

A little window every day
House visit on the culture scene:
Dresden's Neustadt celebrates advent
in its own unique way.
25
Photos: Sebastian Arlt; Ulla Wacker; E+ / Getty Images
Oksana Rucker
(38; left) and
Ulla Wacker (41)
feel that the Neustadt
has to stay raw
and creative. With
their "Advenster",
they transform the
Dresden culture hotspot
into a walk-in
advent calender in
December
When little chocolate Father Christmas figures
start making an appearance in the supermarkets
in late summer, Ulla Wacker
and Oksana Rucker know that the time has
come to start preparing the windows. The
Dresden ladies
are members of the "Advenster", a group
that was founded ten years ago, and which
decorates a different window in the Dresden
Neustadt with art every day in December.
It started with set decorators building
the building site in front of their houses in
miniature on the window sill, with a mini
digger which would drive when you pressed
on a button. Later on it was not only windows,
but doors that opened. And what
started as a slightly different art exhibition
became a happening with concerts, film
showings and performance art. Nobody
knew what would happen behind the doors
and windows at 6 in the evening. But one
thing was sure: it won't have anything to do
with sweet, touchy-feely sentimentalism.
The Neustadt, Dresden's culture hotspot:
In the 90s and the early noughties "grandmothers,
students, ex-convicts and artists"
lived here, explain Wacker and Rucker.
When they talk about how it was back then,
they start to rave about it. But the minute
you mention the word "gentrification" they
start to rant – and that in itself would be a
good Advenster performance. High earners
and investors have also discovered the Neustadt.
The founding "Advenster" dispersed at
some point, and the second generation took
over. Wacker coordinates various neighbouring
initiatives in the district hall, and
Rucker came up with the idea of the "Advenster"
one day when she was picking up
her daughter from nursery school. "There
was something conspiratory about it. And
the gang got together, and then something
happened." Despite all the changes, there is
one thing the two are sure about: "The Neustadt
will always be the Neu-stadt." How
it is going to look in advent is still a secret.
But the dates and addresses aren't. They are
available at www.advenster.de
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

26
A girl, a man made of
wood and a fairy tale:
The dream world of
the "Nutcracker" was
transferred to Dresden
to be performed
by the Semperoper.
31-year old Anna
Merkulova is the star
of the piece by
Peter Tschaikowsky.
Saxony

Photos: Sebastian Arlt; Costin Radu
Magic in a
snowstorm
Ukrainian dancer
Anna Merkulova
dances Marie in the
"Nutcracker".
The role is one she knows
well. But Christmas in
Saxony is something she
had to get to know.
Miss Merkulova, what is special about the Dresden production of
the "Nutcracker"?
"The Nutcracker" is everywhere, wherever you go in December. Even
in Miami, where half the town is sitting on the beach or around a
BBQ in the 30 degree heat. Here in Dresden, it's different: the atmosphere
outside the opera and on the stage complement each other perfectly,
even down to the production design. Our "Nutcracker" starts
on the Striezelmarkt, and also moves to the Zwinger Palace – that's
Christmas in its purest form!
You come from the Ukraine. Was it difficult for you to get used to
Christmas in Dresden?
When you are standing at a mulled wine stand after work with your
colleagues, it's easy to get used to it. But you are right: in Saxony they
celebrate Christmas in a very unique way.
How would you describe it?
In the Ukraine we have presents at New Year, and then Christmas is
on the 6th and 7th January. The idea of decorating the whole town
a month beforehand, doing up every shop window and putting up
thousands of lights – that's not something we know, even if it has been
starting to catch on over there over the last few years. When my mother
visits Dresden at Christmas time, she can't get enough of the atmosphere.
I gave her a nutcracker as a present. And my father really
wants a pyramid now.
You dance Marie, a young girl, who is drawn into a dream world.
Marie is open, she believes in miracles and dreams. You should never
confuse dancers and actors with the roles that they play. But I must
admit, I think Marie is a little like me.
In what way?
I also believe in the power of magic. And Christmas is the best example
of that, isn't it? You may be religious and then the biblical story is
the most important part of Christmas for you. But you also may see
Christmas simply as a family celebration. Whatever Christmas means
to you: if you give it a chance, you will be enchanted. You just have
to let it work its magic – and I like being enchanted. But, once when
I was playing the "Nutcracker" here in Dresden, it was almost too
much.
What happened?
We were dancing a scene in the snow storm – it's just like a fairy tale
– I just love it! Last year – we must have already done abut 15 performances
of the "Nutcracker", in the middle of the last performance
of the season, I suddenly felt the tears running down my cheeks. It
wasn't that easy to carry on dancing then.
A lot of families come to see the "Nutcracker". Do you dance differently
for children?
You have to act a bit more, but this piece does actually lend itself very
well to that. And you mustn't let yourself be distracted if the audience
is a bit more animated. But I have known it for a very, very long time:
The first ballet role I ever played, was the one I am dancing now: Marie
in the "Nutcracker". I was ten years old.
27
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

The secret
of the strict
princess
Grandmother Zeidler
traditionally bakes her
own Christstollen
using a secret recipe
with a dark history.
28
Of course, it is a
success. Christine
Zeidler presents the
first Christstollen she
has ever made in her
own kitchen – she
has always gone to
the local bakehouse
before.
It's a good job that Berta Höntzsch was guilty of a minor
theft back in 1902. And it is also a little bit understandable:
Her ladyship, the Princess von Reuß from
Castle Hermsdorf was strict and never let the staff get
away with anything. Berta was only 18 and was employed
as a maid when she decided to take her revenge
one day and secretly crept into the castle kitchens. She
grabbed a scrap of paper and a pen and jotted down
the secret recipe for the Christstollen – preserving it for
posterity.
Nowadays Christine Zeidler is measuring the ingredients
in her kitchen in Coswig near Dresden, and
says: "A Stollen like the aristocracy used to make –
compared with this, the one from my mother tasted
like stale breadrolls." Christine Zeidler, 77, married the
grandson of the thieving Berta. And she has been baking
the Stollen with the aristocratic recipe since 1954.
Her husband's grandmother gave it to her the year she
got married.
Buying a Christstollen at the baker – for Christine
Zeidler this is just as alien a concept as buying carvings
"made in China". So over the last 60 years she packs all
her ingredients together on the 2nd or 3rd November
every year, and makes her way to the baker at the bottom
of the street. The women (and some men) from
the region meet there and work on their doughs, everyone
with their own ingredients and their own recipe.
The kitchens at home were too small; and anyway, only
the baker has the ideal mixture of moisture and heat in
the oven. "We don't gossip... we concentrate hard on
our work", says Christine Zeidler. Baking Stollen is serious
business in the Dresden region.
And a large-scale project: "I always end up baking 16
to 24 pounds for the whole family", says Zeidler as she
kneads the dough for the Stollen in her own kitchen –
a one off, especially to oblige her guest. She made up
the yeasted dough at six in the morning and now she
can add the raisins, orange and lemon peel, ground almonds
and lots of butter. Then the dough has to rise
for half an hour. To make sure that the baker doesn't
mix up the doughs, everyone puts a little metal sign into
the dough with the family's name on it.
The baker then shapes the loaves; their shape is
supposed to resemble baby Jesus . When they are baked
– "not too dark, more golden brown, a good Striezel
must be nice and moist" – Mrs Zeidler packs her yield
of at least 18 Stollen into two washing baskets and carries
them round to her son. He puts them on the balcony
for a couple of days to rest before they are buttered
and given a generous dusting of icing sugar.
Grandmother Zeidler isn't that far yet in her kitchen
in Coswig – she sends out a quick prayer. "Dear
God. Let it taste good." While the Stollen is baking
in the oven, she tells me about when she was young,
growing up in bombed out Dresden. And she tells me
that during the GDR East Germany times, you could
never be quite sure if it really was candied orange peel
in the packet, or if it was just "candied tomatoes", as
some people used to joke.
Of course, the Stollen is not only good, it is excellent,
and there is a wonderful aroma as Mrs Zeidler
takes it out of the oven. Must be the royal recipe. And
if divine intervention really was necessary, God has
clearly long since forgiven the minor theft committed
by Berta Höntzsch.
Photos: Sebastian Arlt
Saxony

Christstollen
recipe from the
Princess of ReuSS
(Quantities significantly reduced)
Ingredients
1.2 kg flour
1 sachet yeast
1 cup warm milk
350 g butter
100 g margarine
150 g ghee (clarified butter)
125 g sugar
50 g bitter almonds (available in pharmacies,
health food shops, and also in supermarkets
at Christmas time; alternatively
use a few drops of bitter almond extract)
2 sachets of vanilla sugar, mixed with the
zest of 1 lemon
300 g ground almonds
150 g candied lemon peel and 150 g candied
orange peel
600 g raisins soaked in rum
Icing
125 g melted butter
and lots and lots of icing sugar
29
Striezel: The Dresden
word for Christstollen,
which also gave its name
to the famous Striezelmarkt
Preparation
Sift the flour into a bowl and make a
well in the centre. Break in the yeast
and pour over the lukewarm milk.
Slowly mix in the flour with a spoon,
leave the dough to rest at room temperature
for half an hour.
Then add the butter, margarine and
ghee and all other ingredients except
the raisins and kneed the dough until
it is springy and elastic. Mix in
the raisins and leave the dough to
rest for another hour.
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
Press out the dough to form an
oblong shape, score down the middle
and make little holes in it, with a
knitting needle for example.
Bake for 90 minutes. When a needle
put into the dough no longer sticks
and the crust is golden brown, take
it out of the oven.
Leave to rest for a while. Prick holes
all over with the needle and brush
with the melted butter. Generously
sprinkle over icing sugar – it can be a
whole centimetre thick!
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

If you ask the locals which is the best
Christmas market in the free state,
you should expect to hear a variety
of different answers.
This is because there are almost more
Christmas markets in Saxony than
there are needles on a Christmas
tree. To make the choice a little simpler
there are ten suggestions on this
page for a trip to the region between
Vogtland and Upper Lusatia. Some
are world famous (like the one in
Seiffen, here in the picture), others
are a secret – but they are all leisurely
and cosy.
dresden
579th Striezelmarkt
Bautzen
Wenzelsmarkt
The first Christmas
meat market was
held here in 1384.
Other stalls were
added over the centuries.
Starting on
29 November, the
"Budyske hodowne
wiki", as it is called
in Sorbian, will be
held for the 629th
time.
chemnitz
Christmas market
A twelve metre
high pyramid, and
oversized musical
box and a five
metre high candle
arch form the centre
of the market
in Chemnitz. And
clustered around it
are some 200 stalls,
opening on 29th
November.
If there were a separate
Christmas
government in Saxony,
this would
be its parliament.
The oldest German
Christmas market
is opened on 27th
November, and on
the 7th December
the Christmas cake
that gives it its name
will be celebrated
at the 20th Stollen
festival.
FREIBERG
Christmarkt
Mining traditions
come to life starting
on the first of advent
on the Obermarkt.
Children
can find out about
mining in a workshop,
the "smelter"
doesn't have liquid
ore in his kettle any
more – just mulled
wine.
Görlitz
Silesian
Christkindelmarkt
The Christ Child
floats in as the bells
chime and choirs
sing on the town
hall steps. From the
6 December there
is music from Silesia
and Bohemia
sounding out between
the stalls.
Königstein
Christmas market
at the fortress
"Königstein – a
winter fairytale", is
the motto on the
advent weekends on
the fortress. The old
ruins are the perfect
backdrop for the
historical and romantic
market.
Photo: Rainer Weisflog
Saxony

Meissen
Meißner
Christmas
The High Gothic
town hall transforms
into an advent
calendar, and
the Renaissance
town houses around
it form a perfect
backdrop for the
Christmas market,
which starts on 29
November.
Plauen
Christmas market
In Plauen not only
a large number
of stalls open
on 26 November,
but so too does
the "Christkindl
Postamt", the
Christmas postoffice;
open for the
business of collecting
children's letters
to Santa.
RADEBEUL
Family Christmas
market
Altkötzschenbroda,
Radebeul's most
beautiful village
centre, lights up on
the first three advent
weekends: decorated
stalls, a pathway
of light and a
glowing nativity
scene give the place
atmosphere.
SEIFFEN
Christmas market
The word "market"
would be an understatement:
The hub
of folk art in the
Ore Mountains becomes
a Christmas
village on 30th November.
On 14 December
the miners
parade through the
streets.
Welcome to the Christmas Wonderland

The home of
ChrisTmas.
Dresdner Stollen Maiden © ZZDD
Go Tell iT on The mounTains! ChrisTmas in saxony is a feasT for The senses.
From the Görlitz Christkindelmarkt Christmas market to the Torgau Fairy-tale Christmas market
and the Dresden Striezel Christmas market, we enchant visitors from all over the world.
With regional specialities, such as Pulsnitz gingerbread or the traditional German Christmas
cake, Christstollen, from the hands of this year’s Dresden Stollen Maiden, Friederike Pohl.
And with living traditions, such as the artisan carvings from the Ore Mountains. To find out
what else is in store to get you into the Christmas spirit, visit www.simply-saxony.com