CHRISTMAS MARKETS
Berlin
The market: There are many Christmas markets located all over Germany’s sprawling capital city – more than 70, in fact. The largest is in the old town of Spandau, lit by 1,000 fairy lights and complete with glassblowers; 25 November to 22 December. www.visitberlin.de
Long seen as the world capital of the underground, and still somewhere to which artists, musicians and writers flock, Berlin now has another face, one of tech start-ups and electronic music, stylish designer hotels and cutting-edge restaurants, with cuisines that span the world. But you do need to know where to go. ‘While there are lots of great restaurants in Berlin, there are many more terrible ones,’ warns Per Meurling, a Swedish former chef and now influential food and restaurant blogger based in the city. Meurling will point you in the right direction if you visit his website www.berlinfoodstories.com.
If you want to experience a little of that Berlin underground feel, albeit with classy wines and a stylish interior, then head to the Berlin-Mitte district to a wine bar called Freundschaft after 6pm, Tuesday to Saturday, where Johannes Schellhorn and Willi Schlögl will show you a good time. There’s great bar food, such as beef salad with Styrian pumpkin seed oil, creative cocktails and an impressive 500-bin list, 10% of which costs less than €50,
