Week 82: More Christmas Markets!

We have finally recovered and almost caught up on our rest after last weekend. The week started out quiet, but Friday, Ryan had a fieldtrip scheduled to Ludwigsburg Palace. It was my day off and since we didn’t get chosen as chaperones, Matt and I decided to meet Ryan after the Palace tour at the Ludwigsburg Christmas Market, where his class was eating lunch.

Ludwigsburg is a city that was mostly built up during the baroque period and its main draw is Ludwigsburg Palace, which we have visited a couple of times now. The Christmas Market is called the “Baroque Market” and is decorated to reflect the theme. As soon as I got there, I knew I wanted to come back one evening to see it lit up at night. The jury is still out on whether or not I can get that to happen.

We arrived much earlier than when Ryan was getting out of the Palace, so we walked around and did a little shopping and then grabbed some snacks and glühwein. That morning, we had asked Ryan if we could meet him and he was hesitant. He’s in 7th grade now and his reputation at school is important to him. He was worried that I might speak to him in a “baby voice” in front of his friends 🤣. I assured him I wouldn’t, but I don’t think he was convinced. When Ryan finally got out of the palace and we found him, we played it cool and I managed to avoid using a “baby voice.” He agreed to pose for a picture with us and then told us to let him hang out with his friends, so we did. He had his own money for lunch and since he’s not scared about ordering, we knew he would be ok.

Matt and I went and got our own lunch and since we were no longer on a fieldtrip, that meant we could have another glühwein before heading home. Matt had a ‘fleischkuhle,’ which literally translates to “meat cake” but is actually more like a well seasoned burger on a kaiser roll (brötchen). I stole a few bites and it was DELICOUS! I had a “langos” which is a cheesy pastry that you can choose your toppings for. I went with just garlic and definitely smelled it the rest of the day. Mine was ok, but I prefer them hot with melted cheese.

When we got back home, we received our visitors for the weekend: some of our neighbor dogs who were staying with us. They are a malty-poo and golden doodle and SOOOO sweet and well behaved. We hope some of that rubs off on Slinky and Daisy.

That evening, Matt and I headed to downtown Stuttgart with some friends to check out the Christmas Market. It was HUGE! As opposed to having many smaller markets like other cities, Stuttgart’s takes over the entire downtown area. They had train rides, a huge ferris wheel, live animals, multiple Christmas pyramids, and so many shopping, food, and drink stalls. There is usually an ice rink, but due to energy shortages this winter, it was converted to a roller skating rink. We didn’t even make it to some areas of the market so will have to go back.

One thing that was really amusing was how it shuts down. The advertised hours of the market say it closes at 10. Me, with my American attitude, assumed this was a loose guideline. However, at exactly 10pm, the lights went out, the stalls immediately closed their shutters, and the huge crowd dispersed. It was pretty funny.

Saturday, I got up bright and early for another Christmas market with friends. This time, we went to Schwäbisch Hall, which is a little over an hour north of Stuttgart. It’s not a city that was really on my radar to visit and I hadn’t heard other people recommending it, but was pleasantly surprised! The city is full of half-timber buildings, with a cobblestone and baroque city center. Add in a river with lots of covered bridges. It reminded me a lot of Rothenburg, which has a huge reputation, but is almost three hours away. I think this will definitely be a place we bring visitors to in the future.

When we first arrived, we walked up to the Christmas market, which was really small. There were only a few stalls and a small Christmas pyramid. We had a kinderpunsch and then were able to walk the whole market in about ten minutes. We did find the stalls were really charming, and mostly sold a lot of handmade products, as opposed to some of the bigger markets, where they sell a lot of factory-made, knockoff products.

After we walked through the market, we climbed the steps up to St. Michael’s church to check it out. It was surprising to see that the church still had its original pews. It is very common in Europe for churches to remove the old, wooden pews as they deteriorate and replace them with moveable chairs. The removed pews are often restored and end up as decor in private homes. The whole church smelled like old wood (in a good way).

One of the most interesting features of the church was a bone pit behind the altar. Apparently, when heating was being installed in the 1960s, the workers uncovered this bone pit from when the graveyard was cleared to create a building site hundreds of years ago. The bone pit is covered with glass, but it was almost impossible to see through as there was so much condensation on the bottom of the glass. It’s certainly interesting to know that water will still be leaking out of your bones, hundreds of years after you are gone.

After we walked around the church, we found out you could climb the bell tower. We started climbing up the old steps, not realizing what time it was. As we started passing the giant bells, we stopped to take a photo. Then, we heard a creak. We very quickly realized that the bells were starting to move. They actually move a lot before you hear any sound. When it finally chimed, it was SO LOUD. My friends were able to continue running up the steps but I was frozen. I was stopped slightly below the bell and afraid to keep moving up, which required passing right by the two ton bell that swings only centimeters away from the steps. I couldn’t go down because I could see more people coming up, so I just stood there like a deer in the headlights and filmed. I’m sure I lost a bit of my hearing during that minute.

As people coming up the steps caught up to me, I finally got the courage to RUN past the bell as it swung away from the steps. I made it to the top and was able to take in the views of the city, while the bell finished its midday peal.

After making it down from the top of the bell tower, it was still early so we decided to walk around the town. The city is so cute, we did a walking circle across and back across the river and around the city center. Everything is half-timber and also really clean, without graffiti.

During our walk, we came across a Santa Parade. This one was made up of about 50 Santas, all on decorated bikes. In very German fashion, all of the Santas were still wearing bike helmets that they attached their Santa hats on top of. My friend volunteered to take their group picture. During this, we discovered that Santa only says “Ho!” in Germany, as opposed to the traditional Ho-Ho-Ho.

After I got back from Schwäbisch Hall, we immediately headed out to Waldenbuch, which is a village about 15 minutes east of us. Our friends had us over for a cocktail party, and then we walked down to the Waldenbuch Christmas market, which is only held for one night each year.

Waldenbuch is another completely half-timbered town, set on top of a hill. Our friends live on another hill so the view of the town is really pretty from their street.

We had dinner and some glühwein at the market. This market closes at 9pm, and just like in Stuttgart, as soon it was 9, the shutters were pulled closed. One friend had heard a rumor that the secret after-party is always held at the village firehouse, which is closed on the weekends (don’t worry- the county fire department covers the village on those days). Turns out, the rumors were true and we got in for a few more drinks and some dancing.

We spent Sunday sleeping in and recovering from the busy weekend. Next week is both Matt and the kids’ last week of school before Winter Break. Next weekend, we have one more weekend away planned in Alsace, France to check out their Christmas Markets.