A decade of Christmas celebrations

Merry Christmas! ¡Feliz Navidad! Frohe Weihnachten!

In order to celebrate the end of the 18-month hiatus of this blog, I´ve made a collage recounting the last decade of my Christmas celebrations, which also happens to mark my first decade with Ishan.

December 25th, 2001 - Nice, France - I had travelled with Ishan and his friend Suresh B. to Paris, the south of France (Marseille, Cannes, Nice, Monaco) and Switzerland. This Christmas was very special: I got to explain the Christmas story to these two Indian friends of mine and had our Christmas Eve dinner at a Chinese restaurant. When this picture was taken, never in a million years would I have guessed that I would end up marrying Ishan.

December 25th, 2002 - Trivandum, Kerala, India - At this time of year, Ishan and I were already engaged. I had travelled to India to meet his family and do some touring. On Christmas Eve we went to a Mass that was very crowded and I didn´t understand a thing because it was celebrated in the local language. On Christmas day we visited the zoo.

December 25th, 2003 - Vashi, Navi Mumbai, India - Ishan and I were newly married. We went to Mass on Christmas Eve and I got balloons, gifts and lots of cake.

December 25th, 2004 - Vashi, Navi Mumbai, India - I was six months pregnant with Fabian.

December 25th, 2005 - Vashi, Navi Mumbai, India - Fabian was nine months old when he got to celebrate his first Christmas.

December 25th, 2006 - Erlangen, Germany -We were staying in a small apartment in the city center of Erlangen. We bought a small Christmas tree - the size of 21-month-old Fabi - at the local Christmas market.

December 25th, 2007 - Erlangen, Germany - Our first Christmas in our Gebbertstr. apartment. We decorated our tree with all the ornaments that Ishan had brought from China, after one of his business trips.

December 25th, 2008 - Vashi, Navi Mumbai, India - Christmas was combined with Ishan´s cousin, Kapil and Pranali´s wedding celebration in Mumbai.

December 25th, 2009 - Ishan in India and Mari & Fabi in Erlangen - I like this picture of Fabian and me at the Arcaden Mall, because I´m on the phone with Ishan.

December 25th, 2010 - It´s probably our last Christmas in Erlangen, as we´re soon to move (close?) to Schongau.

Let´s hope for many more decades of Christmas celebrations together!