Starting a tradition, we spent one weekend in December going to a Christmas Market with our friends Luke and Emily. Last year we went to Cologne with them, and this year we decided to go to the oldest Christmas Market in Europe in Strasbourg, France. It is said the market originated in 1570 and has grown into one of the largest Christmas markets. With Christmas markets come very expensive accommodations so we opted to drive down on Saturday morning and stay one night to return on Sunday night. We booked our hotel at the end of September and were only able to get something outside the city center. The hotel was simple but perfect with a tram to take us directly to the Christmas Market right outside the door. We received a map of the city with all of the Christmas Market locations market so we could make a plan of attack. Strasbourg is in the Alsace region of France, very close to the German border. We were excited to see the French/German cuisine that would be offered at the markets so naturally, our first stop was the food stalls at the artisanal market. We all tried sauerkraut with meat and potatoes in a delicious white wine sauce. It was tasty and just what we needed to fuel up to explore the markets. We walked through the artisanal market and headed to see the big Christmas tree that was set up on the square.
After exploring multiple markets and the Notre Dame Cathedral of Strasbourg, we headed to Petite France. This area of the city is where the medieval trade took place. It is the quaint old town of Strasbourg. There were two more markets located in this area and we stopped and ate a typical Alsatian snack of Tarte flambée (a thin pizza like dough with creme fresh, red onions and bacon). The ones we ordered were cooked out on the wood stove. It was our favorite new treat of the weekend.
As it was getting cold, we decided to find a place to rest our feet and get a drink. We enjoyed local Strasbourg brews at a microbrewery. They had a nice seasonal beer called Rudolph that everyone enjoyed. Not to forget the reason for the trip, we headed back into the cold to view the Christmas tree at night. We continued our Christmas market exploration and headed to a restaurant for a warm meal inside. The Christmas markets closed pretty early so after a stop for an after dinner drink, we headed back to the hotel. On Sunday, we visited the remaining Christmas Markets and started the long drive home. We really enjoyed visiting Strasbourg and the Christmas Markets and of course the food! We are already pondering what Christmas Markets to visit next year.
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| It's not a Christmas market without Gluhwein |
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| Petite France |
As it was getting cold, we decided to find a place to rest our feet and get a drink. We enjoyed local Strasbourg brews at a microbrewery. They had a nice seasonal beer called Rudolph that everyone enjoyed. Not to forget the reason for the trip, we headed back into the cold to view the Christmas tree at night. We continued our Christmas market exploration and headed to a restaurant for a warm meal inside. The Christmas markets closed pretty early so after a stop for an after dinner drink, we headed back to the hotel. On Sunday, we visited the remaining Christmas Markets and started the long drive home. We really enjoyed visiting Strasbourg and the Christmas Markets and of course the food! We are already pondering what Christmas Markets to visit next year.
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| Emily and Molly |
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