Germany

The Traveler and I have returned from our Germany trip. We are jet-lagged and full of fine German sausages and beer! Northern Germany at Christmastime is a wonderful place to visit. Each town has its own Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market) set up with traditional food and drink stalls and stalls with hand made goods for sale. Everywhere you go the German people are out for a walk or a bike ride, even the senior citizens. The cold, damp, winter conditions don't keep them inside. There are errands to be run, gardens to be tended, and Christmas markets to enjoy. When you live at the 54th parallel you must make good use of your limited, winter, daylight hours.

I could, of course, fill my entire blog with photos and stories from our trip, but I've tried to narrow it down to the essential highlights. Here are the results of that near-impossible task.

This is the Schloss (small castle) that is across the street from our hotel in Ahrensberg, the smallish little town that was our home base for the trip. Earle stays in Ahrensberg regularly when he makes these trips for work.

Erik (a business associate and friend of Earle's) and I enjoy drinks at the Lubeck Weihnachtsmarkt one of our first evenings in Germany. Each town's Christmas market has its own mug design and color. For a small fee you can keep the mug. We have quite a collection of them now. I am sipping traditional Gluhwein while Erik enjoys some hot chocolate with whipped cream on top. I may look happy, but let me tell you, that Gluhwein stuff tastes like unsweetened cough syrup. You need to try it once for the experience.
One of the main streets along the river in Lubeck. The Christmas market was winding down and we were on our way back to the car after a wonderful dinner of pork and roast goose.
Several days later we visited Lubeck in the morning because there is such magnificent architecture there that can't be missed by daylight. Lubeck is a very historic town with a remarkable past. I am in front of Lubeck's famous Holsten Gate which dates from the 1400's.
Earle was feeling a tad adventuresome this morning. You just can't trust a guy with a camera.
Up close gate shot.

Gate info.
A row of beautiful old warehouses that used to store Lubeck's prime commodity, salt.
Lubeck's Architecture.
One of several historic Lubeck churches.
An attempt to give you some idea of the scale of the buildings.
All the Gluhwein and hot chocolate mugs handing overhead in a stall at the Hamburg Christmas market. Hamburg is the largest city we visited. Much of its old architecture was destroyed during bombings in World War II, but it is a thriving modern city today with a lovely and very busy Christmas market.
The Hamburg Weihnachtsmarkt boasts the largest pyramid in Germany. Lovely, isn't it! There were so many lights everywhere brightening the scene with Christmas spirit.
A carved, life-sized, wooden nativity scene.
Just ask for your hot chocolate with a little Amaretto in it and you won't mind the crowds so much...
One of my favorite Christmas market foods came from this stall. Imagine a warm, gooey, layered concoction of fresh bread, tender prosciutto, melting cheese, and spices. Warm Christmas goodness. What a comfort to the German citizens to come year after year to these markets and experience the same tastes and smells that have been there since their childhood. They eagerly embrace these yearly traditions with a twinkle in their eye.
After a few markets, we headed to the northern coast to visit a summer resort town on the Baltic Sea. To our surprise, the beach was well used in the winter too. There were couples, old and young, walking the frigid beach and promenade. Can you imagine the crowds in the summertime?

The boardwalk at Kuhlungsborn.

A small map near the boardwalk showing the town and surrounding area.
Lovely trees bedecked with orange berries frame the pier and sandy beach.
Not all Christmas markets are in the cities. We did visit one country market at Wotersen Schloss that boasted the most beautiful handcrafted items for sale, the best grilled sausages and grilled pork on skewers, and the warmest fires for chasing the chill away.
A fine selection of handcrafted items for sale inside one of the barns. Steffi, Erik's wife, ended up with a lovely new felted wool hat. With already bursting suitcases, I was properly restrained yet covetous of all the lovely items.

An enchanting fire to warm hands by made of a single log stuck lengthwise in the ground, split into fourths, and lit from inside.
An architectural feature common to see in the countryside is old brick barns and houses sporting thatched roofs with boards at the peak ends in the shape of horse heads.

Near the end of our stay in Germany, we headed down to the historic town of Luneberg, another city of beautiful architecture dating from a prosperous Medieval time. Luneberg, and its surrounding area, was the center of the salt trade that produced enormous wealth and allowed all the Hansiatic League cities freedom to govern themselves.


A popular landmark in Luneberg is the old crane that sits on the river's edge.

Lovely Medieval building with bowing walls and immeasurable charm.

Luneberg at night.

Germany was wonderful, it was an unforgettable trip into the historic past of Europe as well as a memorable time spent with friends. Erik and Steffi treated us to a very traditional winter meal in their home. First course was a luscious homemade split pea soup and fresh blackberry wine. Then, we enjoyed a plate of green cabbage, sausages, and caramelized potatoes, with a condiment of jalapeno mustard Erik's mother made this fall. The meal was accompanied by a glass of beer which Erik is pouring in the photo above. After a brisk walk through the woods across the street from their house (to work off some of those many calories) and a tour of their duck pond and chicken house, we feasted on steaming coffee and a milk pudding with fresh raspberry sauce.

It was such a treat for Erik to make this meal for us so we could experience a traditional German meal. Thank you Erik, and Steffi, and Svenja for spending time with us while we visited and for making our trip special and making us feel welcome. I'm sure we'll see you again soon, if not there, then here.

Until then, Auf Wiedersehen.