O Tannenbaum

The most wonderful thing about Christmas in Germany is all the Weihnachtsmärkte (that means Christmas Markets). Basically every city and town has one - whether it's big or small, old or new it's almost impossible to travel in Germany in the month of December and not see a Weihnachtsmarkt. 

The Dortmunder Weihnachtsmarkt opened its stands a week before the normal first Advent opening of most other markets. And for good reason - covering almost half of the city center, Dortmund boasts one of the largest Weihnachtsmarkts in all of Germany. With that much to see and buy, you might need the extra week!

Even better? It starts about 50 feet away from my front door. I get to see the Christmas market every day when when I leave my apartment. And although this takes its toll on my wallet and self control, it's so awesome to be in the middle of the action.

But even amidst all the excitement, one things stands out above all the rest at the Dortmunder Weihnachtsmarkt. At 45 meters tall (that's almost 150 feet in American speak), in the heart of the Christmas market stands the world's tallest Christmas tree (Guinness Book of World Records approved).

This baby started going up about 4 weeks before the market opened and lights up the city every night with it's 48,000 lights. And the locals are quite proud of this achievement! 

Dortmund has the tallest