From sustainable gifts to energy-efficient fairy lights and hotels using only local products, here’s how to have yourself an eco-friendly Christmas in France
It’s mid-morning on a December Saturday and Strasbourg’s rue des Orfèvres is rammed with festive shoppers. They’re gawping into patisserie shops and jewellery boutiques, snapping photos and soaking up the festive cheer on this narrow street close to the city’s mighty cathedral. Above our heads, the ancient buildings’ facades are decorated with giant baubles, fat teddy bears and glittery bows and, while you can see a web of fairy lights wound among these arrangements, the lights are decidedly “off”.
Strasbourg, the self-proclaimed French “capital of Christmas”, draws 2.5 million visitors to its world-famous marché de Noël. This year, efforts to make the yuletide fun more eco-friendly are in tune with other city-wide initiatives, such as the 373 miles (600km) of bike paths that saw it crowned “cycling capital of France”. This means those Christmas lights won’t be switched on until sundown and will go off at 11pm (when previously they were on 24/7). Many have been replaced by more energy-efficient LEDs and the city has been clever not to double up by hanging lights where businesses have their own bright decorations.
As I bite into a traditional mannele, a sweet dough figure studded with chocolate chips made in honour of Saint Nicholas, and round the corner to see the gigantic cathedral, my inner Grinch swiftly evaporates, leaving my inner seven-year-old grinning with glee. The Christmas market here dates from 1570 and it’s magical to wander.
There are festive markets in almost every square, and I head next to the Village du Partage in Place Kléber, overlooked by a 30-metre Christmas tree (the tallest in France). Chalets here sell crafts, food and drinks in aid of various local and national charities. In March 2022, French law banned outdoor heaters in public spaces, such as restaurants’ pavement terraces, and this means markets too. As I buy a vin chaud from a volunteer at the Secours Populaire Français chalet, I ask him how he’s coping with no heating this year.
My own abode for the night, Okko Hotels, has green credentials too, and is an easy transfer from the train station by tram. I sleep soundly on the Coco-Mat 100% natural bed linen in a sleek room, that deliberately has no bathtub, to reduce water consumption.
As the daylight fades on my final afternoon, I join the queue and shuffle into the cathedral – its 142-metre, 15th-century spire looming above – and gaze at the soaring arches, flickering candles and bright tapestries. There’s a huge nativity scene depicting Bethlehem 2,000 years ago. Who knows where we will be in another 2,000 years – but it’s comforting to know that Strasbourg is taking steps to lighten its carbon footprint and make Christmas in the city (and, indeed, the whole year) a greener experience.
Source: The Guardian
Recent Comments