Traveling with Terryl Part 2: Germany by Train City Hop

First, I am thrilled to thank Terryl for co-producing this blog.  It is more historically accurate, grammatically correct and informative thanks to "travel monkey" Terri's contributions.

When Scott, Terryl, and I left France we decided to take a route through the Black Forest.  The Black Forest is famous for cuckoo clocks, cute little German towns, and scrumptious black forest chocolate cake.

We visited the town of Triberg to see the largest waterfall in all of Germany.

View of Triberg and rainbow in distance

The next day we took the train from Stuttgart to Western Germany.  First stop: Dusseldorf

Dusseldorf is the 7th most populous city in Germany with an urban population of 1.5 M.  It was freezing and we could imagine it would be a wonderful place to visit in the summer.  There were a ton of cute bars all along the river walk in the "old town" or Alstadt.  

We tried the famous "Altbier" (local beer) in Dussledorf at an adorable, authentic, local bar called Im Fuchschen.  

 The tables were high and the benches were teeny so this picture is very awkward. 

Since we had an "open" train ticket we decided to leave dreary Dusseldorf and take the short ride to Cologne (Koln in German). 

Today, Cologne is Germany's 4th largest city and is home to Germany's greatest Gothic cathedral (Dom).   Flashback nerd alert: Cologne was Germany's largest city and an important religious and cultural center throughout the Middle Ages.  Later, in 1709, an Italian chemist made this city's toilet water famous...Eau de Cologne.   

Walking along the Hohe Strasse (Cologne's pedestrian shopping street) we came upon a very unusually-named store: Schmuck Christ.  Really?  Schmuck actually means jewelry in German.  Does Christ means Christ in every language?

 Finding this photo opp amusing,  we proceeded to pose in front like truly mature Americans

Cologne has the most famous Gothic cathedral in all of Germany. It is known for its massive size (largest in Germany) and its resilience to bombs. This cathedral was bombed 15 times during WWII and only sustained minor damages compared to the neighboring buildings. The ability to withstand the blasts is due to its skeletal structure flexing with each impact and therefore preventing the structure from crumbling (again Terryl (who sells aluminum) LOVES this kind of technical information).   

We dominated the grueling climb (509 steps) up the Church Spire Climb (Dom-Turm) and arrived at the top of the south tower.  This was a welcomed, warming aerobic activity since it was about -6 degrees Celsius and snowing!  View from Top below

Terri was obsessed with scenic overlooks and getting as high as possible in each city

Down 109 steps from the top of the tower (now a mere 400 steps above ground level!) we came upon the Glockenstube.  This is the part of the tower that houses the Dom's nine huge bells, including Dicke Peter (translation: Fat Peter) which is claimed to be the largest free-swinging church bell IN THE WORLD! 

 This bad boy weighs 24-tons.

Locals in Cologne were consuming rounds and rounds of Kolsch, the local specialty.  The taste reminded me of my youth and time spent at the University (thats how we say college in Europe), slurping watered down beer like Miller Lite and PBR.  However, in Koln it was served it in tiny glasses  (perhaps so it stays cold?) which was a change from the Bavarian culture we are surrounded by in Stuttgart.

After a beer or 2, we had the most delicious Italian dinner at Il Pino.

Grilled Fish, Shrimp, and Octopus

After dinner, we walked by the Cathedra. in the moonlight and it was especially creepy!

We planned to get a good nights sleep but were rudely awoken at 4 am to loud voices in the hall.  They had eastern European accents (my guess is Bulgarian) and they were loudly stomping up and down the stairs outside our door.  All of a sudden, we heard the most horrific disgusting sound of a ginormous man barfing his brains (or Kolsch) out!  Terryl screamed "Nine! Nine! Nine! ("No" in German) and the men scurried away from our door.  The next morning we got a free breakfast (smuggled an assortment of breads and cheeses in our backpacks) and an apology from the receptionist.

We headed to the train station to travel to Munich.  I got on and all of a sudden the door shut and Terri left behind on the concourse banging on the window.  The train the door wouldn't open and I yelled for help and tried to pry it open but failed miserably.  Luckily, Terri found a German stewardess (train lady) and was catapulted onto another car.

Amazing photo taken by Terri that almost resulted in missing the train and losing me forever

The train ride from Cologne to Munich was 5 hours of beautiful German landscape sprawled in front of us. When we left Cologne there was a massive snow storm rolling thru western Germany and France so we were relieved to be heading toward sunny, warmer southeastern Germany. Munchen (translation Munich) here we come! 

We were so relieved to arrive in Munich together and in one piece that we decided to celebrate with beer(s) and a pretzels at the Hofbrauhaus.  This world-famous beer hall is a lively, loud, warm, fun-loving place to enjoy a stein or two.  Even though it is very touristy, it is a must-see when in Munich.  

Perhaps, also the best place in Germany to see passed out Asians  

Beware the beers and pretzels are ginormous (picture below IS to scale)......

Most delicious fresh doughy pretzel I have ever had (and I have tried many)

Terri recognized this cute old German carrying his special stein and giant key.  She realized he was one of the 6 men on the coaster (below) and thus a Munich celebrity

Terryl looking as thrilled and star struck as the day we met David Mathews of the Dave Mathews Band

We also encountered a wild group of Brits who were in town for a futbol match.  They were drunkinly chanting songs from their homeland and explicit cheers for Arsenal (one of England's soccer teams).

Terryl & Martin (a lovely chap who introduced us to his mates)

When the foolish Brits started drawing in Terryl's travel journal, we decided it was time to move on so we ventured to Jodlewiert, a laid back local bar with an accordion player.  After an edgy debate regarding Germany's role/involvement/membership in the EU, we took the local advice from our newly acquired German and Polish friends and walked to an amazing restaurant called Brenner.

Delicious steak salad with local vegetables

 The next day, we went to the Dachau Concentration Camp Museum/Memorial.  It was a 45-minute train and bus trip to the outskirts of Munich but well-worth the time.  The weather was gloomy and fitting for such a terrible place. We walked around the bunker, barracks, museum and crematorium. This camp is notorious because it was the Nazi's first concentration camp (1933).  In its twelve years of horrendous existence, Dachau was mainly a "work camp" where inmates were used for slave labor, and a training camp where SS officials were trained and sent to manage other concentration camps.  This visit left a pit in our stomachs and we did not take any pictures here.

After the memorial, we headed back into town for lunch.  Terri decided it was time for traditional German fare and got Jumbo Knackbratwurst (below) served with German potato salad (scrumptious due to mustard/vinegar base not mayo) at the adorable Jean-Claude Bistro inside Ratskeller Munchen Marienplatz.  We shared more pretzels and Megan dined on a wonderful white fish soup.  Terri claims she was jealous of Megan's choice but proud of herself for embracing the local cuisine.

appetizing?

We spent the whole afternoon at the BMW (Bavarian Motor Works) museum.  The buildings were super modern and there was a ton to see.

The complex is made up of 4 components:

BMW headquarters (not open to public), the BMW factory (where rich people go to see where their custom-made cars are built), the showroom BMW-Welt "BMW World" (all the currently available models are on display - you can touch them and sit in them!), and the BMW Museum (futuristic building of floating walkways linking exhibits on the life of the company and all its creations).  Terryl was in heaven.

Really cool floating balls that move to make different shapes.  
There is probably a better description but sadly super engineer Scoots was not with us to explain.

The museum and exhibition were a lot more interesting than I predicted and I enjoyed learning about some ridonculous vehicles.

We spent the whole afternoon at the BMW (Bavarian Motor Works) museum.  The buildings were super modern and there was a ton to see.

The complex is made up of 4 components: 

BMW headquarters (not open to public), the BMW factory (where rich people go to see where their custom-made cars are built), the showroom BMW-Welt "BMW World" (all the currently available models are on display - you can touch them and sit in them!), and the BMW Museum (futuristic building of floating walkways linking exhibits on the life of the company and all its creations).  Terryl was in heaven.

Terryl's favorite was the Rolls Royce Phantom - just 700,000 EURO for all the bells and whistles!

Moe (above) was a wise Rolls Royce expert 

Umbrella holder in the door - wow!

Lambs wool carpet, laptops, champagne cooler...  all the crucial amenities

After BMW we decided to check out the FUTBOL stadium since there was so much excitement around the game - Arsenal vs Munich.  We found this guy (below) on the train and followed him.

How goofy is Terryl's hat and "matching" ski coat? 

Please note from these pics the amazing weather we experienced in Germany. Remember earlier when I mentioned that a major snow storm was hitting western Germany and France? Well since Terryl is the weather-whisperer.....all massive storms of any kind find her and follow her wherever she may go, i.e. hurricane rains in California, underwater earthquakes in Spain, blizzards in Germany, etc.....that major snow storm found its way to southeastern Germany too!!  

In the morning, we left Munich for the 2 hour train ride back home to Stuttgart

I showed Terryl around the Schlossplatz (main square)

It started snowing 2 hrs after this pic was taken thanks to Terryl's arrival

Terryl was eager to see the city from an aerial view so we rode the elevator to the top of the Hauptbanoff (main train station) to see the city from the platform.

Spectacular indeed :)

Since Stuttgart is not full of historical sites, I decided my new tradition for our visitors will be taking them to the top of the HBF for the view and then a delicious drink in the bar we discovered with a great (much warmer) perspective of the city center

Fun times in France with Terryl

The past 10 days have been filled with exciting travel adventures.  My childhood pal, Terryl Gardner, came to visit us from Boston!  I took the high speed train from Stuttgart to meet Terri G in Paris.  

We purchased the 2 day Museum Pass which gives you entry to over 60 museums and attractions.  Thanks to friends (Laurie!) we narrowed down the museum list and hustled all over the city in the rain.

We loved Sainte-Chapelle Cathedral with it's beautiful gothic architecture and it's peerless stained glass.

I was not too excited to see the Louvre museum since it was packed and miserable waiting in lines when I went during Summer 2003.  Traveling in less-touristy March coupled with our Museum Pass allowed us access thru a special entrance with ZERO lines.  The Louvre, formerly a royal palace, is the  largest museum in the Western world.   

Above we are inside the famous glass pyramid designed in 1989 by world renowned Chinese-born American architect I.M. Pei (Terryl is obsessed with this stuff).  Many Parisians disliked this architectural masterpiece at first just as they disliked the Eiffel Tower when it was built 100 years earlier.  
A Frenchman named Patrice shared this fun fact: there is so much artwork that if you spent just 30 seconds with each painting/sculpture, it would take an entire 3 weeks straight to see every piece of art in this massive museum.  We did not have 3 weeks so we sprinted around to the main attractions.

Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa (La Joconda, 1503-1506) was a bit anticlimactic (thus, no desire to throw elbows and get up close for a better pic)

Opposite the Mona Lisa is the massive Renaissance painting The Marriage at Cana (Les Noces de Cana, 1562-1563) by Venetian artist Paolo Veronese. This is the famous painting of a wedding celebration at which Jesus turned water into wine. 

Terryl's favorite painting (typical)

My favorite museum was the Musee de l' Orangerie which was built for a special exhibition of Claude Monet's Water Lilies(1914-1926). The full installation spills from one pond-shaped room to a second, each made up of 4 six-foot-tall curved canvas panels (no cameras allowed so you must go see it live!).  

Paris is a great walking city even in crappy weather.

Thats me in the center sporting pony tail & running shoes (so un French)

Some areas reminded me of the DC Mall with the monuments and public parks.

We walked up the stairs of Arc de Triomphe for a beautiful (hazy) view of Paris. 

We also spent time in cafes enjoying espresso, french onion soup and delicious quiche.

The seafood and oyster bars were the best for evening meals!

The horrible weather motivated my pal to buy a ridiculous "Paris" umbrella from a local tourist stand.

Unfortunatley, the umbrella was worthless and poor Terryl got drenched!

 I didnt have much sympathy since I had zero desire to go "touch" the Eiffel Tower.

(we could see it already from the ARC)

Anyway, we got to stand under it - YAY (sarcastic)

Our most exciting night was totally unexpected.  First, we met a family friend for a drink at Falstaff (great bar with Belgian beer) and he took us to a local spot (Chez Pa Pa- highly recommend for inexpensive country south west French food) with the most amazing duck salad.  Then, Terri and I ventured to a random bar and quickly bonded with a group of local French folks (age range 27-77)

One is a base player in a jazz band and Stan, below, was an artist, professor and dance machine.

 By the end of the night, Terri was calling him "Jean Valjean" (he didn't take this as a compliment and apparently had never seen Les Mis).  All of a sudden it was 6 am and we were starving so we strolled to a cafe for cheese plates, smoked salmon and a bottle of Prosecco.
Only in Paris - now one of my favorite cities!

Trying to read the french menu at 6 am

On our last day, we spent time at Notre Dame Cathedral

We made it just in time for the 850 year celebration

It was breathtaking and we got to walk around during a mass.

The organ sounded beautiful 

Stained glass galore-imagine on a sunny day

We left Paris the next day and took the metro (easy and cheap) to our high-speed train for Strasbourg, France.

Strasbourg is located in the Alsace region of France along the German border so it was an easy place for Scott to meet us for the weekend. 

The first thing that caught our eye was the local French specimen below

Sexy grey mullet and spandex walking his horse down the street (Too bad Tash is already engaged)

Terri had her handy Rick Steve's travel books that suggested we do the walking audio tour.  It was a great way to learn about the history and architecture (mix of German & French)

The Strasbourg Cathedral is known as one of the most beautiful gothic cathedrals in Europe.  Construction began in the year 1015 and during the next 4 centuries it was the tallest structure in the modern world due to the height of it's tower.

Scoots wearing what he calls his "french disguise"
I have another name for it

Astronomical clock from 1842 invented by mathematicians, artists, swiss watchmakers, sculptors and painters

 We walked along the river for many hours listening to our handy headsets (rented from the tourist office for a measly 5.50 euro)

Terryl grasping her journal- she diligently took notes the entire trip

We had a fabulous meal along the river at La Corde a Linge' in the neighborhood known as Petite France.

duck, saurkraut, cheese, fish= delish

I got to hold the basket of fresh baked pretzels 

After our walking tour, we freshened up and decided to check out the night life.  We went to a few bars near the hotel.  Bar Exils (motto: Jugs and Beers) was a great place to start the night.

The bartenders were very friendly and gave us tank tops and samples of various beers (Kasteel Red 8% was superb)

Later, we spotted a Karaoke bar - hooray!!  

Bunny's bar was perfect

I truly enjoyed singing with the locals!  I nailed the French pop hits in my authentic accent thanks to the words on the screen above us.  One impressive performance in English was a goateed man who belted out Tracy Chapman's hit "talking bout a revolution"

My favorite memory was when Scoots sang one of his favorite classics, Genesis' "I Cant Dance."  As he screamed "I cant sing" into the microphone, the French girls went wild!

Terri also passionately joined in for this glorious rendition

Next blog coming soon: Traveling with Terri around Germany (Black Forest, Dusseldorf, Cologne, Munch & Stuttgart)