Today the town of Freiburg was ours to explore, we are staying at The Schartzwalder Hof in a pedestrian area of the old town. You are allowed to drive in these areas if you are a resident or staying at a hotel. We unloaded our bags and went and parked the car at the local parking garage 100 metres away. Hotel guests also get cheap overnight parking at these garages. We have a nice small balcony again which is always a bonus for an afternoon vino.
We were staying in a separate annex of the hotel which was across the road from the main building. The road we were on was charming, it was cobbled and had grape vines growing up the buildings and over the top of the road, there was a water trough/well outside our building and all of the gutters in Freiburg are a little channel of running water.
Freiburg is a University town and has 230,000 residents, it is situated in the Black Forest and has a really pretty old town all wrapped around and radiating from, like every town with a medieval heritage, its Munster, or church.
It was market day today and stalls were set up in the church square, it was lively and colourful, the church itself is red brick and cafes and bars line the perimeter, chairs and tables were out and everyone was already enjoying the early morning sun.
There were more people drinking beer at 10.00am then there was drinking coffee!
Rosie had a coffee and another slice of Schwartzwalder Kirschtorte…still delicious. The Operator went native and tried to pry a bite of cake off me, not sharing it, sorry.
We wandered around to the Rathaus (townhall) and picked up a wee map of the area, the lad was most helpful and showed us sights just off the beaten track we might like to visit. This square was another popular one with a big huge walnut tree in the center giving some nice shade.
We walked through the shopping areas, they have so much good shopping here! Then past the university buildings and through a set of the town walls, this led us round the corner to the Fisherau. An area of town where the tradesmen used to live, it has its own little canal and looked quite cute.
Freiburg is big on biking, as is the rest of the country, cycle lanes wind everywhere and you can hear them jiggling on the cobble stones before you see them in the pedestrian areas. This was the first town we had encountered so far in the whole of Germany with heaps of graffiti everywhere..it was a real shame, the buggers had even tagged alot of the the monuments and side of the church. Bloody hooligans.
Walking around the town were these brass cobbles set into the footpath every now and then. I am not sure but I think the inscriptions say it all…memorials to the Jews that were taken from their homes in the war. It seemed like the plaques were placed outside their homes.
The day was beautiful, blue sky and it had warmed up to a brilliant 23c, Rosie and The Operator climbed the tower of the Munster…it was under renovation and we could only get the old 180 degree view but it was nice. Amazing to see how big the town is in reality, as a tourist we only hang in the old part.
Mid afternoon we had seen everything we wanted too, we headed home with a bread roll and a bottle of wine to enjoy on our wee deck. When we got home the furniture had disappeared from out deck! It was there this morning, when we got home it was gone. Rosie looked up, an old lady above us was smugly looking down on our empty balcony as she was sitting on what looked like our furniture….NO WAY, The Operator was nominated by Rosie to fix the situation.
Off he went to reception and didnt come back…and didnt come back…next thing Rosie hears clattering and banging and voices speaking loud German in the hallway… a kurt knock brings Rosie to the door. Three people are standing there each holding a piece of outdoor furniture. They apologize and bustle around resetting up the balcony for my afternoonsies. When they have gone, The Operator comes back through the door…he was waiting till they had left cause he felt stink asking for the furniture. They told him they were replacing the furniture with new stuff…when? said The Operator, we want to sit on them now…that was how the bustle started.
Still, we totally enjoyed the afternoon in the sun, even when the cork from our bottle of Henkell Trocken blew off the table and fell 3 stories to a courtyard below…nooooo Rosie is collecting those corks…we retrieved it later when we went out for tea to a lovely Italian.
Tomorrow is another big driving day, we leave Germany and head back into France. Driving for five and a half hours we are staying overnight in the Avergne region at Chateaux Maulmont…Rosie has been looking forward to her Chateaux stay….
Rosie is a Middle Aged Kiwi who is about to embark on a twelve month adventure of a lifetime, travelling The World with her trusty, loyal sidekick The Operator. In search of adventure, culture, new taste experiences and world wide 'happy hours', Rosie's journals chronicle their travels and experiences.
Rosie had a lightbulb moment. Within that flash of clarity came the realisation that time was spinning out of control and passing her by. So, armed with the confidence, means, ability and a new found passion for life, Rosie and her trusty, loyal sidekick The Operator have devised THE PLAN.
ROSIE – Continually travels The World for the next 12 months.
THE OPERATOR – Works his 28 day roster and meets Rosie somewhere in The World to explore the area together for his 28 days off. Repeat x6.
ROSIE – Will then stay in one spot of the country they have been exploring for 28 days of local immersion whilst The Operator returns to work.
THE OPERATOR – Certainly has the shorter end of the stick xxx
Join me as I journal my middle aged musings on our day to day travels, culture, food and the quest for the ultimate world wide happy hour.
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