Nuremberg Christmas Market
Today two co-workers, Cheeky, and I went to the Nuremberg Christmas market! It was my first market! Check out the market's website here: Nuremberg Christmas Market
Nuremberg is about 3 1/2 hours from Ramstein, so it was a little bit of a haul. We left around 8am, stopped for some Starbucks, and got on the road. The drive was very uneventful. Once we got the Nuremberg, we had to find parking! Luckily we found a parking structure right near the market. It didn't take too long to get settled.
The market was very busy! We got there right around noon. Everyone seemed to be looking up at the big cathedral that's in the square where the market takes place. So, we all stared up at it too waiting to see what would happen. Turns out, some of the statues up on the clock move when noon comes around. One statue was ringing a bell, one was playing a drum, and a handful of others went around the main figure in the middle. After doing some quick reading, the cathedral is The Church of Our Lady, and the little show at noon is the "Männleinlaufen" (mechanical clock and glockenspiel) ... which recalls the proclamation of the Golden Bull of 1356: seven Electors pay homage to Emperor Karl IV sitting on his throne.
After the clock was done with its show, we started to go through the isles to see what wares all the vendors were selling. I had read about mulled/spiced wine aka "gluehwein" and had to have some. Luckily, there was not a shortage of vendors! There is a mug each year for the market and many people take them home as souvenirs. I sure did! You pay for the mug and drink on your first visit then all subsequent drinks cost a few less euro. I only had two little mugs and a sip of one other. So tasty! It's hot and perfect for a cold winter day. Tons of people were walking around with them.
I wasn't sure what I wanted to buy, but I knew food would be some of my purchases! One of the girls I was with and I decided we'd split a giant pretzel. It was as big as my head! But pretty tasty! Aside from the pretzel, the other two I was with had a sweet dumpling with cream and cinnamon and sugar, some sausage and kraut sandwiches and some famous Nuremberg gingerbread. I went for a big marshmallow fluff ball covered in a honey almond flavored white chocolate. Talk about sugar overload! A little while later I had a big cup of fried mushrooms with garlic sauce and I took a gingerbread cookie to go (which I ate in the car on the way back). There were plenty of culinary delights throughout the market!
I didn't want to leave my first market without at least one souvenir. Since it was a Christmas market, I figured an ornament would be a good choice. I found one with "Nurnberg" on it, which I thought would be a good memory. The girl I shared the pretzel with got all sorts of goodies! She finished a lot of her Christmas shopping today.
It was a pretty chilly day, even when surrounded by hundreds of people. But overall, it was a great experience! We spent about 3 hours wandering the market. It's too bad we were 3 1/2 hours away. It would have been nice to see the place at night. But I have another Christmas market on the calendar once Ross gets here! And we'll have 3 nights to check that one out! I'm a fan and can't wait to check out another one!
Tomorrow is the start of my next adventure! Stay tuned next week for another post!
Nuremberg is about 3 1/2 hours from Ramstein, so it was a little bit of a haul. We left around 8am, stopped for some Starbucks, and got on the road. The drive was very uneventful. Once we got the Nuremberg, we had to find parking! Luckily we found a parking structure right near the market. It didn't take too long to get settled.
The market was very busy! We got there right around noon. Everyone seemed to be looking up at the big cathedral that's in the square where the market takes place. So, we all stared up at it too waiting to see what would happen. Turns out, some of the statues up on the clock move when noon comes around. One statue was ringing a bell, one was playing a drum, and a handful of others went around the main figure in the middle. After doing some quick reading, the cathedral is The Church of Our Lady, and the little show at noon is the "Männleinlaufen" (mechanical clock and glockenspiel) ... which recalls the proclamation of the Golden Bull of 1356: seven Electors pay homage to Emperor Karl IV sitting on his throne.
I wasn't sure what I wanted to buy, but I knew food would be some of my purchases! One of the girls I was with and I decided we'd split a giant pretzel. It was as big as my head! But pretty tasty! Aside from the pretzel, the other two I was with had a sweet dumpling with cream and cinnamon and sugar, some sausage and kraut sandwiches and some famous Nuremberg gingerbread. I went for a big marshmallow fluff ball covered in a honey almond flavored white chocolate. Talk about sugar overload! A little while later I had a big cup of fried mushrooms with garlic sauce and I took a gingerbread cookie to go (which I ate in the car on the way back). There were plenty of culinary delights throughout the market!
I didn't want to leave my first market without at least one souvenir. Since it was a Christmas market, I figured an ornament would be a good choice. I found one with "Nurnberg" on it, which I thought would be a good memory. The girl I shared the pretzel with got all sorts of goodies! She finished a lot of her Christmas shopping today.Tomorrow is the start of my next adventure! Stay tuned next week for another post!
So glad you had the opportunity to check-out the Nuremberg market... I told Ross to put a market on his 'things-to-see while in Germany' list. I visited there many years ago and was awestruck at all they had to offer.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to see that Cheeky is getting some rest... he looks tired and bit disheveled... or maybe just a tad too much glühwein?
Thanks for bringing-back a fond memory!
Take care you two!
A cyber-hug is waiting in the wind for you. Hope when you go outdoors you'll feel it! ~ Meem