Knox the Fox shops German Christmas markets with the Tindells

Knox the Fox thawed out from last week’s northern lights escapade and slipped into the Tindells’ luggage to go Christmas market hopping in Germany!

Chad and Melissa Tindell with Lynn Ogden in Rüdesheim, Germany

Chad and Melissa Tindell, with Melissa’s sister-in-law, Lynn Ogden, spent a week touring Christmas markets throughout Germany (and a brief visit in France), before attending the annual Army/Navy rivalry football game in Foxborough, Massachusetts, this past Saturday. (Knox wonders if Foxborough was named after a relative?)

But let’s get back to the market excursion of a lifetime. This group began their tour after they landed in Frankfurt, Germany. Along with Melissa’s brother, retired Lt. Col. Chuck Ogden, they took a brief train to Strasbourg, France, and started with the Christmas market there. Not only was the market incredible, but Melissa described the Cathédrale Notre-Dame-de-Strasbourg as “absolutely gorgeous.”

Heading out for the rest of the week from “home base” Mainz, Germany, would include multiple Christmas markets throughout the area and snow, snow, snow! However, the first thing was to attend church, as Melissa said, “Vacation doesn’t mean a vacation from church.” They visited Liberté Church, a bilingual, nondenominational church in Strasbourg! Then headed onward to Mainz.

Chad Tindell in one gondola with Santa and a scared Knox the Fox in another gondola behind

Two hours by train from Mainz, the Rüdesheim Christmas market included a gondola ride up the mountain over the vineyards, and Chad might have seen Knox in the gondola with Santa if he had looked! They ended the day at the Mainz market with its beautiful adornments and structures!

In Cologne the next day, the group visited several markets, ate and sipped on glühwein (the drink of choice) and toured the most spectacular Kohler Dom Cathedral.

The last two days included the special little town of Cochem, and the last Christmas market in Heidelberg.