The recurring theme that everyone shared with us before we arrived in Germany (at least from those who lived here previously) was that the Christmas season was amazing.
This post is dedicated to the three amazing Christmas Markets (Weinachtmarkt in German) we went to this year: Aachen, Trier and Dudeldorf.
Here are the images from Aachen:
Here’s Anna with our friend, Erin in the background. Both she and another friend, Liz joined us for the day of shopping. Actually, Liz drove, so I guess we accompanied her. Thanks Liz! 🙂
Making Belgian waffles (fitting since Belgium is just a stones throw away from Aachen).
Seems that police officers all over the world enjoy a hot cup of Starbucks coffee.
These are from the Dudeldorf Market.
This is a very typical bakery we popped into for a little warmth and some breakfast.
This gate is also has the historical significance as a quasi-landmark of WWII. As Gen Patton’s tanks rolled in, they got caught in this gate. The tanks gouged large grooves into the gate. If you look closely, you can still see them.
Here are the images from the Trier Christmas Market. It was the prettiest of the three. Of course, that may also be because it was night.
Here are our friends Jose and Diana.
Anna and Margaret are enjoying a Christmas delicacy. A sort of dumpling with vanilla and fruit sauce. It was very yummy.
So, those are just a few to give you all a taste of the incredible markets.
Until the next adventure (or trip). 🙂
–Jim
Month: December 2006
Christmas in Franconia
I know I just posted our Thanksgiving festivities, but presto, we are up to Christmas!
We went back to visit our friends the Herrmanns in Franconia (which is a part of Bavaria and as your random fact for the post it was one of the original 5 duchies of the Holy Roman Empire). They have a tradition of going on a Christmas hike (a wonderful idea I think we may carry on). So, Gabi, Anna and I went on a very pretty hike to two castle ruins (not something we could easily do back home in Wisconsin). Here are some images from the hike.
If you are up on your German, you can read all about the history of this castle. Fortunately for us, Gabi translated. Here’s the short version: it’s old, been fought over for centuries and was finally burned and destroyed in a dispute. 🙂
This is what it looks like today.
You can see the same castle here. This is also the stream that Rinehart fishes in (we sampled the tasty result during the last visit).
This is the view of the castle from another ruin on the opposite side of the valley.
Another village in the area.
This was a first for Anna and I, seeing a real May Pole. However, May Poles have been around in Bavaria since at least 1590. Bavaria is also where the tradition came from, with roots in Paganism.
Then, Christmas Eve, the fun began. We collected all the presents into piles for each person. At some point when no one is around (or when everyone congregates in the kitchen), Kristkindl (Christ Child) comes to deliver the presents for everyone. Also, different than Anna and my families, everyone tears into their presents at the same time (as opposed to waiting for each person to open them one at a time). The family also had a LARGE tree, which was very well decorated. There were even real candles to decorate it. Here are a few images from the evening.
Although there wasn’t any snow to make it a white Christmas (very unusual), it was plenty cold enough to enjoy a nice fire.
Christmas Day is a day to spend with family. The day after Christmas is apparently for the extended family. We were honored to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas day (usually only for immediate family) with the Herrmann Family. It was a wonderful trip filled with great food, thought provoking conversation, and of course great company. We look forward to learning more German so we can discuss in German as well!
So, until then, Grüß Gott!
–Jim
England for Thanksgiving
OK, so I know I am now more than a month behind (and a bit ironic to post Thanksgiving on Christmas), but I wanted to share with you all our wonderful trip to visit our good friends Tim and Dori.
Actually, this was Anna’s and my second trip to England. The first was way back when we were dating in 2002. So, we wanted to recreate a few of the memories. For example, here’s the classic red phone booth (which unfortunately, we heard are going away).
We enjoyed a lovely Thanksgiving dinner. Everything Dori and Tim created was scrumptious. Unfortunately, I realized after that I didn’t have a good image that showed the finished product. However, here’s the creation phase.
They live in a little town outside of London and were kind enough to show us around. Here are a few of the images from our sight seeing tour. 🙂
Yes, these ruins are several times older than the US.
Yes, this is the smallest bar I’ve ever seen (although I can’t say I’ve been to that many and certainly not all in England, but it’s small nonetheless).
Here’s the attractive Spaulding Family (little Oliver is resting cozily on Tim’s chest).
We also went on a very enjoyable hike through the English countryside. Here are a few of the images.
Almost good enough to eat…
Of course we knew where to go!!
The next day, we went into a local restaurant for a picture perfect English breakfast.
Here’s another quintessential English item, a London clock.
We also came upon a group of musicians raising money (perhaps for a charity or perhaps for themselves, but either way it was lots of fun to listen to).
Then, to a local pub for lunch. We learned that these unique instruments are to filter the beer before it’s poured.
In all, it was a spectacular visit. We look forward to spending more time with them. It’s nice to be close enough for a weekend trip to see them.
So, until then…
–Jim