Children and people who prefer not to drink alcohol can enjoy fruit punch, hot chocolate, and other warm seasonal drinks.
The market I visited was at Schönbrunn Palace, which was once the summer residence of the Austrian imperial family, including the famous Empress Maria Theresa and Emperor Franz Joseph. The palace is one of Vienna's most important historic buildings, and its enormous courtyard provides a beautiful setting for the Christmas market. There were dozens of decorated wooden stalls, sparkling lights, festive music and all sorts of interesting things to look at and taste.
I particularly enjoyed walking around and seeing how the entire palace courtyard had been transformed into a little Christmas village. Even though it is still November, the decorations and lights already made everything feel very festive! I think visiting Christmas markets is going to become one of my favorite winter traditions in Austria, and I am looking forward to exploring some of the other markets around Vienna in the coming weeks.
This week, I decided to challenge myself by reading a famous German-language book in its original language: Der Prozess (The Trial), by Franz Kafka. Some of the students at my school have been reading it, which made me curious! Since I am also practicing my German while living in Austria, I thought it would be a good opportunity to read something a little more challenging.
Franz Kafka was a writer born in Prague in 1883, when the city was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He came from a German-speaking Jewish family and wrote almost entirely in German.
