Fernweh: Duesseldorf: This Site Under Construction

Since we'd already fulfilled our mission in Cologne, the only thing we did upon arriving in Duesseldorf was find our hotel room and a restaurant for dinner. We stayed in the Hotel Lindenhof, which is just about 1 kilometer from the Hbf. The weather was nice, so we walked.

For dinner, Nate wanted to try a restaurant called Schwan. There are several around the city, but we chose the nearest. We both had schnitzel (chicken for me and pork for him) along with roasted potatoes. Tasty. We then returned to the hotel room and called it an early night.

Duesseldorf is a city under construction. I'm not sure what Christmas markets are like in a normal year... perhaps the same... but this year there are 6 small markets tucked into pocket-sized squares and running down the center of pedestrian zones. Despite waking up with sore throats, we visited all six.

We started out too early, thinking the markets would open around 10:00. While a few vendors were open that early, for the most part they didn't open until 11:00, so we had to find a way to kill some time while waiting. We had already walked to the farthest market from the hotel, intending to work our way back.

We found a small bakery with indoor seating in the back, bought some sweets and cokes, and sat "nursing" our drinks for as long as we felt we could comfortably get away with. I had a cremebretzel, which is a German pretzel with the holes filled with egg custard. It wasn't what I was expecting it to taste like (I didn't realize it was custard), but I like custard so it was all good.

We then moved to the Karstadt department store across the street to kill a little more time. I noticed they had a fabric department on the 4th floor, so I had to look. I didn't find any fabric I couldn't live without (bearing in mind that until I got to Berlin my suitcase was already overstuffed and overly heavy). I did find some appliques to add to my stash... dragons and butterflies.

Finally the markets were open and we visited first the stalls along Schadowstrasse. Along the pedestrian zone the huts were spaced and generally faced only in one direction.

At the end of the street was a small square where a handful of huts were clustered around an ice skating rink. I bought a lovely silk and rayon velvet scarf with a peacock motif.

In another small square (which shall remain nameless because I don't remember) we found another small grouping. I loved these bird houses and feeders in all kind of bright colors. One was labeled Cat Movie Theater (in German, of course).

In Heinrich-Heine Platz we found another small market with golden cherubs above the stalls.

Than across the street and through an arcade...

...was the Sternchen (little star) Markt where the color scheme was blue stalls and lots of white trim.

Leaving that area we walked along another pedestrian zone near the intersection of Flingerstrasse and Kaputzingergasse where the vendor stalls were decorated with the upper stories and roof lines of buildings.

The final market was in Markt Platz. There the stalls were more traditional, red with a simple roof against the backdrop of the very old buildings.

Here I finally saw some owl-shaped bird feeders that I remembered from my first Christmas Markt.

The holes are filled with a mixture of suet and seed. I wouldn't dare try to bring one home. There are too many reasons for the Dept of Agriculture to confiscate them. But I may try constructing something similar myself.

We also picked up some roasted pork with fried onions on a bun for lunch.

Peeking over the top of the buildings was a large ferris wheel with enclosed cars overlooking the Rhine River. I contemplated taking a ride for 7 Euros until I realized that, unlike the London Eye, the wheel went around multiple times. I wasn't prepared to be trapped in the ride for multiple trips if my fear of heights kicked in.

Walking back, I had to buy the chocolate noodles I saw in the window of a Conditerei. The tag includes some recipes, otherwise I wouldn't be quite sure what to do with them. Also on the way back, I spotted a pocket park with swans, so we sat on a bench and enjoyed the nice weather while bird watching for a while.

We went back to the room to rest for a while, then set out to find a restaurant for dinner. Crossing the Giradet Bruecke (bridge), we were in the right place at the right time for a short St Nickolaus Tag parade. The Saint was in the horse carriage...

...which was followed by what I can only surmise is an old-fashioned beer truck of some kind. St Nickolaus must need a great deal of sustenance while filling the shoes of children with toys and candy.

Walking further on, we decided that it was still a little early for dinner, so we killed some time in Starbucks. I tried a Lebkuchen Latte, which I daresay is not available in the US market. It was mighty tasty.

Just before we left we had a second look at the parade when it stopped briefly right outside the store.

After a great deal of walking, we finally found some open restaurants along Hunsrueckenstrasse. We chose the first one we came to that had some indoor seating available and had Italian-style for the first time since arriving in Germany. The food was very good. We've had amazing luck in randomly picking good restaurants in unfamiliar cities.

Some other things noticed while walking through Duesseldorf:

Cyclamen still in bloom in pots along the street.