December!

December was, of course, Christmas-y. Firstly, it snowed like crazy, which had started in November, and carried on until December, if I remember correctly.

Christmas in Austria is amazing.
With the snow, Christmas markets, Advent, Christmas cookies, and just overall mood, it is a wonderful place to be. The Christmas markets are wonderful, with little stalls where you can buy artsy-craftsy things, sweets, meat, wine or punch, and other such things. Downtown Vienna is decorated with lights, and it's just cozy and wonderful. Agnes baked zillions of Christmas cookies in the Advent season, some to be saved for Christmas, and some to eat right away.

In Austria, as in many European countries, Christmas Eve is when everything happens, not Christmas Day. Everything starts in the evening, with a big dinner. We, for example, had meat fondue, and for desert a lemon sorbet, ice, and alcohol drink. Next we opened presents, which the "Christkind" (Christ Child, literally translated) had left for us. Finally, we went to church for a midnight service.
Christmas Day is then spent eating and visiting family.
A few days later, we left to go skiing in Bad Gastein, a ski resort somewhere in the middle of Austria. We split two apartments with another family, one apartment for kids and one for grown ups. On New Years Eve, we partied the Austrian way: first a countdown, then Viennese Waltz, shooting of fireworks in a field, and then back to the apartment. Inside, everyone got to choose a lead figurine of a luck symbol, for example a crown, a pig, or a mushroom. Then everyone took turns melting his or her figurine in a spoon over a candle, and then dropping the figurine in a pot of cold water, where the lead hardened. Whatever shape the hardened lead became predicted the future for the new year. Mine, I believe was a fish, meaning I would have luck in games. Finally, we all ate lentils for good luck and went to bed.