Saturday, May 14, 2011
Final reflections
The falling value of the US $$ is becoming a real deterrent to European travel.
It's good to get home to the land of free toilets and water fountains, free ice water at restaurants, laundromats, wide roads and less compression. Sad to leave the land of millions of flowers, excellent food, richly diverse cultures and many languages and lively street life.
I hope to be back soon. Good-bye Europe! Hello Minnesota!
It's good to get home to the land of free toilets and water fountains, free ice water at restaurants, laundromats, wide roads and less compression. Sad to leave the land of millions of flowers, excellent food, richly diverse cultures and many languages and lively street life.
I hope to be back soon. Good-bye Europe! Hello Minnesota!
The Delft Restaurant at Schipol Airport in Amsterdam
This place was unbelievable. My open-faced sandwich came on a Delft blue ceramic platter, along with my fresh-squeezed orange juice. Pretty elegant living for an airport. I've heard that this is the top-rated airport in the world. It's easy to see why. Free luggage carts, many restaurants (including an outdoor picnic area), shops, bars and comfortable seating areas. I hate to leave! By the way, this sandwich may look like a dead chicken, but it's actually a very delicious shaved ham. The main point is the beautiful plate.
Friday, May 13, 2011
A word about coffie houses
We did not take advantage of the legal soft drugs in Amsterdam, but if any of you is interested for future purposes, you need know a few things: look for a "coffie house," as opposed to a "coffee house"; do not take any drugs off the premises or you'll be arrested; and be prepared for very strong marijuana. Also keep in mind that you need to find out where these places are online before you go, because they are not allowed to advertise. Interesting place, interesting policies.
The crooked houses of Amsterdam
Buildings are often built to lean to one side or lean forward for strategic purposes. it gives everything a rather odd look.
A public sculpture celebrating sex workers
I was told the correct term is sex workers, not prostitutes, in this land of liberalism.
I've never seen so many bicycles in my life!
One of these photos is of a bicycle parking ramp near the train station. It looked like about a million bicycles to my eye. Our guide said you pay to park them, and it can be a challenge to find your bike. Amsterdam is considered the most bicycle-friendly city in the world; however, that means that pedestrians have one more thing to watch out for when crossing streets. I almost got killed several times!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Holland: the land of windmills, legal sex and soft drugs for sale
What a curious and interesting and beautiful city! This photo, however, is of the countryside. Our tour guide, Daphne, asked our driver to visit several small villages, stop at a cheese-making operation and a wooden-shoemaker. We all sampled lots of chocolates, cheese and other treats.
Dinner in Nürnberg
We had to try the famous Nürnberger Würstl, the weiss Spargel (white asparagus), which is available this time of year and, of course, sauerkraut and German potato salad. Excellent food and service. A young German woman took this photo of us. She was puzzled by Sarah eating mustard on her soft pretzel.
The Toy City
Nürnberg is also known for its amazing toys. They have an annual international toy convention and a remarkable toy museum.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Food on the Road in Germany
I'm always impressed at the quality and quantity of food available at ordinary Autobahn gas stations. Unbelievable. Sure beats "roller dogs," as kent calls them.
The Nürnberg Trials
For the first time, visitors are now being allowed in the famous courtroom where the war crimes trials took place in 1946. They've also created a small but fascinating multimedia museum.
The Dokumentation Centre
Because of its unique place in Nazi history, Nürnberg established a Holocaust museum attached to the never-completed grandiose colliseum at one end of the Nazi rally gounds. It's excellently done and its location ads a special significance to it.
The Home of Albrecht Dürer
This famous artist (1471-1528) made his home in Nürnberg during the time of the city's greatest prosperity. It was the center of trade for spices, salt, etc. Thus, they invented gingerbread with all its exotic spices.
Nürnberg: The Phoenix Rising from WWII
This city is so charming, but what's astounding is that it was 90% rebuilt from the rubble of WWII. Since it was the center of so much Nazi activity (including the infamous Nazi rally grounds) the allies bombed it mercilessly. Today, however, it prides itself on being the city of love and peace and tolerance. The Altstadt is one of the most beautiful in Germany and the diversity of cultural life is impressive.
An interesting Easter display in Rothenburg
We saw these in several nearby villages besides this one. If you look closely, you'll see that the "garlands" are made up of decorated Easter eggs!
Rothenburg am Tauber
This walled city is said to be one of the most perfectly preserved medieval villages in Germany. It was spared severe damage in WWII thanks to a German who disobeyed orders to not surrender. He did so to save the town. It’s the home of Käthe Wohlfahrt (www.bestofchristmas.com), the weird twisted pastry treat called “schneeballs” (which can be covered in anything from chocolate to cinnamon to powdered sugar) and a few pieces of art by the famous German woodcarver, Tilman Riemenschneider (ca. 1460-1561). It’s so perfectly magical that Walt Disney used it as the inspiration for the birthplace of Pinnochio.
Dachau: Minutes from Munich, A Different World
Dauchau was the first concentration camp and was originally intended to provide workers for the munitions industry. Nobody died in the gas chambers here, but many were executed in other ways or starved to death. The administration building has been turned into a museum here, and there are always two things that I find the most disturbing: the huge map of central Europe showing the locations of the hundreds of extermination and work camps, and the biographies of individual prisoners, along with some of their personal effect. Your heart would have to be made of stone to leave without shedding tears. The German government continues to maintain this site and grant free admission to millions of visitors every year. They see it as their obligation.
A view of the Hofbrauhaus Biergarten
This crazy place never fails to amuse me. The band is so loud, the beers are so big, and the food is so typical German (and good) that I keep going back. Unfortunately, this time, we had trouble getting served at all, so we left for another restaurant.
This one's for Alex!
I think this was the restaurant that Alex and Sandra and I loved so much last May when we spent some time in Germany. It's near Marienplatz in Munich, and the interior is about as cute as it gets.
Sculptures I wish I could buy in Munich!
I'm not sure why, but these odd blue sculptures really caught my eye. I thought Carole and Kent would like them too!
Monday, May 9, 2011
Sophie Scholl: The Student Heroine
For those who've never heard of her, Sophie Scholl was a 21-year-old student at the University of Munich who, along with her brother and other student and faculty activists, was beheaded in 1943 by the Nazi regime for distributing anti-Nazi flyers on campus. This is the hallway in the campus building where she distributed the pamphlets that first got her arrested. I'm also including a photo of the leaflets inlaid in the sidewalk outside the building.
Schloss Nymphemburg
Forget the impressive facade of this Baroque masterpiece that served as the summer home for the rulers of Bavaria for 500 years. It's the 490-acre garden that interested me, with what seemed like 300 acres covered in lilacs. We could smell the delicious aroma from our bus!
Sunday, May 8, 2011
A Liberal City in a Conservative State (Bavaria)
Munich is considered one of the most livable cities in the world, and it’s easy to see why. It’s a big city with small-town friendliness and charm. Our elegant hotel (Hotel Regent) sits across the street from the Hauptbahnhof (main train station), where you can rent a bicycle for about 15 euros per day. You can ride all around the entire city that way, through the beautiful Englisher Garten, where you can stop at one of the shady biergartens for lunch, on to the BMW museum and showroom and to the Olympic Village.
Our capable guide, John Mountain, came to Munich in 1972 from London to work at the Olympic games. He and his wife somehow stayed, even after the horrific experience of the murder of the Israeli hostages by terrorists. The whole story is documented in the Academy Award-winning movie “Munich.”
Today, the Olympic Village is a beautiful park. Hills were created from the rubble of WWII. Every structure is still used today. The swimming pool costs a few euros to use, and concerts are often given in the main stadium.
\
Ladies Night Out in München -- Otherwise known as "Toytown"
Janet chose this restaurant because she was so intrigued by the chickens rotating on a spit in a window. When we couldn't find chicken on the menu, we finally realized they weren't chickens at all, but pork hocks! Several of us decided to go native and ordered them. I'm embarrassed to say, they were delicious, especially with sauerkraut and mashed potatoes.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Mozart's hangout in Salzburg
We had coffee at the oldest coffee house in Salzburg (1706) where Mozart used to hang out. According to our guide, he had nothing good to say about it, yet he went there every day. We found it to be delightful.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)