Weihnachten in Germany....

Today is Christmas in Germany and it is called Weihnachten. They open presents and Santa comes at night instead of the 25th. Jess and I went to an evening church service and took some pictures. This is Jess in the church on the balcony. In Finland Joulupukki (Santa) comes on the 24th night. He comes to the house and gives the presents to the children and they sing Christmas carols. I dressed up as Santa and stood out on the street. When Erika came in she saw the presents and that Santa had come. Janne told her that maybe Joulupukki was still around and took her out to the balcony. I was on the street dressed as Santa waiting for her. She waved and was really excited. The funny part of the story is that while I was waiting for Erika outside, Germans out driving and walking kept talking to me. I tried to hide but it didn`t work. They would honk and wave or ask me questions. I would just say HO HO HO! I never thought I would be stranded on the street in Germany dressed as Santa. Chalk up another story to tell the kids! This is me with Janne before Erika came.
This is me in front of the Christmas tree. Pretty strong looking Santa eh!
This is a picture of the church from the balcony. Really old and really different from home. Neat experience to be in a different country on Christmas eve and to attend a service in a different language.