# 27th November 2022 is the First of Advent



## JanHank (Mar 29, 2015)

Inis and Marco up the road have lots of solar lights around bushes and a tree already. In the next village on Thursday there were lots of outside lights on when I came home, its a village quite a few people drive through to get home from work and I think they call them winter lights rather than Christmas lights, they will stay there well into the new year to cheer things up on the dark winter nights. I have loads of lights, Hans would put them up for his little girl  as he would call me, but they are mains lights. Last year I bought a few battery ones for the tree and indoors, I bought another string from Poland last week when I went with Heike 300 of them on one string, I might be over doing it a bit. I must now go upstairs and find the cave entrances to put in the windows.
I can´t remember as many lights outside private houses when we were still there, maybe it has become popular now with solar and battery lights being easier to spread around the place.


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## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

We used to festoon the house like Harrods some years ago but climbing ladders to sort out the bulbs in cold November days lost it's appeal. And would you believe the old trout across the lane even complained about them.!

Ray.


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## JanHank (Mar 29, 2015)

As it´s you that told me Ray and You've mentioned her behaviour before, yes I can believe it.


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## GMJ (Jun 24, 2014)

Thankfully we haven't seen any decorated houses yet.


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## Penquin (Oct 15, 2007)

When we were in Devon I decorated the outside extensively, much admired by villagers who commented (probably not by those that didn’t !) They all were on timers and all varied each year; one year a large star on the side of the house, built using plastic conduit tubing and various push fit junctions, the next year I assembled the same things to make a manger with a head showing. 

Good fun to do but once we moved to France there was no reason to onto us - no-one goes past as there is no road, no children in house to ooh and aah at them as they changed constantly (except the baby’s head which was always radiant white).

Would I dothe same now if in the U.K. in a town ? Not this year due to the need to conserve energy - I do have TWO “Bah Humbug“ hats……


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## Glandwr (Jun 12, 2006)

It's the calendar creep that amazes me. As a child we would not think of bringing in a tree and decorating the house until Christmas eve. From memory I can't think of any friends or relatives that did otherwise. Everything disappeared just as quickly on 12th night. Are you in a Catholic or Protestant part of Germany Jan I wonder if that makes a difference?

The ultimate extension of Christmas to me though was when we spent a winter touring Maroc. My wife was getting retail withdrawal symptoms and I decided that a visit to a western style shopping mall outside of Marrakesh would go down well for her birthday at the beginning of Feb. Although I must admit the chance of picking up some alcohol to replace our much depleted stock swung it for me.

Second week of Feb and it was still decorated with Christmas trees and lights, there were Carols on the piped music and there was even a grotto complete with elves and a father Christmas that children were visiting.

Can anyone remember real candles on the Christmas tree? I saw one in France (unlit) a handful of years ago. I can remember them when I was very littler. H&S would have a nightmare today.


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## GMJ (Jun 24, 2014)




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## GMJ (Jun 24, 2014)

I can remember the little candle holders on trees but not them being lit. We used them as decoration. They used to be lit before my time but we had moved to electric ones to my earliest memory.


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## JanHank (Mar 29, 2015)

I´m going to answer from the end Dick,
Hans would always light candles on our `real´ trees on Christmas Eve, here and in England, then we bought the artificial one a few years back and we still had candles on, birthday cake candles  (I still have a box of them) they were only lit just once for a few seconds to make the wick black.
As fo decorating, yes you are right, Christmas Eve was for decorating and bringing in the tree when I was little, then Mum and Dad would go to the pub for an hour or so, Father Christmas always seemed to arrive after they got back 🥰. Presents were not given out until after the breakfast things had been washed up, there wasn't a lot to wash as we ALWAYS had a ham sandwich, Mum had cooked the ham some days earlier of course and Dad had made the mince pies and sausage rolls, they were such happy days, the presents we had were worth shillings rather than pounds except for mine maybe, I had 5 brothers so they would club together to buy their little sister something special, all the ladies had bath cubs and talc, the men handkerchieves or socks, maybe 100 cigs if they smoked. 6th of January every single trimming was removed.

I´m in a protestant area Dick, in the old East, I think this is a roll over from when they were not able to get much stuff to decorate in or outside, I have just asked Heike if they have started in her area yet, she is on the border of Roman Catholic and has some holiday we don´t here and vice versa. I´m waiting for her answer. Heikes answer Oh yes, no sign of saving energy! I don't understand this. My friends up the road have lights on a tree, half a dozen bushes and on their veranda, only the tree are mains the others either battery or solar. I won´t tell them I think they are gaudy, I dislike the coloured ones mine are all a golden ocular.
All areas lit the first candle on the Advent Kranz/ wreath yesterday, Mario, one of my helpers had 2 🤣

Just seen Grahams post, the candles were extra lit for maybe half an hour Christmas Eve, we had electric lights on the tree, I still have them somewhere, so much stuff I can´t bring myself to throw away yet.

I could go on and on and on and tell you how our trees arrived and lots more but I won´t.


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## JanHank (Mar 29, 2015)

*I forgot Mario´s Advent Wreaths *


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*This is his Bio one  *


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## JanHank (Mar 29, 2015)

Ha ha, on the sausage one I had to click on it to open it because it says it a sensitive content. I see you have to as well. 

How come Graham your TW*T is acceptable, but I wasn't allowed to type it.


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## GMJ (Jun 24, 2014)

It's an image so I guess the word can't be identified as it is not typed.


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## JanHank (Mar 29, 2015)

GMJ said:


> It's an image so I guess the word can't be identified as it is not typed.


Neither are my sausages 😕


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## GMJ (Jun 24, 2014)

I can see your sausages


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## JanHank (Mar 29, 2015)

GMJ said:


> I can see your sausages


Doesn't it tell you first of all it´s sensitive content and you have to be over 18 to open it  As if we have any under 18 on here, well we did once but I think he was rustling up viewers for his Youtube.


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## GMJ (Jun 24, 2014)

No just a random image of some sausages!


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## JanHank (Mar 29, 2015)

GMJ said:


> No just a random image of some sausages!


With that answer I wondered during the night if everyone knew what an Advent wreath is as they are not something many people have in the UK, except maybe in churches. It is a decoration for the table with 4 sometimes 5 candles 4 red ones and a white one in the middle. Each Sunday during advent one of the red candles are lit at breakfast and on Christmas morning the white Center candle is lit.
Also when I talked about my cave entrances, something else almost every house has in their windows in Germany from the first of Advent, they originate from the East in Erzgebirge the Ore mountains.
If you would like to know how it originated scroll down to ‘History of the Schwiboggen‘ the German name for my cave entrance lights.


https://www.german-way.com/history-and-culture/holidays-and-celebrations/christmas/christmas-candle-arch-der-schwibbogen/


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