Ho Ho Ho! Christmas Cheer From Germany!
Guten tag from a cold and festive Germany! Iām on a train from Frankfurt to the quaint Bavarian village of Rothenburg as I pen this. Outside, the landscape is a stark contrast between bare brown forests and colorful countryside homes. Itās symbolic of winter in Europe; introspective and festive at the same time.
Dressed in my polar bear costume (our pilot described the negative one degree temperature as āwarmā when we landed!), I hit the Christmas Market in Frankfurt last night, together with two bloggers from Korea and China. Colorful booths lined the streets, selling traditional German and Christmas gifts. Food stalls served up hash-browns, frankfurters, crepes, and local delicacies. Kids played on brightly lit merry-go-rounds and the whole place had a carnival-like feel. People gathered around drinkingĀ glĆ¼hwein, the famous warm mulled wine of Europe, chatting, warming up over some neighborhood gossip. Christmas music played everywhere, and the night rang with the clinking of cups and prost. Such revelry!
I joined in the festivities, warmed up over a cup of glĆ¼hwein, and chattedĀ up friendly local women who’ve been coming to sell traditional gifts atĀ these markets since they were little girls. Then like I promised on FacebookĀ andĀ Twitter, I found a perfect Christmas gift for you!
The famous German RƤuchermƤnnchenĀ has come all the way from east Germany,Ā and though it looks like a wooden toy, it is actually an incense smoker! You open the lower half, put in a burning incense,Ā and let it keep you warm and smelling like Christmas on a cold winter night.
WANT IT? WIN IT!Ā
I’ll buy a Christmas gift every day from different markets in Germany.Ā You can enter the Christmas Hunt in Cool Germany contest every day to win it, and also win a flightĀ ticket to Germany on Lufthansa Airlines!
Have you been to Christmas markets in Germany? What do you love most about them?
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Join my adventures and gift hunt in Germany onĀ Facebook,Ā TwitterĀ andĀ Instagram!
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Note: I’m travelling in Germany on invitation from Lufthansa Airlines and Germany Tourism.
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Welcome to my blog, The Shooting Star. Iāve been called a storyteller, writer, photographer, digital nomad, “sustainability influencer,” social entrepreneur, solo traveller, vegan, sustainable tourism consultant and environmentalist. But in my heart, Iām just a girl who believes that travel – if done right – has the power to change us and the world we live in.
Your Christmas Market pictures are perfect and bring back memories from four lovely years of working in Frankfurt. I recall so many German residence windows displaying three things in the cold, dark winters: dainty white lace curtains, a candle and a pot of very colorful cyclamen flowers.
That sounds beautiful! I didn’t have much time to wander around the residential areas of Frankfurt, but glad my pictures could bring back some memories. Frankfurt must’ve been a nice place to live?
Loved this place when I visited it alongwith friends in 1994. Don’t forget to check out the “Medieval Crime Museum”… gruesomely fascinating!
Wow, I wonder how it’s changed in the 20 years since! Are the photos any indication?
you make us zealous by showing such wonderful pictures….hope I too get chance someday to visit germany during Xmas….anyways good luck for rest of your journey……
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I hope so, and hope it’s soon Kaushal!
Hello Shivya,
so glad you like the German Christmas Markets so far! And the RƤuchermƤnchen is very cute. Love them.
But don’t drink too much of GlĆ¼hwein. Try instead “Feuerzangenbowle” – a special mulled wine with fruits and caramelized sugar and Rum. Very tasty!
Have fun my friend! Hope to see you soon again in Germany – but with warmer temperatures.
Thanks Romy. Took your advice and tried some Feuerzangenbowle š A little strong but great for the cold for sure! I landed back in India this morning and already miss the festivities. Hope to come back soon and see you in Hamburg next time!
I love how colorful and vibrant the Christmas markets appear. Such a nice post. Thanks.
They really were so colorful and vibrant! Didn’t realize it so much then, but miss all the christmas cheer now that I’m back in India š
hello shivya,
I really liked d RƤuchermƤnnchen š hope i win it . enjoyed reading ur blog n waitin to c more of germany thru ur travel accounts. š
I hope you do Richa! It’s such an adorable thing with so much tradition behind it š
Thank you for bringing Germany’s Christmas spirit for us! Enjoyed reading your experiences. Looking forward to more!
Thanks for sharing it virtually with me, Renuka! Ho ho ho š
Hi Shivya,
Christmas market in Frankfurt looks so colourful and you are tempting many of us with your pictures and posts, looking forward to more and more and more…..
It sure was, KG! And that was just the start, the markets of Cologne and Berlin, which you can see in my next blog post were even more festive. Hope you get to visit them soon!
Another great post…. looking forward to reading more about Germany in the winters!
Thanks Shikha! Posted a photo essay of exactly that last night; have a look š
Colorful market…. Enjoy Christmas in germany…
Thanks Nasreen!
Never been to the Christmas markets in Germany though I’ve heard about them from friends. Would love to visit some day and see all the hand crafted ornaments and gifts. Must be difficult to decide what to buy. What a treat!
You would love it, Maya! It was quite overwhelming at first, picking one single gift from the million little booths selling precious little things. Hope you liked the ones I picked and win one š
Hiii i found germany is the best place to celebrate chritsmas nd new year.i seriously want to travel in germany…
Plan a trip Sakshi! It was just started to get white when I was leaving š
Looks lovely! I went to Berlin earlier this year and loved it and every year I say I should go to the Christmas markets. Definitely putting it on my list for 2014!
Glad I could get the christmas markets back on your wishlist! There’s still time to make it there in time for christmas btw š