Carmel Christkindlmarkt in Indianapolis, Indiana
Located at the Center for the Performing Arts, 10 Center Green, Carmel, IN. this markt offers delicious German food, ice skating, live music, dancing, and a family-oriented activity hut featuring a woodcarving demonstration, the Angel of Christmas, and for the first time, a train display.
Popular menu items include the raclette, a Swiss-German cheese sandwich; the laugenbrezel, a traditional hand-rolled German pretzel; waffles; and new this year, there will be sausages cooked on a traditional German open grill. For dessert, you’ll find lebkuchen, the traditional German Christmas cookies, and many other German delights. A 33-feet-tall, German-built Glühwein Pyramid, a traditional German Christmas decoration, will serve the warm spicy wine.
Christkindl Market in Arlington, TX
This event is located at the North Plaza at Globe Life Field (next to Texas Live!) Arlington’s markt is family-friendly and features holiday gifts, decorations, ice skating, German food and drink, and music. Christmas shoppers will find exclusive Käthe Wohlfahrt Christmas decorations and designs, from Bavaria, Germany, as well as more than 20 other holiday vendors. The World’s Largest Holiday Light Maze is found at this Christkindlmarkt, along with a 200 ft. long Arctic Blast Tubing Run, a Warming Hut Peppermint Park with 8 new activities, a Children’s Lantern Parade, and Holiday music and performers. Sounds like an event too “cool” to miss!
Wow! I don’t know about you, but I am impressed! Christmassing in Germany can happen right here in the good old United States! These Cristkindlmarkts are all pretty big deals, drawing thousands of people from all around. But we can’t forget about the smaller markets. Many German Societies and churches stage their own German Christmas Market and other related events on a more local level. Only four city blocks from the Baltimore Christmas Village is a German Church that sponsors a Christkindlmarkt. It takes place inside and outside of the Church. The vendors are located inside where you can find all sorts of candies and cookies in one large hall, crafts in the lobby and hallways, and another meeting room is turned into a cafeteria. The wurst vendors, goulash, beer, and wines are located outside on the church grounds. And of course, St. Nicholas makes an appearance as well.
As we all know, the United States is a melting pot of many cultures, but being a German-American offers you many benefits. Check to see if there are German Societies or Clubs in your area, and I am sure you will find German events that will entertain you and treat your taste buds to delights that come from our German ancestors. Prost!!
