I have definitely never heard of a medieval Christmas market before, so this was quite an interesting experience. There was a normal German Christmas market, but the main attraction for most visitors is the medieval market. One could buy period clothing, handmade crafts and baskets, as well as make candles and throw knives or axes. If you ventured up a steep staircase to a great viewpoint over the town, you could also shoot a bow and arrow (which cost 8 Euro!), but the view was great.

Esslingen am Neckar!

Some people needed a little help...

As part of the medieval motif, there was food served on sticks, such as “Stockbrot”, which would be literally translated as “stick bread”…

"Stockbrot".

One of my favorite things at the Christmas market was a giant Christmas carousel…

Christmas carousel...

There were also people that dressed up to fit the period, as well as musicians and fire demonstrations for entertainment. Most importantly, though, there were stores that were open late, because it was only 20 degrees Fahrenheit, so although I enjoyed myself, at the end of the day I was definitely happy to be back on the warm train and heading home.