(That means Happy Advent in German). The Advent season is super special all over Europe, but especially in Vienna. In November, Christmas decorations start popping up, there are Punsch stands along the sidewalks, and the famous Christmas markets open.

This year, we went to a market at a castle called Schloss Grafenegg. It looked like the place where that boy wizard in the books goes to school, except no one flying on broomsticks. I checked. Zero broomsticks. Mom liked it because there were A LOT of artists selling handmade things. Dad liked it because he said it was the best Punsch he’s had at any market. I liked it because ... SHEEP. Fluffy, baa-ing, actual sheep. Every Nativity should have live animals.

And we all liked it because it wasn’t as crowded as the markets in the city ... at least when we were there!