#2,733

The Guardian has named Munich as the fourth best of the 'Christmas shopping cities' in Europe, which I suppose is an accolade not without significance.

The newspaper item allows me to segue smoothly to a related matter, the Christmas Tree itself, for so long central to the seasonal festivities as the charming mezzotint below shows.

Evergreens chopped down and then decorated (seen above cheering war wounded Germans) are simply part of the rituals of Yuletide. In early January the sad remains of the trees are piled high on the pavements until removed by the sanitation department.

Although I have learned that there is now an environmentally friendly, politically correct alternative on offer.

We are told that we should rent our Christmas Tree! It is to be ordered online. It will be delivered to the home of the customer who will note that it arrives in a pot; it is a living plant, roots and all, temporarily relocated.  For the appropriate duration, it will carry all the usual embellishments and be much admired in the living room. 

When the 'twelfth-day' dawns there is no dead tree to be dealt with as cumbersome refuse. The rental service includes the pick-up of the tree in its pot. And then it will be re-planted and permitted to grow further, as if uninterrupted by its outing.

I admit to finding this idea absolutely charming. Not that there's room for a Christbaum of any kind in my tiny flat. But as I celebrate the holidays by gobbling inordinate amounts of delicious Christmas Stollen, I shall be hoping that the rent-a-tree idea catches on.