Scott is joined by Wolfgang Gärtner of Saxony Tourism for a special holiday episode about what makes Saxony the true heart of German Christmas. Wolfgang takes us on a merry tour of Dresden and the Ore Mountains, famed for their Christmas markets, festive food, wooden toys, candle arches, nutcrackers, miners’ parades and many more seasonal delights. Along the way, you’ll discover a hidden gem town in Gorlitz and find out why the region of Saxony captures the magic of the holiday season like nowhere else in Germany.
Links to places/topics discussed:
Saxony Tourism – everything you need to plan your trip.
Dresden Striezelmarkt – the legendary Christmas market of Dresden, going strong for nearly 600 years
List of all Christmas markets in Dresden – there’s so much more than just the main one!
Loschwitz – ‘village’ inside Dresden with a Christmas market near a famous Blue Bridge
Dresden Stollenfest – special annual event at the Christmas market
Church of our Lady (Frauenkirche) – breathtaking church painstakingly rebuilt after WW2
Alte Meister – restaurant beside the famous art gallery
Anna restaurant – great spot to eat in the Royal Palace, German/Austrian cuisine
Coselpalais – restaurant in a grand palace
Pulverturm – vault restaurant under Coselpalais
Outer New Town – district where the ‘cool kids’ are hanging out
Pfund’s Dairy – the most beautiful milk shop in the world (featured in Grand Budapest Hotel)
Gorlitz – true hidden gem, perhaps one of the most beautiful towns in all of Germany
Landskron Brewery – great brewery in Gorlitz
Ore Mountains – Region full of rolling hills and mining towns that loves Christmas
Seiffen – village renowned for its wooden toys in the Ore Mountains
Annaberg-Buchholz – another town in the Ore Mountains where it started snowing at the Christmas market the second the pyramid started turning
Miner’s parades – annual tradition at the Christmas markets of the Ore Mountains
Neinerlaa – traditional nine course meal eaten on Christmas Eve, but can be enjoyed all throughout the season or year
Neinerlaa Restaurant in Annaberg-Buchholz – great place to sample a Nienerlaa
Freiberg – where the Ore Mountains mining tradition began, home to its own great Christmas market
Steam trains in Saxony – a great way to experience the scenery
Dominosteine – traditional Christmas chocolate treat
Pulsnitz – town famed for its gingerbread and gingerbread museum
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Theme music by Stu Wilson.