At the Christmas Markets

 

In Altstad Köln, Deutschland

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Get ready to hit the crowd…!

 

This was definitely a first for me. I’ve been to Cologne before, but not during the Christmas Holiday.  This time around was very special. I went with my family and I got to see dear friends of ours.

We drove to Cologne from Switzerland. Upon arrival, the traffic was horrendous, but we made it alright. We stayed at the Cologne Marriott Hotel. It was within walking distance to the cathedral, its old town, the Rhein, the Opera House, and the Bahnhof. This area rocked. It has plenty of shopping, restaurants, and a Starbucks! That made my day!  As soon as we were done with our check-in, we headed out to to see the Dom.

 

The Kölner Dom

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Construction dates back to 1248, but it wasn’t until 1880 that they actually finished it.  The ecclesiastical view of this massive Gothic Cathedral leaves you staring at it for a while. I T ‘ S  B E A U T I F U L!  Magnificent. Glorious. People from all over the world come to visit the Roman Catholic Church, especially to see the reliquary that contains the bones of the Three Wise Men (or it’s believed to be so). It’s a beautiful ornate shrine that unfortunately we couldn’t see due to Sunday Mass that was taking place when we went in. I did, however, manage to take a snapshot of the inside central nave of the church.

 

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A little bit of insight: Cologne was one of the cities, if not, the city that actually got entirely destroyed by the British in 1942, during the WWII bombing attacks. The city look like little broken pieces of a giant puzzle. It was left in ruins. The only thing standing pretty afterwards was the church. This was because the British used the church as a navigational landmark before they attacked the city. Sad to know this, but I’m happy they didn’t destroy it.

 

Yay! We made it to the Christmas Market.

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OMG! Crowded was an understatement; it was hectic in there! Don’t get me started on how cold it was. It was Brrrrrr…misty-windy-cold…cold. Regardless of this little challenge, I was very determined to make it in there. I went in with a vengeance. It was either me, or them. I mean, I had a jogger with me! It’s just not the thing you want to maneuver around this kind of traffic. People looked at me, stared at me, talked about the lady with a jogger at this place, “with a tiny baby…out in this cold weather. Crazy woman!” Yeah, well, she wore proper attire, thank you very much!!!!

Ok. Glad I got that out of my chest. Back to the Christmas Market, please!

Let me tell you about the foods, and if you’re like me, you were in for a treat. Yum! Oh, and the different kinds of smells; Sausages, Pretzels, Pommes Frites, B E L G I A N  W A F F L E S! To digest it all, I had a GLÜHWEIN (a couple)! You MUST have one of those, or at least to say that you’ve tried it once. The Glühwein, also known as Mulled Wine, it’s a Red Wine served hot that contains all kinds of spices. Some are mixed with liquor such as Brandy, Rum or in my case, Amaretto. Before you know it, you’ll have 2 or 3, (5, I had 5!) They’ll keep you warm (or seeing stars!). But it’s all worth it. The music??? Where else will you get to see a polka band play music from COLDPLAY or Nicky Minaj, Jesse, and Ariana Grande’s “Bang Bang” song? Brilliant!

 

The kids will have a lovely time at the markets too.

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They sell all kinds of goodies like Chocolate Covered Apples and crêpes. Did I mention waffles already? They also had an Ice Skating ring. I want some waffles! WAFFLES!

 

All day

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All night

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There are tons of things to do and buy.

 

Have some Glühwein.

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Eat some Waffles.

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Hey, it’s time for more Glühwein!

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Let the kiddos have some fun.

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That calls for another Glühwein!

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Of course, you want to enjoy the spirit of it all. After all, the markets are a much anticipated event during Christmas time in Europe. Just make sure you get ready to hit the crowds! And please, drink responsibly during the holiday festivities!

 

Merry Christmas!

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Check out this Santa. Nice beard! Good thing my daughter didn’t notice. (I bet he likes waffles!)

 

To find out more about Cologne’s Christmas Markets, visit their official website: http://www.cologne.de/events/christmas-markets

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