NEWS worthy Clips (2/3)

Update your vocabulary with news clips from around the world 

Appreciation for authenticity

Gerhard Lippmann enjoys carrying on the woodcarving business founded in 1899 by his grandfather in the Thuringian German town of Empfertshausen. The jovial Lippmann, who likes to tease his customers in German, is one of the most popular vendors in Osthoff.

On the first day of market, James Peychal of Milwaukee spent the afternoon on a stool in Lippmann’s booth, next to shelves lined with hand-carved nutcrackers and other wooden figures. “I came at 2 p.m. and didn’t even get past Gerhard’s booth,” he said. “… it’s hard to find the quality and beauty of carving like [Gerhard’s]. This is the real thing.”

Buying tradition at bargain prices

In another corner of the tent, Vaclav and Nadia Cinadr had put out a dazzling array of traditional ornaments; delicate globes, glittering , silver and gold swans with gracefully arching necks and feathered tails. All of their pieces are made in European workshops, unlike ornaments sold by mass marketers. Vaclav gestures toward one of his ornaments, “If you turn the tag, it says ‘A tradition to cherish.’” But what is tradition, he asks, if the ornament is made in Asia.

The Cinadrs, Czechs who now live near Milwaukee, make their living selling Czech and Slovak ornaments at trade shows, then finish out the year at The Osthoff, where they sell their wares at prices never seen in retail stores.

“See, for $5.50, people can buy something very, very pretty like this,” said Vaclav, holding up a globe with blue and silver , “and they will not throw it in the garbage; they’ll keep it for years.”

As Nadia carefully packs up six glass swans, she lowers the price even more, to $17.50 for the whole box. “This is very traditional,” she says . “In Europe, you will see a swan on every tree.

Vocabulary Focus

Specialized terms