This past weekend marked the beginning of the Christmas markets in Grenoble. Several squares around town are set up with wooden cabins that sell everything from Christmas trees to regional specialties to Christmas gifts (jewelry, wooden toys, winter accessories, etc.). The cabins are lit up with Christmas lights and Christmas music is piped in (much of it in English!). It is festive and fun to walk through.
This stand sells lights/candles.
Large honey spice cakes, often with orange flavoring are sold here (pain d'épices). They say that a large cake can take about 10 hours to bake. You are not obliged to buy the entire cake! The cake is cut into larger or smaller wedges and you pay according the weight of your wedge.
A Nougat stand--a traditional confectionery made of egg whites, sugar or honey and nuts.
The Christmas market is also a place to eat. An enormous pan of tartiflette is cooking. This is typical hearty mountain cuisine: cooked sliced potatoes mixed with bacon, onions and cheese.
And to drink. Here hot apple juice with mandarins is sold as well as vin chaud--a sweet and spicy hot red wine--an excellent drink to sip on when out in the cold.
The Christmas market is also a place to eat. An enormous pan of tartiflette is cooking. This is typical hearty mountain cuisine: cooked sliced potatoes mixed with bacon, onions and cheese.
And to drink. Here hot apple juice with mandarins is sold as well as vin chaud--a sweet and spicy hot red wine--an excellent drink to sip on when out in the cold.
Christmas trees are small--probably because they do have to fit in an elevator . . .
Walking back from the market, I notice a fellow transporting his tree back home on his son's scooter.
Beyond the Christmas markets, stores are decorated for Christmas; Christmas lights are strung across the streets and also in some of the trees. So yes, the holiday season is alive and well here too! We are still waiting for some snow though.
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