Rothenburg Christmas Market

Although it was cold and rainy today, Tyler, Lucy and I ventured to Rothenburg ober der Tauber. There are many historical buildings to tour and places to visit as Rothenburg is like German Williamsburg (the night watchman tour is one of the best loved/rated events in all of Germany), but we didn't do any of that today. It's CHRISTMAS MARKET season and Rothenburg is king of the Christmas shops. We window shopped, really shopped and had a blast! We sampled delicacies such as bratwurst on a bun, hot chocolate and a latte macchiato (Coffee snobs be jealous - European coffee is so much better than Starbucks). Yum. We found a charming old hotel/cafe to have a late lunch of maltaschen (German version of chicken noodle soup) and apfelstrudel mit eis und sahne (apple pie with ice cream and whipped cream - two spoons!). The star of the day was Lucy. The German people just love her. One lady in an art store even gave Lucy two dog treats. Another lady found a schnauzer stuffed animal and showed it to her (she tried to bite it - funny). Many people ooooowwed and awwwed and petted her. She is sooo spoiled and sooo tired right now.

Old man playing Christmas tunes under the giant tree.

Decorated buildings and a shop all for Tyler.

The Christmas market center and rows and rows of vendors.

Window and ornament shopping and Nativity scene that reminded me of all those Christmas trips to Opryland.

The ambiance was perfect. Tyler, Lucy and I braved the cold, but were rewarded with the sights and sounds of Christmas in the quintessential European medieval town.

Lucy and the giant dog toy and a random lighted store.

On the left is a famous Rothenburg "Schnee Ball." After we bought it jokes ala Alec Baldwin in the SNL Christmas skit "Delicious Dish" ensued. Oh and "The Knights that say,'Schnee'" after that. The things I do to keep Tyler awake in the car. It tasted like pie crust and Taco Bell twisty things (yum) - next time I'm getting chocolate. On the right are some of the many Christmas ornaments we bought. My goal is to fill our apothecary jar with fun round ornaments. It's my twist on the centerpieces that Susan and Melody have. It's a work in progress though, so I'm finding other spots for the ornaments until I have more than just a few.