1 post tagged “strasbourg and colmar”
I don't feel like writing a detailed post about what I did in Strasbourg, so I'm just going to put up a bunch of photos. It was really pretty, but I was a bit disappointed with how commercial the markets have become. There were stalls of Indian and Egyptian tchotkes, and I wanted to see a white-haired old man whittling ornaments. Instead there was lot of mass-produced toys, just like everywhere else.
The decorations were lovely, but I didn't feel that "magical" thing that so many others have reported at the Strasbourg Christmas market. Maybe part of that had to do with the fact that it was in the low 60s, so almost too warm for vin chaud. Don't worry though, I had at least four or five cups.
Sparkly fairs:
Beautiful architecture:
On Sunday I hopped on a train to Colmar, known as the Little Venice, and was much happier. I only had a few hours there, but it was lovely. After a very brief shower a rainbow came out!
I didn't buy much in either place-- just some olive wood salad servers, very French-looking tea towels, and a small gift for my cousin, Martin-- but I ate a ton of good food. Strasbourg is the capital of Alsace, a region that is known for its foie gras. Yum. I also had a croustillant de saumon sauvage, which is like a pasty filled with wild salmon, carrots, celery, and mushrooms. I picked it up for lunch from a farmer's market, and ate it over-looking the Ill river before taking a boat tour. Another delicious snack was the baguette flambe, which is a half-baguette covered in cream, small pieces of bacon-y ham, roasted onions, and shredded cheese, stuck in an oven to get all melty. And I made sure to take a tour through the marche de bredle, an indoor market that sells dozens of kinds of bredle, or traditional Alsatian Christmas cookies. You don't need to eat dinner after going there, since all the bakers offer you free samples. I especially liked the dark chocolate and cinnamon stars.
My next trip isn't until the 21st of December, when I'm off to Venice for 4 days. Anyone have recommendations in Venice?
