Christmas markets!

It snowed yesterday! We feel like kids that are seeing it for the first time. We've never actually lived where it snowed, so it is strange and exciting. Little freezing drops that dissolve as soon as they touch your face. Tiny white balls that cling to hats and jackets as you walk.

The best thing about the snow is that it brought some sunshine with it, which is the most we have seen in two months. So this week it is VERY cold but there is no rain - can't complain about that.

Christmas markets are a german tradition, and in every town they are a little different. The one in Trier had lots of Christmas wreaths and mistletoe for sale, reindeer made from pine branches, gingerbread, a merry go round covered in garlands, and a giant windmill in front of the church. They typically sell local handmade gifts for Christmas presents, but it seems alot of imported goods are now for sale as well.

So far the only downside of the markets is how many people one must wade through - they are jam packed full of people that want to stand outside in the cold (make that literally freezing!) eating hot food and sipping mulled wine.

The markets are prettiest in the dark (which we have alot of at the moment), as the christmas lights warm the heart. Last night we walked into town to watch the Luxembourg Christmas Parade, complete with freaky blow up snow-man, dancing girls and santa bringing up the rear. Sadly, not a sign of what Christmas is really about.

The last photo is from Vienna, where Phil went a couple of weeks ago. It brings new meaning to the phrase 'lit up like a Christmas tree'. Thinking back just a year ago, our situation couldn't be more different - try 30 degrees difference in temperature for starters. Phil is enjoying the cold (how weird is that?), while I am coping and secretly dreaming of the tropics! We are both really enjoying the new experiences.

food glorious food

It's something we do every day, but people do it differently all over the world and it's always interesting to see how! I've got to say that the food on display in Luxembourg often looks as if was made for artistic pleasure rather than mere consumption. From lunch time fare to party treats, the attention to detail is often exquisite.

I've been told the french influence is the greatest in regard to food, although the heavy sausages and pickled vegetables are undoubtedly german. I certainly need alot of german and dutch/flemish at the supermarket to read the labels (I'm very thankful for little pictures at times)!

We haven't tried all of these delicacies (yet), but we can say that the bread is the best we have ever eaten, and the pastries are VERY good. Filled baguetes are sold in their hundreds for lunch every day, and I see lots of people walking out of Patiserre's with pastries in the mornings. The most common breakfast pastry is one filled with chocolate - not a particularly good start to the day. I doubt that anyone actually bakes here given that there are so many beautiful and sweet goodies for sale; I'm surprised that the average waistline is not bigger.

There is a patisserie just a few doors down from our apartment that makes the most amazing creations (photos below). They vary from week to week, as the decorations on the tortes reflect local celebrations and events. I try not to loiter too long outside, but they literally are works of art.

Oh, and the guy at the top is eating a fresh waffle laden with strawberries and cream - waffles are a big thing here too!

Spanish retreat

What do you do to find relief from the seemingly endless gray skies of autumn? Flying to southern Spain seemed a good idea to us! I have wanted to go to Spain forever, and it did not disappoint. White washed villages perched on ridiculously steep hills, story book castles, monumental churches, glorious hand painted tiles, beautiful andalucian horses; It was wonderful.

While sharing an old farmhouse with friends on a rocky outcrop near Tarifa, we managed day trips to Gaucin, Gibraltar, Cadiz and Sevilla. The most striking experience was the Real Alcazar in Sevilla, which we stumbled into not even knowing what it was. The beauty of the moorish design and detail almost brought me to tears. And the expansive gardens were spectacular, with a myriad of secret places, a maze, pavilion, fountains, huge decorative walls and endless new views.

The Spanish actually do take siesta's between 2 and 5pm. I had wondered about this while living in Chile, where shops were open for about 12 hours a day. After the wonderful distraction of the palace, I realised at 1.45pm that we only had 15 minutes to race to the ceramics district across the river! (This was to fulfill another dream of mine, to buy hand-painted ceramics). Fortunately a few shop owners hadn't gone to lunch and we made it there just in time to snap up a few pieces of pottery that are now giving me joy.

We also spent a day on a rock belonging to England - Gibraltar - which was kind of an odd place to be while in Spain. It is a very big rock, riddled with tunnels and barbary apes, and has spectacular views of Spain, the mediterranean and the Riff mountains in Africa.

With all of our tripping around we didn't actually get any siestas, but the bank of memories has had a significant deposit that will hopefully provide us a mental vacation of blue skies and colourful tiles for quite awhile.

more colours of autumn

This is a convertible Smart car! I think its very cute. If you are wondering how it qualifies under the title of 'colours of autumn', grey is becoming an increasingly common sky colour. Other colours are much prettier, such as the orange pumpkins and purple cabbages, and there are still lots of flowers in the markets, including one of my favourites - hydrangeas.

I have been braving those cold morning walks to work with Phil, with the help of my woollen leggings and goose down jacket. Even Phil has been shopping for a pair of leggings since the temperature has been down to zero. How could it get colder than this?

its only autumn

It has been years since we experienced a true autumn and the colours are, well, colourful! There is a large mix here of deciduous and evergreen trees, so in addition to the various shades of green, we now have red, gold, bronze and aubergine.

The only problem is the temperature guage which claimed that it was 3.7 degrees when Phil walked to school this morning. I baulked at the idea of going outside in THAT, so Phil had to walk on his own. Maybe I will be braver tomorrow.

the second rome

When we travelled in and around Chile it was as if the Incas had been everywhere, leaving their impeccable wall building skills for us to wonder at centuries later. These photos were taken at Maachu Picchu in Peru and the Inca Bridge in Argentina.

Like the Incas, the Romans too attempted to conquer their world by increasing their boundaries and requiring more nations to pay tribute in the form of taxes, to fund their ever increasing expansionist desires. And also like the Incas, the Romans left their roads, bridges and walls for us to view.

Trier is a small town east of Luxembourg (in Germany) which they say was called Roma Segunda, or the second Rome. It has lots of interesting roman ruins, that have survived not only through time, but also the deluge of WW2 bombing raids. We haven't visited them all yet, but will certainly do on future visits. Below is the Porta Nigra, or black gate, which was once the entrance to the city.

We went to Trier to shop, but there are other delights as well, such as the flowers and mushrooms - which in the cases below, were both the biggest specimens we have ever seen. Dahlias the size of dinner plates and mushrooms bigger than my hand! I wonder if the Romans enjoyed these?

Esch sur Sure

Luxembourg has a lake. Although I'm not sure it counts entirely because it was created by a dam and was built to supply drinking water for the country. A hydro electricity scheme has also been added. It is a pretty lake, if not highly accesible, and we will probably return soon as autumn grips us and turns all the greens to red and gold.

Downstream of the dam wall is a very old village called Esch sur Sure, named after the Saure river (Esch of the Saure) which winds it way around a rocky outcrop forming a natural moat.

Records show that people have lived here since the 8th century, but the fortifications on top of the rock were not started until the 10th century. The chapel here was built in 1757, on the foundations of the first church constructed 1000 years earlier.

Still wearing T-shirts on a nice day!