Addendum: Nordrhein-Westfalen and beyond…

I’m home now, sitting on my deck on this pleasantly warm early morning. The typical Australian summer suburban sounds swarm, magpies carolling and lorikeets chattering amongst other intermittent and other distant birdsong and the fuzzy buzzing of the crickets’ and cicadas’ crescendos. It is always good to return to home and with the disorienting jetlag and the almost sudden transposition of the body from midwinter to high summer it is where the reflecting on the travel can begin and I pursue a completion of the travel tales to be told.

The last four days of my German sojourn were full of trains and churches, rain and Charlemagne. It was like a 21st century reenactment of some late Roman or medieval ancestral tour, visiting the lands of forebears and gaining an understanding of the lie of the land, the prehistory and the effects of the conquests and industry on the people of that time. I imagined that some distant relative of whom I share some small pieces of DNA had struggled with the dark and treacherous weather of winter and imagined that one day they might live in a country where sun and warmth abounds… here I sit now, living that for them. So those thoughts then lead me to the oft present meandering contemplations of my connections to place and time…

We left Bielefeld in the morning much earlier than we had usually left the house, but still a reasonable time, to catch the train to Münster. We took the regional train which gives a different experience than the faster intercity trains. Sure it is slower but the pace enables a focus on what is happening outside the transport beyond just the destination (and its cheaper). At first I found the frequent horn blowing a bit startling until I got into the rhythm of it. On each approach to a railway crossing the driver would sound the horn once at a far distance then just on nearing the potential collision point. There were many railway crossings as the land we were traversing was flat and more densely populated than other farming and rural or semi-rural areas around. And although the trains are fairly frequent the numbers of people requiring access across the tracks do not constitute an economic benefit of an overpass. I did find it a little concerning when I noticed through the window to the train driver’s cabin that he was sitting with his arms folded above his head, semi-reclining while we were travelling along (“Look Mum, no hands”) and then also wondered how he was managing to toot the horn. Still we did make it to Münster in good time and Rosie hurried off to the university for her seminar and I wandered towards the Altstadt.

What a charming city Münster is! I loved the gabled building facades and the gallery walks (reminiscent of a previous visit to Bologna, Rosie and I concurred) as I pottered along the way towards one of the many churches. I stopped at one point to serendipitously observe the felling of the market square’s annual Christmas tree. It was quite the mission to bring down the large (probably 12 metres or more) conifer that had been placed there less than 2 months before. It was a real tree, not alive though, that had been placed in a hole that would have been well over one metre deep that at other times of the year was covered by some ornate manhole cover. Three men and one crane managed to get the job done over some minutes with some directions yelled to both crane driver and bystanders with nervous anticipation and deliberation. Some people like me found it interesting enough to stop and watch. Others just walked and cycled past continuing with their day’s plans. Later on in my city ramblings I saw the tree being towed in large pieces, bound for the sawmill no doubt, which was a fitting end to my “O Tannenbaum” story.

I walked along the edge of the city’s small river that was quaint and unexpected with willow trees languidly drooping bare branches. I am sure in the summer it is quite the place to be. I found old pubs from the 15th century still operational, a large tower guarding the entrance to the old city and, beyond, more functional Art Deco buildings with cool, in that retro way, bauhaus style features. I rambled back to the old city in time for the midday church bells, that became a kind of “dueling banjos” sort of effect as the many churches did their best to outdo each other. The peeling was hypnotically enthralling and only added to the charm of my time in Münster. Shortly after I met Rosie in the Domplatz (cathedral square) where there was a small organic market and here we had some typical German food minus the bratwurst. It was delicious and warming with shared tables under a tent.

After that we wandered through a part of the University, around some churches and walked onwards to the Schloss, a grand castle with a beautiful botanical garden out back. We spent some time there enjoying both the outdoor plantings and the greenhouses. So nice to just enjoy this without needing to pay a cent for entry – gratitude for the endeavours of the gardeners and the designers for making this available for the people. We made our way back to the Hauptbahnhof via a cafe, prepared for the next leg of our journey.

Our onward train trip to Aachen was punctuated with a connection in another city (I’ve forgot its name) where we felt very German as we stood waiting for our connection eating a felafel pocket and drinking a can of hefeweißen in the less-cold Hauptbahnhof (with no seating) ensuring we didn’t miss the train but were also fed and watered. This train journey was all in the dark as the sun sets so early in winter (though less early than when I arrived) which meant there were no scenes to enjoy out the windows but it ensured we arrived in Aachen in time to check in to our hostel at a reasonable hour. I stayed in as I had sore feet from all the walking I’d done in Münster in my less than appropriate boots and Rosie set off for some sightseeing and a kind of reconnaissance.

We had two nights in Aachen which gave us a full day of sightseeing, although the weather was schlecht. This led us to explore inside venues. We thoroughly enjoyed the museum where we could really get a sense of the importance of this city in the time of Charlemagne. He was quite the king and was in fact a Roman emperor towards the end of the Roman Empire. When I’d seen the picture on Wikipedia of his profile on a Roman coin I had thought he was not a very charismatic looking man (damn those profile pics) but the statues of him astride his horse with his full regalia of the time were much more befitting the great ruler he was. The museum was not only about Ye olde King Charles I it also had some good interactive displays and genuine treasures that could transport us back in time.

We had a ticket that also gave us entry to the Rathaus which I was keen to see inside after briefly visiting in the morning when the local crane company owner was getting married. We knew this because there were three cranes parked in front of the imposing building and the bride and groom and their children and other attendees were all gathered in the blustery weather awaiting their turn for their ceremony. As we had walked up the steps and stuck our heads in the building getting a bit of a gander at the sites beyond the barricades that required an entry ticket to go beyond, the horns of the cranes were weirdly blaring in celebration of the upcoming nuptials.

After seeking reprieve from the inclement weather in the museum, we returned to the Rathaus with our entry tickets and were able to take in all the beautiful elements of the master craftsmen’s work. Elegantly painted frescoes and vaulted ceilings, substantial timber doors leading to spaces for learned discussion, ceremony and democracy, parquetry floors and grand chandliers, and stone encased windows with views to the cathedral. The elaborate hall is still used for lauding the winner of the Charlemagne Prize which is awarded annually to someone (or something – strangely the €uro won in 2002) who is committed to achieving European unity. The local council still meets in the equally elaborate chambers.

I’ve had a fascination for doors, facades and other architectural and decorative details during this trip. And the Aachen Cathedral did not disappoint, and I can tell you that the mosaics on the ceiling were out of this world. I paid my one euro donation happily so that I could photograph some of them. But of course these photos do not complete the scene of a midwinter, on-dusk reprieve given within the Carolingian-Romanesque Palatine Chapel. This pre-dates other parts of the cathedral and was consecrated in 805 (mind blown!)

 

Days later…

Today is the last day of my annual leave. I managed to tack on 12 days of extra leave on returning from the northern hemisphere to have a “staycation” which has served me well in recovering from jetlag and adjusting to summer, and also to feel refreshed and ready for work. So now i have reached the point where I need to close the story of my German sojourn like i have reached the due date for an assignment.

After our second night in Aachen we went on by train across the border with Belgium to Liege. Somebody asked me if we had our passports checked, but I can confirm that this is not done. It’s weird to an Aussie that you cross into a new country and nobody knows. And how do you know you’re in a new country. But it dawns on you when you realise signs are now in French and when the waitress brings your coffee you need to see “merci” not “danke”.

Rosie had been to Liege before so she could be my tour guide (and translator again as she switched to her French). The weather was even worse with persistent rain but we were keen to make the most of our 24 hours there. We walked from the impressive central train station to the old city, along the river Meuse, through the Passage Lemonnier (an arcade reminiscent of the grand arcades of Brussels) towards the stairway of Montagne de Bueren. We did have a small detour as the sweet aroma of freshly cooked waffles drew us to the queue outside a Belgian patisserie. We just had to join the line and I enjoyed the view through the window during the wait and tolerated the rain to claim my prize of a freshly cooked, warm and sweet waffle.

This waffle clasped in my hand gave me the fortitude to climb the stairway, not to heaven (that was in my hands in the form of the waffle) but to a misty view of the city and the impressive monument celebrating the sacrifice of some many people during some defence of the city. There are houses lining the stairs and we watched a woman carrying her groceries up the steps and entering a gate about halfway up. I am sure that the climb can be a drag on hot days but I did get a sense of achievement and enjoyed the cute houses perched on the incline.

Other highlights of our time in Liege included a drink in a local bar/pub that was at least 400 years old, filled with the locals chatting away in their local tongue. And i should also mention the airbnb we had as another highlight as it was so central with great views of typical Belgian buildings and Liege sights.

We had a brisk walk back to the central station that was not brisk enough to make the train we intended to catch but the trains were quite frequent so no big deal. I used the time to people watch the comings and goings at the Centrale and Rosie strode off to sightsee an area that she hadn’t seen before. Then we boarded our train to begin our journey back to Bielefeld. We made use of a connection in Koln and spent an hour admiring the cathedral. It is famous and for good reason. And it provided a reprieve from the icy wind outside that was like needles on the skin. But at least the sun was shining.

Back on the train that took us through the industrial heart of Germany. The change in the economic circumstances and focus of the country has created an area that is floundering to reinvent itself. A similar theme is happening in other first world countries. We made it back to Bielefeld in the early evening and I could begin my preparations for the journey home.

The return to Australia is the tyranny of distance. A train trip to Berlin that had a number of delays (thanks Deutsche Bahn), a flight to Zurich for a connecting flight to Singapore, 4 hours exploring the airport there and then the last leg to Brisbane. I arrived to the close heat of summer and the vast blue sky announcing “home”.

So home I am, and I am so grateful to have had the “German sojourn” not so much to sightsee but more to spend time with family. I have a soft spot for Germany, and many German folk, as many of you know and will no doubt return one day.