Residenz Christmas Market

Continuing the Christmas Market theme, here are some pictures of the market at the Residenz, where it seemed as though most of the food on offer was of the "on a stick" variety!  You have your meat course:

Your waffles on a stick, or as the nice lady told me:  Wafflepops!

And also the candied or chocolate covered fruit course:

I opted for the wurst course, which truly never lets you down! And before you ask, yes, that is blasphemous ketchup on my wurst semmel-some things don't change...mustard is nasty!

A little information about the Residenz: it is the former Royal Palace for the Bavarian kings.  It is now a museum, which you can tour and is comprised of over 130 rooms (this is an excellent rainy day to do when you have visitors in town) and a complimentary museum under the same roof which houses the treasury-some jewels and other important artifacts.

The Residenz is one of those places in Munich that fools you on first sight.  When you look at it from Odeonsplatz, you don't even begin to comprehend the size of this place.  The gardens are open to the public and well tended and utilized by the people of the city...and there is a peaceful serenity to this green space in the middle of the bustling city center.


The Christmas market is held in a smaller courtyard at the Residenz.  It is a smaller, cozy market, mostly made up of food stalls, a knife sharpener, a couple of stands selling vintage Tracht (authentic Bavarian costumes and accessories) and several stands selling Christmas goods.

But the most distinguishing thing about this market is the kid's section.....filled with 6-7 huts of some of the creepiest animatronic santas, elves, trolls, and figures from fairy tales you have ever seen:

The one below is Hansel and Gretel...I didn't get the kids in the pic, but got the witch and her, um, reindeer:

 

This section of the market is started off with a huge talking and singing moose.  It is just his head, like he is mounted or maybe looking in through a window in the hut.  I cannot believe that I didn't get a photo of him singing Winter Wonderland when I went...and I even looked in the archives from last year-nothing.  I will post a picture of him before this market season is over, though....I promise.  He is worth a look at for you all.  I did take some video...maybe that would be better, if I can figure out how to post it, I will.  There is always a big crowd around his hut, and the children are really mesmerized by him and his stories and songs.

In the kid's section there is also an open fire pit.  They burn evergreen bits and wood there-it smells really good.  But I do wonder about the placement of it in the kid section...

 

Please don't think that I am not swept up in the feeling of this market.  I think that the animatronics are quirky and weird, and maybe more than a little bit German...but I know that we probably have customs and things from our childhoods that seem quirky and weird to those who did not grow up with us...and I think that it is really something to have these old set ups from long ago to come and visit year after year and then to bring your children to...traditions in the making.  

And, how can you not like a place that has gingerbread house topped trash cans?