more pictures here
On Saturday, we followed a crowd of families & children toward Place Stanislas. After a bit of a wait– which was filled with Christmas carols, mulled wine sipped from thermoses & listening to an announcer tell us to PLEASE step closer to the right side of the square.
Kids were propped on parents' shoulders when the show started, & after a few minutes I was worried about how they'd be sleeping that night. The story goes something like this: A butcher kidnaps three small children, butchers them & puts them in a tub of salt to pickle for seven years. St. Nicolas shows up & brings the children back to life. There is much rejoicing...
And there were tons of fireworks for the celebration, & they matched the tone of the story perfectly–moving from red fireworks, flames & explosions when the butcher is around to a light music & cascading fireworks when St. Nicolas walks through the snowy woods to the butcher's house. The victory of St. Nicolas (& the finale of fireworks, which included St. Nicolas being lifted above the crowd) closed the night on a positive note, but I know some kids that would still have some serious nightmares.
On Sunday, we headed to Metz for a lighter, more general celebration of St. Nicolas's big weekend. Metz has a huge Christmas market, & our friend has an apartment overlooking the route of the parade. After coffee & parade watching, we set out for an afternoon in the market. Most of the market's booths included free samples (gingerbread, dried strawberries & I think 10 different kinds of ham), so it was hard not to get full before heading back for dinner with our two friends.
With all the excitement, walking & anticipation in the crowd–only 17 days until Christmas!–we were able to forget that we're away from family this Christmas. We soaked in the new traditions, appreciated that this may be the only time we're in Europe for the holidays, & ate our fill of cheese.
One of our best gifts is that we both have jobs this year, something we weren't expecting to happen for another three or four years. It's enabled us to enjoy this experience, learn more about French culture by immersing ourselves in it & travel with friends.
Our relationships with the people we've met here have grown faster than we'd imagined, & we've been blessed with lots of really wonderful people that make Nancy seem more home-away-from-home than far away from home. Thanks to them we're making it through the holidays (at times with too many obligations, something Joe & I are not at all used to) without too much time to sit around & miss home.
That said, I can't help but dream about holidays back home, with my family nestled into our new apartment or home with just the lights of the Christmas tree & our hands around warm mugs of hot chocolate. I think to console myself, I'll make some of my mom's fudge before the weekend.
To start the seasonal celebrations here on Francofile, my dad has created a Where's Joe's Head? Be sure to check out his craftiness on the WJH page.
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