For years I went on telling my husband every single day : “It’s Christmas!”. His answer always was a dubious and surprised look. But imagine what it would be like if throughout the year you had those experiences that bring you butterflies in the stomach on a day that is not officially something. This is going to be your day and you have to get prepared for it.

As I am unemployed, the only income that I have are Christmas and Birthday gifts. Believe me, the shopping experience can be great with 50 to 100 euros.

Getting prepared for a quintessential experience

First, see what your needs are. For a guy it might be a new shirt or a new tie. For a girl it might be a new bag, a new dress, a new mascara, a new … ok, I stop here. To transform this shopping time into a real party you have to know where you are heading.

Second, go with a budget. There is nothing more dramatic than going shopping, empty your credit card and realize you still have to pay your phone bill. Go out with the idea, that there are clearly things you -for now- cannot afford, but still you want to buy good quality products.

Third, dress yourself up for that. Seriously, this is not a joke. Do your hair, nice make-up, jewelry, and the whole thing. Looking nice to go shopping has many advantages. For singles, it is a good way to get noticed. For girls in general, the sellers are always nicer to people with a neat appearance. And for guys, there is nothing worse like going to buy a new pair of shoes with holes in your socks! – and please wear black socks and no tennis shoes.

At last, take the time to get to your destination. Do you know that it is actually free to walk by the expensive stores? You are not charged for walking in the street. So, go watch the finest clothes you can’t afford, and then go buy the replica in a store where they don’t ask for the BlackAmex. For Berliners, this basically means, get off at U7 Adenauerplatz, and walk from there up to Wittenbergplatz.

You are on a private beach of an exotic island

Exclusivity– very important word concerning the shopping experience. It has to be delightful and exquisite. This is the very reason why I am going to reveal you a great secret.

For Berliners, the KaDeWe is the same thing as Harrods to the British, or the Galeries Lafayette for the French. Inside of the building every detail is magnificent. Every two weeks or so they have new decorations, and the Christmas’ special is by far the most beautiful. Gentlemen can find watches for the price of a car, and Ladies can find jewelries for the price of a house. Eating there excludes you go with your whole family, and drinking something is pretty much the only option you can afford.

Yet, you walked the entire Kurfürstendamm because I brought you here. Dear gentlemen, you can find … the shirt you needed earlier at the men’s floor, and ladies, you can find … the bag and the mascara you wanted here. In fact, there are a whole lot of products that are sold at the same price everywhere. But suddenly, everything changes because you are in a nice setting, with expensive products and you feel like a Princess! Touch, admire, try everything you want and eventually buy what you came for.

This cherry on top of the cake is simply exquisite

Once you finished your purchase, do not run to the exit but ask the seller where can you get it packed as a present. They offer beautiful blue or white packaging for free. They do it in such a delicate way. And voilà, you just got yourself a present!

Coming home, enjoy the opening of your gift. You had a great time and it was not even your birthday.