098 VIRGIN AUSTRALIA DECEMBER 2017
THE MANY WINTERfestivals in Switzerland
have ancient origins and oten feature quirky
characters. Kick of in early December in
Küssnacht am Rigi, where locals parade with
enormous lit-up ielen (ornate paper hats that
look like church windows) on their heads. Others
crack whips, ring bells and blow horns to scare of
dark spirits before the arrival of St Nicholas.
You’ll catch the famed saint giving a
speech outside the cathedral in Fribourg, in
western Switzerland — although you’ll have to
speak French to appreciate the witticisms and
satirical recounting of the previous year’s
events. On St Nicholas’s Day (6 December),
children everywhere are rewarded with
mandarins and sweet treats — or potentially
punished by his broom-wielding sidekick
Schmutzli, who lurks around in Christmas
markets and parades across the country.
Just ater Christmas, things get more
peculiar around the picture-perfect Swiss
capital of Bern. Between 25 and 30 December,
rambunctious locals don Halloween-style
masks and animal skins, clanking bells and
banging drums. The horned, beaked monster
Schnabelgeiss presides over them, engaging
in slightly scary mischief-making. All these
creatures finally gather in the nearby village
of Meiringen on 30 December for a grand
get-together that looks somewhat like a
horror movie convention. On New Year’s Eve,
boisterous children meet beneath the castle in
Laupen, ringing more bells and waving juniper
branches as they parade through the village.
In Schwarzenburg, meanwhile, a man
dressed in a donkey suit is ferried around town
by characters including a bride and groom, a
devil, a priest and a two-faced woman — the
hideous face looks back at the past, while the
beautiful face looks towards the New Year.THERE IS NOTHING quite like New York over the festive season. Carollers
roam neighbourhoods, Santas ring bells and, come December, empty street
corners are transformed into tree depots stockpiled with pines and firs
that perfume the air just as the hot-dog stands do in summer.
And, as locals haul their purchases back to their apartments, a tree of a
diferent kind lights up Rockefeller Center — a soaring green beast, usually
sourced from upstate New York and adorned with 50,000 lights. On 17
December, at the 44th Annual Merry Tuba Christmas, this will be the scene of
hundreds of brass band members belting out carols with impressive energy.
But perhaps the quintessential Big Apple winter experience is a twirl
around the Rockefeller Center’s sunken ice rink, overlooked by the gold-
coloured statue of Prometheus, ranks of Christmas trees and wire-sculpture
angels blowing trumpets. Alternatively, take to Wollman Rink in Central Park,
which frequently appears as a backdrop to movies and TV shows.
New York in winter can be frightfully cold, but there is plenty to distract
you from the icy conditions. White lights draped on the hawthorn and cherry
trees of Park Avenue are a shining memorial to victims of war. The holiday
tree in Dante Park on Broadway twinkles in red, green and gold. Grand Central
Terminal has a laser light show, and decorations lining Fifth Avenue culminate
in a giant illuminated snowflake at the intersection of 57th Street.
Don’t miss the window scenes at Bloomingdale’s, Bergdorf Goodman and
Saks Fifth Avenue, glowing with puppets, mechanised animals, toy trains and
fairytale landscapes. Fashion store
Lord & Taylor might have the best
display, however, with enough LED
lights and snowy scenes to make
even the grumpiest shopper smile.
On 25 December, do like
the locals do and eat yum cha or
Jewish fare — Christmas Day has
become synonymous with these
as other eateries tend to be closed.
Try the iconic Katz’s Delicatessen
or head into Nom Wah for scallion
pancakes and the pan-fried pork
dumplings. Or, mix the two at Mile
End Deli, a Jewish store that serves
a set Chinese Christmas menu.New York,USA
SWITZERLAND