Until the end of 2003, I had never seen any of Germany’s Christmas Markets. For this visit, I stayed with some very good friends in Halingen, a village just outside Menden, which is more-or-less between Hohenlimburg and Dortmund. So, with the benefit of local guides, the next few pages are from some of the various markets we visited. There were plenty to choose from.

Soest: A pretty town with a mediaeval town centre. It’s not far from the Möhnesee, famous for having bouncing bombs thrown at one of it’s dams during the ‘Dam Busters’ raid.

Dortmund: One of the biggest cities in the area. I first came here when it still had eight breweries that you could smell as you got off the train. It’s also one of the best shopping centres around, too.

A Country Market: For hand carved presents, and home cooked food.

A Craft Market: Lots of different stalls. I also thought I’d found Osama Bin Laden.

Church: On our markets tour, we also visited this small church, with a magnificent organ, and a tiny chapel underneath.

For 2007, we stayed in Cochem on the Moselle. We also visited the markets in Bernkastel and Trier. Photos for this trip are indexed here , and viewable directly here

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