Being on Christmas break is fantastic. Since it’s normally dark when we leave for work and dark when we get home, we don’t really know what our house looks like in the daylight. (When it’s out) the sun shines in the enormous windows and fills the rooms — I’m so in love with our house.
The Viper Pilot worked a 12er (what I fondly call his 12 hour work days, there are also 14ers, 15ers…you get the point) yesterday so I spent most of my day soaking in the tub listening to Norah Jones. I also spent some time cleaning up the one mishap from Christmas dinner.
A candle dripped melted wax all over my table and new poinsettia table runner from the Rothenburg Christmas market. I threw it in the freezer and picked off the wax after it froze. Then I took a hair dryer to it and the rest of the wax melted right off. I soaked it in warm water and we were good to go. Crisis averted.
Anyway…
A few days ago we went to Trier and Bernkastel-Keus for the last day of the Weihnachts Markt, or Christmas markets.
At these festivals, kids ride the merry-go-rounds that are older than the Viper Pilot and I, you eat really good food, drink GlĂĽhwein out of the cute collector mugs, and maybe buy a cute little trinket or two. As far as I can tell, that is the sole purpose of these festivals, but I really don’t mind. I just do as the Germans do. Oh ja.
Trier (pronounced “treer”) is a people’s park of all things old, new, and in-between. I was in Trier a few weeks ago with my friend, and really loved the unique style of the city. It’s a really old town — the oldest town in Germany — and was founded in 16 B.C. The city suffered greatly during the war and much has been rebuilt where the WWII bombs hit, though it is dotted with ancient crumbling Roman ruins and fine old buildings.
To refresh your memory, it’s home to the oldest Christian church in the country. Does this look familiar?
The Christmas market takes place in the Hauptmakt, the Market Square, and is a people-filled swirl of food stands, painted facades, and craft booths. Oh, and a carousel that is there just for the Christmas market. A Christmas market is not complete without a rickety old carousel.
While the market square is now filled with stores, restaurants, and even a McDonald’s (with a low-key presence), the area boasts a juicy history. The building that houses the H&M clothing store was once a palace for the archbishop. The alley of half-timbered houses in the two pictures below mark Trier’s 14th century Jewish ghetto. Judengasse, or Jews’ Alley, led under these facades into a gated ghetto where 60 families lived under (purchased) protection from the from the archbishop. But the protection only went so far; they were expelled in 1418 when they tried to collect interest from the prince. Rather than pay up, he sent them packing. (How rude.) The buildings lining the Judengasse today are very quaint, but only date to the 18th century. {Good grief, listen to me. Only the 18th century?! I say that like it’s not old at all. Only as old as the United States!! This is what living in Europe is doing to me…}
A walk down Judenstrasse leads right to the Porta Nigra.
Trier was built as a Roman capital and the only surviving remnants of the empire is the north gate, the Porta Nigra. It’s a very impressive structure and was built without mortar — only iron pegs hold the sandstone blocks together. You can still see carvings and places where the blocks were cut (with a hammer and chisel?).
A tour through the ruins taught us that the only reason this gate wasn’t destroyed during the medieval times was because it became a church. The St. Simeon monastery was established in 1035 and the Roman gate was made into a two-story church.
We climbed around inside the Porta Nigra but there is really little to see inside. It does, however, offer fantastic views of the city.
Trier is just a short drive from home and has so much to offer. We plan to make several more day trips back to the city to do more exploring (Roman baths, Karl Marx’s house, Roman amphitheater, etc…) and probably some shopping if I have anything to say about it. 🙂
Check back tomorrow to see and read about our Bernkastel-Keus Weihnacht Markt experience!
PROST!
Tamera says
I love Europe. I also love your "travelogue" posts. You make me want to visit Germany.