We celebrate Santa Claus in Switzerland on December 6. We have a family tradition of making our own Graettimaa (mannekin) and drinking rich dark cocoa with a nice topping of whipped cream with it. Actually, we always have a couple, the female is slightly sweet and goes with the cocoa. The male, this year’s turned out to be a cross between Arnold Schwarzenegger and a French monsieur, to be enjoyed with a mature vacherin cheese and a glass or two of red wine.
This is my first modest attempt at making my own video – enjoy!
Recipe will follow!
Comments 35
Looks tasty.
@TheJackB Is tasty, said the guests!
Good job, Barbara, music and all! Look delicious!
@1plus1wednesday Wow, thanks, Adrienne, was not too sure about being allowed to use the music, but as it is non-commercial I probably should not worry, should I?
Sie legen sich lediglich eine gute Idee in meinem Kopf, ich kannall diesen Ländern, dass diese großen Feste zu feiern nach verschiedenen Zeiten zu reisen und nutzen Sie alle Festlichkeiten.Ich denke, Oktoberfest wäre mein Favorit ………:) werden.
How do you like them apples?
Sie legen sich lediglich eine gute Idee in meinem Kopf, ich kannall diesen Ländern, dass diese großen Feste zu feiern nach verschiedenen Zeiten zu reisen und nutzen Sie alle Festlichkeiten.Ich denke, Oktoberfest wäre mein Favorit ………:) werden.
How do you like them apples?
@bdorman264 Nice translation, mein lieber Freund, I would recommend you start early in the year for carnevale a Venezia, followed by some umpa-umpa-tätärä in Germany (enough beer left from the Oktoberfest) and then on to Fasnacht in Basel …
Apples, APPLES, did you just send apples?
@Late_Bloomers Better send sunshine instead, huh?
@bdorman264 Please send both as I have a nice recipe for apple tart with applesauce – thanks!
Such a great video, Barbara, and a delicious looking treat! You are so talented, my friend:) And in the spirit of Christmas, I thought I’d share this video from Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi Finland (Lapland)…my heritage:)
http://youtu.be/H8on9qgs3no
@KDillabough You come from a lovely country, Kaarina, my dear friend, quite a few Finnish girls here in Switzerland, all tall, blonde, witty and beautiful, must be something in the air up North? Were you born in Finland? And do you ever visit?
Thanks for sharing the lovely video, so that is where Santa Claus is dwelling!
Talented? I do not know, dabbling rather, there hardly seems to be time to keep up with all the developments in technology, but I enjoy what I am doing and I like to share.
Have a wonderful weekend, Barbara
@Late_Bloomers I was born in Canada, as were my parents, but my grandparents were from Finland. And I’m of the dark-haired, strong stock part of Finland, not the tall blonde and beautiful part:) I spoke Finn before I spoke English and, amazingly enough, with all the world travel I did with Olympic teams, I never got to Finland. It, as well as walking the Camino trail, are on my list!You are so very talented, Barbara: you inspire me:) Cheers! Kaarina
@KDillabough You made me so proud, Kaarina, I had to read your comment to my daughter, I am very grateful for knowing you and getting to know you better, a budding online friendship, always so supportive and mindful of each other. Have a peaceful weekend, Barbara
Hi Barbara, Your creation looks lovely and delcious! Thanks for sharing that video with us. How wonderful that you were able to make that and enjoy it.
How do you celebrate Christmas in Switzerland?
@wonderoftech Hi Carolyn, Thanks for your sweet words, it was indeed a nice looking and tasty couple, it is so rewarding when all of sudden there is utter silence at table and everybody is enjoying their food!
Christmas celebrations here in Switzerland are about the same as in the States: we have Christmas trees (mostly real ones) decorated and lit with real candles (though it has become fashionable to use electrical lights). Most families celebrate the 24th and 25th with their relatives having huge dinners and exchanging presents. There is a midnight mass at catholic churches or a celebratory service at the Münster (cathedral).
I think, specially for children, it is very important to celebrate together and have rituals (irrespective of religion) and learn to know the sense of belonging, is this not how we build roots?
@Late_Bloomers @wonderoftech Barbara, absolutely you are right about buildings roots by establishing rituals or traditions…it makes the memories that carry us through life!
@jonesbabie@wonderoftech Ah, the memories that carry us through life – beautifulfly described, Cath. That’s why my daughter asks for Fondue Chinoise (meat fondue) every year at Christmas! It seems that most our family rituals are determined by food.
Can I have a piece of it? It looks lovely…It must have taken you ages! Am v impressed!
@MuMuGB A piece of the action? Certainly!
You know, Muriel, I have this attitude of backing away from technical stuff and calling out for help, in 99.9 % it will be my daughter. This time I wanted to figure it out by myself and I can tell you: it is easy and fast, just I cannot remember how I did it …!
I LOVE your video! And yes, he does look French. :D. That looks fabulous and I hope you will be posting the recipe. My grandchildren would love to help me make this!
And by the way, your YouTube video is great! I just wish you’d filmed a bit longer so I’d heard the whole song! I am also learning the ins and outs of YouTube posting. 😀
@jonesbabie …. but a humble beginner, you are right I should have timed it better! 😉
@jonesbabie Yes, the recipe will follow and I am convinced your grandchildren will love to help you or make their own, it is really very easy and they can live out their imagination with the decoration.
Great video and I love how they looked! It does look quite labor-intensive though but I’m sure it’s worth all the effort! It looks yummy!!
@jpage.manuel Thanks, Joy, it takes some patience, the key to success is letting the dough rise in a warm sport, the rest is really easy and fun, also for small children. Recipe and how-to will follow.
That is a nice video.. You’ve done a great job.. I really enjoyed it! 🙂
Amazing video.. I love it! Merry Christmas to all…
I’ve come to this party so late….my apologies @Late_Bloomers . Stealing from @bdorman264 ‘s idea and with the help of my trusty iPhone app…..ahem….
Was fur ein schoner video und eine schone tradition. Danke als gemeinsame Benutzung, Barbara!
After watching this video, I realized that I have really let the cookie making tradition in our family disappear because the kids don’t live at home anymore….shame on me….I should be making Christmas cookies and sharing them with friends!!! Thank you for the inspiration Barbara.
And, as an aside, thank you for the explanation of the Santa Claus tradition in Switzerland. I am curious… since you celebrate him on the 6th of December, is December 25th reserved soley for Christmas and the celebration of Christ’s birth?
hugs,
Claudia
@SocialMediaDDS@bdorman264 How I love these automatic translations, always good for some chuckling!
Claudia, it (the cookie making tradition) will always go on: my daughter has started making the most amazing gingerbread men, hearts and stars which we not only sell but also give away. Why not get your family involved?
Santa Claus is really limited for an appearance on 6th of December and happily withdraws to his forest cabin after that day.
The eve of December 24 and and the day of December 25 are the days of celebrating Jesus’ birth (also happens to be Chica’s birthday). Presents will be exchanged on these days. December 26 is another holiday, probably needed to recover from the festivities before.
I look forward to some quiet days between Christmas and New Year to catch up on some neglecting writing and putting the final touches to our webshop (honours go to Rebecca) and taking care of Chica, who hates wearing a dog collar preventing her from scratching the stitches she has received on her eye operation – poor thing. I think I suffer more than her!
Hugs, Barbara
I want to venture out into the world of video on my blog but I haven’t made it there yet. I admire you for this and your first attempt was a big success. I love the step-by-step for your great looking Santa and the music was a wonderful addition. Even a month after Christmas, I felt my cheer come right back.
@skimhenson Hi Kim, thanks for stopping by and leaving such a lovely comment. Can I encourage you to start with videos? Looking at last year’s stats somewhere video traffic went up 65 % on YouTube alone. It really is easy: you can load a video 1:1 from your computer or camera onto YouTube (are you registered on YouTube?) and follow their easy step-by-step guide. What I did with the Graettimaa video: I used pictures from iPhoto and turned them into a video, added the music and bingo – that’s it!
Glad your cheer is back, much needed in January I think but I do not like winters …
Really appreciated your visit, have a great day, Barbara
@Late_Bloomers@skimhenson Thanks for your encouragement and also for taking the time to walk me through the steps. Since you make it sound so easy, I’m thinking about it a little more. I’ll have to dedicate my first video to you, my friend. I just hope it’s sooner than later. Haha!
@skimhenson Kim, I’d be honoured! You should have seen me sweating through cutting the material for my latest post Vogel Gryff or To Whom The Bell Tolls! Go for it! And imagine I sit on your shoulder (I do not weigh that much!) to help you along!
@Late_Bloomers I’ll laugh each time I think of you there on my shoulder. And that’s a good thing since laughter makes everything easier.
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