Happy First Advent!

Today, many Germans celebrate the first of Advent, a beloved and widespread Christmas tradition in Germany.

Advent are the 4 weeks leading up to Christmas, and to mark this passage of time, we light a new candle on our Advent wreath every Advent Sunday.
Many families celebrate the Advent Sundays with singing Christmas carols, drinking hot spiced wine, and eating Christmas cookies or a piece of "Stollen", a traditional German Christmas cake.

The Advent wreath was "invented" by Johann Hinrich Wichern, a German pastor, who founded an orphanage in Hamburg in 1833.
During the weeks leading up to Christmas, the children would ask him daily if Christmas had arrived. To make the wait easier, Wichern came up with his magical Christmas countdown, and he made his first Advent wreath out of an old cartwheel and small candles.

I wish you a wonderful and happy Advent time!