Striezelmarkt
What to Expect: Nothing says Christmas like a four-ton fruitcake. At least, that's the fervent opinion of the citizens of Dresden, who parade their supersize stollen through the city in early December. Accompanied by the Stollenmädchen, or "Fruitcake Maiden," the Saxon fruit loaf wends its way through the medieval streets before making its triumphal entry into the Striezelmarkt, where, surrounded by 230 glittering crafts stalls and a 46-foot "Christmas pyramid," the stollen is chopped into pieces that are inflicted upon the market-goers. Dresden's Striezelmarkt and its odd traditions date back to 1434, making it Germany's oldest continuously running Christmas market.
Look For: The best crafts Germany has to offer. Top artisans from across Saxony arrive bearing all sorts of regional specialties: wooden crafts from the Ore Mountains, blown glass from Lauscha, Blaudruck indigo prints from the Lusatia region, incense burners shaped like nutcrackers, and, of course, Dresden's own famed blue-and-white ceramics.
Dates: End of Nov.–Dec. 24
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