It is here and it is wonderful,,, Nuremberg's Weinachtmarkt

What a couple of days it has been. The Magic of the Christmas market is just that - magic.
Friday we headed down to the Alt Stadt to listen to the announcement from the lovely Christ Angel atop the Frauen Kirche.  She opens the market every year.

smokers

Weird little Prune people with walnut heads. They are said to be the
souvenir from the Nuremberg Market....I think it would be funny to buy one and then eat it. ha ha

Too many people down there in the market! And this is empty compared to Friday night!

Angels and Minors - my favorite

decorative Lebekuchen

painted Neuschwanstein and Albrecht Durer Haus

okay I had to get a German Santa to bring home. Mine is green and red and wearing flannel!

Schoennen Brunnen and Castle, these painted ornaments are Gorgeous

Okay so let's be honest - all the people on Friday night was a bit scary for me.  I can't believe how rude people can be. It was frightening how they push and shove to get a view and try to move when NO ONE IS MOVING! But even that couldn't ruin the evening.   We were like sardines and with all the stalls around the church there were very few "good" spots to see the angel.  However; the music was lovely and to hear the Angel open the market was great.  After the official opening people did start to move. We headed to dinner and then walked through the market a bit on the way home.  Saturday was much better, not so many people and we could really take in the sights.  A couple of glasses of gluwein (warm mulled wine) and some roasted almonds and I was good to go.  We went back again on Sunday and had an amazing brunch up in one of the restaurants overlooking the market and then head back through to snap some photos a pick up a few things to take back with us.  What a superb way to end our stay in Germany.

This is probably my final post from Wurzelbauer Strasse as we leave Friday to return to our loving girls and home. I will post more about our time here when I settle in. It was a tough trip this time but we did make many wonderful memories.  It is true what they say "Home is where your heart is" and for some reason my heart seems to have stayed on the other side of the pond this time.  I do love Germany, that will never change and who knows....where will be next!  yikes!

A few detailed sights from Nürenberg, Germany (home)

The Schöner Brunnen Fountain - one of my favorites. No matter how many times I walk into town, for groceries, or coffee, or just for some fresh air, I can't help but stop at this amazing piece of art.


Some interesting facts... there is NO water in this fountain. It is located in the Main Market Square near the Frauen Kirche. It was built around 1385-96 by Heinrich Beheim. It is about 62 1/2 feet to the top. It has three tiers - Forty stone figures are arranged around it's octagonal base rising up to the top.  They are from the 14 century and represent the world view of the Holy Roman Empire.  The first row are the Philosopher and the Free Artists, the middle row the Evangelists and the Latin Church Fathers and the third row are the seven elector of and nine heroes.  The very top is Moses and the seven prophets.

If that is not enough to keep your interest the metal framing around the fountain can catch me forever.  The metal work is intricate in its own right. A beautiful example of Renaissance iron work. It was forged in 1587 by Paulus Kuhn.  Then in 1902 it was repaired by Albert Leipold. He then put in the well-known "golden-ring" that turns. 

Visitors are encouraged to turn the ring, three times 360 degrees each time,  and your wishes come true. (Okay I don't believe it but couldn't help to jump up and turn it myself)  A side note, what many visitors don't know is the "gold-ring" is not the original or real one.  There is a black ring high on the other side of the fountain that was the real one.  It is said that because it blends in with the ornate railing that the "gold" one was added to make it easier for tourist to find.  Bahhhh here we go again a little sparkle has left the fountain.  But perhaps that makes it more intriguing for those of us that know where the real one is.  I admit too that on many occasional while standing near the fountain I have, on occasion, pointed out the "real" one to a person or two!

Beautiful iron work

Can you see the little brass ring in the center above the horizontal black bar?

another view of the "brass" ring

right in the center you can see the original black ring!

 When the railing went up the sandstone figures were also replaced with shell lime ones. So when you are in Nürnberg, don't forget to turn the ring...the black one high on the back!

Lessons learned about German grocery shopping!

One should NEVER forget two main things....an Euro coin and shopping bags!  I am not new to this German way of shopping and I rather enjoy it, yes I actually do - most of the time.

So this morning I got up, the sun was shinning and it was COLD.  It is already 3 degrees in the morning brrr. (That is about 35 degrees Imperial for those of you in the States) Anyway I decided since we were going to go out for dinner tonight to go ahead and put on my new Tartan hose and sweater dress. So ready for fall, I grabbed my grocery bag, my purse, my keys and headed out...oh I came back...one should always carry an umbrella here as well or one will be most certainly be caught in a down pour, maybe only for a few minutes but it will happen!

After my 20 min walk with the wind blowing and fog everywhere, I got to the store.  Here is where the Euro coin comes into play.  I always keep one in the pocket of my grocery bag.  I put the coin in the slot on the grocery cart unplug it from the rest of the family and start down the rows.  If you don't have a coin you don't get a cart!  One thing about the Germans they don't like to wait so you had better have it in hand before you walk up to the family of carts!  I do love the wheels.  Oh the wheels on the carts...they are not like the States, they all four work, interdependently at that.  I have yet to get a bad cart here. (On a side note - one thing I don't understand - I can go into any store here and buy anything from a small pencil to a coat or boots and get a free bag. But buy anything at the grocery and they just hand it right back to you!  Weird right, and when you buy boots or shoes they take them OUT of the boxes and throw the box away while you stand there.)

I pass the meat counter, oh the meat counter is lovely here but, that will in-tale me talking - German.  My conversational German is good but looking at 6 different kinds of Ham and other various meat products can drive me crazy.  No one was really in the store so being brave...must have been the new hose!....I go back and explain "Ich hätte gerne zwei stuck von dem gekochten Schinken in der Rückseite bitte" I would like 2 pieces of the cooked ham in the back please. And yes. I did point, some of the German meats can be kind of scary, mixed with who know whats and gelatin, yuck. I didn't want to bring that home for supper. So the lady takes the ham and slices two slices and puts them on the scale.  I started to laugh pretty hard and she stared at me.  She had cut two of the thinnest sliced I had ever seen. It might have cost me 10 Euro cent and I think David would be rather hungry.  So I said "Es tut mir leid, meine Deutsch ist nicht so gut. Kann ich zwei dicke scheiben schneiden" I am so sorry my German is not so good (that seems to be my middle name here of late) could I have 2 thick slices. I show her with my fingers about an inch cut!  She giggled too and said No problem and then cut two THICK slices.  She was about to take the two little ones off and I said no problem I will take them too.  She thanked me, silly I guess but hey I can cut them up for Spaghetti Cabanara for one right? I say, again in German, thank you, I am trying, have a nice day, and goodbye. She was all grins.  They do seem to much more pleasant here than in Düsseldorf.

I proceed to the check out, now here are some lessons.  ALWAYS always use the little bar to separate your groceries from you neighbors, you wouldn't want her to buy yours by accident.If you don't use it someone will put it down for you and most likey rant something while doing so. ALWAYS lay you bottles down on their sides or you WILL get a talking too, and then you must be quick about it!  They literally throw your groceries down the little conveyor and you need to NOT pack them but quickly, very quickly dump them back into your cart, hand her the money and GET OUT OF THE WAY. They actually have a little gate they swing past and start on the next person while you are frantically pulling groceries off the stand. I don't know why it is that way but trust me you will thank me if you do this every time-move!  After you pay you move your cart out of the way, then and only then, you load up your bags (did you see the "s" on that word bags)  I FORGOT to bring more than one bag.  Oh bother...so I again walked home with 3 small heads of Romaine lettuce and 6 little rolls of bread in my arms while I had the one stuffed bag I did bring slung over my shoulder.  I hope I don't smash the eggs or butter! Did I mention the cold and 20 min walk ha ha.

So I was leaving the grocery and I noticed a nice looking German mother and teenager come in. They were fumbling with their purses (presumably looking for their Euro coin) while I was frantically loading my bag, so I slid my cart over quickly, like I said got to get out of the way, and told them you can have my cart "Sie können sich meine Einkaufswagens".  They both stared at me for a minute and asked about the Euro...I kept walking and said in German "no problem - have a nice day"  You would have thought they had won the lottery.  Now if I only remember to put an Euro coin back in my bag!

So Schönen Tag nach (have a good day) and don't forget your bags!!!

A day in the life of a returning Expat....

Okay so we are here in Nuremberg, Germany.  It is rather cold and rainy. I have spent the last few days reading and translating the everyday tools of life; the washer, the dryer, the microwave ( I will get to that later), the oven and few other things. Yikes a lot of work!

The first day was good..we had an appointment in town for our residency permits, so when we got there early, we stopped for a cup of coffee.  The best part of Germany is the Milche Kaffee, outside in the lovely coffee shops.  I must admit this was the best Milche Kaffee I have had yet!  I also walked 5 blocks for a bit of groceries, only to remember, after getting there, that you NEED to bring your own bags. Well I NEEDED groceries so I carried them home in my hands.  A bit funny walking down the street with a head of lettuce, some cheese, cookies and few odd's and ends in my hands but well I got the groceries didn't I?  Next time I won't forget the bag!

So the microwave...this morning when we got up I thought it would be nice to make David an egg.  I found a little dish and rubbed some butter in it, I don't know if they have "Pam" here yet. I dropped in an egg, scrambled it and popped it into the microwave.  Punched in what I thought was a min. and waited.  Upon opening the door I notice a bright red glow on the top of the microwave.  Hmmm is that what the grill sign means - this microwave grills as well as microwaves?  So I punched in another 30 sec and this time figured out how to just microwave the runny middle of David's gourmet egg! Success. So after he left for work, I wrote down everything in German from the microwave on a paper and headed toward the computer to figure it all out.  Job well done, well until the next time.

So the week is off to... well a start, let's see what the rest of the week brings.

Until next time tschuss (informal good-bye)
Regen, regen, wo ist mein regenschirm?
(Rain, rain, where is my umbrella?)