So, it's been a while and I've not been able to sit down, but I do remember what happened a month ago and it was entertaining, I think.
The experiences
I spent my first full day in Koeln on a walking tour, good move since this city like many others take Sunday off. The only things you can find open are cafes and restaurants--and churches (duh). And at some point I'll invest the time in learning the way to put
umlauts on my vowels using my
Surface.
Koeln has some unique public artwork that's really fun and interesting history too, what was a little tough to figure out coming from a city like Berlin is what I needed to see. It wasn't a typical tourist destination. It does have an enormous
Dom (Cathedral) but that seemed to be the main attraction. This is the city that reminded me I could relax in Europe too. Much of the last two months were about running non stop to see all I could or hop on to the next destination. Koeln was a great college city, fourth largest in Germany and on the Rhine River.
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| Those guys aren't real...but they do look it. |
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| Just like the spire of a church!! |
The next day I took a train down to Rhudesheim where I caught a Rhine cruise. I was on an hour when I fully realized that there are a TON of castles in Germany. My hop off destination was
Bacharach, what I think Rick Steves described as a cute half timbered village. But that's just stuck in my head that way because it's true, whether Rick said it or not. I wandered up and down streets and hills without a map and not sure what I was looking for, but I had three hours before the next boat came around. I ended up climbing up to castle Stahleck (now a hostel), where I rewarded myself with an orange popsicle.
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| Bacharach |
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| No idea where I'm heading |
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| Red faced, but with a castle in the background |
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| Inside the Stahleck courtyard, now a hostel |
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| View from the top |
The gothic church in the village was beautiful as were the ruins of a former church just next door. Climbing around these areas is what you hope for in travel, it's quiet and though tourism is the business in town, it is small enough that it clearly isn't "big business." A few other families were wandering around in other directions from me. As I made my way down from the castle a couple groups were looking weary on the path up so I got to give them the push to the top (only another half kilometer, or the steps turn into an incline beyond the bend, or the view is really worth the constant--or 40 minute--uphill battle)
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| The coldest church, thank goodness |
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| Not often you see a white organ |
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| Does this need a caption? |
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| View of Bacharach in the Rhine Valley |
After a frozen yogurt bar (a reward for handling the heat), I boarded the boat to finish the Rhine…about three hours more to Koblenz. This seemingly short section of the Rhine (Rhudesheim to Koblenz) is the best bang for the buck and time since you see so many interesting sights (while enjoying a beer). Because the stretch from Koblenz to Koeln is less eventful I took a train back to the hostel, thoroughly relaxed.
The next couple days I used to relax and do small errands, laying low especially given the heat wave hitting Europe, and the last thing I did before leaving town was to visit with a couple I met back in
Rishikesh. Mike and Petra have returned to Germany and I got to visit with them again. They even brought Urusula who explained quite a bit about the
Dom as we walked through together. One of the claims to fame includes the
Shrine of the Three Kings. Another topic I found interesting was a new
stained glass window created by
Gerhard Richter after the original had been destroyed in war many years earlier. The interesting piece to this story is that the stained glass was not replaced with pictoral renditions of bible stories, but with artwork of patterns and shapes, much like you see in a synagogue or mosque.
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| Gerhard Richter's Window |
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| The enormous Dom facade...I was laying down when I took this to give you an idea...and you still can't see the enormous door. |
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| The Dom at night--always under construction/restoration this is a project keeping stone masons in business |
Personally I like it, I prefer faith to be about faith and your journey instead of the stories of the past (though they are helpful examples for teaching).
After our walk through the Dom we stopped for Ice cream at one of Mike's favorite places. Walking around town I had seen some very enormous sundaes in front of people and no one seemed shocked. In the US if we get an elaborate sundae in a big glass usually people oo and aaaah and stare. But this is a regular occurrence and according to Petra "this is what Germans really like." Of the four of us Mike was the only one to indulge in the traditional Eisbecher (his Chocobecher is pictured below). Regardless we all enjoyed ice cream and interesting conversation on many topics, including how there were such strong women in medieval times like
Hildegard. For more, I found this
neat list.
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| Now, that, is a sundae |
I’m still reading Mike and Petra's books (even a month later) but I think they read a little like my blog, someone else's funny and meaningful story. We said our farewells and I boarded a train for Heidelberg. My original plan for Heidelberg was to use it as a base for the black forest, but that didn't make much sense later since it was quite a distance (just like it was to visit Luxembourg from Koeln, which didn't happen either). I enjoyed a day in Heidelberg visiting their old castle grounds and finding some Schwarzwaldkirschetorte (black forest cake) and due to the excessive heat I ordered a large Eis coffee (yep, for the millionth time I will mention that Iced coffee doesn't exist here outside of Starbucks, but Eis Coffee is popular--like a coffee float)
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| Heidelberg Castle, part of the courtyard facade |
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| This wine barrel is in the castle, those are people standing on top, it takes up an enormous room and was never completely filled. |
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| Exterior wall of the castle from the back side |
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| Black forest torte and Eis coffee |
I stopped in a Jack Wolfskin store because when I saw fellow backpackers with gear labeled "Jack Wolfskin," it made me curious. I'd stopped in a large outdoor store (like big REIs) in Koeln called Globetrotter and found it amazing! I got to see a lot of different products and things we don't have in the states. I bought a really nice Jack Wolfskin tablet sleeve that was on sale (since mine actually had a couple holes already). In this particular store in Heidelberg I picked up a new dress. I asked why they didn't sell in the US and the salesman said "it's a German brand." Which doesn't explain much but he seemed to think it did. Regardless, great stuff, great service.
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| This is Globetrotter in Koeln, a hiker's paradise. |
Heidelberg was a relaxing stop for me. The hostel I stayed in was incredibly organized and neat and unique--exactly how you make a hostel out of an older apartment or home. I arrived after reception closed so they told me they'd leave keys for me. What I got was a note on the external door with a picture puzzel (which I solved!) telling me the outside key is under the flower pot. Then the next clue told me to look for a polka dot jar where my room key was. Not kidding…I was only a few minutes late so I did run into the owner/manager and got to tell her how cute that was. Later I even picked up a bottle of wine from her (for those of you who don't know, Germany, Austria, Swtizerland, are all famous for great white wine) and she introduced me to the winemaker, her partner, who I ran into later on my night walk to tell him just how delicious it is even if I didn't finish it all.
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| View of the castle from the bridge at night--always good to take a night walk. |
After checkout I waited for a good half hour at the bus stop with another woman. I thought she was japanese but nope, she started speaking fluent German and when I was speaking with her she was very confused thihnking I went to school in Heidelberg or lived in Munich (my next stop). She didn't understand how I could speak German so well but I kept telling her I was from the US. Why did I think this woman was Japanese? That's rather limited thinking for Melissa. Well, I was one of a few people in the hostel not from China or Japan. I couldn't figure it out and still can't but the tourism from Asia in Heidelberg is ENORMOUS.
The ride to Munich and then out to Gemering were uneventful. But as I was waiting for the hostel shuttle to pick me up in Gemering, I realized that I had cut a lot of things from my Munich list because of transportation times. So I decided to look for a car rental place and walked with full pack in the boiling heat to the nearest Avis where I arranged to pick up a car the next day.
After getting the car I decided to go out to
Herrenchiemsee for the afternoon. John, an Irish pensioner who was helping out at the hostel while he travels in Germany, said "that sounds like fun" and in a couple hours we were off on a road trip. I got very lost trying to find the autobahn from where the Tomtom told me it was, but eventually we made it out to Prien am Chiemsee where we grabbed a ferry to one of the islands in the lake and the home of Herrenchiemsee, one of the unfinished palaces of
Ludwig II. I have been fascinated by this character since I was little, since they called him "crazy King Ludwig." Anyway, if you're interested you can read up on him, but Herrenchiemsee was meant to be a replica of Versailles. Ludwig II admired Louis XIV and his style of rule since Ludwig himself was pretty powerless as King of Bavaria and Louis had ultimate power and did a pretty great job.
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| Chiemsee is one of those gorgeous lakes surrounded by mountains |
John and I walked the grounds a bit and I went in for a tour while he met up with some students who'd stayed at the hostel recently (he makes friends easy :)). We were both exhausted from the heat and the long trip (about 1.5 hours from Munich) so we headed back and rested for a bit. Sorry, no pictures of the palace, strictly forbidden.
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| Herrenchiemsee |
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| Grounds at the front entrance of Herrenchiemsee |
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| Grand Entrance in the back of Herrenchiemsee |
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| Some really crazy fountains out front |
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| The peacock was Ludwig's favorite |
The lessons
- Sometimes renting a car is a great solution while traveling abroad (especially if there's more than one of you) to maximize your time. It's pretty easy to drive in other countries, even on the autobahn. Like I learned in New Zealand, you can stop wherever you like, see whatever peaks your curiosity, etc, etc.
- I also hadn't had some honest to God time alone where I could shout and sing and do all the crazy things you get to do when you have the house to yourself. Renting a car is good insurance you get some of that (if alone).
- It's okay to do nothing, a constant reminder is needed but it pays off in the end.'
- It's a good idea to not have a plan and just wander around, this is difficult to do when traveling with others, but if you separate for a day or so, you can discover great things.
- Small towns are still the best--love Heidelberg.
- They are also so very safe--you don't even have to ask the question--so you should always go for a walk at night (still applies to bigger destinations but with a pinch more caution).
Interesting
- The number one selling cologne in the world is actually 4711 Cologne (the address of the company) and that is some strong stuff, they have a fountain of it in there. But they also had cool scents like Hazelnut.
- Herrenchiemsee' tour took us into the unfinished spaces of the palace. They've used part of it as an art exhibition space and part as a museum to Ludwig II
- The ticket to attractions at Herrenchiemsee lasts for 6 months. So I didn't get to see the monestary which was bundled with the ticket and houses a museum, but if I came back in 5 months, my ticket will still let me in there.
