Feeling Festive

This will probably be my last post from Germany, because I am moving back to the States in less than a week, the thought of which is weird and scary right now. I want to recap the trip I took before the one to Amsterdam I just microblogged about the other day, because it was kind of the culmination of my time living here.

There were two things I was really looking forward to when I moved to Germany. The first was experiencing how Germans do Christmas. Hint: it involves Ferris wheels.



The other thing I was looking forward to? Visiting the Wollmeise brick and mortar shop. Wollmeise is a yarn that has caused much Sturm und Drang on the internet (see how good my German is getting?). These kerfuffles are inevitable when the demand far outstrips the supply and the expectations get out of control. In any case, I've gotten my hands on a few skeins over the years and I love it. I love the base yarns, I love how they look knit up, and Claudia, the dyer, has the most incredible color sense when it comes to rich, saturated colors and unexpected combinations. Being able to visit the shop was basically the first thing that came to mind at the prospect of moving to Germany, honestly.

A couple of weeks ago, a fellow knitter came to visit me from NYC, and we embarked on a trip of Christmas markets and Wollmeise hunting. We went to markets in the following cities:

Bonn
Köln
Heidelberg
Munich
Nürnberg
Frankfurt

All in a week. That's a lot of Christmas! It really did put me in a great spirit. There's something so fun and festive about wandering between the stalls and oohing and aahing at all the beautiful things around you. There was much glühwein, and kartoffelpuffern, and lebkuchen consumed, and shopping. Plus it was snowy, which I just loved. Have a few photos.








But what you really wanted to see is the yarn, yes?

The Wollmeise shop is in Pfaffenhofen, a very small town in Bavaria, less than an hour's train ride from Munich. The shop is thankfully a short walk from the train station, and it wasn't too hard to find. We started with a walk down this wintry path toward the town center.


Then we arrived.



It was pretty breathtaking, I must say.



We actually didn't spend too much time there, lest more yarn fall into our bags. We met someone who'd travelled from Pittsburgh with her family and planned the whole trip around being able to visit the shop. We also met a lovely woman who rode the train with us back to Munich who was visiting her daughter and made this outing hoping to be back in time for lunch. She also told us that before we arrived, an American man had come into the shop, having been sent by a cousin who said to buy yarn but gave no other guidance. It certainly was a fun place. And yes, I made some purchases.



On the train I worked on these socks that are now finished. They are for my husband and made with handspun Rambouillet yarn.



Now, I am done with the traveling. I'm winding down my time here, cleaning and packing and getting ready to move again. Soon I'll be plying the very last fiber I brought to spin.



2012 has been the most incredible year of my life, with all these adventures. 2013 promises to be incredible in a different way, as I retire from this transient lifestyle I've had up til now. I'm incredibly thankful that I've had this opportunity to live abroad and I felt like I've made the most of it. Now I'm ready to discover what home is.

The longest night is very soon upon us, and I hope you and all your loved ones have a fabulous time awaiting the light on the other side.