December has been a busy month. I’ve spent barely a week in Bournemouth, and the rest of my time has been spent traveling across Europe on my Christmas vacation. Let me recap, starting from the end of my family’s visit:

The final day with my family was spent at Corfe Castle, the ruins of a once majestic castle built by William the Conqueror beginning in the 11th century. I thought that the whole site would be a drive-by, but there was a beautiful working village on the castle grounds that was quintessentially English. We stopped at the Greyhound Inn, the most photographed pub in England, and I took part in that title by snapping shots of my picturesque, archetypal English meal: a mushroom and leek pie, maple roasted root vegetables, mashed potatoes, and gravy. It was to die for. 

After nearly a week of being on the go in the busy streets of London and Edinburgh, I could tell that my family was grateful to take it slow, especially in a candlelit pub in an 11th century cobblestone-street-lined and thatched-roof-homes village with ancient castle ruins behind them and a steaming plate of shepherd’s pie in front of them. How much more English can you get? I surveyed the room and felt so full to see the three people who have guided me through life, the only people who have known every version of me, experience this new side of my life. My dad was smiling the whole meal through, and I felt so grateful and proud that they came all this way to see me and my world. Sipping my gingerbread hot chocolate, I knew this was a perfect moment. 

After spending nine days non stop traveling, I was a little worn out, but I had to keep up my energy because immediately after my family left I set out for a solo weekend in Germany. Even though I would’ve rather rescheduled the trip, I had a mission to live out my childhood dream of attending a German Christmas market, and I’m one who likes to fulfill a vision. Upon exiting my train in Nuremberg I immediately was met with the sight of a gothic building with that old German typeface reading “Opernhaus” and two minimally decorated fraser fir trees on either side of the entrance. This was exactly what I’d been hoping for. I hurried to my free walking tour and was more pleased by the minute by how this side of Germany was exactly what I’d been hoping for and more. The main attraction, Nuremberg’s Christkindl Market, was nothing short of magical: I wandered through long rows of illuminated huts with wooden ornaments dangling precariously from roofs, trays of freshly cooked lebkuchen (gingerbread) displayed in front, and steaming cups of glühwein (mulled wine) being served up at every other turn. I went to bed refreshed with a childlike joy, once again reminded of how traveling someplace new fills me with life and wonder. 

My second and final full day in Germany was less whimsical. As a fan of history, I took the day to explore Nuremberg’s dark past, starting at the German National Museum and taking the tram across town to the Nazi Rally Grounds and Documentation Museum. I knew that Nuremberg was the home of the famous Nuremberg Trials, but I was unaware that it also hosted the Nazi Party Rallies, held annually from 1933 to 1938. While many of the prominent sites have been destroyed, it was still eerie to walk the same streets that Adolf Hitler and the Nazis did only ninety years ago, and it made the events of the Holocaust feel more real. 

The final stop on my December itinerary was Iceland! I would be visiting my old host family from Summer 2023 and taking part in their Christmas traditions. I learned about the country’s dark folklore (there’s an evil Christmas cat that will eat children if they don’t get new clothes for Christmas), swam in an outdoor pool while it was snowing, ate traditional Icelandic Christmas foods, and spent quality time with my host family. It was lovely to see everyone again and to see how much the three girls had grown in just a year and a half. 

The girls and I with the evil Christmas cat.

My host mom, Laufey, knitted me my very own Lopapeysa for Christmas – and gave me a haircut! Merry Christmas to me!

For now I’m taking a few days in Bournemouth to rest before heading off on my next adventure. 

Until next time,

Elisabeth x

Iceland in the snow

Me and Laufey before a Christmas concert at the Harpa theater