Christmas Markets 2010: Stuttgart, Esslingen, Germany

Its getting to be that time of year. During our 3 years in Europe the Christmas season has meant trying to make the hard decision as to whether to go home or to venture elsewhere for Christmas. It also has presented a not-as-hard annual decision as to which Christmas markets we want to visit during the year. 

This year we choose an area that not only has one famous market, but several; Stuttgart (and Esslingen and Ludwigsburg).

We flew in on a Saturday morning and despite a nasty 30 minute passport control line, made it to Esslingen by about noon, ready to tuck into the first glass of Black Forest gluwein (mulled wine - often times with some type of liquor added for extra yummy effect)!

Esslingen, unlike Stuttgart and Ludwigsburg, was completely unharmed by the world wars, so it maintains a Hansel and Gredel fairy-tale effect on all the visitors entering either of the three squares with Rick Steves eatable character.

This is behind the Esslingen Rathaus, a key figure in the town that is at its best during the Christmas market time.

This is the other square, likewise filled with what you would visualize as the proto-typical german village. They even have a cool Christmas pyramid that is on top of a gluwein stand; we obviously got a glass.

 Once we let the gluwein numb our senses, we headed to Stuttgart at 4 o-clock or so, dropping our stuff at the hotel and hitting up the Stuttgart market for the night, checking ourt nearly all 200+ stalls. They also have a choir in this beautiful church courtyard at 5pm. There is an electric atmosphere to the area around the city center.

It got extremely cold when walking around....in fact, this is surprisingly the first white christmas market experience we have had in our visits to about 15 different Christmas markets. Good ambiance, cold feet. We ate at a nice microbrewery that serves up some mean german cuisine.

The next morning we hit the town of Ludwigsburg, who have a nice market in front of the church. It was our least favorite of the three markets, which isn't a knock on this market, but more of a testament of how great the other two are.

After seeing the final market, we had most of the day to kill and decided to go back to Esslingen to take in yet more of the festive vibe. You can see by the pic below that Germans don't discriminate, they like wine too!!

This tower behind us below dates to the 1200's and the surrounding street is equally as impressive. One of the shops even sells the building as part of the Esslingen Christmas village set. They literally had over 10 buildings that were shrunk and cloned so one can take the charm of Esslingen home with them.

I think of all the markets we've been to, the top five after 2010 are as follows; Strasbourg, Esslingen, Prague, Regensburg and Munich (Erin may or may not disagree)!

Columbia Road Sunday Flower Market and Bistroteque

With the recent cold spell in London (and blizzards in the Minny), I thought it'd be a good idea to reflect on brighter, sunnier times. Erin, Cam, Emily and I recently (but not so recently to be before the recent cold snap) went to the Columbia Road flower market to experience the most colorful market in London and to see if the much-hyped market is as flowery as people make it out to be, including a good article in the New York Times that has some good ideas to help your East London exploration. 

Cam and Emily are regulars at the market and unlike many people in many markets, they actually buy stuff! The market itself (off of Old Street tube station and a 10 minute walk).  The link above has specific directions. 

The market itself is not just a flower market, as there are countless gift and gardening shops, cafe's and antique stores, but the main attraction is obviously the flowers, not, for instance, the Colchester Oysters.

Emily and Cam bought a mini bush to spice up indoor spaces, I bought a coffee and bagel...their purchase was definitely more posh, but not quite as posh as this lavender. And for all those in the US who use the word posh, here is a good factoid on the origin of the word.

All in all, the market definitely is a great day out and even better if you are in the market for some flowers or plants! I am definitely going to bring my mom there if she ever visits me!!!

You can also finish off your east London experience at a restaurant called Bistrotheque, a trendy restaurant complex that combines a cool old-world bar (below), a warehous(ie) restaurant and surprisingly, a burlesque/cabaret venue. Definitely a good night out, make sure you write directions down as there isn't a name on the inconspicuous building down a random side road near Bethnel Green tube stop (central line)!

Brewery Tour: The Kernel

While awhile outdated, a late October brewery tour is a must-report. Especially a tasting at the little engine that could, The Kernel, tucked away in Southeast London underneath the railroad tracks just east of London Bridge station. Please visit the website, especially if you are in London. They pull open the garage door every Saturday morning and the gentlemen that share the space with him, a cheese maker and a parmesean and cured meats specialist, also have their goods available for tasting and buying. 

 This place is the perfect, low-key alternative to the Borough Market, especially with other nearby speciality stores, you can get away from tourists snapping photos and into some relaxed Saturday morning/afternoon marketeering!

 The Kernel offers about 6 different beers, most of which change regularly. When we were there the range included two different IPAs, two Pale Ales, an Amber Ale, and two Porters.

 While I do enjoy the traditional english ales and love the history surrounding them, its exciting to see a new culture of British brewing that are challenging the norm in the UK and venturing to new territories. Another example of this is BrewDog, a Scottish brewery that has great marketing and more importantly, great beer that is aiming to redefine the British beer scene....I think both them and the Kernel are onto something! Try for yourself!

Der Wisen

There are sometimes when you just let the pics speak for themselves....Prost!!!! Happy 250th anniversary Ockoberfest!

The next one does require a bit of explanation for those new to the Ockoberfest scene. When you get a fresh stein (litre), it is normally about 3/4 full, making you feel slightly less German than having a full stein. Fear not, as you simply need to find the fill station and ask the tender to "top it up". They will reluctantly fill your mug to the top. DO NOT TAKE A SIP FIRST HOWEVER, as they'll call you out in no time! Let's just say that every fifth litre is basically a free one with the top it up trick!

Ockoberfest is a crazy crazy time, go with good friends, lots of euros, a good tolerance, and proper attire and it will be the best party you've ever been apart of!!!

Rovinj, Istria, Croatia - the prettiest city in Europe?

I would argue that Rovinj is the most romantic european city that nobody has ever heard of.

Our quick two day jaunt into Croatia began with a couple stops in the Istrian hillside towns of Groznjan and Motovun. Both recommended by Riknojan Stevic (his Crotian name), these two towns are great stops on the way to your destination; ours being Rovinj. Groznjan was our first stop around mid-morning that coincided with a French tour bus, so we generally blended in better than them. The town was nearly abandoned not long ago, but recently many artists have made this place home, operating little gallery's or souvenir shops or cafes. It was a great little town and good to see people keeping the ageless village alive.

Our next stop, Motovun, had a little more giddy-up in its stride. This is a big truffle town and the world record truffle was found in the surrounding hillside and sold for over $200,000. The town is perched on the top of a large hill, brilliantly protected from invaders during the middle ages. Just in case they surrounded the village with some fortifications that make a great walking tour of the city. Below is the walk up before entering the town walls that reminded me of the village on the way to the top of Les Baux de Provence in Southern France.

We left Motovun with full bellies and a clear blue sky, you can catch the no-look shot of the town from our rental.

From Motovun it is a 30 minute drive on the new highway to Rovinj. You arrive in town along the north end of town with plenty of parking and depending on the time of day, you get an outstanding view of the town, see the first pic of the post. We arrived to our hotel, Hotel Garzotto, which ended up being the best decision we made all trip, and perhaps the best overall hotel experience we have had in our three years in Europe (and that is saying a lot for a €100 spot). Despite being €100, it oozed character as the hotel is built in the skeleton of a former venetian palace. Dario, who makes you feel right at home by offering you a typical Istrian aperitif, did a great job preserving the integrity of the palace. It was a dump when he bought it and it took him two years to get the restaurant (that used to be a donkey stable) prepared for service.

After our drink, we squeezed our way through the narrow "streets" to our swimming hole that welcomed our return to the Adriatic for the third time in three years. The city itself was amazingly preserved and actually lived in by its locals, mixed between residential and commercial spots that were local, but yet interesting for the tourist. Below is the venetian seal, evidence of the bustling venetian outpost that thrived during the 16th century, the time most of the buildings are still surviving from.

After swimming we walked around the port and picked up some fab photos and romantic views. There were lots of little boats to check out. We then grabbed a bottle of wine we had from Slovenia and enjoyed the sunset on the pier.

This is the view we had to enjoy our bottle of wine over. Rovinj is truly a beautiful place!!

Following the sunset we fulfilled our promise and checked out the restaurant, which had great rustic charm. He recently hired a new maitre-de and head chef who cook some outstanding Italian food. The restaurant was pretty packed by the end of the night and Dario actually joined us for part of his meal and furnished us a great bottle of wine for being good company. Following dinner I bought a round of Raki for the patrons, which included a group of Dario's friends who also own restaurants in town. Needless to say we had some friends to close out the night with!

We stumbled home after our drinks and wonderful dinner through the narrow lanes and slippery uneven marble sidewalks...no injuries were sustained.

You can see the "smooth" pavement we walked on all day (and the following day).

The next day consisted of walking around the old town and renting (free) bikes from the hotel and going to the park to see the crystal clear water.

It was really hard to leave this place, we had to pay for an extra day of rental to do it, but without question, it was worth it. If I had to choose between Dubrovnik or Rovinj, it'd be a toss-up!

Slovenia: The Karst

No, its not a mirage, its Piran. 

Our adventure to the southern part of Slovenia began where the previous post left off, taking mind-boggling hair pin turns across the western Slovenia mountains from Bled down to the Karst, which contains one of the famous wine regions of Slovenia, which is gaining popularity on a global scale. In fact I walked into an Italian wine bar on Portobello Road last weekend that featured many Slovenian wines.

After a friggin 5 hour drive we finally made it to our destination of Tomaj, a small wine producing village in the Karst. Our hosts were the Skerlj's, who were recently featured in a slow-food article in the NYTimes. It was definitely the first time we stayed at a working farm, where the cows and pigs were literally right under us! However, the nice smell of freshly pressed grapes and apple juice cut down the smell; but hey, we're on a farm!! You can see they make the most of their space to grow grapes!

After getting a brief tour of the wine making room, we headed out to the Skocjan Caves, a UNESCO heritage site. The caves are without question unlike any other caves we have ever seen. The most impressive feature would be the amazing stalactites and stalagmites if it wasn't for the 350 foot cave that has a crossing bridge over a river that runs through the cave, which I think is what makes it so unique. If you don't click this picture to get a view you will not fully appreciate it!! It is amazing the vast size of the cave; I have never seen anything like it! It is a must see when visiting the area.

When we returned to the farm, we felt guilty as the family was still working so hard to finish their normal duties, let alone make dinner for us! So we offered to help. Linsey recently said the way to cure a phobia is exposure. Boy when I saw that MASSIVE basket of fresh mushrooms brought out for cleaning, I knew Linsey was right; I couldn't say no after offering to help!!! There were the craziest mushrooms I have ever seen. Green ones, red ones, ones that looked like they had jellyfish tentacles....is this a new Dr. Seuss book?

Yes, those are all mushrooms that have just been hand cleaned by yours truly. And you can only imagine what we had for dinner that night!!! I am proud to tell my mother I didn't leave a single mushroom on the plate! Those that know me would be utterly shocked!

Of course dinner was good despite the secret ingredient, what also made it good was all the wine we got to wash it down with. Also, dinner is only a tenner added onto your bill, so its a great deal!

The next morning we were up early to make the trip to Piran, actually, it was to pick grapes but the Isador decided to leave them on the vines for a couple more days, so we made it to the coast to see our long lost friend, the Adriatic!

Piran is one of the two Venetian towns well-steeped in history that we would visit the next three days. The town as you can tell is perched on a peninsula and jam-packed with old buildings from the 15th-16th centuries, when the town flourished as a venetian trading post. There is a marvelous square that you can see below.  On one side of the old town the wall goes down about 60 feet from the church straight into the sea.

At the top of the town, there are old ramparts that provide for an excellent view of the city. There is a machine you are supposed to pay €1 for, but when I went to get change from a bar next door, he advised me to just push the gate, which I did without the €1. I guess the honor system is in place. Erin and I got lost in the maze of tiny "streets" that probably couldn't even fit a cart during Venetian times! There was a path around most of the old town as well which provided sweeping views of the sea. It was so tempting to jump in but we unfortunately forgot our suits! We also had a nice lunch at a seaside restaurant and had baked Octopus for the first time (as opposed to grilled) and it was quite tender and delicious!

After we got home from Piran, Erin and I walked around the local vineyards and to the nearby town, stopping at the local for a pint of Union, Ljubljana's beer. The walk was beautiful and all the vineyards leaves were remarkable colors!

When we returned to the farm we checked out their own vineyards, looked at the barrel room, and played some cards before having dinner. Again, the leaves are fantastic!

Another item to note, the Rough Guide recommended a village called Goce as a failproof place to taste Slovenian wine. 100% false; not only was there not a single place to taste wine, the place was a ghost town! The Skerlj's later mentioned that it is probably due to the smell when producing wine (which we love - see last paragraph), it really didn't make sense for a town where there is supposed to be over 60 wine houses to have not a single one open to visitors. I guess if you want to see these spots, don't visit in early October!

The experience at the farm was terrific, gave us a true appreciation for the work that farming families put in to make great products, whether its sugar beets like Erin's grandparents, or one of the 50+ things the Skerlj family makes. Literally, everything on the table (except for the wheat to make the flour, I think) was from the farm, which was really cool as you definitely know the source of your food!

Despite being a cool experience, I don't think we would do it again, we often felt like we were in the way and the food itself, while fresh and tasty, could've been a lot better. I would recommend they have a full time chef during the high season as their ingredients could without question produce a Michelin star quality meal on a daily basis!

Back to Croatia we go!!!....