Photo tour from Christmas Markets Basel to Cologne

Photo tour from Christmas Markets Basel to Cologne

Learn more about Germany’s  Christmas markets, known in German as Weihnachtsmärkte

Father Winter visit the Rhine

Fresh snow in Cologne, Germany set the stage for a winter wonderland.

father winter

 

The four weeks before Christmas mark a festive time of year along the Rhine river. The towns we visited via Uniwolrd Cruises SS Antoinette looked beautiful with a fresh blanket of snow. On the day we visited Cologne, Germany there was a buzz in the air. In the afternoon the buzz would morph into a jolly good time as people arrived from all over the region to take part in the Christmas markets.

 

Shop-til-you-drop

The Christmas markets offer a variety of things for sale. Ornaments, nutcrackers, music boxes, smoking men, candle arches, music, advent calendars, gingerbread cookies, miniature figures, wood carvings, soaps, candles, food and wine are available for purchase in all the markets.

 

sister carving

 

Village Scene

ornament

 

Typical Christmas Market Scenes

 

market
Strasbourg, France
Basel market
Basel, Switzerland

 

 

Speyer market
Speyer, Germany

Eating my way through the Christmas Markets

If I was not drinking the warmed-spiced wine, I was busy eating the brats. The smells coming off the open-air grills would lure me every time. In the photo below, I am sampling a brat from the market in Speyer.

brat

Steamin hot Gluewein

cheese fondue

Gingerbrad house on Uniworld Cruises
Gingerbrad house on Uniworld Cruises

Christmas cookies

One of the German Christmas traditions I learned about were Christmas cookies. Our ship, SS Antoinette did not have any shortage of cookies. In fact, the pastry chef made sure we had access to some of the best cookies on the Rhine while cruising on Uniworld for the week.

 

Freshly baked cookies upon our return
Freshly baked cookies upon our return

 

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