6th of December

How to Wichtel

by Silke

Do you know Secret Santa? Germans call it Wichteln. There are many variations, but I will tell you about my family's way of Wichteln.
Who doesn't like a present? But the holidays can get very stressful, if you need a present for everyone who is gathered around the Christmas tree on December 24th. So 20 years ago, we decided that every person would only get one present. In November we all draw secretly another person's name and you only have to think about a present for this one person. So you can dedicate all of your considerations and creativity to this one person.
Last year my father made for me these houses from old logs. They bring a piece of my hometown Mainz' old town into my apartment in Leipzig.
In 2020 we might not get together around the tree, but we will for sure send each other our Wichtelpresents!

Another popular way is to do Stresswichteln. It´s a game I often played with my circle of friends at our Christmas get-together. Everyone brings a wrapped present. But you don't aim for beautiful and useful – just the opposite: the uglier and the more absurd the better. Whatever you can find at home, you really want to get rid of. Everyone circles around the wrapped presents and the first person throws the dice. You set an alarm clock for 30 minutes.

6 – You can choose a present
1 – you can unwrap your present
2 – you swap your present with someone else's
3 – all presents get passed on to the right
4 – all presents get passed on to the left
5 – your right and left neighbour have to swap their presents

If the alarm clock rings, you end up with whatever present you have at that moment. Usually there is a few presents that really no one wants to end up with, so people rush to throw the dice until the last minute – Stresswichteln!