Philadelphia Road Trip

With the winter Polar Coaster holding off, we decided to drive to Philadelphia with the express purposes of checking out the new Four Seasons Philadelphia hotel and the Philadelphia Christmas Village. The weather was overcast and chilly with rain coming as we left the market. There was fog in the morning. While we only saw a little bit of the area, we spent time shopping at the Christmas Village. “Philadelphia Christmas Village will once again bring the charm of an authentic German Christmas market to Center City Philadelphia. It will be officially opened by the original Christkind from Nuremberg, Germany!”*

Christmas Market History*
The History of Christmas markets in Germany roots in the late Middle Ages. One of the oldest and most famous ones is held each year in Nuremberg in the state of Bavaria. It has been passed down from generation to generation, that the farmers of the Nuremberg area started selling their crops in a farmers market during the Advent time in the mid 16th century. Out of this, the world known Nuremberg Christkindlsmarket developed. Check out their website to learn more about their history, event and the city of Nuremberg!

Christmas Village in Philadelphia is modeled after traditional German Christmas Markets. The most famous is the Christkindlmarkt in Nuremberg, Germany. The goods presented in wooden booths include a rich variety of holiday gifts including Christmas ornaments, arts and crafts, toys, sweets, as well as German food and drinks. People stroll around, meet friends, and enjoy live performances of Christmas music.

History of Christkind
Since 1969 and every other year thereafter, the Nuremberg Christkind is selected to represent the spirit of Christmas in Germany. She wears a long white dress with golden stars, a golden crown, and has long blonde curls. She is the German equivalent to the American children’s Santa Claus.

Each year, the Christkind recites a prologue to open the Nuremberg Christmas Market. The Christkind also makes appearances at over 150 charitable institutions. She brings joy to those in nursing homes, hospitals, and kindergartens. However, the Christkind isn’t restricted to just Nuremberg and visits a lot of Christmas markets abroad. In the US, Christmas Village in Philadelphia and its sister market in Baltimore are the only two stops she makes, so make sure to swing by!

Karen and I have visited many Christkindlemarkts in Germany, including the wonderfully fabulous Nuremberg. We also visited the market in Baltimore. We enjoyed our visit to Philadelphia Christmas Village. We had hot cocoa, brats with sauerkraut, soft pretzels with a cheesy beer dip and mulled wine. We met Carl, from Germany at his booth. We’ve apparently seen his wares at previous markets, visited in Germany. Carl was rubbing his hands, and I asked him if his hand were cold. He said no, but I pulled out one of my hand warmers from my glove and gave it to him anyway. Just like the vendor in Germany that I gave one to a couple of years ago, Carl was excited and wanted to know where he could get some. I ended up giving him my other hand warmer before we left. Such a nice man! We spent some time chatting with him and was sad to hear that he would not be returning next year, due to slow business and being away from family and Germany at Christmastime each year for the past 20+ years. We went on our way and shopped other vendors. We have so many Christmas decorations already, but we, of course, added more to the collection!

Made in Philadelphia Holiday Market at Dilworth Park features festively lit tents topped with original Herrnhut Stars. After spending most of the day at the Philadelphia Christmas Village, we headed across the street to a corner bar for a drink, bathroom break and to warm up. We did not stay for the tree lighting as we were getting tired and hungry for a more complete dinner. After a quick walk through the vendors, we hailed a Lyft and headed back to the Italian restaurant where we had eaten lunch the day before.

Besides the Christmas Village, we took a couple of side trips to Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell, Betsy Ross House, and Elfreth Street. There is definitely some beautiful architecture in Philadelphia. Love old buildings! Inside the Liberty Bell hall, we even spied some Carnival Glass! A Marigold Liberty Bell Bank, which I had but gave to my great-nephew and a commemorative convention plate, which I sold with many other Carnival Glass commemoratives in an auction many years ago. I also had a large Liberty Bell Cookie Jar. (Check out my book on Carnival Glass Commemoratives!) Ever played Monopoly? Take a ride on the Reading RR? This is the place. Some of the colder venues, Karen braved the cold and winds for the photo ops while I stayed warm or rested.

Our complimentary stay at the new Four Seasons Philadelphia was very nice. The staff was friendly and wonderful and we were well taken care of. The hotel decorations were very well done. Each of the white urns in the reindeer picture hold 150 white roses! We enjoyed the amenity which consisted of two tarts and a chocolate bar with a picture on it. It’s amazing what can be done with chocolate! Karen had the beautiful boxwood tree added to the room. Since we drove, we brought it home to enjoy and it sits on our kitchen island adding more festive-ness to the house! A special shout out to Emily and Fernando. We enjoyed a couple light bites and dessert in the lounge – one was a Philly spring roll. The desserts were a poached pear with caramel sauce and carrot cake. I’ve never had cream cheese frosting that silky smooth before! Wish it had some fruit and nuts in the cake though. The view from the lounge and pool areas is amazing! We were told that when it snows, it’s like being inside a snow globe! It was interesting to go to the lobby on the 60th floor! Our room was on the 52nd floor – what a view! We waved to the window washers outside – wouldn’t want their job – and they waved back! We had a slow drive home due to traffic and were very tired from our busy, but short and wonderful 2-1/2 days in Philly. Time to re-pack the suitcases for our upcoming holiday cruise!