CURIOUSER NEW YORK

For Germans the  Spargelzeit , or the white asparagus season, is an eagerly anticipated sign of spring. Depending on the weather, the season for asparagus begins some time in April and lasts until St. John the Baptist’s feast day June 24, and during this time the country is gripped by ‘Asparagus Fever’. From seasonal asparagus dishes to the white asparagus queen award - there's quite a bit of the history that goes back as far as the Greek and Romans... "Asparagus Gratine" seasonal dish at the Knochenhauer restaurant in Hildesheim, Lower Saxony: served with the potato pancake, ham and Hollandaise sauce. Having spent quite some time in Germany during the pick of the season, I've learned a lot about the history and tradition of the white asparagus season. Read here to find out why Germans call white asparagus "white gold".

Funny, how I haven't noticed the fried mushrooms at the Christmas market back in 2005, when I last visited Germany on Christmas.  Now that I've discovered it and indulged in it quite often in the last two weeks, I can't, really, call the Kartoffelpuffers  dish my favorite Weinahtsmarkt food. It is now - the Frische Champignons!  Frische Champignons mit Knoblauchsauce Interestingly enough, my parents weren't aware of it as well. When I mentioned to my mom that I've tried the fried champignons at the market in Gottingen, she was surprised and asked me: "How can you enjoy champignons, they don't even have the taste?!"

Christmas in Germany: the story and traditions of Weinahtsmarkt and Glühwein

It's Christmas Eve today and almost time to go back to NYC! I must admit, I'll be missing German Christmas markets, even though they will be soon closed anyway for the season.  I, personally, think they add quite some magic to the holidays. Without them, German cities wouldn't bring upon us the same kind of joyful holiday spirit. It's a special, special time when Christmas markets open, and I do love my Glühwein on a cold snowy day... The tradition of Weinahtsmarkt has been around for centuries and Glühwein is as old as the Christmas market itself . However, as much as it is popular in Germany, the Glühwein recipe does not originate in Germany. To learn more about the history of Glühwein and how I've come about it, click here .

Yesterday I tried Apfelkuchen - a delicious and relatively contemporary addition to the Christmas market 's expanding drink selection in Germany . Warmer Apfelkuchen translates to "warm apple pie". It consists of mostly Mulled Cider, which is essentially spiced and heated apple juice, a traditional and tasty seasonal drink that is usually non-alcoholic. With the addition of a liberal amount of Zubrovka bison-grass vodka (a sweet Polish vodka with a flavor similar to apple) the beverage becomes a Warmer Apfelkuchen. However, after trying hot white cocoa with Baileys, hot cocoa with Rum, Weisswein (a white wine copy of  Glühwein ) and Apfelkuchen, I still prefer a good old  Glühwein . Here's why it's so good and so popular in Germany . But there's just so much more to try!...

I'm in Germany right now to visit my family for Christmas, so most of my blogs will be about the happy holiday Christmas time in Germany - from foods I love and miss when back in USA to street fashion and German lifestyle. I'd like to start with the Christmas Market, or, as the Germans call it - Weihnachtsmarkt. It's one of the things I miss about Europe... So, the things we eat at Weihnachtsmarkt: The Kartoffelpuffers...

I'm in Germany from 12/12 to 12/26, so everything will be around Germany and its wonderful Christmas time, when the German cities become magic, like a fairytale, thanks to the presence of beautiful Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas market.) Expect many photos from Germany as my Daily Inspiration! To learn more about Germany - where I've been, what I've seen and what I've tasted - in greatest details - click here .

Think small, when traveling: Hannoversch Münden, Germany

  There's no doubt Marlene Dietrich had a soft spot for Berlin. As a matter of fact, even after she moved to Hollywood, she's never forgotten that she was ein Deutsche frau. She once said: “Ich hab' noch einen Koffer in Berlin.”  Which means: "I still have a suitcase in Berlin".  She's never really left Germany; she flew it because she was against the Nazi regime. But she never really wanted to live in Hollywood. Well, and I can't blame her.

I won't be original - [and the only one] - who would say that one of the best things about Christmas time is Christmas Market, or as they call it in Germany, where I've been exposed to my very first old school traditional Christmas market at the age 14 - Weihnachtsmarkt .  Christmas Market, Union Square/NYC. A view from the top. It was in Gottingen, a small German town (here's more on the town from my upclose and personal experience), where I first learned the joy of Christmas market traditions and which - up until this day - I consider the best Christmas markets in the world. I still very vividly recall - as it was yesterday - the smell of freshly made steamy Glühwein (Mulled wine) - [the memory of which is kept by my family in the glasses one can keep for paying an extra .50 Euro], Brätwurst (usually described the way the sausages are made - grilled or pan fried, and sometimes cooked in broth or beer) and Kartoffelpuffern (potato pancakes/cutlets deep frie...