Christmas comes early at the Markt

Christmas comes early at the Markt
By ARRISSIA OWEN TURNER
Thursday, May 25, 2006 2:49 PM PDT

Orange County's Austin Haag checks out the Halloween village of D54 collectibles at Der Weihnachts Markt, which is under new ownership. (ARRISSIA OWEN TURNER/Big Bear Grizzly)

Santa officially comes to town in December, but at Der Weihnachts Markt it's Christmas year round. It's been that way since 1971 when Ilsa Trautloff closed her plumbing and hardware stores to cater to Christmas collectors.

www.bigbeargrizzly.net

Der Weihnachts Markt is at 652 Pine Knot Ave.,
Big Bear Lake. For more information, call (909) 866-8468.