The second week of December is ending and a good part of the world is getting ready for Christmas. This is the time of the year when people are making plans and cities are dressed in Christmas lights and decorated with all kinds of garlands to make the whole month special.
This is what is expected each year, it can lift any spirit, not to mention the memorable time kids can have before Christmas. This year I decided to visit the Christmas market in Marosvásárhely (Târgu Mureș) so today I'm inviting you to enjoy what the market has to offer to visitors through my post.
The market is situated in the city center, at the Theater Square to be precise. It's a wide space that has been used to host craft markets in recent years and now the Christmas market found its place there too.
This is a new trend though as for decades the market was held in the alley of the city center, where there always has been a very tall Christmas tree, which was a real pine. A few years ago the municipality decided to end this tradition for several reasons, among which the most important was the costs of moving such a huge tree from the woods to the city and the environmental impact. Instead, they decided to buy a plastic tree that can be reused every year. I know, some of you will say plastic is not environmentally friendly, but still, it is the best solution for now. So last Sunday the lights were turned on on this tree and the fun started.
The beauty of it is that the lights are changing colors and the tree never gets boring.
Right at the entrance of the square, two reindeer pulling a sled are greeting you. Is it free to use? No. Not this one and there's a sign asking people to behave. Are people behaving? Some do, others don't know what behaving means.
Teddy was there too, although he has nothing to do with Christmas, unless he's a Christmas present.
Stalls are surrounding the place, offering everything you need, even before you know you need it. The idea behind the market is to offer visitors Christmas decorations, as well as gifts to buy if you're in pursuit of finding the perfect one. However, this is not all, but about the rest, a bit later.
In case you want to visit the market, be prepared financially as what you will see here is not for pocket change budgets. Yes, it is for a special occasion, but the costs of renting a stall here are ... 😬 and the products are also quality. Here for example you could buy bags, purses and wallets of all kinds made of genuine leather and leather is not cheap.
What makes this place special compared to the other shops selling Christmas decorations is that what you find here is limited series and very different from mass production goods. You can buy these wooden items that in my eyes worth a lot more than any shiny plastic thing. I'm adding to my collection slowly each year. I'm buying a few pieces each time and apart from those made of glass, these don't break. I don't know about you but these look better on the tree, than those shiny plastic ones. Makes the whole decoration more natural.
Handmade jewelry can't be missing from the market. I bet many ladies will be happy to receive these beauties under the Christmas tree.
Although this Sunday we're going to light the second candle of the Advent wreath, it's never too late buy one.
There were more amazing wreaths there and trust me, those with orange candles looked really great. The red ones too :D. And if you look at those red designs on white, those are wall clocks, hand painted ones. I have one in the kitchen and love it. It makes a really nice Christmas gift.
Stalls like this are a huge danger to the budget of those who are celebrating Christmas. I had my eyes on a few cute angels, but at the end I left without buying any.
Then what do you think happened? I met Santa! Santa himself was sitting on that bench and had presents with him as well. And what do you think happened? He waved at me. I was very surprised, at first I didn't know if he was waving at me or at someone else, but after looking around I had to realize he was waving at me after all, as there was no one around. I waved back to him, as that's the polite thing to do and was thinking of having a chat with him, maybe give him my list. You know, DA LIST! But that was a thought just for a second as I knew I'm not going to give him any list, nor ask anything from him. I want one thing and if I have it, the rest I can get myself.
There was more jewellery here, but I'm not really into this kind of jewellery. However, those mugs were calling my name. So I needed all my strength in my legs to not go there and buy one. A few years ago I did an inventory on my mug collection and counted more than 50 😳, some sets were unused, so I gave a good few of them away and made sure not to hoard any more.
I love those barrels, it was a really original idea to use them, also to paint them in red and white.
Before you jump to conclusions and think this is some kind of fancy Christmas dessert, no, it's not. These are candles. Fancy candles. Trust me, you have to be strong and resist temptation as these are lovely, but extremely expensive and once you light them, the whole composition is ruined for good.
Lavender can't be missing from the fair, but as usual, I increased my speed and got out of there. I'm sure the products are amazing, but me and lavender are not best friends.
Can't have Christmas without some nice Christmas design tablecloth. I was seriously considering buying one, but then I remembered I have some canvas at home, waiting to be transformed in a nice table cloth.
There's no Christmas without gingerbread! These however have become more than Christmas decorations. Looks at the design on them. How can you eat them? However, each piece can be a nice present to someone you love.
Brandy? Anyone?
Another product that can never be missing from any fair is honey. What drives me crazy (in a good way thought) is those little honey bears. We had several when we were kids and I keep saying I'm going to buy one and never do. There were nice candles too, perfect for Christmas.
And then I saw Santa again. He was waiting to receive the guests traveling on a sled pulled by reindeer, I mean on a horse pulled carriage 😄.
You can take a short ride around the square, which most likely is not for free, but kids love it.
Then look what happened. There was Santa again, driving the Christmas train!
There are many ways to empty your pockets or bank account and buying Christmas decorations and presents is just one of it. The other is buying hot drinks, which is kind of a must as it's part of the good vibe dominating the Christmas market.
After a good drink (or before?) some tasty food is always welcome and kürtöskalács (horn cake) can never be missing from any event, regardless of the nature of the event. I was eyeing this one but the price was 😬
Here, in case you're wondering how it looks like once it's baked. They had plenty ready to be sold, but not many were ready to buy.
Hot tea, mulled wine, hot chocolate?
And there was a photo booth as well. For 2€ you could have your mug shot taken. I've never seen this photo booth before, but most likely I'll be seeing it at events from now one.
While Santa was taking the good people for a spin, there were other interesting things going on. The building you see on the photo is the national theater and there were lights projected on the building. The lights were basically projected all over the square but I could only catch them on the theater building. Identifying the source was impossible. It was nice though.
Then I saw a lion. It was a pretty scary experience, trust me. I needed all my strength and courage not to run away 😆.
He must have had eyes on the back of his head as well, as at some point he turned around and looked at me. Boy, was I scared that I would become his dinner?
Then what do you think happened? He not only turned around and waved at me, but invited me to take selfies with him and that's when I realized, she was a lioness. Very nice of her, but I said no thank you.
After a good tour of the market, I could not leave without tasting some mulled wine. Last time I had mulled wine I think it was 5 or 6 years ago, as I'm not much of a drinker, but the market vibe was good, so I bought a cup of wine for 2€ and it was heavenly good. Actually I can't get it out of my head and am planning to go back next week to have another one. Or maybe 2? 2 is always better than one, don't you think? 😂
Did you know that mulled wine has a long history?
The first record of wine being spiced and heated can be found in Plautus's play Curculio, written during the 2nd century BC. The Romans travelled across Europe, conquering much of it and trading with the rest. The legions brought wine and viticulture with them up to the Rhine and Danube rivers and to the Scottish border, along with their recipes.
The Forme of Cury, a medieval English cookery book from 1390, which mentioned mulled wine, says: "Pur fait Ypocras ..." grinding together cinnamon, ginger, galangal, cloves, long pepper, nutmeg, marjoram, cardamom, and grains of paradise ("spykenard de Spayn", rosemary may be substituted). This is mixed with red wine and sugar (form and quantity unstated). source
All in all it was a lot of fun. If you have a bit of self control, when it comes to spending, it can be a fun event. I'm planning to go back, have another cup of mulled wine and buy something, but not spend like crazy. The food was very expensive and just not worth it, the handmade sweets as well, but we only have Christmas once every year.
If you're passing by, you can't leave, without visiting the market.
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