The Most Gi-normous Super-Duper Christmas Market ever!

Well here it is Christmas again, my third Christmas in Italy albeit with one at home in Calgary last year. On my second Christmas in Italy I decided that white Christmases are way over-rated and I haven't changed my mind. I blame Irving Berlin and Bing Crosby for brain-washing everyone into believing that white Christmases are the way to go. Today (December 23rd) it is a balmy 15 degrees Celsius. I have to say that going around seeing Christmas lights and displays is much more pleasant in these temperatures. Not that it hasn't been super cold some days but right now it isn't.

I know a lot of people who like to collect nativity scenes and Italy is a collector's paradise. We came home from Rome with several nativities and I'm afraid we are coming home with more which I don't know where we're going to fit but that's beside the point. I blame our President and Sorella Mission President for the additions to our collections because they planned a Senior Missionary Conference earlier this month around a gigantic (and I do mean GIGANTIC) Christmas market in Milan. This was an international market taking up the entirety of Milan's trade center which I believe encompassed about seven or eight football field sized buildings. We didn't see everything but we got pretty much to every building trying to avoid as much as we could the food booth traps which can suck you in like a vacuum cleaner. I have to say that we did get sucked into one food both which was a Chocolate artisan booth in the Italy section. Believe it or not, in the picture here these things that look like metal tools are actually chocolate. I don't know what they cover it to make it look metallic but I admire their abilities.

Yes, it's chocolate!

The Peru section had some very charming items and I fell in love with this nativity which shows Mary and Joseph and baby Jesus having a siesta inside a Chili Pepper stable. I absolutely had to come home with that one. 

Here are some other ones we came home with:

As I mentioned, we wound up at this market because of a Senior Missionary conference but that was actually the second day. The first day we went as a group to the Duomo in Milan and took an elevator up to the roof. It is a very impressive cathedral and interesting because it follows the Gothic style which is unusual in Italy. Gothic cathedrals generally have flying buttresses off the side which can make a cathedral look a little strange from the outside but the Milan cathedral is built so that the flying buttresses are well hidden by the outside. There are carvings practically everywhere you can think of including all over the roof, a place I assume very few people got to. Here are some pictures of that:


In the evening we went as a group to the town of Como north of Milan on the famous Como Lake (George Clooney is purported to have a Villa on Lake Como). Como is a town Hermes once worked in and went to church in. We've visited it a few times before but not at Christmas and their Christmas display is delightful. They light up the town centre and their cathedral with these reflective drawings and this one old medieval tower has animated lighting which makes the tower look like it's speaking and telling a Christmas story to the children. I guess if you've been to Disneyland in recent years you might have seen something similar but I haven't and I was delighted with seeing it. We were also blessed with nice balmy weather that evening making it pleasant to wander around and see the displays.

Most Italians live in apartments so, although you don't see the lights all over houses like you see at home, they do sometimes light up their balconies and they go all out on town and city displays. And nobody can do up a Bethlehem village display (called a Presepe) like the Italians can.

Recently we noticed a banner in the center of town advertising a mechanized Presepe in a town called Campo Ligure so on Saturday we decided to take Nives to see it. I had expected to see something similar to a mechanized presepe we had seen close to Rome two years ago. The one near Rome was in the courtyard of some a castle and had life sized mannequins. The one in Campo Ligure was a miniature and very elaborate village set up inside an old Catholic Church in the center of Campo Ligure. It was again an absolute delight to see because of the detail and imagination that went into it. Because a still picture wouldn't put across the idea of it, I took some video clips and put together a video of some of the displays for you.

In the second scene, notice the bread stealer peeking through the window of the baker's shop. First he peeks and then he takes the bread. We were also very impressed with the cow which had someone milking it and it really looked like there was milk going into the bucket. There was also a couple standing by what looked like a boiling pot of water over coals. I don't know how they did that! And the final scenes are a man removing his hat and kneeling before the holy family in the stable. I'm adding in some still pictures too for you to see. 

Up at the front of the church separate from the Presepe were some miniatures of the town castle and old stone church. 
You can see Hermes peeking in the church here:

And here is what you can see inside the church:

These are true artisans who make these things. I admire this so much.

Our work continues with twice weekly English discussion groups, visits to people in need and some service. We went to a nursing home (called a Casa di Riposo) on December 1st to sing with the other young missionaries and a few members and we're doing a return visit on Christmas Eve. This time I'm bringing some cards for the seniors because I felt a little empty handed last time although the part they love the most is not the singing but the human touch and the kisses (bacci-ing) on both cheeks. That's what they need the most. Anyway, here is a picture of our visit there.

And finally, here is a picture from the last Zone Conference. It's tradition in the Milan Mission to do one serious picture followed by one goofy one. I think I look terrible in the serious one so I'm leaving you with the goofy one. I hope it brings a smile to your face.

Peace on Earth and Good Will to All People! Buon Natale! Merry Christmas!