Garmisch Christmas Market

If you've been following me and my blog for any length of time, you've come to know that besides being an artist, I love to ski. It's my passion and has been my passion since the first time I failed miserably on skis back in about 1981'ish. Falling repeatedly down the mountain, I said to myself happily, "THIS is my sport!"

Since then, I've skied in many places and recently I've come across a new area (new to me), that I'm interested in going to since I love Switzerland so much, especially the Jungfrau region. Garmisch, Germany!

Garmisch is a small town in Bavaria in southern Germany. It borders Austria and is home to Germany's highest mountain, Zugspitze, at over 10,000 ft.  There are a lot of similarities to Switzerland with rolling green mountains, trails, and chalet-type homes cozied in between.

Garmisch also hosts the annual Christmas Market which is a must-attend! The Alpine music, festively decorated booths, handicrafts, culinary specialities of the region, as well as the Lüftlmalereien (traditional painted house façades that are popular in this region) can be enjoyed in the magnificent glow of Christmas lights. Yule-tide spirit abounds from November 26 to December 23, 2016 filling hearts of the young and old with holiday cheer. I hope to make this an annual trip every Christmas!

Aside from the beauty of the village, there's the amazing local crafts of old world craftsman that really attracts the artist in me. While in Switzerland, I purchased a few wooden carvings of old thyme Santa's and a St. Bernard mountain rescue dog. You don't see that type of craftsmanship much these days.