Love Us: Christmas Week

We began Christmas week frantically searching for a pediatrician. Owen's fever refused to subside. With our beloved doctors 4000 miles away, we need a local person we trust. Several phone calls later, I found a German practice that could see him immediately. A quick strep test solved the problem and 24hrs and two antibiotic doses later, Owen asked "When are we going outside?"

Emily and Owen begged us to let them ride their bikes to the Christmas Markets. They rode to the U-bahn, biked along the river - stopping at a playground - and found an Italian cafe where they had gelato for lunch and I had an Amaretto cappuccino. Looking at the German architecture, the decked-out Christmas booths, and the 30-foot Christmas tree, I felt like I was watching a movie.

Eager to experience Frankfurt traditions, on Christmas Eve we woke our napping children, put them on their bikes, and headed downtown for the "pealing of the bells." At 5:00 on Christmas Eve, 50 bells from 10 of the downtown churches ring together for 30 minutes. Frankfurt began this tradition in 1954. We followed the flow of people right to the city center. Then we got caught. Reminiscent of Times Square on New Year's Eve, thousands of people squished together in the small platz. We felt like we were suffocating and after ten minutes decide to get out. Tightly gripping both kids' hands, I navigated the crowd hoping to see Dave and the bikes at the other end. I could hear Owen screaming, "These people keep pushing me. I hate them," as I pulled him along. Amazingly, as we neared the U-bahn and the people cleared, we could still hear the bells loud and clear. The kids biked around the circle as we listened to the 70 tons of metal ringing in harmony.

When we returned to the apartment, our neighbors invited us for Puerto Rican pasteles, wine, rum-cream cake, and the lightening of the Advent Wreath.