First Christmas Markets of the Seaon

When you live in Europe, a long week-end can be a great time for a mini vacation. Our friends, the Reeves family, took full advantage and came for a visit. We were happy to have them! Not only did it mean a houseful for Thanksgiving dinner….it meant we would spend the rest of the week-end traveling. And travel we did!




Friday turned into-one day…two countries…three Christmas Markets. We started with a visit to the American cemetery in Luxembourg. We had visited the cemetery a few weeks back. It was nice to go back with our friends.

 
Up next...Luxembourg City and our first Christmas Market of the season.  We were met with Christmas carols and smells of evergreen and Glühwein. As we wondered from booth to booth, we caught a performace of the dancing Christmas trees.

We explored the sights of the city before loading back up in the truck and heading off to our next destination.

Trier was my favorite market last year. So I was happy to go back with my friend, Angie. This is her first Christmas market season in Germany and we were determined to see as many together as we could. Each of the booths had something different to offer. We enjoyed some potato pancakes and hot chocolate.

It was time to head home. The boys were done at work. We had dinner plans downtown and one last market for the day. The Brauhaus was the perfect choice for dinner. The food was delish! The guys were able to enjoy the seaonal carmel beer.  After dinner we checked out the K-town market. The Glühwein booth was by far the place to be!

It had been a chilly day spent outside, so when we found a booth full of hats, scarves and gloves we had to make a few purchases. Korey was expecially happy to make his annual Christmas market hat purchase.

 We headed home to have wine by the fire. What a great day it had been!

Christmas Market Season

It's here!!! I love the holidays. The decorations, the smells, shopping for the perfect gift. This time of year is especially magical living in Europe.

The towns and cities along the Rhine and Moselle valleys provide an idyllic setting for a romantic Christmas Market break. Half-timbered buildings are festively lit and the aromas of mulled wine out of the local vineyards and cinnamon permeate the air at traditional Christmas markets. Guests can snuggle up at cosy hotels and the Christmas shopping is friendly and relaxed. The region’s beautiful cities captivate visitors with their rich history, labyrinthine old quarters, mediaeval market squares and striking cathedrals.



Buildings steeped in history are illuminated by thousands upon thousands of fairy lights, while the aroma of gingerbread wafts through the air. The Christmas markets in Trier, Koblenz and Mainz are particularly famous and are quite large. If you want to visit the smaller Christmas markets, those in Bernkastel-Kues, Cochem, Rüdesheim, Worms, Speyer and Ahrweiler are highly recommended.



Although a relatively small market, Worms located on the Rhine, boasts a 'Living Nativity scene', whilst Speyer, also located on the Rhine, offers the additional attraction of an ice rink. Trier, which is Germany's oldest city tracing its origins back to Roman times, hosts a charming Christmas Market in the Hauptmarkt Square with the cathedral providing an impressive backdrop.



You'll be spoilt for choice, but one thing you can be certain of is an unforgettable experience when visiting some of the best Christmas Markets Germany has to offer in the cities and towns in the Rhineland/Pfalz region.

One of the best things about living in Germany is the fact that an afternoon outing can mean driving to another country. After dropping the boys off at work, we decided to head to Luxembourg to the American Cemetery. Fall is my favorite time of the year.  So I loved the fact that the hour long drive was bursting with fall colors

With Veteran’s Day just a week away, it was an honor to stand where our fallen soldiers were laid to rest.

We visited the grave of General Patton.

Doug is into war history. So it was great that he was able to visit two gravesites of members of the Band of Brothers.

SGT Muck



PFC Penkala



We stopped in Trier for lunch before heading home. What a wonderful afternoon!