Tagged: amusement park

1 This was the first time (also the last till date ) I had the chance to travel in Germany’s fastest (and potentially the fastest in the world according to my German collegues atleast) train – the InterCity Express or simply the ‘ICE’. It was a good experience, that much speed on land was new (though not any more). The interior decos were interesting too, I especially loved the bord-bistro, though I chose not to dine since prices weren’t too catchy for my pocket

Once in Hildesheim, I was treated to some great Indian food prepared by the one and only Anu, and surprise surprise I got an early birthday party complete with a cake, candles reminding me I’m turning old (grunt!) and even a few Germans . It was a major surprise for me and I loved it! After the mini birthday party we went for a fair in closeby Hannover. We were a very unique gang that day, friends representing 4 countries – India, Germany, Turkey and Romania.. truly international. Everybody was discussing our (the Indians’) age and how we can be so young and working.. hehe.. and I thought I was growing old.. That was a relief! It was great fun and we spend a lot of time chit chatting in the banks of Mach see, having been denied access to the ‘Pepermint dome’ because our clothing was too informal. Boo!

2 I had told Anu that next time I will come driving and she was like no way that is possible. Well it was possible and it was done This time we had the full troupe for the trip and not just me. Ginu, Renu, Sandeep and I, geared up from in front of Bosch Plochingen on a Friday evening at around 1630hrs for the stated 5 hour drive to Hildesheim. 1.5 hrs of the stated 5 hrs was lost in the traffic of Stuttgart. It was a tense but good experience for me, since I had not driven much ‘on the wrong side’ in the cities of Germany. Anyway the stated 5hrs extended to nearly 8 and we finally managed to reach Hildesheim by midnight after also getting my first speeding ticket It was a long drive, but with undampened spirits we held on till around 3 am in the morning watching some great Mallu comedy clips

The highlight of Saturday was a trip to an amusement park – Heide park – in a small town called Soltau some 100 km away from Hildesheim. The rides were brilliant and the best thing was since it was during off-season we did not have to endure the long queues we had to wait in while we had gone to Europa park. There were some great rides I would recommend any day, especially the biggest wooden frame roller coaster in the world. By night fall we were back, but this time there wasn’t enough energy left for the marathon all night film screenings and so we all had a nice good sleep. Sunday was spend experiencing Ms. Ann Mary Philip’s cooking. We were all good food testers I believe and the quality of food meant that we were all filled up by the time it was time to leave. We also made a short visit to the Hildesheim church and spend a few minutes in the serenity of the cathedral.

3 Two weeks later and we were back. Again in the car, with more drivers, with more experience and no speeding ticket this time, but anyhow managed to get a parking ticket – punishment for a slight lapse of memory Saturday we went again to Hannover. Mach see was so different this time, I couldn’t count more than 5 people in the whole area. Last time I was there, there was no place to even turn around without bumping on to some one. Anyway we spend some more time there and was back at home by evening. Mach see seems to have some uncanny relationship with birthday surprises. Since even this time there was not one, but two surprise parties – one for our hostess Anu and one for Renu, each being planned by one another and we three being the common factor. We pulled it off fine and I think they were not acting surprised That was good too. Two more surprises well done in Hildesheim.

The highlight of the trip was yet to come. And that would be a surprise even for you, my good friend – Kappa (tappiocca) and beef fry – Kerala style in Germany! Wow.. that was the tastiest food I have had in ages. Serious and I am not writing this because I know Anu will read this sooner or later but it indeed was… incredible!

Three incredible weekends in the quiet sleepy town of Hildesheim. All credits to Frau. Philip aka Anu for making it all so unforgettable. This post is dedicated to you, Anu..

The story of my first trip in Germany, to the beautiful Black Forest.. Schwarzwald!

We began from Stuttgart early in the morning. The train journey was a bit long, but fun since I was able to catch up with my friend Anu after a long time. Chit-chatted for long and surprisingly didn’t want the train journey to end! Our first destination was Freiburg, the biggest town in Black Forest. There we were received by Juergen, Ann’s collegue. There began the royal German hospitality.

He showed us around the town of Freiburg, its canals, churches and marketplatz. One interesting thing there was the shallow narrow canals all across the city streets. Juergen explained that these were from the trading days of Freiburg when they were used by the cows and donkeys of the merchants to quench their thirst. And what if you fall down on one of these? Well you have to marry someone from Freiburg! So had to be a little careful all the while.

The main attraction was of course the Münster, the big cathedral at Freiburg. There was a mass going on, so we unfortunately couldn’t enter. But we did climb all the way up to the top of the tower. It was an amazing view from up there. Shouldn’t be missed! So after the tiring climb up all the stairs, we did another round of climbing up a hill and thankfully the destination was a restaurant on top of the hill. There had some food and we were down again.

Next destination – Titisee. There was a small lake there and we decided to take a boat and row. I soon found out that it was not as easy as it looks. But thankfully Juergen seemed to have excellent rowing skills. So he did most of the rowing. It was fun though and right at the time when I was getting the knack of it, it was time to leave hmm. After that we had a round of the ‘Schwarzwalder Torte’ – the original Black Forest cake. Honestly it didn’t live up to all the hype. Hmm. I think I liked the ‘duplicate’ ones we get in India better

After that it was time for the cuckoo clocks, I mean hundreds of them. Both my friends wanted one, so we spend some time at the shop listening to the descriptions given by the salesman who spoke English like a carnival announcer. To my shock he even gave us an address in India, where we could repair it if at all it stops working (which he says will never happen). Anyways didn’t convince me to buy one. But he did do good business, he sold 3 of them to Anu and Priya.

Done with that, Juergen drove us down through the B500 or the Schwarzwald Hochstrasse to Triberg. It was one of the most scenic roads I have ever travelled, probably the only one that can beat my favourite drive to Munnar in Kerala. We stopped at the Triberg falls, supposed to be Germany’s highest waterfalls. Was a bit disappointed, it didn’t seem that hight at all. But the atmosphere around was excellent! Triberg also boasts the world’s largest cuckoo clock. But it didn’t really give me much thrills either.

By this time the sun was coming down and we drove back to Freiburg to Juergen’s village. We had dinner at a nice German restaurant. It was very good, contrary to my expectations. I was told too many horror stories about German food, but this one was very good. With that we ended the day and slept peacefully after a nice tryst with Schwarzwald.

Next day was very different and far away from nature. We went to Europa Park, advertised as Germany’s biggest amusement parks. I haven’t been to many such parks, but this one was the best among all I have visited. The ‘Silver Star’ is an amazing roller coaster, one you should not miss! So was ‘Eurosat’, ‘The Eis Show’ and ‘The Spanish Arena’. All in all had a fun time there.

Day ended with a boring ride from Karlsruhe to Stuttgart, all alone since all my friends had left for their abodes at Hildesheim. Would be eternally grateful to Juergen for making the whole trip special! Hope one day I can return the favour when I can play the host in India

Schwarzwald is a very beautiful place that you should really visit if you get a chance. The nearest airport is Karslruhe and there is excellent connectivity by rail provided by the Deutsche Bahn. But the best way to enjoy would be to drive with a car.

I will definitely be back for more!

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