Weihnachtsmarkt Schloss Weikersheim

Friday evening, on the Christmas market "Weihnachtszauber" / "Christmas Glamour" at Weikersheim,

13 kilometers away from my home town.

This year's Christmas market was is situated around Weikersheim Palace,

on of the bigger palaces in the state of Baden-Württemberg in the southwest of Germany

Multiple food stands and booths with Christmas gifts and decorations are placed in the inner courtyard and around the palace, including the part of the Weikersheim market place facing the palace.

This is what we call 'Gluehwein / Glühwein' in Germany, literally translated into "glow wine",
as far as I know it's called 'mulled wine' in English.

A radio and TV crew was on site as well on the Friday evening...

...to report about this enchanting local Christmas market.

Due to the fact I visited the Christmas market together with my sweatheart and her friend I did not take my tripod with me (--> the ladies are not willing to wait excessively for their companion!). But my monopod is 'a must' when taking photographs at available light or even during night to minimize camera shake as good as possible.

A great 3rd Advent Sunday for all of you!

Happy New Year 2014! ;-))

Oh, sorry, I was wrong (and a little too early) because of the great fireworks on Saturday evening.

;-))

A baroque fireworks after a gala concert at Weikersheim Castle, Germany.

Georges Bizet, Carmen.

Cologne symphonic orchestra in the Baroque park of Weikerheim Castle.

Needless to say it was a terrific summer evening.

Candle lights were spread all over the park.

But the highlight of the evening was definitely the brilliant fireworks!

Enjoy...

...looks like a supernova!?!

;-)

I wish you a great summer week until the beginning of 2014!

The gnomes of Weikersheim castle

Weikersheim castle, seen from the park side, well-known by tens of thousands of visitors per year.

It is located in the valley of the Tauber, in the very north of Baden-Württemberg, Germany.

What is unique in the castle grounds is the gallery of gnomes, known as the "Zwergengalerie"

The dwarf or gnome gallery is a serial of 16 statues, showing the counts household in the time of baroque as a caricature. The characters, smaller than life-sized, were created by the sculptors family Sommer from Künzelsau in the early 18th century.

I took the photos on a pleasant summer evening in late August when the castle grounds where already devoid of visitors.

But of course the light short prior 10 p.m. was already a little "poor" - so I had to raise the light sensitivity of my camera to ISO 3200 to hold the shots out of hand.

Today's weather forecast: scattered showers

Weikersheim castle rose garden

The rain shower this afternoon made no distinction between peepz & putti...