A Well Kept Man

After spending an evening in Stuttgart waiting for Alli to return from the U.S., I met her at the airport and we drove down to the Black Forest to meet up with our neighbors from Minnesota (now living in Germany...Katie and Tom in case you forgot). We managed to convince the desk clerk to keep the bar open late so we could catch up over a beer. The next morning after a delightful German breakfast, we toured a clock museum in Furtwangen which provided a historical perspective of the development of the cuckoo clock industry in Germany, as well as the various other clock making aspects that developed concurrently around the world. After the sun was a little higher up (we needed warmth) we went off on a hike to the highest waterfall in all of Germany.

As winter was taking it's sweet time retreating, we had to take a different path to get to the waterfall due to snow/ice covering the normal route. This wasn't a big deal until it came time to head back to the car and we realized we all would have to climb back up the way we came (not a quick walk, nor an easy one). I made the brilliant decision of going back to the car myself taking an unmarked route to avoid about 400 meters of roadway. I am sure I created quite the amusing photo opportunity for those watching below as I scaled the hillside (it was quite treacherous, had Alli been so against walking back herself she surely would have scolded me for even trying). Anyway, I made it back in one piece, and picked everyone up and we made our way to a lakeside lunch (by lakeside I mean a small pond). I had a well-deserved Radler (pilsner mixed with lemonade) and we enjoyed a great Spring afternoon.

The rest of the day was spent seeing more of the sights of the Black Forest, including an old water mill, eating Black Forest Torte, and walking the German countryside. As the next morning was Easter, we attended Easter Sunday mass at a local Catholic church which proved to be interesting as the entire service was in German and none of us really know much of the language. Nevertheless, it is a worthwhile experience visiting these old European churches and participating in worship in buildings many hundreds of years old. While we didn't pick up an souvenirs (except maybe a German sugar buzz), it is always nice to see friends no matter how far away you are from home.

My final official stop on my German Heritage Tour was Eisenach, with the Castle Wartburg perched above the city watching the valleys below. I parked my car in the castle parking lot and proceeded to climb the roughly 200m to the castle above, often taking two steps at a time (all that biking and walking in Lausanne's hilly streets finally paid off). The other American tourists were easy to spot as they were taking full advantage of the benches and plateaus every 30 steps on the climb up the hill. The castle is where Martin Luther hid out under the assumed name Knight George and translated most of the Bible into German...he also managed to get into a fight with the devil which apparently resolved by throwing ink at said Devil. The castle contains the room where these activities occurred, although previous treasure seekers have managed to chip away all of the ink-stained stone. Nevertheless, it was an interesting place to visit.

After leaving the castle, I headed down to my hotel which is perched on a different hill within the city...my room opened up to a view of the Wartburg Castle across the valley (I highly recommend the Haus Hainstein for those staying in Eisenach). After taking a quick nap, I walked down into the city to check out the sights and avoid the rain drops. Johann Sebastian Bach was born in this city, so his house is now a museum. I walked through the church where he was baptised and thought how cool it would have been to hear him play his music in a church like this...Eisenach also had its own Luther statue, and quaint pedestrian mall where one could pick up a tasty wurst for a couple euros and people watch until it was ice cream time.

The town of Eisenach has an old automobile factory from the Cold War that now sits in a state of ruin much like many of the old factory buildings in this part of Germany. In spite of this, Germany is making many strides to redevelop areas like this in hopes of bringing new economic growth to the country. It is encouraging to see this, and for visitors from the States, it gives one a chance to see the remains of an era past without having to travel all the way to Eastern European countries.

The second city stay on my Germany Heritage Tour took me to the university town of Wittenberg, where Martin Luther lived a majority of his life. It was here that he raised his family with his wife Katharina, and it is here that he was finally laid to rest in the Castlechurch of Wittenberg. The church is also the church of the 95 Theses fame which helped to spark the Protestant Reformation (which in turn spawned Lutherans and as a result, sauerkraut suppers in church basements across America, as well as sitting in the back row of church). While in Wittenberg, I toured the Castlechurch and the amazing museum which once housed Luther and his brood (as well as his pupils, employees, and whomever else was hanging out...the place was huge). The Luther residence had previously been a monastery and thus had tons of space. Some of the highlights of the museum included the pulpit Martin Luther used to preach, as well as many paintings and sculptures of Luther. There was also a library on the top floor dedicated to preserving many original manuscripts and documents penned by Luther himself, as well as his contemporaries.

I also amused myself by realizing the more German beer I drank, the better my German became. I am sure the waitress was less amused, although she seemed to laugh anytime I said anything so apparently my German isn't as good as I think. Another favorite spot in Wittenberg is a tree, the Luther Oak, where Luther supposedly burned his Papal Bull of Excommunication (sort of like a predecessor to a non-binding UN resolution). The town itself is in the Saxony region of Germany so the food is more reflective of its East German past (lots of potatoes and simple dishes featuring cheap sausages...but all very tasty).

A nice side trip was in order as I needed some country scenery so I drove about 25-30 minutes out of town to a place called Wörlitz which is home to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Garden Kingdom of Dessau-Wörlitz. This place is a 50 square mile park created in the late 18th century by Duke Leopold III of Anhalt-Dessau (falling asleep...must not turn into History Channel...go to Wikipedia for more details...). Anyway, I walked around the garden grounds for a few hours enjoying the magnificent weather with a delicious Coca-Cola Classic (have I ever mentioned how thankful I am that Coke dominates the international soft-drink market? Seriously, I love Coke, as do many Americans (or Pepsi if that's your preference)...but this experience would have been so much harder without Coke). The garden grounds had various buildings that evoked images of other landmarks from across Europe (which is evidently part of the story of how the buildings came to be in the first place), as well as a nice sized lake with many little islands and inlets. If I ever were to live inside a cheeseball romance novel, this would probably be what I would picture when the author begins to describe a summer romance which blossomed in a palatial European garden.

I would have to encourage anyone looking for a day trip from Berlin to stop in both of these places to capture both the essence of Martin Luther's life, as well as to appreciate a hidden gem in the German countryside. And if anyone from the Coca-Cola corporation wants to send me a welcome back to America gift basket, I'll be happy to forward you my home address.

The first overnight stop on my German Heritage Tour was a stop in the birthplace (on subsequently death place) of Martin Luther, Eisleben. It was quite obvious that I was now in what was formerly East Germany due to the deteriorating buildings and lack of charm. Most of my time was spent in the streets wandering about looking for the various sights, but being a small town I was able to find everything quite easily. Although the house we he was born burned to the ground many years ago, it has been rebuilt in what they assume to be an indicative style of the time as no original plans exist of the house. A rather large museum adjoins the home which is dedicated to his life and the reformation (very well presented).

Across town is the home he died in, which is a little less exciting except for those who are a bit morbid and like such things. A death mask sits in a glass case at this house to show that he died here (I don't think they had CSI Miami in Germany back then so they made the mask to prove to everyone else that he actually died I guess). I tried to get into the various churches in town where he either was baptised, parishioned (I think I made up that word), and preached before his death but they were all locked up. For the diehard Luther fans out there, this town is worth the visit, but for those who just want to see one Luther site while in Germany this is probably not your place (Wittenberg is much better).

A recurring item of interest is that every town that Luther is associated with in Germany seems to have a statue in the town square of him. I've included a snapshot of this as well as a curious picture of a Soviet cemetery near my hotel (definitely Eastern Germany).

As you can probably tell from the lack of blogs, we have not been in Switzerland for the last week or so...we are also leaving tomorrow for a week in Provence so who knows how many posts I can crank out in the next few hours (don't set your hopes too high). Two weekends ago, we drove up to Lake Constance (or the Bodensee) for the day to meet with Alli's sister and her beau. The highlight was a visit to Affenberg, also known as Monkey Mountain. This nature park contains a habitat for Barbary Macaques which anxiously await the arrival of visitors to feed them. Upon arriving, you get a giant handful of popcorn and then you begin your adventure...

The monkeys are trained to sit on the railings where they will gently take all the popcorn you have in your hand and eat it. For fun, I kept my hand closed which proved no challenge as they simply pried my hand open to get to their treat. It was very cool yet creepy to interact with the monkeys...they are just a little too similar to humans in their mannerisms and abilities. Either way, we enjoyed the stroll through the "mountain" feeding the various monkeys. The park also has other animals such as deer, frogs, ducks, swans, and storks, but the monkeys are definitely the draw.

After we left Monkey Mountain we thoroughly washed our hands (I don't think the monkeys use hand sanitizer between meals), had lunch, and strolled along the lake en route to some delicious ice cream (it's just not a perfect day without a double scoop!). Springtime has definitely arrived which allowed us to enjoy a our dinner outside overlooking the Bodensee while enjoying our visit with Felix and Susie (such a cute couple, especially when they speak German gobbly gook with each other). We then drove to Stuttgart to check out Felix's apartment, and spent the night in a nearby hotel as Alli departed the next day from the Stuttgart airport (she had to go to Memphis for a work event), while I went off on my German Heritage tour.

In December, Alli and I spent a weekend up in Germany with our neighbors Katie and Tom from Minneapolis. Since they were able to come visit us in Switzerland we thought we'd repay the favor and go to Germany. Tom is a dentist who is on a one-year contract with the Army to do dentist things for our troops (he is part of the movement to rid our nation's finest mouths of harmful terrorist tartar, plaque, and the dreaded gum disease gingivitis). They live in a town called Rattlesdorf (at least for the next few weeks until they move into their new digs in Bamberg) in an upstairs apartment of an elderly German couple. We spent the weekend with them visiting some nearby sites, visiting Christmas markets, and drinking glühwein (a spiced German red wine that is hot and delicious!).

Our first night in town we wandered around downtown Bamberg, a beautiful town which houses nine breweries, one of which makes the famous Rauchbier which I strongly encourage you not to drink (it is smoked beer, which for those wanting to know what that means, imagine drinking a beer that tastes like someone stuck a smoked sausage in it for about a month, and then took it out prior to you drinking it. Unless you are really into smoked flavoring, especially of beverages, your stomach will thank you for avoiding it. I did try it as they sent me home with a bottle of the Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier, but unfortunately it was so strongly flavored I barely made it half-way through the bottle before deciding I had enough). We ate a lovely restaurant in town which Tom & Katie call Feathers although it has a name that nobody in our group seems to remember (you can probably guess from the picture above right why they call it what they do..if you can't because the picture is too busy...there are feathers hanging from the ceiling).

The next day we drove to some nearby sites including Banz Abbey (Bad Staffelstein), Schloss Coburg (Coburg), and spent the evening at the Nürnberg (Nuremburg) Christmas Market. The Banz Abbey is of Baroque design, and we were able to go into the main chapel briefly for pictures (this was not normal we were told) before deciding to scurry away to go play in the forest. The entire area surrounding the abbey had recently been covered with snow so the four of us went for a walk, which provided some amazing scenery. After deciding we needed to head for warmth, we drove up to the Veste Coburg for some lunch and tour of the facilities. Martin Luther hid out in this massive fortress around 1530 while the Catholic church was trying to figure out how to get rid of him. This place was so big that I think even if they wanted to try and find him in the castle, it would have taken them months to corner him...I spent most of my time trying to take pictures incognito as I was under the impression photography wasn't allowed, although it was...so I felt kind of dumb when I realized it. The castle had room after room of old furniture, glass, weapons, sleds, carvings, art, etc., and it was truly worth us all pretending to be a family so we could get the family discount and save 20 Euro (yes, Alli and I pretended to be their kids...which meant no smooching or hand-holding while in the castle, although I was allowed to annoy her and call her names).

The Christmas Market in Nürnberg was a mob scene, easily a fire hazard waiting to happen. It was nearly impossible to walk up and down the rows of booths without getting frisked (unintentionally) by someone. The highlight was definitely just sharing a hot glühwein with Katie and Tom while enjoying the crisp December evening. On the way up we also stopped at the Stuttgart Christmas Market, which appeared to be quite fun. Although we only stayed for a short time, it was worth the stop just to see how Alli's sister's special friend (that's old people talk for boyfriend) spends his December nights (he likes near Stuttgart, so we thought we'd surprise him just to make sure he was behaving himself...except we didn't call him, and Stuttgart is big, so we didn't see him, and we don't speak German so we couldn't ask people if they had seen him. Maybe next time we will plan ahead...)

I drive through countries like Americans drive through states. On Tuesday I drove from Switzerland to Belgium (about 8 hours in the car), which for the geographically challenged enabled me to see three other countries (although the most direct route would have only put me in one more). After leaving Switzerland, I made my way into France but I soon realized I was heading for the motorway which would cost me an arm and a leg (in France you can figure the tolls will cost you about 10 Euro for every 100 km, or around $13 every 60 miles) since I would be in France for about 300 - 400 km so I quickly took to the country roads on the most direct route to the mothership...Germany. The best part about Germany is the Autobahns (which is really just a fancy German word for highway) which in most places aren't limited by speed. Although this guzzles the gas, it allows one to traverse large distances over short time periods (provided you aren't freaking out the whole time about getting run over by a supercharged German sports car).

Since our car is currently in winter mode (normal tires swapped with snow tires...not so good for traction at high speeds) I never went faster than 140 km/hr (more math fun... 1 km = 0.62 miles). Nevertheless, I made great time en route to Luxembourg, a parliamentary representative democracy with a constitutional monarch ruled by a Grand Duke. I have no idea what this form of government entails, but it kind of sounds like a fraternity of aristocratic country club types that vote for their favorite type of after dinner cognacs while debating the finer aspects of 1000 thread-count Egyptian cotton sheets. Whatever it may be, it appears to be a nice little country (and by little I mean even Rhode Island makes fun of how small it is) although it was rainy when I made it so I didn't do much (I was probably in the country for less than one hour).

After leaving I toyed with the idea of trying for six countries by driving up to the southernmost part of the Netherlands, but I decided I wanted to get to my hotel before 6 pm so the Netherlands would have to wait until Friday. I spent the remainder of my drive in Belgium, which quickly transitioned from hills and valleys to flat plains and canals as I approached the coast. So I managed five countries in eight hours, that has to be some kind of a record...for me.

P.S.   All of these pictures are from Luxembourg, except perhaps the first one where I may still technically be in Germany but they don't paint lines on the borders like they do on maps so I wasn't 100% sure...

What does it say about your country when you have a road sign like the one below?



I am concerned to say the least as I spotted this particular sign about a dozen times today while driving through some of Germany's smaller towns. Is the problem of speeding tanks that great that it requires a sign reminding tank drivers of the speed limit? I think I would have appreciated seeing just a sign with a large tank on it to let me know that I may encounter one, you know, just keep an eye open and to be safe (I can't tell you how many times I have heard about a 50-ton vehicle sneaking up on unsuspecting motorists and pedestrians).

In Switzerland, we have similar signs except in lieu of a tank is a cow (and the cow isn't speed limited). I am intrigued that the tanks appear to be as ubiquitous as trucks, at least that is what I assume the other graphic to be...although after staring at it, one could convince me it is for roller skaters.

I apologize for the lack of posting...I was in Spain and then Germany for the last week without access to the computer.  I will promptly get my act together and blog at least every day this week until Saturday, when we travel back to the U.S.  At that point I hope to blog sporadically while in Minnesota and Michigan.