May Day 2012

This years May 1st was relatively peaceful, certainly it was on Oranienstrasse anyway. It was about 8 square blocks of closed roads with live music in the street. Great vibe and atmosphere. Local store owners setup temporary bar's out front of their stores, beer or mixed drinks for a fairly decent price. To those in Vancouver, dream on....

Wow, once again Berlin shows how a street party should happen. More photo's at the Flickr site.

Tschüss

Christmas in Berlin

The German's have a bit of long track record with this one and have honed the holiday to quite a high degree. Loads of lights and decorations and yet almost no sign of that gaudy American stuff that permeates the holiday in the new world. Yes there's the occasional stuffed Santa Claus' hanging from balconies like a merry cat burglar but there are many more paper stars lighting up the windows everywhere. And there's a bit of food...

Being in northern Europe, I thought I would finally get a white Christmas but thanks to climate change throwing a spanner in the works I was denied again. So its a plastic Christmas in one more way than usual.

It may look cold but its been between 4 and 11 degrees over the week of Christmas

Off to the right is a big (but quiet) freezer unit in Berlin in December!

The Arkaden mall at Potsdamer platz. Festive and yet, not a jolly fluorescent red suit it sight.

Where else would you want to stand around a fire drinking your glühwein but underneath...that.

The Christmas Market really lets fly in the evening.

The food is very expensive but it is good.... at attracting hungry kids with dad's wallet

The display from Die Marzipan & Nougateria. Much more reasonable prices but I still spent too much here.

Loads of cheese priced to remind me of the cost of this cheesy comestible back in Vancouver.

Galeries Lafayette of Paris set up a full restaurant in a tent with the Chalet Quebec theme. Canada represented by a fountain of kindling. I didn't see Poutine on the menu.

Just in case you forgot where you were, there's the disco ball which is ubiquitous in Berlin.

Each booth with a tent roof and a paper star on top.

Hmmm, actors and some sort of Christmas play with kings, ice fairies, jugglers, musicians, rabbits and a walking talking Christmas tree.... I have no clue what it was all about. That is snow but its plastic as well.

One vendor for those hand made paper stars.

Porcelain ornament.

I combined three shots here. And here he is, the jolly Santa does finally show up. For some reason a cloud was hanging under the sleigh with some sort of elf I think. Perhaps Santa's tribute to Berlin in Winter? In any event after flying out on wires and a few words for the kids, he zipped off thanks to his 'rocket' powered sled. That is until he hit the end of the cable with a wobbly wobble and drifted back down.

  Up next is New Years in the party capitol but I'm leaving the camera at home for that one.