There were many Christmas markets spread throughout Cologne, from the tightly packed market at the foot of the Dom through to the more relaxed markets in the parks a few kilometers from the centre. No matter where the market was, there was always plenty of people gathered around the stalls selling Gluhwein, keeping warm with hands cupped around mugs of the hot, frothy spiced red wine that tastes like Christmas. Each of the markets served gluhwein in their own unique mug in which the gluhwein was served, which you could return to the counter to receive back the pfund (deposit), or keep the mug as a souvenir. So we of course left with about 8 new Christmas mugs- they will make a nice set for one day when we have people over for Christmas lunch.
There was lots of delicious foods to enjoy along with the wine, our favourites were the deep fried reibekuchen, bratwurst with fresh bread, mustard and horseradish, and hot sugar almonds.
Aside from eating and drinking we did manage to do a few other things on our short stay, including shopping for Christmas decorations, watching the Christmas concerts, a Sunday morning walk through the empty streets and along the Rhine, and visiting the city's most well known landmark- the Dom cathedral.
As an Australian it was special to see Christmas traditions in their natural environment, because in Australia they often do not make a lot of sense- roasted chestnuts, log fires, warm spicy wine, christmas trees and snow are all very stereotypical Christmas icons but are not so great for a 35 degree summer day.
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