Full on free chocolate, we arrived at Frankfurt to a rainbow dropping in to the city. Our hotel, Hotel Monopol, is an old building right near the main train station, which is convenient to everything and easy to find. From their website, some of their rooms appear to be updated, but not our room. But it is clean enough and very spacious, plus free mini bar with juice and beer and free coffee and cakes in the lobby. We set off to explore the city and the Christmas Market. 
I instantly like Frankfurt. The buildings are a mix of new skyscrapers and older buildings and there is lots of ethnic diversity. The Christmas Markets were great! Lots of room to move, some stuff for sale that you don't see at every other market, an area in Romerberg that is reconstructed old buildings had a fun double-decker merry go round and a hall with all high-end local handicrafts, including photography, paintings, jewelry, and homemade scarves and clothing.
Everyone seems friendly and appears to be having a good time. And I found reibekuchen, which I looked for and couldn't find in Nuremberg. They are fried potato pancakes like latkes with a variety of sauce choices. I think applesauce is the traditional, but I chose the specialty 7 herb and cream sauce. 
We walk down the commercial street, stopping to hear a great street musician. We head back to the hotel, walking past the Alte Oper (original opera house) and hear more musicians playing outside and then off to bed.
The next morning, we wake up and walk across a bridge and along the Main River in the museum area. We grab a yummy breakfast at a little neighborhood bakery and then walk back 
across another bridge covered in love locks and back through the Christmas Market as it opens. We head to Kleinmarkethalle, the food market where there was all kinds of free samples (like a mini Pike Place Market). 
I saw the most beautiful wheel of cheese I have ever seen, covered in colorful flower petals. I ended up buying some truffle salami and spicy not too briny olives. We grabbed a train to nearby Mainz. We were trying to meet up with a friend of Wade's family, but there was a mix up in location. After some back and forth, we finally got off at the right stop at Mainz-Kastel in nearby Weisbaden and found the pretzel bakery, Geppert Brezelbackerei. Their family has owned the bakery since 1928. We stopped and said hello, but they were very busy running the shop. We grabbed baked goods (I had a yummy cheese pretzel) and we jumped on a bus to visit the Mainz Christmas Market in hopes of meeting up with them when they closed. There was a dish I had two years ago at this market called grünkohl, which I still remembered. It is a comfort food with kale and potatoes with sausage or meat that just warms the belly in the cold weather. Took me a short amount of time, but I found it and it was just as good as I remembered it. I really should try to make at home on a cold night! We went back to the bakery, but missed the owners. Instead, we stopped by a used store (like Goodwill) in the little neighborhood that had all kinds of goodies to look through. Wade bought a 2 euro beer stein and I got a wooden incense smoke house that was far better than I saw at any Christmas Market. We headed back to Frankfurt, visiting the Christmas markets one more time for dinner. I find another favorite treat, mushrooms in wine, garlic and cream sauce!We got up early the next morning to return to the Geppert Brezelbackerei, as there was a mix-up when we went back to meet Marcus and his wife after the Mainz market the day before. Marcus was so nice and treated us to delicious coffee and super yummy pastries and gave us each a big gingerbread man for our travels.
We then continued on by train to a little town called Braubach, that had a castle that was open and easy to get to from the train station. The train ride was picturesque, as it follows the Rhein river. Little towns in the valleys, wine grapes up the hills, and the occasional castle or ruin at the top of the hills. 
I had emailed the tourist information office of Braubach in advance, and they let us store our luggage for free while we took the walk through the town and up the hill to Marksberg Castle. 
We were there just as it opened and managed to get in a small tour of about 8 and the guide decided to give the tour in English (as I learned on my last trip to Germany, there are not many English tours in the off season). The tour was very informative and they rooms were decorated to give you a real feel of castle life. 
The castle was the only one not destroyed during war of around 40 castles in the area (but was damaged in an earthquake). The views from the castle were also beautiful. We then grabbed a train to Koblenz and then off to Trier. I greatly enjoyed my previously purchased salami and olives as train snacks along the journey.
We arrived in Trier later than expected. Trier is right on the border of Luxembourg with a rich history, as it is one of the oldest cities in Germany and was the largest city of the Roman Empire in the 4th Century (oh, and the birthplace of Karl Marx). There are several Roman ruins here, and Wade loves history and "old stuff." We find our hotel and walk through the Christmas Market. 
The wooden pyramid here highlights the wine growing of the region. We grab Flammkuchen (like a flatbread pizza) with potatoes, bacon, and cheese for dinner under the old cathedral and of course, our normal gluhwein before bed.
Our last real day of our trip, we get up early and eat at the hotel's breakfast which is a nice spread for 5 euros a person. First we visit Porta Nigra. 
Built as one of the four gates in the city wall built in 160-200 AD, it is the only one still standing due to a hermit who used to live in it. Small organisms blackened the white sandstone in the Middle Ages, hence its name. 
We were the only ones in it and it was really fun to run up it and have views of the town. Next, we head to the Roman Amphitheater. Not much remains of the seats and theater, but there is an underground area that allows you to see the old cages and trap doors from under the theater where gladiators and animals like the occasional lions and tigers were held. 
And finally, we walk around the Roman Imperial Baths, where you can also go underground to through the hot and cold bath areas in an underground maze of hallways. 
We took a quick walk back to the hotel through the Palace gardens, which are pretty, but I am sure more impressive when there is more foliage than in winter. We grab our backpacks and catch a train back to Koblenz and then an ICE train to Cologne.I still love Cologne. I had booked the same hotel as last time I was here (Hotel Drei Kronen), as it is located right off the river (and very close to the Cathedral and train station),
has a great view, and is located within walking distance of three Christmas Markets. We first head inside the cathedral for a quick look around. 
Still as impressive as before with its massive size, stained glass, and art. We then head off for some Christmas magic, as nothing embodies the Christmas spirit for me more the the Christmas Markets in Cologne. 
We grab some fondue while wandering the more traditional market Cathedral Market, that now has international food stalls. Then, we head to the larger and less traditional Old Town Market with its fun "house gnome" theme, large ice skating rink, and 
ice curling games. We listen to music and take a ride on the ferris wheel, enjoying views of the market from above and the cathedral. Later, we walk the riverfront and visit the Harbor Christmas Market. Perfect city to end another trip!Great trip of familiar things for me and new things. Found new areas I would like to explore more and others I don't think I need to visit again. And now we are back home and I am glad to have stocked up on Christmas cheer since I am working Christmas Eve and Christmas night. I read about a German word often used during the holiday season that does not have a direct translation in English: Gemütlichkeit. It means something of a feeling and state of coziness and warmth, peace of mind, well-being, good cheer, and friendliness. So I wish you all gemütlichkeit for this holiday season and well in to 2019!
Trip photos are up online or you can view them as a slideshow.
Love,
Betsy
Checked in to our cute hotel, 
Woke up early and head to Tübingen for the annual International Chocolate Festival. I had missed it by a week the last time I was in Germany. The town was super cute and so many good chocolate treats (some with free sample!!!) They have truffles, 
chocolate covered fruit, cookies, crepes, hot chocolate, and chocolate marzipan liqueur. There is even paintings done with chocolate and chocolate seminars. I actually got full on chocolate (and we all know much I love to eat and how rare it is for me to get full on anything).
After that, we head to one of favorite Christmas Markets in Esslingen. It is medieval themed and has lots of entertainment everywhere you look. I wanted to see the start of the festival where they have a fencing match on a platform each evening, but apparently they no longer due this after someone almost fell off (must have been last year?).
The kids area is great with hand cranked rides, archery competitions, hatchet throwing, and a game where you have to guess which box the live mice will run to. There is also flame jugglers and music. I learned I am not so good at archery. 
Oh, and Wade beat me at the live mice game (but, I also picked a stone that reminded me of my cat to mark my box, which in hindsight is probably not the best to lure in a live mouse). Long day, but we had so much fun!! Then took the train the 20 minutes back to Stuttgart.
Early the next morning, we catch the train to Rothenburg ob de Tauber. We check in to our hotel, 
We wandered their Christmas market, which is pretty small and uneventful. Had a nice sit down dinner of beef goulash, spaetzle and a beer at a little restaurant/pub. At 8pm, we headed out on the Nightwatchman tour, which is a great way to learn about the town's history and the guy who has been running it for years has a great sense of humor.
Woke up early and took a few photos without the hordes of tourists (the town is a stop for many tourist buses, so less crowded at night and early morning). We walked part of the medieval wall that goes all around the town, with views of rooftops and the vast farmlands and valley nearby. 
I love this town because it is so easy to imagine what it was like back in the medieval times. I was hoping for snow while we were there, but looks like we are about a week too early. We ate a yummy breakfast at the farmhouse hotel I stayed in the first time I came before grabbing out bags and heading back to the train station.
The Christmas Market is a mess. Granted, it is a Saturday, but it is wall to wall people, everyone is pushy and appears to be in a foul mood, and the city is dirtier than any others and not all that pretty (understandable, considering the history). We returned to the hotel somewhat disappointed. At least our hotel, 
The next morning, we ate breakfast and Wade chatted with some folks from Dusseldorf that were also very disappointed with the Christmas Market. We set off for the very somber trip to the Documentation Center Museum and Nazi Rally Grounds for some WWII history. 
The museum was very well done with interesting movies and audio chock full of information in many different languages.
But to see the actual sites was very eerie and it made me super uncomfortable to see people talking smiling selfies and wanting to stand in the famous spot Hitler stood in. So I tried to focus in plants and things I live growing out of something so vile.
Having enough of Nuremberg and to change the mood back to Christmas, we decided to visit a nearby little town called Bamberg, about a 40 minute ICE train ride from the city. The town supposedly sits on 7 different hills and it was so much more our speed, Cute little town with beautiful architecture and smiling, friendly, helpful people. 
They have an absolutely beautiful Old Town Hall set on a river with painted walls. The market was smaller, but full of yummy food, families, and space to move. This is also the home of my favorite Rauchbier (smoked beer), but didn't find that out until we had already left. I hope to come back here and stay to explore more for a day or two when the weather is a bit better for hiking the hills (and to drink my fair share of rauchbiers).