A Marvelous Medieval Market

   Today we trained to the village of Esslingen, a picturesque little town with canals and half-timbered buildings.  There were lots of vineyards on the nearby hillsides, some of them were very steeply terraced and looked almost scary to work in.

 

 

 

   We spent ages at one of the biggest medieval markets around.  There were many people showcasing ancient crafts like pewtering, broommaking, printmaking, and blacksmithing.

 

 

   There was a lot of food cooked on fires, and a lovely little coffee and cocoa booth set up to look like a kasbah.

 

 

 

 

 

   Our favorite part was the wooden Ferris wheel, which was hand cranked and could go very fast!

 

   Afterwards, Allie and Marc and I went out to another town, Ludwigsburg, which had a baroque theme market.  It was very lovely too.

 

 

 

   Then we came back to Stuttgart where we listened to a. Tass band play Christmas carols on the steps of the Rathaus with Mom and Dad and Tio before going to dinner (where Mom had goose ravioli in pumpkin sauce).  The Stuttgart Rathaus is set up like a giant advent calendar and as each window is opened it shows the coat of arms of the nearby community sponsoring that evening's music.  Very cool!