Michigan's Little Bavaria
I know Frankenmuth is the coziest little Christmastown and this post is way overdue… but I wasn’t able to get out there to the east side of Michigan until after Christmas, so here I am! Plus, this town is amazing… no matter the season. I just love to go during Christmastime to get my annual ornament from Bronner’s (the world’s largest Christmas store), to see all of the Christmas lights, eat a fried chicken dinner from Bavarian Inn, and do a cheese haul from the Cheese Haus. Some of my favorite things I love doing every single year. This year definitely looked different due to COVID and just my life in general, but it’s been my tradition to go since I was 23 years old, so I went and I’m so glad I did. What a special little town! It will always hold a place in my heart.
BRONNER’S CHRISTMAS WONDERLAND
My first stop into town is always to Bronner's CHRISTmas Wonderland. It’s the world’s largest Christmas store… and it’s so fun to walk through. My two traditions here are… to go look at all of the little villages. The Halloween village is always my favorite. And then I always pick out an ornament of something that meant a lot to me that year. And in 2020, it was by far the Upper Peninsula. So I got an ornament that reflected that, and the special parts of my life that came along with being up here. With COVID this year, it was way less busy than normal years, but I also went after Christmas. But it was very easy to maintain distance and obviously masks were required/worn. So my experience here didn’t feel too different than normal.
HOLZ-BRÜCKE WOODEN BRIDGE
This bridge is Michigan’s largest covered wooden bridge! It’s a precious piece of Frankenmuth’s history. Holz Brücke is German for “wooden bridge”. Some call it Holz Brücke, some call it the Wooden Bridge, some call it the Covered Bridge. When I was walking through, there were several people snapping photos in the bridge and you’re also able to drive through… two-lanes, with two sidewalks on both sides. It connects Frankenmuth’s Main Street to land just across the Cass River. It was completed in 1979, is 230-tons and stretches 239 feet across! Definitely worth a quick jaunt across if you’re visiting Frankenmuth.
FRANKENMUTH CHEESE HAUS
Typically after Bronner’s and taking a few photos at the bridge, I’ll go to Frankenmuth Brewery… but didn’t go this year due to COVID. But I did walk up and down Main Street, and stopped into Frankenmuth Cheese Haus, which is another tradition. They’ve totally renovated the building in the last couple of years. No cheese tasting this year, which is so fun to walk around and taste everything, but I knew my favorites from year’s past so I was able to stock up on some cheese, dips, and crackers! I didn’t order anything, but they have a food truck outside that serves items using their cheese… so I’ll definitely have to check that out sometime in the future!
FRANKENMUTH BAVARIAN INN
Bavarian Inn also looked very different this year due to COVID… with no dining in. But I was able to go downstairs into the little shops to stock up on some of my favorite seasonings and wine. And you could order takeout from a limited menu, which I was very grateful for! I could still have the fried chicken dinner in a small way. Normally it’s a giant meal with tons of sides, salads, desserts, etc. but the limited plate was their fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy and stuffing. It was delicious. But also a little sad to eat it in my car alone, haha. But they DID have an outdoor bar that had just opened that day, so I was way excited about that. I got some hot mulled wine to enjoy on the outdoor patio by a fire, which was wonderful.
So yeah, definitely an unusual Frankenmuth trip… but still a Frankenmuth trip nonetheless! I absolutely love traditions. They hold so much meaning for me. I’m maybe overly sentimental when it comes to them. I definitely felt some pangs of sadness during this trip… just the emptiness factor of the streets/shops, dinner was strange eating in my car, I roamed the streets alone, couldn’t enjoy a drink in the brewery, or enjoy the music and ambiance of waiting in line for the fried chicken dinner. Lots of things missing from this trip I loved, but I was still so glad to go and get a small glimpse of it even during this hard time and have hope that it will be back to normal some day in the future and I’ll be even more grateful then. ❤️
