Reasons To Be Cheerful #4

(If you're wondering what this is all about, click here.)

The Farmers' Market / The German Christmas Market

New Street, in Birmingham city centre, is just your average shopping street. It could be in any city centre anywhere in Britain.

But every other Wednesday, the Farmers' Market takes over.

No, the city's not invaded by loads of welly-clad yokels with their trousers held up by string, chewing on ears of corn and saying "Oooo-arrr" whilst bartering over the price of cattle.

The Farmers' Market consists of loads of stalls selling all manner of exquisite specialist produce - sausages, wine, vegetables, cider, cakes, pies, cheese. It's not cheap, but sweet Jeebus it's delicious stuff.

A word of warning, then: don't go if you're feeling at all peckish, as the sights and smells - ostrich burgers and organic sausages sizzling away - will have you spending money like it's going out of fashion.

In the run-up to Christmas the Farmers' Market is shunted down to the Bullring end of New Street, the other end and Victoria Square becoming home to the German Christmas Market.

All kinds of traditional German goods are available - candles, jewellry, puppets, ornaments, chocolate-covered fruit. As a friend put it, a happy hunting ground for "the sort of presents that look like you've put some thought into them".

That's what I gather, anyway - my experiences of the German Market have been predominantly centred on the stall selling enormous spicy Frankfurters that are twice as long as the buns they come in and on the cabins from which deliciously sweet and intoxicating Gluhwein can be procured. A few of those, especially with an extra shot of Appelschnapps (makes it taste like molten alcoholic apple strudel) and you'll not know which way's up...

Incidentally, what a pleasure to discover the Birmingham: It's Not Shit site, as recommended to me by a friend and endorsed by Casino Avenue and The Highrise. There's photographic evidence of what Frankfurt gets in return for the German Market. Also, be sure to check out Baywatch Brummie Style - safe for work, but better with the sound on...