A new discovery in Germany.....

Friday, September 02, 2016
Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
2016 September 2 – Friday

As I've mentioned before, it's often difficult to know how much detail to include as some parts will be interesting for some readers and boring for others . It takes me awhile to "get back in the groove" of Blogging every year and hopefully I can achieve a balance that will be interesting for all.

As anticipated, I didn't sleep well as I'm always afraid of sleeping through the alarm and missing my flight. I got up at 03:40, did a brief clean up and then went down to the lobby at about 03:55. As expected, the Taxi (which had been booked for 04:10) was already waiting.

There was no traffic so the trip to the airport took about 20 minutes and the bill was €27.50 but I rounded it up to €30.00. I used to work shift work so I know what it's like to have to be working at that time of the morning and I felt a bit extra was warranted (kind of a "shift differential" in a way).

I found the easyJet counter quickly and as usual there was a long queue at the bag drop for the regular passengers, and no one in line at the Speedy Boarding line.  It was all very "easy" .

I made my way through the "dog & pony" show of security (which was surprisingly moving quite quickly despite the growing number of passengers) and then down to Gate 19. By this time it was about 04:45. There was a small food stand near the gate but unfortunately they didn’t open until 05:00 so I had a short wait. I bought a Ham & Cheese Baguette, coffee, bag of chips and water and I was able to finish that before boarding started.

When going through the boarding gate, I asked the agent if passengers would be bused out to the plane, and he said, "no, your plane is right there". I could see it faintly through the thick fog that was enveloping the still-dark airport this morning.

It occurred to me that although flights at this time of the morning are not the most pleasant experience, there is a "silver lining". The airport is not as crowded, and all parts of the sometimes tedious process are quicker and easier .

When they announced that boarding for Speedy Boarding passengers, I was first in line. They directed the “premium” passengers to the left while the larger group of budget passengers went to the right. Within a few minutes, preferred passengers were led out to the ramp but stopped at a rope gate for a few minutes until the plane was ready. Once again I was extremely happy that I had decided to pay a few bucks extra and get the priority treatment. It may not be business class, but it sure makes things a lot easier, especially when tired at that time of the morning.

When the aircraft was ready, the agents pushed the pedestrian crossing light to turn it green and then led passengers to the plane. I was seated in 12F and was instructed to board on the rear stairway. I placed my Duffle in the overhead bin this time (usually like it under the seat where it's accessible) and it fit with no trouble (the aircraft was an A319/320) . The seat was quite comfortable and seemed wider than on the other aircraft, with lots of leg room.

The flight was very pleasant and took about 2.5 hours. Germany is one hour ahead of Portugal, so I crossed one time zone during the flight. I spent the time listening to music on my iPhone and napping a bit. This flight was surprisingly “easy” as flights go and one of the most pleasant I've had (another reminder on why easyJet is my preferred budget airline in Europe). On arrival at Basel EuroAirport, passengers were bused to the terminal using the ubiquitous kneeling buses.

The EuroAirport serves France, Switzerland and Germany and I believe the airport spans the borders so I wasn't sure which country I was in as I wandered around the airport. I don't know which country checked my Passport, but I suspect it was Germany. The stern looking and unsmiling officer asked a few questions and then handed my Passport back.

It took about 15 minutes or so before my pack appeared on the carousel . There was no hurry as my bus to Freiburg wouldn’t be leaving for awhile. There was a small snack bar close to the exit for the buses, so I bought more water, some excellent Tyrell’s crisps and a chicken baguette with a wonderful honey mustard sauce. As I was leaving the snack bar, I passed a group of four soldiers armed with the usual FAMAS assault rifles, which was a reminder of the current situation in Europe. Given the weapons, I must have been in the French sector at the time?

I had a wait of about an hour until my bus arrived. The bright green FlixBus wasn’t hard to spot and I bought my ticket from the driver for €19.90 (he already had a dime in his hand for change when I boarded, so was well prepared). The ride took about an hour through scenic countryside. In many ways it reminded me of the scenery along the 401 in B.C. between Chilliwack and Surrey, with small trees, vegetation and babbling brooks, interspersed with rolling fields of crops, including corn fields .

At one point on the motorway (freeway) the Bus passed an army and police checkpoint that had traffic stopped in the lanes going in the opposite direction. They had erected a standard zig-zag barrier,so vehicles couldn't drive straight through but had to weave around barriers at slow speed. I suspect they were looking for migrants as they seemed to be paying special attention to large trucks.

Freiburg has been described as the de facto capital of the Black Forest region. The city was founded in about 1120 by the dukes of Zähringen, and features their characteristic cross-shaped street layout. The economy was initially based on silver mines in the Black Forest. The city came under Hapsburg rule in 1368 and for four centuries it was part of Austria. The city's excellent University was founded in 1460. Modern Freiburg takes great pride in it's "green" and ecologically friendly lifestyle.

The bus dropped passengers at the Freiburg rail station and as usual there are Taxis waiting so I got the first one in line . At first the driver didn’t seem familiar with the location of Hotel Kreuzblume but asked another driver and got that quickly sorted. He wasn’t able to drop me right at the hotel as it’s located on a pedestrian street, but it was a short walk.

I was a bit confused when I entered the hotel as there was nothing but a hallway leading to the kitchen, and no reception area except for a small wooden desk on the left side. There didn’t seem to be any staff around so I rang the old fashioned school bell on the desk and lo and behold, a guy appeared from the kitchen. I asked where the front desk was and he said “this is it”, pointing to the small table.

It was about noon by this time, and he said that check in isn’t normally until about 15:00 but he said my room was ready so I would be able to access the room now (I thanked him for that, as I really needed a rest). I had room no. 7 which was on the second floor according to the elevator, which was conveniently right beside the door to my room .

The room was small but very modern and nicely appointed in a classic Euro style (the type of decor one would find at IKEA). The bathroom didn't have a regular shower enclosure, but rather the “wet bathroom” style with tiles from floor to ceiling and only a shower curtain. There’s no A/C in my room so I asked for a fan and a large oscillating floor model was provided and that sure made a difference! Although the weather is cooler here, the room was "stuffy" with no air movement at all, and I knew that I wouldn't be getting any sleep without some cooling.

I had a rest for an hour or so, charged some of my gadgets and then ventured out to do some exploring at about 17:30. Shortly after I left the hotel, the bells from the large Cathedral started to ring, and that was a good reminder that I was now in Germany. Of course the timbered decor of the buildings was a good indicator too. This part of the old city of Freiburg has small stone troughs running along the narrow streets, possibly left over from medieval times . These are called Bächle or brooks, and channel water from the River Dreisam into a subterranean canal that flows through the city for 15 km.

A few observations that I’ve noticed in Frieburg so far....

Ø  Many people seem to smoke here, which is most unpleasant. That was also the case in Portugal. What a gross and disgusting habit! The anti-smoking movement seems to be much further along in B.C.

Ø  When checking restaurants for dinner choices, there don’t seem to be any of them that provide English language menus. I’m finding it quite difficult to figure out what each of the items are, although Google Translate provides some help.

Ø  The part of Freiburg near the station appears to be more modern (including a Starbucks) but the area where my hotel is located is in an older part of town with the quintessential atmosphere of a small German town . This is a university town, and there seems to be lots of young people here.

Ø  In trying to use my iPhone to access data at dinner time, only the older and much slower EDGE system seemed to be available. Back at the hotel, 3G was indicated. Germany is apparently not as up-to-date as Portugal as I had solid LTE access there.

I eventually found a small restaurant inside a shopping mall (they had an outdoor patio as well, but that’s where the smokers were so I sat inside). They advertised home-made pasta and they had Bolognese on the menu so I ordered that. That was a safe choice as I couldn't figure out anything else on the Menu, which was all in German. The order took a long time to arrive, but it was good and a very large portion. I suspect the waiters got busy in the outdoor patio, and forget about the few people sitting inside. I also ordered a one of the excellent local white wines, and I'm going to enjoy trying the local wine specialties while I'm here .

After dinner I walked back to the hotel as I was starting to feel the effects of my long travel day. Many travellers only look at the flight time rather than the total door-to-door time when considering how long it will take to get from one place to another. In this case my flight was only about 2.5 hours but the total time from leaving the hotel in Porto to arriving at the hotel in Freiburg was about 8 hours.

It will sure be nice to get a full night’s sleep tonight. Breakfast doesn’t start until 08:00 so I can sleep in a bit longer tomorrow.

2016 September 3 – Saturday

As expected, the breakfast was again the standard European style with several types of cold meats, cheese, buns, bread (including the dark German bread), juices, yogurt and for a nice change, some hard boiled eggs. Each cup of coffee was made separately (I had three cups just to get started for the day) . I had a nice chat with a young couple from the San Francisco area who were sitting beside me.

After breakfast I asked the hotel owner about the Wi-Fi service, as it seemed to be a bit erratic. It seems to disconnect at times and this morning it kept showing only the login screen on my phone, and wouldn’t connect. It was working fine in the restaurant so I’ll monitor for the rest of the day and see if I can discover a pattern.

I don’t have a lot of of touring planned today, so I’m going to take the opportunity to have a relaxing start to the day, post a few entries on my Blog and check E-mail.

After I finished my chores, I headed out to explore the neighborhood and every street presented a new visual treat of old timbered buildings with ornate old fashioned Germanic writing. As I entered the square by the Cathedral, I was surprised to see a massive street market and it turned out that it covered both sides of the building . Many of the booths were selling fruits & vegetables, but there were also some trinket booths with various crafts and jewelry and as I was about to discover, some food as well.

The Freiburg Münster (Cathedral) was founded in about the year 1200, originally using romanesque style and later Gothic style. In 1827 the Freiburg Minster became the seat of the Archdiocese of Freiburg and therefore a Cathedral. A Swiss historian once stated that the 116 metre tower "will forever remain the most beautiful spire on earth". Miraculously the Cathedral survived bombing raids of November 1944 virtually intact, which was attributed to lead anchors which connect sections of the spire and thus help to absorb vibrations. There are 16 Bells in the tower (19 bells total, weighing 25 tonnes), and one of the oldest, Hosanna, dates back to 1258. The Freiburg Minster Upkeep Association invests several million Euro each year on maintenance and renovations of the building.

When I entered the Cathedral, I was greeted by a potpourri of delectable food odours which seemed to permeate every corner of the interior . I was almost tempted to forget the Cathedral and embark on a sampling of the tasty foods that I could imagine were waiting outside.   However, I restrained myself and took some time to have a good look around the massive and beautiful interior of the historic Frieburg Münster. I paid a small additional charge to visit the front of the church and choir area. As with similar Churches in Europe, it’s a massive building and the interior is about four stories high.

After my visit to the Church, I wandered outside and located the source of the wonderful odours. There were a number of small food stands and most were selling the classic German Bratwurst and similar items. I stopped at one and ordered what I think was a Bratwurst on a bun (with onions), along with a Fanta orange. They had several different types of meats on the grill, so I just asked for the most popular and "classic" German type. The hot dog was wonderful and that was quite adequate for lunch.

I explored a bit more and then went back to the hotel for my mid-afternoon rest . I seem to be pretty much over jet lag, but all the walking still makes me tired so I need to rest my aching back for a few hours.

I ventured out again at about 18:00 to get supper. In my trip planning, I had decided that I’ll dine at Vapiano tonight as it will be my only opportunity on this trip. I’ve dined at this chain on previous trips, and I was quite looking forward to it. Google Maps indicated that the restaurant was 850 metres from the hotel and that should be walkable in 10 minutes. I was very surprised to find that the estimate was right on! Of course that also means I'll have to cover the same distance back to the hotel, and that will be a good opportunity to burn off some of the pasta calories.

I decided to order the Spaghetti Aglio e Olio tonight rather than my usual Bolognese, along with a small mixed salad. My meal will be totally vegetarian tonight, which sometimes happens when I’m travelling. I told the Chef (Abdul) not to spare the garlic . It’s interesting to watch the food being prepared to order. The Chefs use a large frying pan which is like a Wok with a metal handle. Each order gets a new Wok, so they must go through a lot of them in a night. I told the Chef that I wouldn’t want to be the dishwasher! I was a bit annoyed that there was a queue at the salad station as by the time I got my salad order, the spaghetti was only lukewarm and starting to stick together.

One thing I hadn't noticed on previous visits to Vapiano, as that the tables have small square-shaped racks on topcentre. These house both condiments such as oil & vinegar, etc. but there are also small pots with live plants of Basil and similar spices. I'm assuming that if a diner wants an extra sprig of Basil to go with their meal, they just pluck a leaf from one of the plants. It doesn't get any fresher than that!

After supper I got my usual two cups of coffee at the bar, and had a nice chat with the young girl working there . She had lived in San Diego for a year as an exchange student, so her English was excellent. A number of the staff at Vapiano (and other people that I’ve encountered today) have asked where I’m from. I gather they don’t see too many people from Canada. When I first entered the restaurant at about 19:00, it was virtually empty. By the time I left it was almost full. As with other places in Europe, they seem to dine late here.

It was almost dark when I walked back to the hotel, and by this time most of the restaurants were at peak levels, with sidewalk tables full and lots of activity. I passed several Kebab places and also a Turkish Barber (still open and cutting hair), so there seems to be some middle-eastern presence here.

Once back at the hotel, I checked E-mail and updated my trip diary. I may try the hotel restaurant tomorrow, if I can figure out what the various items on the menu are. That will be it for today.

2016 September 4 – Sunday

I went for breakfast at about 08:15, and found a woman working there this morning instead of the person I've been dealing with so far . She’s the wife of the guy that was working yesterday, and her English is excellent!

I had my usual European breakfast selection and of course three cups of coffee to get the day started. I had a relaxing breakfast and then went back to the room to check E-mail and so on. As I was leaving the breakfast room, I asked about some of the sights in Freiburg and the woman provided a detailed map and some suggestions.

I also asked whether they had an English language dinner menu, and she printed out a copy, however I noticed a few errors on it. Sometimes details are “lost in translation” when the translation is done by non-native English speakers. I made some suggestions and dropped that off before heading out touring.

The weather is supposed to be overcast and raining today, so I didn’t go out touring until after noon. Although I was getting a bit hungry, I decided to tour the Augustiner Museum first and then have lunch . I paid the admission charge and started on the top floor, as they suggested.

The Augustiner Museum is located in the former Augustinian Monastery, which was rebuilt between1914 and 1923. It has been undergoing extensive renovations for the last few years,which were started in 2004. The displays seem to consist of a lot of religious items including beautifully displayed stained glass church windows, religious statues and lots of art work. I didn’t recognize any of the artists, but some of the paintings were excellent with very beautiful and dramatic lighting, almost like a photo.

I spent an hour or two looking through the museum and then went to the small cafe across the street for a much needed lunch. They had ham & cheese sandwiches on the menu and that looked like a perfect choice. I was surprised to find that the sandwich was prepared like a Panino in a grill, which I hadn’t expected.

After lunch I started back to the hotel and discovered an ATM on the way so I tried to replenish my cash supply. Unfortunately the machine said that my bank “declined” the withdrawal, so I carried on. I did another search for ATM’s from the vicinity of the hotel and found another one within about a five minute walk. This one was up by the Mexican restaurant that I had passed last night on the way to Vapiano, but even with Google Maps I couldn’t seem to find it, although I knew I was close.

As it happened, I stopped to talk to a group of travellers from an AMA Waterways river cruise that had just stepped off a large bus. I mentioned I was looking for an ATM and the guy I was speaking with said, “there’s one right there”. I don’t know why I didn’t see it? However I still wasn’t able to get any cash as the stupid machine said that I was “above my bank’s withdrawal limit”. I was only trying to get €100 so can’t go much lower than that. I’ll try my backup card later tonight and if that doesn’t work, I’ll phone the credit union tomorrow to find out what the problem is. It may just be that the data links are down for maintenance right now, as I've had that happen before.

At about 18:30, I made the short walk back to the Postbank ATM.  By this time I had the route memorized and it was only a brisk five minutes or so from the hotel. Unfortunately it was now raining steadily so it was necessary to retrieve my Umbrella from my pack. This time the ATM worked perfectly first time, so my suspicion about the international data links being down for overnight maintenance is probably correct (although I had two backup cards ready, just “in case”). On the walk back to the hotel, I noticed a group of younger people sitting in a small square under the trees, just “hanging out”. I wasn’t able to figure out why they would be sitting there in the rain, but perhaps they’re homeless or transients?

Back at the hotel, I went straight to the warm and cozy restaurant for supper. There were only four other people there, but a few more arrived later, including one guy that was wearing a suit & tie. I decided to order the Basilicum Risotto with tomatoes (another vegetarian meal tonight) along with some local white wine (“Herr Doctor”) and it was excellent! The taste of Pesto seems to linger for awhile after dinner so I’ll probably be enjoying the meal for a few hours.

  By the time I got back to my room, it was about 20:30 so after some computer time, that will be it for tonight. On to Lucerne in the morning!


Comments

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2016-09-04

I heard all canadian people are living off-grid and cant afford electricity? Is this true? I dont know anything about canada except that its very large, lots of nature (bears), they play ice hockey (lol) and its a 2nd world country (they have to live in log houses lol? cant afford bricks...). And most annoying, french is spoken over there (ugly fa9 language)

2025-02-10

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