St. Martinstag

Around Halloween I had the chance to talk with several students about a similar holiday they have, but which comes from a much different tradition: St. Martinstag (St. Martin's Day).  The most common story about St. Martin is that he shared his cloak with a beggar on a cold night.  Therefore the theme of sharing with others is a main part of the holiday.  For St. Martinstag many children go around from house to house and receive candy.  However, they don't dress up in costumes, and to get their candy they might have to sing or recite a poem.  Another common tradition with this holiday is a parade with lanterns.  Which brings me to last weekend.

Last weekend was a big event in downtown Hannover - Verkaufsoffener Sonntag!  Meaning that the stores were all open on Sunday, since everything is normally closed.  As part of this event there was going to be a St. Martin's Day parade.  I met up with some other teaching assistants I've gotten to know and we did something quite typical for a Sunday: went to a cafe.  Though it was chilly, the cafe still had an outdoor set up with heating lamps and blankets, so we could stay warm and also still listen to the little concert going on in the square.  Finally it grew dark, the perfect setting for lanterns.
Leading the parade was St. Martin on a horse, and then a little brass band, and then everyone just followed him; it wasn't an organized parade that everyone watches but more of a mass participatory walking together.  It was mainly little kids and they all had their lanterns.  The parade was short - only to the main church in Hannover, the Marktkirche.  Since it is a religious holiday, we decided to go in to hear the short children's service that was being held for the event.  Afterwards all the children got Hörnchen - I'm pretty sure they were croissants, but didn't get a good look - and the point is that they're easy to tear to share with someone.  In the square by the church several bonfires had been lit too.  Amidst the sort of foggy conditions, it had a nice feel.


Late fall is definitely here in Hannover.  Once November hit the weather decided to play along and it was very foggy for all of last week, though it slowly lifted as the week progressed until it was sunny again yesterday!  I also broke out my winter coat on Friday.  My long search for winter boots finally paid off and I found a nice pair that was also pretty cheap, and while they might be a little big, at least they're something.  Boots are really popular in Germany, and it was surprising to me how difficult it was to find a cute pair that was warm, comfortable, flat, and streamlined.
Otherwise I have been kept very busy.  School and university require preparation, and I've also been getting together with new friends a lot.  I'm also starting grad school applications.  On Friday I had "Kaffee and Kuchen" (coffee and cake) at this fancy cafe and had an amazing piece of cake that had a dark chocolate and marzipan shell and then was filled with various cremes.  Yesterday I also journeyed to Hildesheim and walked around a little bit.  I ended up taking a wrong turn, but happily ended up in a really beautiful area with many cute houses and a little river.  Hannover is lacking in charm, so it was a nice escape.  Yesterday I also went out dancing for the first time. It was fun, but one problem is that things don't seem to really get started until 1:30 or 2:00, when I'm ready to go home.
Alright, better head out and take in some sunlight while I still have the chance!