Shopping, Food, Mulled Wine And Schnapps
By being a travel blogger, I’m exposed to a lot of things people talk about when traveling and what tourism boards like to promote, and this time of the year I keep hearing about the Christmas markets in Europe.
Every country has them and, from what I can gather, so does nearly every city and town in Europe. They seem to be as prevalent as Christmas trees and Christmas music.
No one, tho, has explained to me exactly what they are, so I have painted my own mental picture of them and here’s what I envision them to be, along with how I would approach being at one.
First of all, I feel they are in a town square or open place, much like a regular market but at night. With a lot more people at them than in the daytime. Perhaps as crowded as a popular store at a mall in America.
Secondly, I envision a very merry and social atmosphere, people talking and chatting with friends and strangers, the vendors being extra friendly and the overall scene being like an outdoor festival.
Whenever I think of Christmas markets, I can also hear music. This could be recorded songs being played through speakers, but I also picture carolers and singers performing live, wandering throughout the area.
I also picture it being cold and people in long coats, hats and gloves, with the adults holding adult drinks in their hands. In fact, this to me would enhance the Christmas markets experience and I would fully expect the markets to have schnapps or, better yet, koffee schnaps.
From some press materials, I have read about something called mulled wine in Germany and Switzerland. While this does not sound very enticing, it’s red or white wine with spices added to it and heated. Hey, it’s worth a try, right!?
And of course there is surely lots of food, either for the nibbling from station to station or grabbing something more substantial and eating it while walking around to other areas of the market.
Afterward, I would expect there to be many cozy bars filled with people buzzing off the excitement of the market, ready to build upon their great mood of the holiday season.
Holiday cheers from PubClub.com!
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