DANISH CHRISTMAS AS WE REMEMBER IT

By Vibeke and Bent Lindhardt

Memories of my Danish Christmas – as a child.

Vibeke:

The Danish Christmas as I remember it happened on Munkebjergvej 53 on Amager, which is a part of Copenhagen. We lived in a white house on the corner.

My Dad had planted trees and fruit trees and berry bushes. He also had a huge garden. I remember helping him putting the potatoes in the ground.

We had chicken and rabbits and pigs. The chickens and rabbits were outside, but we had a small extension the house where we had “our toilet” in one room and “the pig” in the other room.

I watched many times my Dad chopping the head off the chickens, draining the blood, and then us kids had to pluck the feathers off. I was very sad when he killed the rabbits, because they were my pets.

Nevertheless, I liked when my Mom mad skin hats and “muffedisser” – which was a round thing that hang around our neck in a string, that we could place our hands in if they were cold. All made out of the skin from the rabbits.

When my Dad killed the rabbits he stretched the skin on the door and let it sit in the sun to dry. Then my Mom would hammer it so the skin would get soft.

My mom and Dad always killed a pig awhile before Christmas. I hated when they killed the pig. The neighbours would come to help.  I can still hear the screaming when they stuck a knife in its throat and then in to the hot water in the same wooden barrel that us kids normally took “our monthly bath” in.

Nevertheless the pork sure tasted good. My mom made everything out of the big.  Sausages, including blood sausages.  She kept pork in salt in a big barrel.

The 23^rd we called “Lille Jule Aften”. = meaning “Little Christmas Night. We always had Risengrod med Malt Beer – which is a non-alcoholic beer made out of malts. In Danish= Hvidtøl= white beer. The name is strange since the malt beer is dark.

My Mom made all different kind of cookies.  Jøde Kager= Jewish cookies, Klejner= crullers, Brune kager = brown cookies, pepper nødder= small round cookie with ginger in., Finsk Brød (a Danish shortbread cookie) and godter of course godter and and marzipan figures.

She kept it in a cupboard and us kids "stole" godterne.  Us three girls – Inge Lise, Birgit and me, thought she did not know that we stole godterne, but when I got older and told my Mom that we had stolen them.  She said I know.  That is why I kept filling them up.

The Christmas tree was decorated on the 23^rd by our parents. It was a big secret that we were not allowed to be a part of. The tree had real live candles on. I just loved that.

We were not allowed to see the tree before the 24th, after we had eaten our dinner which was usually both goose and flaeske steg = pork roast with the rind on it, We had red cabbage and glazed potatoes and Asier= pickled gherkins. For dessert we had RisAlamanda.

After dinner all the dishes HAD to be washed before the rest of the evening could go on.

Then my parents would open the doors to the room where the tree was decorated with jule hjerter = braided paper hearts and krœmmerhuse = a cone shaped paper holder which were filled with home made candy.  But there was also a birds which was my favourite and nisser = little Christmas elves.

The tree would always stand in the middle of the room. We would all hold hands and walk around the tree and sing Danish Christmas carols. I really loved that.

Then we opened the presents, but of course there were only a few.  But, we were happy and satisfied with what we got.

Vibeke

Danish Braided Christmas Heart to hang on the tree with goodies in. We made these before Christmas.

Memories of my Danish Christmas – as a child.

Bent:

When I go back in memory from my childhood the following as typical signs and traditions of Christmas in our family:

Christmas Preparations started already in early December, when I started making Christmas gifts for mom and dad. This happened mostly with hammer and saw where I made such as coasters to my mother in the form of small pieces of wood put together so Mom could make hot stuff on them. What I did to Dad and my brother Ludvig I do not remember, but I was busy.

Next thing I remember concerning preparations was that I could choose a pattern for a sweater, as a mother as knitted for me. I always looked forward to that with great pleasure.

Part of the Christmas tradition was also a trip into town where we would look at all the very beautiful Christmas displays in department stores, for example. Magasin du Nord, Illum and other department stores, trying to outdo each other.

It, or the last week before Christmas was in the cookies signs where mother would bake all the lovely Christmas cookies. With my wonderful help. We always began with Brune Kager= brown cakes, as the dough should be 1-2 days before they could bake. Mom always made plenty of dough because the dough tasted almost as good as the cakes. Then there was made vaniliekranse= a form for short bread made in a ring, Klejner=crullers, Jøde Kager jewish cookies and last but not least “Fedte Kager” = a cookie made with fat., which is a cookie originated in South Jutland. There were brown Fedtekager and white Fedtekager. But there was no Christmas if there was no fedtekager. (The Danish people call cookies for cakes)

Then came the evening where we had to make Christmas tree decorations, such as. Christmas hearts, Christmas baskets, Christmas wreaths etc., all of which were hung on the Christmas tree. It took usually a great evening where we all 4 sat around the dining table and cut and paste. (This was later called Julestue).

And then came Christmas Eve, 24 where the Christmas tree was put up in the living room ready to be decorated, which was a job we all did together.. We usually had a pine tree, where we had small candles hung on the tree along with all other decorations. The tree stood in the middle of the dining room with a nice Christmas runs under the tree, where as all the gifts were placed under the Christmas tree.

But first, the Christmas elf “Nissemanden” had to come with all the gifts. And the excitement was more and more constant. Mother begged me to go down and wait for Santa Claus, either on the street or in the yard. I was so excited to meet Santa Claus, but ..... unfortunately never managed to meet him, for one year I went down the street and waited - and waited - and waited --- but no Santa Claus, and then Mom told me that he had unfortunately come up the back stairs. Well, the gifts had come and it was also the most important thing.

But next year would Santa Claus do not cheat me, so I went down the back stairs and waited in the yard. And I waited and waited and waited, and became more and more needy, but I was almost sure that if I went to the bathroom, then Santa Claus probably come while I was there. So I waited and waited ----- until it was too late and I crapped in my pants. It was embarrassing, and on top of all that, of course, came up the main stairs this time. Well, the gifts were thus obtained.

Christmas dinner was usually either flæstesteg, or Goose with both white and roasted potatoes, red cabbage and other accessories. Then usually pleasant RisAlamanda. We drank usually white beer= Non-alcoholic Malt beer with our meal. But dinner was not the most important thing for a little boy, just something to be overcome. But after dinner while we opened gifts we enjoyed the lovely chocolate and marzipansnitter mother had made.

The gifts, yes, it was of course the most important thing about Christmas. But first there is dancing around the Christmas tree, where we sang a lot of the good old Christmas carols and hymns. It was all right, since it was part of the Christmas tradition. Then finally came the most important thing: gifts! We were not wealthy, but we never thought about that for under the Christmas tree were all the finely wrapped presents. There was usually always a big soft package, namely my fine sweater as mother had knitted. The I was always happy. And then there was usually a nice big gift from mom and dad. One year it was a very nice new scooter. And I was in the seventh heaven. Other times some farmhouses to a farm, and then it was 1-2 animals to the toy farm from my brother. A good book also belonged to the traditional gifts from mot and father.

But when I was 8 years old, and I do not remember if it was a Christmas or my birthday, I got a really accordion, the smallest you could get, but it was a real accordion, and it became my life’s gift, as I quickly taught myself to play it. Later I got a little bigger accordion. And my accordions has since then followed me the rest of my life, both at sea and on land.

When all the gifts were opened and we, especially me -had calmed down a little, I was able to play with my gifts.

I was happy and satisfied. A lovely Christmas

Bent

3 December 2017