Christmas in Bayerisch Eisenstein, Bavaria

The first weekend in advent is the start of the Christmas season in Bavaria. In our village, Bayerisch Eisenstein, deep in the Bavarian Forest on border with the Czech Republic, this is how the season goes. This weekend, the decorations start to appear on and in people’s houses. Coloured lights are almost unknown here but white lights are quite widely used – strings of white lights draped around the balconies or cascading down like icicles, or draped around outdoor trees. The autumn decorations of greenery, pine cones and candles are dressed up. On the Saturday, there is an advent market in the Waidlerhuette, our local ‘village hall’, selling decorations, presents, cakes and biscuits, even home made schnaps. The ladies of the village bake huge quantities for every event and would put most WI markets to shame. They have even produced their own cookery book.

The first weekend in Advent is when the big, daily Christmas markets in the cities get going – Nuernberg, Munich, Regensburg and Passau all have lovely markets within easy reach of here – 2 years ago we sampled all of them (especially the Gluehwein!), to make sure we could recommend them to visitors! Although you can buy presents at the big Christmas markets, the main function of most Christmas markets, and especially the smaller ones, is social – groups of friends and families meet to chat and sample the Gluehwein and various specialities offered in the wooden huts by local clubs and societies, farms and small producers. The markets get going as darkness falls and continue until mid evening. During December, the smaller towns and villages have their own Christmas markets for just a weekend or even just a day.

6th December is the name day of St. Nikolaus. But ‘der Nikolaus’ actually comes on the evening of 5th December, with his companion, a little devil called ‘Krampus’. Nikolaus brings small presents, nuts, oranges and apples to the houses in the village for the children. Sometimes the children recite a poem or play a piece of music for him. Nikolaus then lists the good and bad things the children have done during the year, often in the form of a rhyme.  The Krampus may punish them if they have been particularly bad during the year! An old tradition in Bayerisch Eisenstein is ‘Nigeln’. Children or adults go out on the streets on the evening of 5th December, dressed as Krampus, and others tease them and are then chased. The children enjoy this as they have to try to escape.

In mid December, before the holiday season started, our village had a big Christmas party for the whole village in the village hall. The ladies baked again and various musical and singing groups in the village provided entertainment – from the Kindergarten children singing about the ‘Weihnachtsbaeckerei’ to the men of Regenhuette singing local forest songs.

The Christmas celebrations really got underway in Bayerisch Eisenstein on 21st December, with a concert in the beautiful Catholic Parish Church of St. Nepomuk. A brass ensemble played haunting music, interspersed with harp music and songs.

On 23rd December, more than 1,000 visitors – residents of the village and surrounding area and holiday guests – visited the 1st International Christmas Market in Bayerisch Eisenstein. The international theme was chosen to celebrate the location of the village in the centre of Europe and directly on the border with Czech Republic, previously site of the barbed wire of the ‘iron curtain’, which finally disappeared on 21st December when Czech Republic joined the Schengen area. As well as Bohemian specialities from over the border, visitors enjoyed Bavarian specialities, also English mince pies (provided by the English organisers of the market, Margaret Leach & Martin Holborow), Belgian waffles, Thai soup, Hawaian fruit punch, French crepes and many more, all provided by residents of the village and the neighbouring town of Zelezna Ruda. Music was provided by musicians from the village.

Christmas services took place in the Protestant and Catholic churches on 24th December and the restaurants all closed early to allow their staff to spend at least part of the evening with their families. British guests at Haus Sterr (25 of them!) sat down to an early Christmas dinner at a village restaurant – now an annual event.

On Christmas Day, 25th December, the restaurants were all open for business again and the skiing on the Arber mountain was in full swing.

Boxing Day, 26th December, is the traditional time for the village ‘Heimat Abend’ – with displays of traditional dancing by adults and children, traditional music and, the highlight, the Schuhplattlers.

The local singing group performed Bavarian and international songs, accompanied by Gluehwein and waffles on 27th and Saturday 29th was the day for Bayerisch Eisenstein’s big, boisterous Apres Ski party, which was a sell out.

The New Year was welcomed as usual with a massive display of fireworks all over the village and the season was rounded off by the village’s own New Year’s Day Concert: Bavarian and Czech waltzes, polkas and marches, mixed with readings by Mayor Thomas Mueller.

What impressed us most was the huge range of musical talent and organisational skills in a village of barely 1,000 people. And the snow!