Yokohama Christmas Market 2022 for #MarketFriday by 
While visiting Yokohama, Japan the other day I stopped by the iconic old red brick warehouses on the waterfront.
These are the original structures built between 1911 - 1913 that served as the customs buildings for the port. They have survived earthquakes, war, recessions and still look as good as new. Despite that in 1989 they were closed down when more modern customs buildings were built nearby. Luckily the city came in, took over the buildings and turned them into a shopping mall, restaurants & event centers. Now in addition to the shopping, they are tourist attractions even for the Japanese.
I had no idea there was going to be a Christmas market until I arrived. It has been about 20 years since I had been here last time. Before I decided to go in I had a peek.
It appeared to be about 2/3rd food & drink and 1/3rd craft goods. Since it was about 2pm I decided to come back later, closer to dinner, before going in. After all there are many things to do in Yokohama so I headed to the sleek Osanbashi Shp Terminal you can read about here @rt395/yokohama-osanbashi-terminal and then China Town which I'll write about later.
As the sun began to set I made my way back to the Christmas Market.
Being a Thursday I was a little surprised to see how crowded it was.
When I enter I was greeted with a large, illuminated Yokohama sign.
Immediately to the right was a large courtyard filled with tables and people enjoying the food & drink they purchased from one of the many vendors.
In the center of this area is a large Christmas tree with a nativity scene.
Smelling all of the food nearby I strolled by each vendor to see what they had to offer.
What was interesting for a California guy to see is that almost all of the food vendors have a German/Bavarian theme. Honestly we don't have Christmas markets like this in Southern California, but I did expect to see some representation of other European or American tastes.
Even so, I enjoyed seeing all of the variations of potatoes and sausages each vendor had to offer. Or churritos?
I finally decided on a vendor that offered a half and half beer(dark and light mixed). They had a sausage with cheese wrapped in a tortilla that looked amazing on the picture, but the reality was disappointing.
As was the beer. It didn't have any distinguishable characteristics that would excite your taste buds. Those two set me back $20. Even so, I enjoyed both as I continued to walk around the market.
This vendor was selling these holiday themed, back lit glass bowls or lanterns and seemed to be quite busy.
I continued to wander around a bit then exited the market to a row of food trucks that were also part of the event, but not inside.
One vendor was offering Shonan Yuzu beer.
Yuzu is a citrus fruit in Asia that has a delicious flavor, often found in ponzu, yuzu flavored soy sauce. I ordered a cup for $8. However, upon the first sip I was thoroughly disappointed. It appeared that the vendor had added quite a bit of honey. It could have been part of the beer, but seemed unlikely. It was ridiculously sweet and not anything like other yuzu flavored beers I've had. Yuzu flavored beers are distinctly citrusy and bitter. This was like drinking candy almost.
I continued on to see what the other vendors offered.
It wasn't until one of the last vendors that I saw something else I wanted to try.
Caramel, candied, nuts.
This was perfect for my sweet tooth. They had almonds, pecans, peanuts, cashews and hazelnuts. One bag cost $5.40 or you can get 3 for $12.90. I decided to get three and bring them home as a gift for my wife & kids. I settled on cashews, almonds and pecans. Before I left I sampled one of each. They had a very light cinnamon flavor which made them even more delicious and festive for me. I was excited to take them home to my family an official launching of the 2022 holiday sprit. And with that I called it a day and headed home.
If you are interested you can find more info for the The Nutty Bavarian here, http://nuttyb.jp/ .
The Yokohama Christmas market site is here, https://www.yokohama-akarenga.jp/
Entry is $5 on weekends, but free during the weekdays. The event runs until Christmas day, 12/25.
Thanks for reading!
