May 2003 European Travelogue
(AKA Bev and Stuart's Tales from the Road)
Part 1: Frankfurt and Heidelberg
As we write this, we are on our final day in the Frankfurt area; in a few hours, we hop a
sleeper train and awaken in Prague in the morning. We've been here since Monday
morning, staying with Sanmi, Silke and Paul at their home in Steinbach (a small
town ~10min outside Frankfurt). Many of you also know Alex -- he was here when
we arrived on Monday, and came down last night as well.
As you may have expected, Germany is not a culinaire's playground -- alas ...
However -- surprisingly! -- we have managed to have the best croissants in the
universe, right here in Steinbach. Chocolate, marzipan, sesame and cream cheese,
ham and cheese, plain -- they're ALL good. And of course, there's plenty of good
cheese to be had here, on the cheap. Finally, there's the Spargel. There appears
to be a national (or at least regional) insanity surrounding asparagus season
here -- there are Spargel stands all over, every restaurant has Spargel on the
menu at least 5 ways, Spargel Spargel Spargel! Krass ...
A few highlights from our trip thus far:
* Dienstag: Schloss Freudenberg
Sanmi drove us (Bev, Stuart, Paul) to Wiesbaden for an adventure! On a hill in
the midst of the city (very close to where the Mosel river meets the Rhine), we
explored "Castle Happy Mountain"
(aka Schloss Freudenberg). Wow, this
place needs to move, in entirety, to the playa. It's a villa (not quite what I
normally think of as a castle, but impressive) tucked away into the woods.
Nearly the entire space is filled with sensory and mental experiments -- Bev is
convinced that 'Schloss Freudenberg' translates to 'Castle Trip Toy'.
From the website:
[V]isitors to Schloss Freudenberg can enjoy over 80 different
interactive 'experience stations' to explore "how the eye
sees, the ear hears, the nose smells, the skin senses, the
fingers touch, the feet (under)stand, the hands (be)hold,
the brain thinks, the lungs breathe, the blood pulsates,
[and] the body vibrates".
It's already inspired some thoughts for BM-creations. Whee!
* Dienstag abend: Horseback riding in Steinbach.
Silke rides regularly at a stables on the outskirts of Steinbach. Knowing that
Bev grew up with horses, Sanmi arranged for the five of us to go for an evening
ride. It was a hurry-up-and-wait event -- the owner was scattered across a
thousand thoughts -- but we went for a nice hour-long sunset ride in the fields
outside town. Bev was, as is to be expected, a natural. I was not so natural. I
managed not to fall off, but wasn't particularly graceful. I'm still a little
sore from it, to be honest, but did manage to enjoy loping by the end ... :)
* Donnerstag: Strasbourg
Sanmi and I drove down to Heidelberg to pick up Bev (she visited an old
boyfriend there am Mittwoch and took tons of photos at the castle at
Schwetzingen), and we all decided on a spontaneous daytrip into
France (into wine country, big surprise). Strasbourg is the largest city in
Alsace, a region which has been French-again, German-again , swapped between the
countries four or five times in the last few hundred years. We visited a huge
ancient Catholic cathedral (perhaps one-half the size of Notre Dame).
Construction started in the early 1200s, and took over 150 years to complete.
Like many of the older churches we've seen so far in Europe, it's undergoing a
fair bit of restoration. One of the most interesting features inside the
cathedral is "l'horloge astronomique", the Astronomical Clock. Interestingly,
this starts at the bottom with the day and year, solar time, etc -- all rooted
in science -- but as you move up you see Jesus (apparently at 12:30 each day,
the apostles parade past him), with JHVH crowing the whole shebang. Neat!
While in Strasbourg, we shopped for wine (dang, you can buy good wine cheap in
France! We got a nice dry Riesling and a very pleasing Pinot Noir rose for about
20 euros), and -- of course -- French lingerie! :) We sat in the sun in a small
café next to le Petit Rhin (one of the small tributaries of the Rhine which
wends through the center of Strasbourg), near a small locks, and sipped our
afternoon aperitifs: Diablo Menthe, Pastis, and un quart vin rose'. :)
* Donnerstag: Wir fahren fahren fahren auf der Autobahn!
We got the full-on Autobahn experience, with Sanmi as our driver. Yes, you
really can drive as fast as you like, as long as you follow the rules: no
passing on the right, much of the highway *is* speed-controlled, and you must
move out of the way of someone going faster. No matter how fast you go on the
Autobahn, there's always someone going faster.
* Heute (Samstag): Rheingau
Alex drove Bev and me into the Rhine river valley, the most famous wine region
in Germany (most famous for Rieslings ranging from bone dry to dessert-wine
sweet). It was a leisurely tour through a gorgeous valley -- steep walls lined
with grape vines, old fortification walls poking in and out of the hills,
castles atop every ridge (or so it seemed), and picturebook German villages.
Here's a wonky description of why it's nominated for UNESCO protection, but the
first part gives a good idea of the geology and the history (dating back to
Roman occupation in 50AD): <http://cipa.icomos.org/papers/2001/2001-22-wb01.pdf>.
We drove up to a great lookout at Loreley (the siren who lured sailors to their
deaths), 150m above the river, and stopped at a wine museum and shop in St.
Goarshausen, a small town on the west bank.
All in all, we've had a stellar visit in the Frankfurt region, and are looking
forward to the rest of our adventure. It's been great to have friends welcome us
into our European vacation, and provide a warm transition. And, happily, both of
us seem to be recalling our German studies from a billion years ago!
Part 2: Prague and Munich
Prague
Maybe you've heard that Prague is the most beautiful city in Europe; I'd have to
agree. Bev commented : "it's like, casually impressive architecture everywhere".
This, of course, was punctuated liberally by stunning architecture. Prague is
one of the few large cities in Europe that managed to survive the ravages of the
World Wars essentially unscathed, so great examples of Gothic, Baroque and Art
Nouveau architecture remain everywhere.
<http://www.prague-photos.com/obrazky.asp?kat=999&lang=en>
What Prague didn't survive as well was the 40 years of Communist rule. It's a
city full of dour people, unlikely to make eye contact, and in large part
unwilling to return a smile. On the other hand, it's chock full of gorgeous
women - a higher proportion than any other city we've been in thus far.
Another great thing about Prague - great beer! Beer foamy, Stuart like beer!
Sunday, 18th
We arrived in Prague on the night train from Frankfurt - too bad nobody
mentioned the 3AM passport check at the Czech border. After finding our way to a
hotel and dropping bags, we wandered off for exploration. First stop: caffeine,
in a very Turisticke café in the middle of Wenceslas Square (Good King Wenceslas
wasn't a king, after all) - an odd mix of old (great Art Nouveau examples) and
very modern shopping areas. From there we wandered into Old Town, original
ringed city and square. The square was absolutely mobbed, as our arrival day
coincided with the Prague International Marathon - the end route of which
bisected the Josefov, the Jewish Quarter which was our main target for the day.
Highlights of the Josefov were the Spanish Synagogue - ceiling covered with
wonderful, brightly colored designs - and the Old Jewish Cemetery,
overwhelmingly powerful, monuments jumbled and piled together dating from the
15th century.
<http://architecture.about.com/library/blpraguecemetery.htm>
Monday, 19th
We took a day train an hour east of Praha (the Czech name for Prague) to Kutna
Hora, home to a fantastic ossuary, or bone church. The cemetery grounds
surrounding the church - on the outskirts of Kutna Hora - were consecrated with
soil from Golgotha in the 1400s, so many wished to be buried there. When the
plague hit, the old remains were unearthed to make room for new, and used in the
construction of elaborate artworks: four huge pyramids of skulls and legbones,
candelabra, an elaborate chandelier containing at least one of every bone in the
body, a coat of arms of the Sternberk family, even the artist's signature.
Bizarre and awe-inspiring. <http://www.kostnice.cz/>
From the 1300s to 1500s, Kutna Hora was a prosperous silver mining town - on the
edge of the town was built the cathedral of St. Barbara (Barbor), patron Saint
of miners. An incredible, overwhelming example of Gothic architecture, possibly
rivaling (in my eyes) Notre Dame. Unfortunately, it is closed to entry on
Mondays, so we were only able to view the outside.
<http://photoworld.toya.net.pl/CZECH/index2.html>
Tuesday, 20th
Our last day in Praha, we participated in the main tourist pilgrimage, crossing
the river into the Little City for the climb to Prague Castle, the center of
power in Bohemia going on 800 years. The castle is immense, and impressive; one
can almost feel the power that has resided there for centuries. The anchor of
our visit to the Castle was St. Vitus Cathedral (one of three church cathedrals
inside the castle walls). This cathedral is well-known for its magnificent,
massive, and riotously colorful stained glass windows. One in particular is
perhaps the single most impressive stained glass I've ever seen - a combination
of stained and painted glass in gorgeous Art Nouveau style by Alfons Mucha.
<http://www.experienceprague.com/pics_pages/hrad/Pages/hrad_mucha.htm>
After descending from the Castle, we continued the tourist trek by crossing the
famous Charles bridge, which has impressive religious statues on both sides,
every 20m or so. Too many buskers selling cheap tourist wares (not
surprisingly), but quite impressive regardless.
Munich
After Prague Castle and the Charles Bridge, we caught an afternoon train to
Munich, to visit several friends. We stayed with Bev's college friend Colleen,
her husband Marcus, and their adorable 5-month-old girl, Chiara. We also got a
chance to have dinner with my old housemate Catherine, who up and decided with
her boyfriend to move to Europe a little over a year ago.
Some of Munich's claims to fame / infamy: home of BMW, the ill-fated 1972
Olympics, and the rise of Hitler and the National Socialist movement in the late
1920s.
Wednesday, 21st
Colleen and Marcus live close to the Old City, where we headed on Wed afternoon,
starting with a walk through the Plague Cemetery near their apartment - full of
impressive stones and intricate carved monuments. Sightseeing, a little
window-shopping, the ubiquitous gorgeous cathedrals for viewing. It seems the
key thing in Munich churches is ornate paintings on the ceilings. Neat! Just on
the east edge of the old town is one of Munich's famed beer gardens (where much
of Hilter's early philosophy and power base coalesced), next to the
Viktuallenmarkt, a sprawling open-air market with shops for cheese, cured meats,
wurst, and a most impressive selection of olives, pickles, and other marinated
yummy treats. Then, back to the apartment to prepare dinner with all the goodies
we bought in the market.
Thursday, 22nd
A lot like the previous day - walking around Munich, a little more active
shopping, la de da! The highlight of the day was a matinee viewing of Matrix
Reloaded - finally, we're keeping up with the Mezbians! We didn't prepurchase
our tickets, but were able to call in advance and make a reservation. When we
arrived, we got to choose our seats. How utterly civilized. Of course, the
theater was no Cinerama, so we're planning a second viewing upon our return to
Seattle.
Friday, 23rd
Finally, a nice day! The weather had been less than stellar since leaving
Frankfurt, so we both welcomed warmth and sunshine. We'd had tentative plans for
a daytrip to Salzburg (Bev had a big Sound of Music thing going), but we decided
to be "lazy" instead, which entailed a lot more walking, of course. With Colleen
and Chiara, we walked to the Englischer Garten - a huge sprawling city park with
creek burbling through it, and lots of nude sunbathers. We had an official
Biergarten lunch (wurst, pretzels and beer bigger than Bev's head) then a little
sunbathing of our own.
After Marcus got off work, we all piled into the car for a drive south - so that
we could at least see the Alps, even if we didn't actually make it there this
trip. A nice dinner in a Friehof overlooking one of the large lovely lakes south
of Munich, then back home to pack for the next leg.
Saturday, 24th
We're on the train again, heading to Stuttgart to meet Paul Dale, for a day of
shopping and touring in the Schwarzwald (Black Forest). Tomorrow night we hit
Zurich, our final destination.