We visited Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, known as Christmas City USA, last week. The area was settled by Moravians in 1741 and named Bethlehem by visiting Count Zinzendorf, a pietist nobleman from Saxony, who, in 1722, had given them refuge on his estate in Saxony before their migration to Georgia in 1735.
One of the yearly events is the outdoors market called Weihnachtsmarkt (pronounced vy-naukts-markt) held in the historic section....
....featuring 20 wooden huts selling a variety of crafts and gifts....
I fell in love with the Moravian star....
You can see them all over town on porches....
....and in store window displays....
I bought two small ornaments and turned them into candle holders....
We took the trolley across the river to the Christkindlmarkt, another craft fair. There was an ice sculptor....
....fresh greens were sold....
....and handcrafts....
Which also had a gift section where I found a mug for my collection....
When we walked out of the shop we were greeted with this beautiful sky....
On our walk through the town after dark we came upon these scenes....
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| Hotel Bethlehem |
Here comes the trolley....
As we walked back to our B&B, Morningstar Inn, I saw the famed Bethlehem Star on top of South Mountain. It is 91 feet tall and several miles away. This is my zoomed-in photo of it. It can be seen from 20 miles away they say....
Across the street from the B&B was this creche....
The Morningstar Inn lit up at night....
....the Inn's dining room set for breakfast....
....a German Christmas Pyramid....
....more Inn decorations....
A walk through the neighborhood brought us past this house that was enchanting....
....a charming statue in front of the public library....
....one of the many buildings on the Moravian Church campus....
The church's Navtity Putz told the story of Christ's birth through lighted scenes as each part of the story was revealed in the darkened room....
This video of a Christmas Putz is from a church here in Frederick....
We also visited the Moravian Museum. We weren't allowed to take photos but you can learn more about it HERE.
On our way home we stopped at a shop along the way in a quaint house. This is the back garden....
We followed this path....
....to this darling play house....
We also stopped in New Oxford, PA, for a late lunch where we saw these lovely decorations around the Town Square....
Once home I hung another of my purchases--a kissing ball....
Wishing you a beautiful Christmas celebration! May the Christmas Spirit fill your heart with love, peace & hope!
Oh wow, I'd be overwhelmed with all the beauty and charm if I were there. I love seeing old fashioned Xmas designs. Your photos are really enchanting and wonderful, thank you!
ReplyDeleteLoved this and also just love sunsets.
ReplyDeleteThank you everyone for visiting and leaving a comment. Things are always so much better when you can share them with others!
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