Hershey, Pa. – 2012-11-14 — /travelprnews.com/ — In celebration of its Pennsylvania German collection, The Hershey Story, The Museum on Chocolate Avenue hosts the annual Christkindlmarkt Holiday Market & Festival on Saturday, December 1 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, December 2 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. A special admission rate of $6 per guest is featured for Christkindlmarkt and includes admission to the Museum Experience exhibit gallery.
Twenty-one exhibitors are featured at the festival, including artisans with unique hand-made items that exemplify colonial Pennsylvania craft techniques. Items available for purchase include hand-blown glass, Pennsylvania redware, hand-made furniture, tin cookie-cutters and unique ornaments. Several new exhibitors have been added this year, including an artisan who makes one-of-a-kind Santas and another that showcases watercolors and prints of Pennsylvania scenes.
The museum’s restaurant, Café Zooka, offers traditional German food, and visitors can enjoy a variety of scheduled entertainment throughout the museum. The Chocolate Lab hosts holiday-themed classes, including Create a Kris Kringle, Let it Snow Chocolate, Make a Very Merry Bar and Candy Cane Bark.
Kids can visit the Little Elves’ Workshop and use chocolate clay, icing and ribbon to fashion a unique ornament. Plus, visitors can try out some vintage toys that the elves unpacked from their attic. This activity is held on the museum’s lower level and the cost is $5 per ornament.
Christkindlmarkt celebrations, which began in Europe during the 1400s, were Christmastime markets that featured ornaments and decorations made by local artisans. German immigrants brought the tradition to the United States.
In 1935, Milton Hershey purchased a large collection of Pennsylvania German artifacts, which were later incorporated into the former Hershey Museum. Hershey Museum transformed into The Hershey Story, The Museum on Chocolate Avenue in 2009. Hershey Museum hosted its first Christkindlmarkt in 1994.
For a complete list of exhibitors, additional information, hours and ticketing, visit www.HersheyStory.org.
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MEDIA CONTACT
Sara Ensminger
sensminger@mshersheyfoundation.org
717-298-2214