Christmas in Italy

One of the joys of visiting Italy in December are the Christmas gift markets -- mercatini di natale or christkindmarkt -- you find in many cities there, particularly in the North.

It's a tradition you see in Northern European countries such as Germany, and given the teutonic influence in Northern Italy, it's no surprise cities like Trento (in photo above) also have these markets.

Even if you don't read Italian, take a look at the gorgeous photos of quaint little towns bedecked with stalls of holiday goods. See link here from the Corriere della Sera:

http://viaggi.corriere.it/consigli_di_viaggio/vie_dello_shopping/2009/trentino_mercatini/trentino_mercatini_specialeneve.shtml