This blogger hearts the Deutsche Bahn. Photo (cc) flickr user Train Chartering and Private Rail Cars

Everyone in Germany, it seems, likes to complain about the trains.  A train will be five, ten minutes late, and you know that at least a dozen people somewhere are muttering (loudly) under their breath about how intolerably unreliable the Deutsche Bahn is.  But I am an American, and frankly, the tendency to be disappointed in the state of the German public transportation system is a cultural tick that I will never understand.  The people grumbling about the delays have obviously never ridden Amtrak or Greyhound.

Vineyards in Rüdesheim am Rhein, photo courtesy of the author

This short and sweet lived journey through Germany was to be my catharsis from leidenschaft or passion.  Instead, it became the journey of a bond with dear friends and with a country, both of which have left a lasting imprint on my soul.  For a woman that does everything with passion, I was intent on seeing Germany, with the absence of passion, through the eyes of a local.  And yet, much to my pleasure, I saw the country in the most passionate and ecstatic way possible.  My most intimate moments in Germany were experienced in the small town of Rudesheim am Rhein.  And these moments were made complete by combining the idiosyncrasies of a writer, a chef, and a dog.

Photo (c) Resident on Earth

Aachen was an important city in Germany in the Middle Ages, and is where the kings of Germany were crowned. It was Charlemagne’s favorite place to be, and undoubtedly his mark is felt on the city.

I really enjoyed our visit to Aachen–at just this time last year. The Mann lived there when doing graduate work, so he was able to show me around. I thought the city had a really nice vibe and feel to it. It felt low-key, and yet it had that energetic “university town” element to it. We talked a lot about how livable it feels.

Arriving in Frankfurt by ICE train. Photo (cc) flckr user K_Gradinger

After finishing my studies, Germany was just a stepping stone for me to do internship and thereafter head to my destination USA for higher studies. At that moment, I was unaware of the fact that soon Germany was going to give me almost everything that I desired. It enriched every spectrum of my life—be it spiritual, physical, or financial. It would be like a fairy tale. Don’t get me wrong, I am not talking about the ecstasy of being successful, but instead of euphoria of enjoying a natural gift called LIFE thoroughly. Perhaps, I would have never been able to understand the balanced importance of life if I had never been to Germany.

The Kölner Dom: Hard to fit in one photo. Photo (c) Resident on Earth

One day last May as we were zipping along the Autobahn at light speed, we decided to make an impromptu stop in Köln (Cologne) to see its impressive and famous cathedral, the Kölner Dom. So we zipped in, saw it, and zipped out.

And impressive it is, to say the least. I craned my head back, looked up at it, and said, “Mein Gott!” It was hard to even fit the whole front facade into one photo. The cathedral is one of the world’s largest churches, and is the largest gothic church in northern Europe. With its enormous twin spires, it boasts the largest facade of any church in the world. Construction on the cathedral began in 1248, and building continued intermittently until its completion in 1880. It seems the cathedral is continually under some kind of renovation/restoration…always.  The Mann says this is the Sagrada Familia of German building projects.

Photo (c) Resident on Earth

One Sunday last June, despite the fact that we were monstrously tired and the weather was rainyish, we trekked all the way out to Gelnhausen for their medieval festival. Of course it was only marginally historical, but still, rather fun.

This is where Germans love to dress up in spectacularly bad costumes and act all medievally by laboring with crude materials and standing around smoky fire pits cooking food that went out of style for a reason. At one food stall they were actually roasting a pig’s head – yes, a pig’s head, and some tourist was eagerly kneeling before the fire with his crude wooden plate outstretched and waiting for the medieval impersonator to carve off some meat.

Photo (c) Resident on Earth

The first time I was in Berlin, I left the city in the hush of the early morning hours. I awoke at the ungodly hour of 4 AM, slipped into a taxi, and sleepily watched the streets in the morning darkness on the way to the airport. Berlin was at the tail end of my first trip to Europe, and I didn’t want to go home. I felt my heart was being pulled out of me as I rode in that dark taxi speeding towards the airport. I had completely fallen in love with Europe.