My French Christmas: Abby

How do you spend Christmas in France? What do the French do better at Christmas time? And what could they learn from your pays de naissance? We investigate…

Abby says…

My favourite thing about Christmas time in France…
I have never spent Christmas Day in France, but this will be my sixth December in France.

My favourite part of the Christmas season here is the Christmas markets. There is a large Christmas market on the Champs-Elysées that starts in late November, there are famous Christmas markets in Lille and in Aix-en-Provence, and the best Christmas market in France is in Strasbourg.

We are also not so far from Brussels and Cologne, and a number of other German cities with great markets. I never get sick of them!

What I miss about Christmas in my hometown…
While I always go back to the U.S. for the actual holiday, I do miss some of the American-style build-up to Christmas. I miss the excitement when Thanksgiving has come and every turns to full Christmas mode. The exact start of the Christmas season is much fuzzier (and hence a bit less dramatic) here.

I also miss the Christmas carols and the lights. People have Christmas trees and decorate with lights here as well, but not to the same extent. Oh, and I miss American Christmas cookies!

What I think the French do better at Christmas…
Again, the Christmas markets. This is really the one aspect of Christmas that I find much better in France. The decorated cabins, the shops, the pastries, the hot mulled wine… Why don’t they set up Christmas markets in the U.S.?

What are your favourite things about Christmas in France? 

Tell us in a comment below, or tweet us: @MaVieFrancaise, #MyFrenchChristmas.

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Image credits:
1. Virginia Jones