European Christmas Markets

One of the many highlights over the last few weeks has been the Christmas markets. We read about them earlier this year in travel magazines, but had no idea what to expect. So far it has been one of the best ways to get a true feel of each town.

Although the setup is very similar everywhere, each market has some unique characteristics. Most of the displays are wooden huts, constructed solely for this purpose. In some cities it seems they have assembly teams to put them together, while in others each vendors (ie unions) handle construction. Often we came across the markets in the central portion of town, but througout many towns there are multiple venues which attract different crowds. The beauty of the market is the people. Vendors are typically local merchants trying to capitalize on the holiday season and a new customer base. Shoppers are a mix of locals and tourists, creating some of the best people watching you can find - every class, continent and age seem to gravitate towards these markets usually with a sense of frienliness you don't find during Christmas shopping back home...

After reading about these, the first place the huts were spotted were in Cologne, Germany where they were arleady prepping in early November. So far we have come across markets in Krakow, Prague, Paris and Zurich. In upcoming trips we have hopes to see 2-3 different venues.

Location, location, location - Krakow had their market in the center of town, near the merchants' Cloth Hall. Old Town Krakow is a perfect place for it, as it is a hub of both local commerce and tourism. Prague had markets scattered throughout town - Castle District, Old Town, New Town, Havel Markets. The main market was near the Astronomical Clock in the main square, but we found some of the other venues easier to manuever and much less crowded. Zurich - stacked with various locations. The Swiss (ones always to plan) put their main marketplace in the Hauptbahnoff (central train station). They claim this is the world's largest indoor Christmas market. This is the busiest part of town, at all hours keeping vendors and shoppers happy during cold or rainy weather. Surprisingly, the Paris markets were harder to come by. The largest we spotted was in the St. Suplice Square (you may recognize that name from The Davinci Code); several others were in the surrounding neighborhoods giving a feel that the market catered more towards Parisians.

Market Food - A consistent staple in each of these towns, seem to be "mull wine". As winter is creeping into the European front, people gravitate towards a cup of mull wine to warm up a bit. The smell is often better then the taste, but we've enjoyed sipping throughout markets. In Krakow, there were several food stands with a large assortment of grub. We ventured for a kielbasa and some fried potatoes (note, fried over here means pan-fried - not deep fried). As 2 of Poland's "staples" this was the best way to have some local eats - excellent preparation and cheap! Prague's highlight was the trdlo pastry. Lines were often 20 minutes or more for these and we saw at least 6 booths hawking these throughout town. Well worth the wait, they were delicious. Watching these come from dough to consumption was an art form in itself. Zurich's gastro hightlights are an assortment of cheese booths and a crepe house. The crepe stand we came by was run by a group of teachers, who sell both salty and sweet crepes - customized to your favorite tastes. Cheese with herbs and onions hit the spot! Paris, of course, had their own crepe houses, but also had several stations with gourmet food. As outstanding boulangeries and cafes are at every corner, these cuisine vendors had their work cut out for them, but after trying a little taste here and there, you could see why the booths attract patron after patron. "Vin chaud" (hot wine, similar to mull wine) was the typical beverage of choice to wash down everything.

Market Specialties - Poland seemed to have a knack for some lace, amber and porcelain. Prague was flooded with decorated glass and many wooden toys. We met two women who were selling wooden toys their father makes. Zurich seemed to be a bit more "commerical" as bigger stores had a prescence in this market. Surprisingly, Paris seemed to have quite a bit of variety in the markets we saw - flowers, wooden crafts, speciality foods and jams, and clothes (of course).

If you're ever visiting this part of the world (business or pleasure) in December, make a point to carve out some time for the markets. Take our word for it there is something for everyone here; even those who don't like shopping can take in local culture and regional eats.

Prague, Czech Republic

As we pulled into Prague we had been reminded that anything we read about this city mentioned heavy crowds. Outside of London, we haven't really come across a "crowded" city - so we discounted our travel guides and figured it would be easy to get around. Gross miscalculation. The ride from the airport to center of town should take about 25 minutes. It took us over an hour. Our cab driver kept bobbing and weaving on side streets, apparently to dodge traffic. At times he seemed brilliant with these navigation techniques, while in a couple instances we thought we might end up in a ditch. This was our first clue that the city was crowded. Quoting the driver - "traffic is always like this". The next time we dared to enter a car was to head back to the airport.

Prague survived WW2 significantly better then most of Europe, so it has kept its charm and architecture from its founding days. Highlights included the Charles Bridge, Castle District and the Astronomical Clock. Tourists were at every one of these locations by the hundreds, with map and/or guidebook in hand. You'd think you were at a travel convention. Even so, if you can get past dodging your fellow tourists, Prague is an easy city to get around (most of the time) and has some great sights. The architecture on just about every block in the Old Town and Castle Districts had us in awe.

On Saturday Prague officially opened up their Christmas markets - which was a sight to see. Scattered throughout town were booths just like Krakow, featuring local crafts and some Czech food specialties. Our favorite had to be "trdlo". This is a local pastry, slowly roasted over flames in about 5 minutes, heavily sugared and mixed with cinnamon. We haven't tasted anything like it before - just delicious!

At 5pm Saturday the official lighting of the tree was the big event. We of course we were clueless. In the center of town, sits the Astronomical Clock. At the top of every hour, hundreds if not thousands of tourists gather in front of this clock to watch the characters dance as the bells go off. On a typical day, it is not easy to get through this sea of tourists. Take that scene and add every local Czech family with children, who have descended on the square for the Christmas tree lighting. Suddenly we realized that we were in the Prague equivalent of NY Times Square (during New Years Eve). Everything was jovial and beautiful as the lighting ceremony began. After the 10 minute display, everyone packed up to leave and chaos hit the square. Trying to walk through the town square was like swimming upstream in the Mississippi. Four women behind us had obviously been through this before - they took their elbows and forearms to our backs and pushed us forward. We turned back and all 4 were half our size, but the crowds did not deter them. Somehow we broke free from the masses and sure enough 4 minutes later two ambulances arrived as people were trampled.

The rest of our trip was uneventful, but fun. We took in an Advent Concert in a local cathedral, which was a different way of seeing another church. By Sunday afternoon, we were ready for some time back in Zurich. We had a rough flight as the last half of the flight (about 1 hr 10 mins total) was a mix of heavy turbulance and side to side rocking. Not good. For two realitively frequent travelers it was as bad as we'd come across. Once we finally reached Zurich we turned on the news, and learned we flew through a terrible rain storm that had just hit the French coast earlier that day... Happy to be back safe and sound in Zurich!

Auschwitz

There isn't too much that can really be said about this travesty. The Auschwitz concentration camps are about an hour outside of Krakow. We saw it in bleak conditions - snow cover, and -10 degrees C (about 15F). A chilling experience, all in all. The trip is something that everyone should see if in the area, but it was a very somber day. For a visual effect of our time click here for the pictures.

Krakow, Poland

The arrival to Krakow was preceded by a good few inches of snowfall. The drive from the airport to the center of town was remarkably pretty, but you get your first snow of the year anywhere in the world and it is always memorable. Krakow had a lot to offer. The students seem to dominate this town, as we definitely felt "old" when walking around. In the town center we experienced the first of many European Christmas markets. The setup for each of these booths is pretty amazing. Booths are about 5'x10' made of wood. The vendors in Krakow had these up in no time on Wednesday and were ready for locals and tourists alike to kick off their holiday shopping. No trip to Krakow would be complete without some kielbasa (a good tip from a "former local"), this went down quickly with mull wine (heated red wine with spices) - a festival favorite. The Wawel Castle sits perched above the town and river, very close to the famous Jewish Quarter - Kasmierz. Oscar Schindler's factory was just south of this area and they'll be opening an exibit of some sort soon. This is a town we hope to get back to sometime soon!

Budapest Pics...

Pictures from: Parliament, Fisherman's Bastion, St. Istvan's Basilica, City Park and more...

Budapest, Hungary

Saturday we arrived and opted to figure out Budapest on our own. All the bike tours were shut down for the winter. We strolled down to a cool neighborhood (Liszt Ferenc Ter first thing Saturday morning and tried for some coffee. Our waitress was not happy to see us, but this turned out to be our only unpleasant encounter with a local. Think Joan Jett with a solid scowl. Somehow we got the idea that we might be the only ones getting such treatment. We looked around and we were. We opted to conquer the “Pest” side of Budapest (east of the River) and managed to hit some key sights such as City Park, St. Istvan’s Basilica, Parliament, the Opera House. After a full day afoot and not too much to eat we caved and went the expat way for grub – Iguana Mexican food. Mix Hungarian spices with some Mexican dishes and that makes for tasty entrees! Sunday we attacked the Buda side of the city, leading to a local breakfast, many churches, the Buda Castle, some labyrinths and a Cave Church. The weekend ended with some local music, as a 6 man ensemble performed a mix of Hungarian and American jazz at Fat Mo’s Music Club. Coolest part was watching them setup as at 8:30 the “hired help”, 3 boys the under the age of 10 (sons of the drummers) had the band set up in no time.

When traveling you tend to be open minded and experience things you normally wouldn’t. It has been quite a while since we’ve donned a public pool back home. Nothing wrong with it, but we just haven’t been there in quite some time. So we did as Hungarians do and opted for time at the Baths. When K was asked to describe this experience in one word, her response was – “feet odor, b cracks, big bellies, foot fungus, utter odor”. It is safe to say this will be our last trip to the baths. This is one of “the things to do” in Budapest and you definitely get a local feel. We opted for a guide book rec on a Bath, rather then friends. Still not sure if this was a good choice.

Cologne/Dusseldorf, Germany

This swing through Germany was highlighted by an amazing cathedral and some travel hiccups. No trip to the area would be complete without at least a quick peak at the Dom Cathedral. Towering over the Rheine river and town of Cologne this massive church somehow survived serous bombings in WW2. Walking out of the train station, you are immediately in awe, only to be topped by going inside. The Dom is enormous. We’ve been in many churches over the past couple months, so far this one really sets itself apart. Attached are a few pictures throughout the Cathedral. As luck has it, the German train system – Deutsch Bahn, decided to strike the day after my arrival. Day 1 provided no problems, but Day 2 the day of departure was chaos. It was the equivalent of Hartsfield or Ohare airports, the Wednesday before Thanksgiving (now add weather delays). I had 2 trains “disappear” from the schedule in thin air. It made for some crowded rides, high stress environments and constant second guessing. The Germans seem to pride themselves on a couple things – technology/innovation and being known for running on schedule. On this day in Cologne, neither seemed to work for them. Friday morning I checked out of my hotel in Cologne and stashed my bag at the local train station. In most European Train stations you have one of two options – luggage check (at the bigger stations) or a locker system for 24 hours. Cologne is a bit different. Instead you have an “automated system” where you place your bag in an open door attached to a conveyer belt. After inserting money, you get a claim ticket which will bring your luggage back within 40 seconds. So they claim. After a full day in Dusseldorf, I stopped back through Cologne to pickup my luggage and catch a train to the airport. Running tight to make the flight because of the train strike, I needed a smooth pickup at Cologne to guarantee on time departure at the airport. Upon inserting my claim ticket, I kept getting an error message. Figuring I was doing something wrong, I looked around – native speakers had the same difficulty. The “40 second retrieval”, turned into 50 minutes of waiting for myself and about 20 other passengers in the same predicament to get their luggage. People were trying to catch trains and flights all throughout Europe and when a baggage representative was asked to help, he countered with 1) “Just wait 5-10 mins and the system will fix itself (this was mentioned at least 3 times. 2) “just catch the next train or next plane – you’ll be fine”. No baggage could be claimed by a human, which made for some solid peanut gallery commentary from about 6 different languages. We had found the Fort Knox of Baggage Check. For some additional pics of the Dom, click here.