Last weekend, the weather in the mountains was supposed to be amazing, and we planned a trip to the heart of Graubunden. However, our plans changed as my husband was sick all week and I was sick for a couple of days too, and therefore we stayed at home to get fit for the week ahead of us. I'm not used to being inside for such a long time and I couldn't bear it on Saturday anymore, so we decided to visit the medieval market which was held at Schloss Laufen. Surely they would sell something hot to warm us up 馃槉
It was snowing for a couple of days, so I walked to the castle as I love snow! It's one of my favourite trails, and I needed to stretch my legs a bit as well. It was freezing, and the temperature surprised me, but luckily I dressed properly, so I enjoyed my cheeks becoming red from the cold. My husband took his car as he wasn't feeling too good, and we were supposed to meet at the location.
It took me a bit longer than usually to get there as the path was not maintained yet and the snow was slippery. The last thing that I would want is to fall in the Rhine Falls, so I took my time and walked slowly 馃槉
Just to cross the bridge, and walk up the hill...
The view from the bridge will never cease to fascinate me. The current is so strong that you feel the power of it on the bridge as well. It gives me chills!
It's also a railways bridge, and I get a little heart attack every time a train appears out of the tunnel...
When the train approaches from the other side it's not a problem as you see it coming, but with my luck the train always comes from behind and makes me jump. I usually try to walk through the bridge as fast as I can as it's a bit scary - strong river on one side, fast trains on the other 馃槉
Finally on the other side! I love when it's so cold that the snow stays on the branches. I don't think that it's so comfortable for the trees as the snow might be too heavy. My husband told me that part of the road was closed because of broken branches on the road. That tree on the far left looks heavy too!
Neuhausen am Rheinfall is a small city. This was also the reason why we moved here. It is close to Zurich, only a few minutes away from Germany, and it is so quiet. However, the city council is trying to attract more people to live here, and they allowed developers to build those two towers in the back. They don't really fit in the city, and there was a lot of resentment from the locals, so it took more than 6 years for developers to get the building permit. Once they finally got it, it took them less than 2 years to build the towers and at the beginning of next year, first owners will be moving in.
I must admit that they don't look too bad with all that snow surrounding them...
And here we are! It kept snowing and snowing, and some snowflakes were so big that you can even see them in the photos.
It's been the first time for me to visit a medieval market. I didn't know what to expect, and I must say that it was done really nicely. There were many stalls with local products, medieval crafts, a lot of food, and a great atmosphere.
We decided to go early, so there were not so many people around yet. The worst things at the market is when you try to walk around too many people with your punch 馃槉
There were many winter products, such as these wool items or the warming liquor. Those two guys selling the liquor were insisting that we try their products, but we were able to resist them.
Crepes can't be missed at any Christmas market. They had various flavours and seemed to be popular around lunchtime when we were leaving.
There were many stalls around the courtyard...
But I lost my interest as soon as I spotted this husky. I stood there for a few minutes following its adventure. The snow seemed to be the best fun this dog had in its life!
Must fight it and eat as much as possible!
We were planning to return in the evening to enjoy the lights too, but it was really too cold and as we are leaving to visit my in-laws tomorrow we wanted to make sure that we will be healthy by then.
I like that they chose Schloss Laufen as their location as it makes you feel like you were exploring the market hundreds years ago...
And we found a hot drink! They had non-alcoholic punch with orange flavour. It was yummy!
They even had a medieval wheel carousel. I have no idea how it works as it was going in one way and then it changed direction, but I assume that it's somehow based on the weight of people.
We found a seller with tons of healthy sweets, and we couldn't resist buying some. I almost fainted when he told us how much it was, but we couldn't tell him that we didn't want them anymore, so we paid. They are delicious and very filling, so we will enjoy them for some time.
Those banana shaped thingies are the best!
Some more items from the market...
My only luck was that what my husband wanted was too big to fit in the car, and he didn't order it online yet. Hopefully, he forgot 馃槉
Once we finished the punch I walked back home and my husband to the car.
I enjoyed walking back as there was so much details that I could photograph.
Luckily, it was not so slippery that I would have to hold on to the railing...
We haven't had so much snow in years!
The path wasn't maintained on the way back either...
And the last glimpse of Schloss Laufen before going back to the city...
People say that we are lucky with the view from our apartment and I must say that I agree 馃槉
Until next time!