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In the Old Town of Osnabruck.

Giant Nutcracker at the Christmas Market in Osnabrück

A giant nutcracker (almost 6 meters tall) welcomes you at the Christmas market in Osnabrück, Germany.

Rathaus Bremen

This is my latest picture gallery of the  old Rathaus in Bremen.  Each time I visit Bremen, I take the opportunity to shoot a couple of pictures of this building.

The Rathaus (or the Old Town Hall) in Bremen is one of the most beautiful town halls in Germany. It has not been bombed during World War II and has been very well preserved to the present day.

The Rathaus was built between 1405 and 1410 after Bremen joined the Hanseatic league. It has been placed on UNESCO's World Heritage List.

Unser Lieben Frauen Church in Bremen

Unser Lieben Frauen (Church of Our Lady) is an evangelical church situated in the northwestern corner of the Market Square in Bremen.

The church dates back to the 13th century and is the second largest church in Bremen after the St. Petri Dom.

Holthaus Osnabrück, Germany

Holthaus Große Straße, Osnabrück, Germany

I think this is one of the most romantic and beautiful buildings in downtown Osnabrück.



















The building is located in the Grosse Strasse, right in the heart of Osnabrück, and houses a fashion store.

Christmas at Lengermann und Trieschmann

Lengermann und Trieschmann, L+T, in Osnabrück during the Christmas holidays.

Lengermann + Trieschmann is a large department store in the center of Osnabrück. The company has been in business for more than 100 years.

Grosse Strasse Osnabrück

Grosse Strasse in Osnabrück is the major shopping street in the center of the city. It is also one of the busiest shopping streets in Germany. Grosse Strasse stretches from the historic Nikolaiort square to Neumarkt.

Hauptbahnhof Bremen

Hauptbahnhof Bremen, the central train station in Bremen, is festively decorated for the Christmas holidays. The decorations include a traditional German Christmas carousel with Nutcracker figures. Each German city seems to have one of these during the Christmas holidays.

Weihnachten in Bremen

The top of the Christmas tree in the Marktplatz in Bremen.

Weihnachten in Bremen

Christmas in Bremen

Die Bremer Stadtmusikanten

Die Bremer Stadtmusikanten (the town musicians of Bremen) reading by the Christmas tree in the city center.

Bremen

Christmas festivities in Bremen are centered around the historic Marktplatz (Market Square) in the very heart of the city. Here you will find Bremen's major attractions.

St. Petri Dom (St. Peter's Cathedral) is the biggest church in Bremen. It is a Protestant/Lutheran church from the early 13th century. St. Petri is built in the early Gothic style and its two towers still dominate the city skyline. You can climb one of the towers for a spectacular view of the city.

Next to the St. Petri Dom, you will find Haus der Bürgerschaft which houses Bremen's State Parliament or Regional Assembly. The building was designed in 1966 by architect Wassili Luckhardt.

St. Petri Dom and Haus der Bürgerschaft in Bremen's Marktplatz.

Kerst in de Straten en Pleinen van Groningen

December, 2013. Kerstsfeer in de straten en pleinen van Groningen.
December, 2013. The air of Christmas in the streets and squares of Groningen.


Kerstverlichting in de Folkingestraat / Christmas lighting in Folkingestraat

Kerstboom op de Grote Markt in Groningen

Kerst 2013
De kerstboom op de Grote Markt in Groningen en de Martinitoren.

Christmas 2013
The Christmas tree in the Grote Markt in Groningen and view of the Martini tower.

Kerst in Groningen

Centraal Station Groningen / Groningen Railway Station.

Kerst 2013 in Groningen

Christmas 2013 in Groningen, the Netherlands.

Weihnachtsmarkt 2013 in Leer, Ostfriesland

Weihnachtsmarkt 2013 in Leer, Ostfriesland.

Pictures from the Christmas Market in Leer, Germany.

Christmas Inspirations

Christmas inspirations from Leer, Germany. Shop window with Christmas ornaments in the town center.

Christmas Lights

Christmas Lights from Leer.

Leer, Germany. November, 2013.

Weihnachten in Leer

Weihnachten 2013

iPhone Impressions from the Christmas market in Leer, Germany.

Weihnachtsmarkt in Leer, Ostfriesland

Christmas Pyramid. Leer (Ostfriesland).

Quite a big Christmas Market, Weihnachtsmarkt in German, in the small town of Leer (Ostfriesland), Germany.


The Christmas market in the center of Leer opens its doors and windows to visitors daily from 25 November to 29 December 2013.

Museum de Fundatie, Paleis aan de Blijmarkt in Zwolle

Giant egg and golden hen on the rooftop of Paleis aan de Blijmarkt.

Paleis aan de Blijmarkt is the location of Museum de Fundatie in the Dutch city of Zwolle. The  neoclassical building was completed in the period 1838 - 1841. In 2004 - 2005 the building was turned into an art museum according to a design by architect Gunnar Daan.

The Town Hall ( Rathaus) in Emden, Germany

Town Hall / Rathaus
Emden, Germany
Sony Nex-7

Lebanese Bread

Lebanese bread. Tyre (Sour), South Lebanon.

Museum August Kestner - Hanover, Germany

August Kestner Museum is located next to the Hannover City Hall (Neues Rathaus).

Kestner Museum was founded in 1889 but it was severly damaged in the Second World War. From 1958 to 1961 the building was changed and increased through adding a new facade around the existing structure. The outer walls consist of thousands of glass and concrete blocks.

Norddeutsche Landesbank in Hanover, Germany

The Norddeutsche Landesbank headquarters in downtown Hanover, Germany.

Globes and Clocks in Kunstkammer Wien

Kunstkammer Wien - golden globe.

The Kunstkammer of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna has a special section dedicated to globes and clocks.

Lonely House in Byblos, Lebanon

A lonely house near Byblos Castle in North Lebanon.

A lonely house in Byblos (Jbail), Lebanon.

Madonna and Child

Madonna and child

Krumauer Madonna

This wooden statue of Madonna and a child is from around 1390 -1400. The Madonna comes from Ceský Krumlov (Krumau) in southern Bohemia.

Kunstkammer, Kunsthistorisches Museum
Wien.
Vienna, Austria.

Shot with iPhone

Gold Candlesticks

Kunstkammer Wien

Four gold candlesticks.

These candlesticks, made of solid gold, are part of the Habsburgs' collection of art objects and curiosities.

Kunstkammer Wien.
Kunsthistorisches MuseumVienna, Austria.

Shot with iPhone.

Austrian Landscape

Austrian Landscape - vineyard and a hill. Baden bei Wien / Gumpoldskirchen, Niederösterreich, Austria.

Vineyard in Austria

Austrian vineyard. These vineyards stretch for several kilometers between the towns of Baden bei Wien and Gumpoldskirchen in Niederösterreich, Austria. Shot with iPhone and edited for Instagram.

Cellini Saliera

Cellini Salt Cellar. Kunstkammer Wien, Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna.

The Cellini Saliera is one of the many precious objects in Kunstkammer Wien (Art Room Vienna) of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.

The Cellini Saliera is a gold table sculture created by the Italian goldsmith and sculptor Benvenuto Cellini.

Saliera is the Italian word for salt cellar. It was made in 1543 for king Francis I of France who was a generous patron of the arts. The Saliera was given as a gift by Charles IX of France to Archduke Ferdinand II of Tyrol.

The Cellini Saliera was part of the Habsburg art collection at Castle Ambras but it was moved to the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna in the 19th century.

Baden bei Wien by Night

Baden bei Wien, Austria: View of the Plague Column in the town square. IPhone image.

Night in Baden bei Wien, Niederösterreich, Austria.

A Walk in the Kurpark of Baden bei Wien

Kurpark. Baden bei Wien, Austria.

Pictures from a recent trip to Austria...

I visited Baden bei Wien and took my iPhone for a walk in the local Kurpark. Kurpark is German for Spa Park.

Baden bei Wien - Kurpark

Views of Undinebrunnen / Undine Fountain in Kurpark Baden 

Baden bei Wien, Austria 

Typical Italy

Lancia, Lancia, Lancia ...

Street in the old town of Bergamo (Citta Alta).

Baptistery - Bergamo, Italy

The octagonal baptistery in Bergamo's old town (Citta Alta).

Food Temptations

Tourists can taste typical salami and cheese. Bergamo Italy, October 2013.

Table for two

Spotted in Bergamo - one of the many cute little restaurants in Citta Alta.

Bergamo Cathedral

Bergamo Cathedral, Duomo di Bergamo or Cattedrale di Sant'Alessandro in Italian, is located in the heart of the old town (citta alta). The cathedral is dedicated to Saint Alexander of Bergamo, patron saint of the city. Nowadays the cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Bergamo.

A golden statue of Saint Alexander decorates the top of Bergamo Cathedral. Bergamo, Italy 2013.

Lombardian Landscapes

10 beautiful landscapes from Lombardy, Italy.

Prisoner's View

View of Bergamo's Citta Alta (Old Town) from one of the windows of the Clock Tower in Piazza Vecchia.

Prisoner's View

Espresso Italiano

Espresso in Italy

Espresso is definitely one of the most successful symbols of Made in Italy.

Italians take their Espresso extremely seriously. Did you know there is even an Italian Espresso National Institute?

Autumn Leaves

If I can let you go as trees let go
Their leaves, so casually, one by one,
If I can come to know what they do know,
That fall is the release, the consummation,
Then fear of time and the uncertain fruit
Would not distemper the great lucid skies
This strangest autumn, mellow and acute.
If I can take the dark with open eyes
And call it seasonal, not harsh or strange
(For love itself may need a time of sleep),
And, treelike, stand unmoved before the change,
Lose what I lose to keep what I can keep,
The strong root still alive under the snow,
Love will endure -- if I can let you go. 

by May Sarton, 1978

In the Shop Windows of Bergamo

Cute panda biscuits in a Bergamo bakery.

Seen in the shop windows in Bergamo, Italy.

Bergamo Market

International food and craft market in the center of Bergamo. Bergamo, October 2013.

Citta Alta Bergamo

The Old Town of Bergamo (Citta Alta)

Bergamo Cathedral (Duomo), Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore and Cappella Colleoni seen from the top of Bergamo's Big Bell Tower.

Polenta Bergamo

Polenta cakes in a shop window. Bergamo, Italy.

One of the local specialties, you should definitely try in Bergamo, is polenta e osei.

Polenta e Osei is Bergamo's signature cake. It is a yellow mound-shaped cake topped with sweet marzipan and chocolate birds.

Off to Bergamo

At Groningen Airport Eelde (GRQ).  It is tiny. The Ryanair flight to Milan-Bergamo is one of the only two flights departing from Groningen today.

Passenger terminal. Groningen Airport Eelde (GRQ).

Theater Sneek

The characteristic building of Theater Sneek. The building is 23 meters high. In the evening, the theater is lighted in different color depending on the genre of the performance - white for theater show, orange for ballet, blue for musical ...

The theater building in Sneek, Friesland.