Christmas market in Dusseldorf (Germany)

After writing about the Christmas markets in Durbuy (Belgium) and Laren (Netherlands), here’s my take on the German Christmas market.

Hubby and I were in Dusseldorf this weekend, opting for a nearer destination (1.5 hours from our place) than driving all the way to Durbuy in the Ardennes which takes about 4 or even 5 hours depending on the traffic jams in Maastrict or Liege.

Dusseldorf was quite a revelation with the pleasant atmosphere and where everyone just seems to be in a happy mood.  Guys with Santa hats were singing loudly, could be the effect of drinking too much gluhwein.

It was very busy (it seems like we’ve chosen the busiest day of the year to be there with many doing their last-minute Christmas shopping) but it was just pleasant to see the Germans going to the Christmas market which is more of a family outing.

We hovered from stall to stall, curious of the merchandises on the German market scene.   There were plenty to choose from:  food stuffs, woodcrafts, clothing items, home decors, toys, etc.

There were long queues at gluhwein stalls.  A mug costs Eur 2.50 but a deposit of Eur 3.00 is charged for the special shoe-shaped mug.  This is the big difference with how gluhwein is served in Holland or Belgium which come in disposable plastic cups.  The gluhwein was pretty strong so I opted to remain sober by not drinking everything (though I was tempted to).

Our original plan was to have dinner in a nice restaurant but we got seduced by the various sorts of snacks from the various stalls.  We started with the German bratwurst, then it was off to the freshly made waffles topped with whipped cream and dusting of confectioner’s sugar.  Then I got temped to try the “dampfnudeln”, a sort of steamed bread topped with warm vanilla and cherry sauces after seeing a German family of four eating this with so much gusto.  Then, we saw this Dutch couple delightfully eating “reibekuchen” , the German potato pancake which is deep-fried and served with apple sauce.  Hmmm….I promised the hubby that I will check out the recipe and try this at home.  Yes, that’s how good it was.  Dinner plans in the end, got shelved.  We were stuffed but happy.

Dusseldorf is of course known as a shopping paradise.  Chic shops from Prada, Escada, Chanel, Michael Kors, etc….can all be found along Konigsallee.  Hubby reminded me of the Dutch saying, “alleen kijken, niet kopen” which is “just look, no buying”, ha, ha, ha!