German Christmas Markets

Yesterday, I returned from a weekend trip to Köln (Cologne to you non-Germans), Germany. It was great. Took a non-stop flight out of Bologna on Friday afternoon and returned to Bologna on Sunday at 4 PM. Okay, enough about the travel logistics....

The Christmas markets were amazing. Köln is home to 6 markets, including medieval market. Over the course of two days, we managed to hit 5 of them. The place that I stayed was right across the street from the Fairytale Christmas Market, where the tops of the market stalls had animatronic fairytale scenes. The first stop at this market was to sample one of the traditions of the German Christmas Market scene--Glüwein, which is a warm, spiced wine. This is not the tastiest beverage I have ever sampled, but when it is served to you in a cute, fun ceramic boot and you drink amongest a crowd of excited, festive Germans, the drink takes on a new life. And then pair it with a bratwurst smothered in mustard, and you have one tasty meal!

The Fairytale Market at night and during the day:

After visiting the Fairytale Market and the Neumarkt, we made it down to the Market am Dom, situated right next to the large cathedral.

After this brief introduction to the Christmas markets, dinner was had at the Früh Brauhaus. It was quite interesting. Waiters carry around trays of 0.2L glasses of Kölcsh, which is the only variety of beer that you can buy in a restaurant in Köln. I thought the beer was pretty good, although a little like Bud Lite. Anyways, the waiters walk around with these trays and replace your empty glass with a fresh one, sometimes without you even requesting a new one. Even taking into account a run-in with the waiter over an undercooked chicken, the meal/experience was quite fun and interesting.

The next day was filled with more Christmas markets, a trip to the Chocolate Museum, the German-Roman museum, a church service/choir recital in the very cold Dom, and a little bit of shopping. First, the Christmas markets. In addition to briefly revisiting the markets from Friday night, we also visited the medieval market. And one does not drink Glüwein at this market, oh no. You drink a hot honey wine served in a ceramic chalice. I don't know why I don't have more pictures of this:

After the medieval market came the Chocolate Museum. It had a chocolate fountain, as well as an operating production line. The woman in this picture has the job of dunking wafers in the fountain and then passing them out to drooling museum patrons (don't know any of those!):

Here is a great picture of Köln, taken from the terrace of the Chocolate Museum:

Here are Mark and me at a lovely brauhaus near the NeuMarkt (I know if looks like just another night at the Druid. Me in black, sitting in a bar....). Two older ladies served as the bartenders. And the place was dressed up like it was Valentine's Day. The Germans like to incorporate the heart into Christmas decorations. Very strange....I mean unique....

In addition to these scheduled activities and sites, here are some more fun pictures from the streets of Köln:

Gingerbread Men:

Apples with hearts (don't ask me how they did that):

Advertisements with supposed baby pictures of Angela Merkel, Pope Benedict XVI (how scary is his photo), and George W, to name a few:

And a donkey doing his part to raise money for the poor. I saw a llama, too. Instead of the Salvation Army using Santa, the Germans use animals!

And that is about it for this trip. It was a very good time; nice to get away from Bologna for a couple days. Although, I realized something very interesting about the Bolognese experience almost immediately getting off the train from the flughafen in Köln. The two McDonalds in the center of Bologna are pretty much the only US franchises in the city and they are fairly well hidden from sight. In the train station in Köln, I immediately encountered a Pizza Hut, Burger King (with a separate stall especially for the purchase of Whoppers), McDonalds, and Subway. I encountered more of these establishments in the town center, in addition to a KFC. All of these franchises were in Germany the last time I visited the country in 2001, but it was still odd to see them. Living in Bologna, you are treated to an almost old-time way of life, with family-run businesses and restaurants. Traveling to Köln catapulted me back into the 21st century. It was bizarre and slightly unnerving. A little bit like Marty McFly returning to 1985....And for all of you ladies out there, Köln is home to at least 4 H&Ms, all within a quarter-miles of each other. Amazing. I let out an audible gasp when I saw this....

Okay, back to my studies. I may have more pictures to add later....