Travelling to Advent locations on both sides of the Alps
Between Strasbourg and Colmar in Alsace between history and romance
A trip over the Alps between Strasbourg and Colmar is an immersion in a world suspended between history and legend, where Christmas is celebrated with great intensity.
Since 1570, the capital of the Alsace-Champagne-Ardenne-Lorraine region has been home to the oldest market in France, an event that has elected the city the 'capital of Noël'. Every year, starting on 27 November, Strasbourg dresses itself in lights and scents, welcoming more than visitors who flock to the large tree in Place Kléber, some 30 metres high, which dominates the scene as the symbol of a ritual that spans the centuries. All around, more than 300 little houses enliven the old town with handcrafted decorations, hot spiced wine and the famous Bredele, Christmas biscuits handed down from generation to generation. The history of the market has its roots in the Middle Ages, when St Nicholas' market was held around the cathedral. With the Protestant Reformation, in the 16th century, it was replaced by the Christkindelsmärik, the Child Jesus Market, which has marked the city's Christmas identity ever since. Today, in addition to the stalls, Strasbourg offers concerts, exhibitions and the display of the cathedral's precious tapestries, which can only be seen between Advent and Epiphany. No less impressive is Colmar, with its illuminated half-timbered houses, its canals reminiscent of Venice and its squares transformed into Christmas villages. Here, master glassmakers blow Christmas balls using ancient medieval techniques, while the scent of Kougelhopf, the typical Alsatian sweet, wafts through the shops.
https://www.visitstrasbourg.fr/it/scoprire/capitale-di-natale/
