The Christmas market at Charlottenburg Palace…

The Christmas Market tradition goes all the way back to the Late Middle Ages in the German-speaking areas of Europe. It’s normally held during the four weeks of Advent leading up to December 25th.

Schloss Sanssouci

There’s a smallish town just outside the Berlin city centre that’s completely encrusted with palaces.

It’s only 30 minutes away, at the end of the S7 line, on the River Havel. And it’s the most popular day trip from Berlin.

Berlin is a city where art lives and breathes.

I went there recently for a dose of art and culture. My little Mediterranean island is piled with history, many stones deep. And beauty is present too, but art is scarce. And I need art to remind me of what my work could be.

I spent a week in Berlin right before the Christmas holidays.

We rented an apartment in Mitte, near the Rosenthaler Platz U Bahn station. A gentrified neighbourhood of ethnic restaurants, dimly lit bars and newly renovated apartments with enormous windows, modern furniture, heated floors and soundproofed walls. Close to the fashion district, and to small galleries filled with big fringe ideals.

I was in Berlin this past week, getting a huge dose of art and culture — something I’m starved for on my small Mediterranean island.

I went there to soak up the gritty feel  of the city, and to hang out in museums and small galleries. But I also ended up wandering through a bunch of Christmas markets. They were everywhere. And they had good food.