Friday 27 January 2017

Europe diary 2016: Germany- where history and technology reside in harmony


                                       
The famous cathedral of Cologne


From Luxembourg we headed towards Germany.  The term technology has an inherent relation with Germany. Having over 2 millenium of history Germany still stands as one of the greatest tourist attraction for entertainment.  We were taken to Trier which was our first halt.

                                           
House of Karl Marx in Trier
                                             

Trier is a beautiful city situated on the banks of Moselle River.  It’s a place of historic buildings. While passing the beautiful roads we saw some landmarks like Palace of Trier and the Cathedral of Trier.

We came to a very interesting place- birth place of Karl Marx. His native home is now a museum. It’s maintained by the Government and displayed for public interest. The father of socialism and communalism was born in this house in 1818. After the Nazi party came into power in 1933 the house was turned to a printing house. It took 10 Euros per person to pay a visit inside the museum. We enjoyed the visit as it was not very crowded.

         
Porta Nigra - the medieval gateway to city

One of the greatest attractions of Trier city is the Porta Nigra. Derived from the Latin word which means black gate, porta nigra stands as an emblem of the powerful Roman Empire. Built with grey sand stone between 186 and 200 AD this used to serve as the entrance to the town. Our guide told that Napoleon ordered reconstruction of the Porta nigra and thereafter the black color was retained.
Then we proceeded towards another German city – Bonn. It’s famous for the university. We visited the house of the famous musical enigma- Ludwig van Beethoven. We visited the house which is .preserved as a museum. The entry fees were 5 Euros per person.

                                              
University of Bonn- an exclusive learning center
                                                
We had some time and took a stroll around Bonn. A beautiful city and tidy roads and road side restaurants proved to be quite inviting to us for a glass of wine. The city more than 2000 year old proved to be one which offers the best ambience to tourists far as his interest to dining and photography are concerned. The city can offer your accommodation starting from 55 Euros a night to even 3000 Euros. But our tour operator booked a 4 start hotel for us and we had a very comfortable stay.

                   

         
Pipes sold at market

Fresh fruits






                                                                






The road way being very accessible we headed towards another city Koblenz. An ancient city situated at the confluence of the Moselle and the Rhine River stole our hearts for the vivacious environment it offers.  We were suggested to take a stroll along the banks of Rhine river but we were offered a great German lunch at a traditional restaurant. The tour operator booked our seats quite in advance so that we don’t have to wait for long but carry with our rest of the journey. We had a view at the Koblenz cable car.

                               
Traditional German lunch


The lunch was truly sumptuous. We ordered beef with mushroom gravy, potato chips and the traditional red wine.  Just after the lunch we headed to have an experience of the Rhine cruise. The weather was sunny and the temperature sore up but nothing could restrict us from having the deck view of the German countryside. 


                             
View of the country side from the deck of cruise on Rhine river

We could see various cathedrals and houses. We viewed the Ehrenbrestrein fortress.  It’s a land of casinos and beer gardens. The city hosts various festivals at different times of the calendar year which attracts a lot of tourists.  The cruise was wonderful experience. We thanked the crew for a great service.

             
Young talents entertaining audience near the cathedral



Then we headed towards Cologne. It’s another 2000 year old city spanning across the river Rhine famous for the cologne cathedral, a twin tower signifying the gothic architecture of medieval Europe. We stopped near the cathedral and took some snaps. The term cologne comes from this city might have originated from here.


                          
Ludwig museum preserves some rare arts 


We headed to see the Ludwig museum which boasts to showcase some of the greatest 20th century arts by Picasso and signifies the romano-germanic influence. Something that attracted me was a wall with bullet scars in it. It’s the wall of Berlin that was taken down by angry protesters. The fall of the wall of Berlin marks the end of East and West Germany and the term Germany, a unified nation comes to the picture that signifies strength and unity. I touched the wall to feel the history attached to it.

Berlin wall remains on display
Touching part of history on the wall
                             
                                                             

At last we were dropped to a 4 start hotel in Frankfurt. The modern business capital of Germany, Frankfurt boasts to be the head quarter of various multi nationals today.

                         
The busy market center of Frankfurt

It has history; it experienced tough time and one of the worst chapters of history. It witnessed some brutal torture to mankind which is remembered even today. It has sheltered and produced one of the best brains in technology thereby making the world best and luxurious cars. It’s got one of the best universities and centre of learning for various scholars. I loved Germany and the various shades of life it has to offer. It’s too short a time to explore the country and its picturesque beauty. I wish I could again come to Germany and explore its treasured assets.







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