Pictures of our Weihnachtsmarkt in Lohr, 2012.

It was Dec 7th 2012, a Friday. The weekend had just begun. There was a certain kind of excitement within our home. The Weihnachtsmarkt in town was to begin in the evening. Winter had set in and it was to be our last, both winter and christmas in Deutschland. We had a list of christmas activities lined up for the following weeks. But for now, I was determined to enjoy the christmas spirit our little town had to offer. My kitchen was buzzing with activity. Lots of cookies were in baking, for my sister was to arrive in 2 days. More reason for our excitement. 

All day long, I looked up towards the skies.  I had a wish, just one christmas wish. 

For it to SNOW.....

There was something magical about the mix of snow and twinkling christmas lights. Magical indeed. And I wanted that, for memories.....

Well, at around 4 in the evening, before the markets were to open, the snow flakes fell ever so gently, carpeting the entire town in white.

My wish came true and indeed I had a magical time. All the while as I walked around town, I had the broadest smile on my face that night!!

Adventzeit in Lohr..

The day I discovered the below webcam showing me a glimpse of Lohr I was delighted. And since then, there has been no looking back. I watched the leaves turn an orange yellow, the foggy mist hanging low over the mountains, when the sun didn't shine, I could imagine what fellow Lohrites felt and when it did come out, I rejoiced very much, for them!!

2 weeks ago when I spotted the bright orange truck parked in the Stadt which carried the christmas lights to be put around town, I was excited beyond words. For it was this orange truck that I looked forward to every November. Not being my favourite month at all, what with the changing seasons, dull skies and foggy greys, the oncoming season of advent gave me something to look forward to.  The stringing of lights meant that the city would turn a magical wonderland, straight out of a fairytale. 

Many a day and night were spent walking around town, watching the kindergarten children decorate the trees, sipping glühwein, down a piping hot bratwurst, listen to christmas ensembles being performed or be one amongst the many shopping for christmas gifts.
Now, we just have magical memories of the german advent season.

Nürnberg Christkindlemarkt on Instagram

Finally, sharing pictures from the world famous Nürnberg Christkindlesmarkt. 

Having lived three whole years, we never ever visited the major christmas markets of Germany. December generally is a stressful month for the family even during the weekends. Hence with the time available we were content visiting the smaller markets around Lohr. And after the visit to Nürnberg, I think we are kind of done with a major market. The crowds during the weekend are terrible. You have to be on a constant lookout for your kids, be alert that nobody shoves your piping hot glühwein into you, the best stalls are always packed. To me, the crowd kind of killed the moment. Pretty soon, the kids were begging to go back home. So, it's back to the little charming ones for us. 

Enjoy the lighter moments that I managed to capture..

160 stalls are spread around the market square of Nürnberg.

The markets are also spread around the walls and towers of the city where handicraftsmen display their crafts.

As we walked along, to warm ourselves we had to continually sip on hot glühwein and the kids on kinderpunsch.

Nürnberg christmas market is famous for its lebkuchen, the traditional gingerbread. It was fun watching the woman below decorate the bread and place it into the earthen oven behind her.

Roasted chestnuts, a must try at the christmas markets. Not my favourite though. They taste just like roasted jackfruit seeds.

Trinkets, snowmen, snowglobes, wooden cribs, figurines, singing angels.....makes you want to have all the money in the world to buy it all. It does look pretty!!

Pretty tins with freshly baked lebkuchen inside. Must buy and try!!

A christmas market especially for the little ones with lots of activities and treats.

 Information about the entire event is explained in detail both in german and english at this website.

Spessart Waldweihnacht

Over the weekend we visited two christmas markets. The world famous Nürnberg Christkindlesmarkt and the other one right in the middle of the forest. While I choose to rant about the world famous christmas market in another post, for now I shall share pictures of the market which is very close to our heart. The Spessart Waldweihnact is held every year during the first 2 weekends of the advent season in the middle of the woods, a 25 minute car drive from Lohr. Since there is not enough parking spots at the destination, buses ply from all the neighbouring villages and towns hence making it easy for people to travel.

The charm of this market lies in the bare branches covered with snow coupled with the twinkling lights of the small huts and the illuminated trees. 

The entire path is lit up with candles to help you walk through.

We sat in the warmth of this building and warmed ourselves with eintopf suppe, a simple broth made with a mix of veggies and meat (We did have our share of glühwein outside as we walked around).

Fireplaces lit up here and there to provide heat to your hands and feet.

Home made liqueur, you can taste(1.5€ a glass) and then decide to buy a bottle or just be content with the sip you've had.

The market has about 20 to 25 stalls, all selling handmade ornaments.

The children's favourite, making bannock bread over a campfire.

My goodbye shot of the market! Not a good one, but enough for memories!!

If you would like to see more pictures or know information about the same, here's the link to the german website.