Back to Germany! On Saturday the 22nd of June, Anders and I took a day train from Amsterdam to Cologne. We chose to go there primarily because Ian, a friend of Anders, works there now and there was a street festival going on. We actually crashed on a couch one night at the house of a very nice lady named Silvia; I used for the first time couchsurfing.org to actually stay somewhere. She was very kind to let us stay; Silvia lives a short train ride north of the center of Cologne with her dog, Snoop.
We met with Ian and a German friend of his and hung around the street festival. It was basically a bunch of small band performances in different department stores. Afterwards we enjoyed the atmosphere of a the bars in Cologne.
Ian and I
Ian and Anders
The next morning we met up with an additional two people, Lars and Christine, for brunch. I had also contacted Lars through Couch Surfing; he had been unable to host but wanted to meet up anyway. Really cool guy; him and his girlfriend Christine showed us around the city center for a couple hours.
We walked through a flea market next to the Rhein.
Apparently this bridge used to be much wider a century ago before it was destroyed.
A section of the original Roman road that ran through Germany.
Dom; the largest cathedral in Germany
Inside the Dom
Our crew outside the Dom. Ian, Anders, Christine, Lars, and myself
A view of the city center from the north, near the city center. Looking down the Rhein river.
Afterwards we met back up with Silvia. She showed us around the village near her home for a little while. Then, it was farewell and off to Bremen!
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Bremen
That afternoon we took a train north a few hours up to Bremen. I really enjoyed the atmosphere of this city; it was notably calmer than most of the other cities I had been to (granted, it was a Sunday evening/Monday morning). Anders and I got into Bremen at around 5 pm and probably didn't get checked in to the local Jugendherberge until an hour or so later. I really didn't like staying there as much as normal hostels; it was very large, empty, and stagnant; the staff weren't particularly friendly as well. Along the way to our housing we checked out the area, and afterwards we grabbed a bite at a real German diner.
Picture of the square
Another picture of the square: Town Hall on the left and Bremen Cathedral on the right
A boat-restaurant on the River Weser
A delicious dinner! Schnitzel with fries and a dark beer
The next day we took some time in the morning and afternoon to look around Bremen. It was a short visit, but I feel like we saw quite a bit of the city.
Again at the town square; statue of Roland, the patron of the merchants, outside the town hall
Inside the cathedral
We listened to this organ for a a little while; beautiful music!
Nearby the courthouse
Bremen was definitely a low key stop; we didn't have any luck finding a cheap walking tour, so we took it easy and killed some time. Anyway, our train was already leaving at 4 pm that afternoon, off to Hamburg!
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Hamburg
That Monday evening we got into Hamburg only an hour or so after leaving Bremen. We stayed in Hamburg about half a day longer than Bremen. I definitely moved fast in this part of the trip, but a day or two is about enough to get a feel for each city, and I had far to go. Really, we were scheduled to be in Berlin by the 26th, so through northern Germany we just winged it.
The first night we checked into a 10 bed dorm in a pretty good hostel on the west side of the city. We met a few of our roommates, who happened to all be Australians. The first guy was a middle aged/old Aussie named Murray who apparently had been traveling for four years. I didn't pry, but I have no idea how somebody could travel around the world nonstop like that. And the other two Australians were doing their leap year, which is a year off between high school and college for travel. They tell me it's common to do there. Really, these people make me feel like a hermit.
We looked a bit into the Reeperbahn, which is Hamburg's red light district; it's not nearly as bad as Amsterdam's. Being a Monday night, the area wasn't crowded. We met some Swiss people and enjoyed spending a few hours at the Diskotech.
The next morning we tried to do the city justice. At around 11 am there was a 'free' walking tour (they expect you to tip at the end, but it's still a really good deal). Our tour guide was an American living in Hamburg who did a really excellent job.
The group being given an introduction by the tour guide (in red).
City Hall
This church has a beautiful organ, which we got to hear being played for a few minutes. Apparently, Bach had at one point wanted to move here an play this organ. However, the Hamburgers wanted to charge him to be able to use it. So, he went elsewhere...
This building was interesting; the little knobs each have guild coat of arms on them, resembling various trade guilds.
Shaped like a ship, honoring Hamburg's role as a port city.
Church of St. Nikolas, which has stood in ruins as a since the bombing of Hamburg in World War 2.
A view of the port
In the afternoon after the tour our guide recommended a nearby museum called Miniatur Wunderland. Basically, it's a museum filled to the brim with little scale models of real cities. At first I was skeptical since it wasn't exactly cheap. However, our Australian friends had heard really good things so we decided to check it out. It was definitely a good decision and was probably one of the best museums I went to all month.
There was an exhibition in the beginning of the museum, where they built a little model of a German town and, through eight stations, showed how the area would have changed over the past few thousand years.
The exhibition also had a timeline of the erection of the Berlin Wall.
A view above Checkpoint Charlie.
There were five booths they made with the input of different political parties in Germany, showing what they stand for.
Then we got into the main part of the museum. Here is the Switzerland zone, which spanned two floors. This is at the base of the mountains.
On the second floor, we reached the top of the Swiss Alps.
The museum also cycled between daytime and nighttime. Here in Bavaria, we are looking at Schloss Neuschwanstein. I didn't realize I would be visiting it twice!
The two Australians we met at the hostel and who had the excellent idea to come here.
Anders and I met a guy from Stuttgart named Ben who came along with us to the museum. I was surprised at first to find out he was German; he had been studying in Scottland and sounded like it when speaking in English.
The museum often had a lot of quirky 'Easter eggs' throughout it. Here, for example, is Big Foot.
In the American zone, we got a view of the Grand Canyon!
And here is Las Vegas at night.
Looking down the road at a bunch of cyclists crossing a bridge.
I'm going to attempt to upload a video onto the blog; hopefully it will work! They had a huge section dedicated to a miniature airport, with airplanes actually taxiing, taking off, and landing.
The museum also had a bunch of trains going everywhere. And, in the Swiss section, there was a chocolate producing factory. It actually took pieces of pre-made chocolate, wrapped it, and dispensed it for consumption at the push of a button! I definitely recommend visiting the Miniature Wonderland if you go to Hamburg and are really nerdy like myself.
I had heard about a free nightly fountain show in a nearby park. Anders, Ben, and I went over a little before 10 pm to check it out. A couple of people control the valves to the fountain and sync the water and the lights to music. They do it for a half an hour most weeknights and change the songs used every week or so.
The night we went they were playing jazz.
I also kept seeing these little buggies around Hamburg. They are like miniature Smart cars.
The next morning it was time to pack things up and catch a train. I feel that although we might have skimped on Bremen, we did get the most out of Hamburg. At long last, off to Berlin!
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