T A B L E_T A L K Getting laid in foreign lands: Is it always a bad idea, or simply a way to deepen the cultural experience. Weigh in on sex and travel in the Wanderlust area of Table Talk ___________________ Check out books about Germany's magical traditions at BarnesandNoble.com ___________________   R E C E N T L Y Brahmaputra: Tales From the River By Tiziana and Gianni Baldizzone Extraordinary photographs portray a mighty river's journey through Tibet, India and Bangladesh (12/16/98) The yuckiest food in the Amazon By Mary Roach What tastes even worse than rodent knee and saliva-flavored manioc mash? (12/15/98) Ryoanji reflections By Don George At a Kyoto temple, a simple plot of sand, rocks and moss makes visitors stop -- and see (12/14/98) Dirty laundry By Tanya Shaffer A simple request forces a Western woman to face her prejudices (12/11/98) The Virgin king By Don George An interview with Virgin Group founder Richard Branson, one of the most remarkable -- and successful -- mavericks in the history of business (12/10/98) Browse the Wanderlust Postmark archives Wanderlust's Official Travel Book Partner S A L O N E M P O R I U M FREE! 12-ounce bag of Salon Blend with a purchase of $30 or more. While supplies last.		___A family visit to Nuremberg's Christkindlesmarkt turns _______ into a lesson for adults and children alike. BY DEANNA HODGIN | WURZBERG, Germany -- I'm preparing my nieces for the trip to Nuremberg's Christkindlesmarkt, the world's largest celebration of Christmas and the coming of St. Nicolaus. We're in Wurzberg, 71 miles east of Frankfurt, where my sister- and brother-in-law have recently been stationed by the U.S. Army. It's snowing outside and we're cozy indoors, but this is not exactly a scene Norman Rockwell would have painted: The nieces are fighting over who gets to play piano first for auntie and uncle; when a winner emerges, the loser sulks for a moment, then finds amusement in teaching her 18-month-old brother to say "shit." Dad is out, working a second job to pay for Christmas and the expenses of living at the mercy of the deutsche mark with three kids, and as the baby chants, "Chit! Chad! Chet!" my husband and his sister are discussing who's divorced among their childhood schoolmates. Because I don't have kids, I worry too much, so I take the nieces aside for a talk before they're plunged into what I suspect will be an outing heavily freighted with religion. As a Zen-influenced Episcopalian from San Francisco, my greatest hope is that our nieces can inhabit a sort of spiritual nuclear-free zone. With their parents, I'd like to help my nieces grow a warm and loving pocket in themselves that would help them know and understand the oneness of all people, the importance of fairness and faith, the idea of grace. But God is a bit of a touchy subject in this family: Both my husband and sister-in-law are non-practicing Jewish atheists who've battled with their parents over marrying non-Jews. And we have only a few days together. So my goal for the girls is for them not be too confused by the mosh of Baroque cathedrals, Bavarian folk customs and mass-produced Christmas ornaments that make up the colossal Christkindlesmarkt of Nuremberg -- to bring back something positive from our trip. "What do you know about churches?" I ask as the 10-year-old, Zee, colors, and the 5-year-old, Maya, braids my hair. Zee, like most firstborn, is eager to perform. "You pray, you get to take sips of wine and then they make you eat nasty plastic crackers," she says. Her sister, Maya, is duly impressed. "Does everyone have to go to the churches tomorrow?" she asks. "Why do people eat plastic crackers?" I'd hoped to avoid the full catechistic rap. Zee tries for bonus points. "We have to eat those crackers -- so we don't waste food." Maya, already the family diplomat, tries to cap the subject. "We don't go to church, and we don't even put up decorations for Halloween," she says. Knowing that the large crèche in the Hauptmarkt at Nuremberg's Town Hall Square is a major attraction, I ask if they know what the birth-in-a-manger thing is about. Zee has absorbed the whole Cecil B. DeMille version through TV, about a star and three guys coming with gifts, and Mary and Joseph being homeless, and Jesus being born in a barn. "Why didn't God give them a hotel?" asks Maya. N E X T+P A G E | In search of the perfect ornament