Moving to Holland is not easy, but it's worth the effort. This blog tells the story of shifting from American life in Pittsburgh to Expat life in the Netherlands,
and all of our European adventures that follow.

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Tis the Season

It's time to get into the Christmas spirit, and what better way to do that than to visit a Christmas Market (or 2, or 10).

We are a short two hour train ride from the German border, and let's face it, Dutch Christmas markets don't hold a candle to German ones. So, this weekend, we hopped on a train to spend our Saturday in Düsseldorf. Last year, if you remember, we went to Cologne, for Chad's 30th birthday trip. We loved the 7 different markets that they had throughout the city. Düsseldorf also had 6 different markets, though they were a bit smaller, and not as decorative as the ones in Cologne.

The market at Marktplatz

Great selection of handmade ornaments and decorations:

Enjoying a hot mug of glühwein:

Another of the 6 markets:

Brewing up a batch of fresh glühwein:

Chad warming up with some Pumpkin soup:
(I love the imagery of him eating soup out of a Styrofoam bowl with hobo gloves)
That evening we decided to find a place to sit down for dinner, after being on our feet all day. We must have been following our noses, because we turned several corners, had no idea where we were, and suddenly came upon this great German beer garden. We had a great traditional German dinner with 6 types of sausages, sauerkraut, potato pancakes, and of course the local brew.

It was fun to start to get into the holiday spirit, and even hear groups of Germans singing Christmas cheers. And, while we weren't blown away by the markets here like we were in Cologne, we still had a great time and enjoyed some delicious food and glühwein. We're looking forward to seeing the markets in Dresden, too. Only two more weeks!

-S

More pics on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kanickmoses/sets/72157625591147182/

No comments: