MARCHÉ DE NOËL

For a Christmas market lover this is the place to be. The market is all over the old town with every square filled with stalls and the space between the stalls filled to overflowing with people. Getting around is difficult.

Jan and Margaret about to take the plunge. Andy and I plunged into a bar.

There are stalls/kiosks selling everything and yes in my view a lot of tat. That aside it is very colourful and atmospheric. Especially after a couple of vin chauds. As we have recently had a stream of visitors, all good fun, we have seen quite a lot of the markets. It is noticeable that there is a division by sex as to who likes the market stalls and who likes the local bars! I'll let you decide the division. All I can say is that it resulted in Margaret spending a lot of time in amongst the thronging masses and myself sat in the warmth of a local pub chatting with one of our guests. Strange!

Figurines, by the thousand.

I would hate to be the figurine stall holder setting up this lot. There again I'm sure they love it or they wouldn't be doing it. Presumably the rest of the year they are selling non Christmas figurines, or do they make enough at Christmas to last them the year? I didn't see anyone buying a figure/model, may just have been a quite patch.

Christmas lights. Not for people prone to epilepsy. 

Of course there is food of every, well almost, sort. Food for instant consumption and for presents.

Food by the kiosk load.

Of course there is a Christmas tree and as Strasbourg is Capitale de Noël they have a big one. It is big! It's a huge job felling it, bringing it into the city centre and erecting it. This year the efforts were exceptional. Earlier in November the tree was up ready for decoration. Then one day it was gone. I was at the European Parliament and I asked the guide did he know what happened to the tree. Yes he said, great problems. The tree developed a huge structural defect and had to be taken down for safety reasons. But!.....that was not the whole story. The tree I had seen was the 'third' tree. Hence the tree in the photograph below is the fourth. In all the years of erecting a Christmas tree in Place Kleber they have never had a problem. This year four trees. It would have been fascinating to have been at the meeting of the mayor when the third tree was found to be defective!

The Strasbourg Christmas tree with Justyn and Geoff.

All in all great fun, did I mention the Kougelhopf. Well as they say - more of that later, if they will allow us back with our navy blue passports!