Germany has a special place in my heart. I visited it for the first time when I was 24. You might think that it took me long to get there, but I always say that it’s better late than never.
It was my very first business trip and we traveled with a minibus from our office in Prague to our manufacturing plant in Germany. I was so excited as I hadn’t visited such a site before! When we arrived, we received many instructions because we were about to enter a sterile environment. Then we were told to put on special suits and protective glasses (something similar to the suits that doctors wear during the pandemic times). We looked hilarious and we had so much fun in the changing room. I was trying to find some pictures, but I must have lost them when I left the company.
When we entered the production area it was like we were in a sci-fi movie. All people were dressed like this, there were tubes, pipes, steam, strange looking liquids and lots of various equipment. The assembly line was running, so we didn’t get a chance to talk to the workers as they were too busy, but we had our guide who proudly explained to us what they were doing. It was a great day as I finally got to see how those products were made. If you work in finance, you’re lucky if you ever get to see that.
After the excursion we went to the town for lunch, and I still remember how I was feeling. I saw people in traditional clothes (dirndl and lederhosen) which was cool! It must have been some sort of a local celebration going on there as I don’t think that so many people normally dress like this. Also, the architecture of old towns in Germany is different to what we have in Slovakia and I loved it. And at that moment I knew that I would have to come more often and explore this country (not for food though as German food is not my favorite). Who would have known at that time that I would eventually move to the north of Switzerland, 10 minutes from the German border?
Hohentwiel
Satzvey
Trier
Cochem
Meersburg
Eltz
I don’t even know how many times I have already visited Germany. It is so close to my current home that it doesn’t even feel like traveling when I go there. I visited many cities, castles, mountains and attended various events across Germany. I have visited places in all 16 states, and I can say that each of them has something special what you would not find in the other ones. I like them all, but *Baden-Württemberg, Bayern and Rheinland- Pfalz( are my favorite states. Even though those are my favorite states, my favorite city in Germany would be Berlin.
When I went there for the first time, I didn’t know what to expect. I don’t feel well in big cities as there are too many people, everything happens so fast and nobody pays you any attention (yes, I like some sort of anonymity, but I also enjoy people greeting me in the morning when I walk to the office). We took the earliest flight possible and arrived in Berlin at 7 AM in the morning ready for the next 3 days. And let me tell you that it was not enough! We needed much more time to explore this fascinating city.
I was surprised to see that you can easily reach everything by bike. This makes exploring of a big city much more enjoyable as you can avoid public transportation and soak up the atmosphere. But at the beginning we didn’t use bikes and walked all day. We were not so sure about the routes and preferred to understand how it all works before hopping on the bikes. I still remember how much my legs hurt in the evening, but it was worth it. We saw all important touristic sites and also managed to spend some time in the Tiergarten with just a few local people.
We went there at the beginning of July for my birthday and I was expecting that there would be too many tourists, but it was ok. There were quite a few but it was not as bad as I expected. We were able to get all our table reservations that we wanted, and this is what mattered to us 🙂
Berlin is one big city with many foreigners and expats. There are restaurants and bars where you will be approached in English and I must admit that we didn’t hear that much German during our trip. It’s a multicultural and liberal place. It doesn’t matter where you’re coming from or what is the colour of your skin, you do feel well and accepted. Berliners are well aware of their past crimes and don’t try to hide them. The past happened but they are looking into the present and the future. They make you feel welcome and free. You see memorials in countless places across the city, and there are many museums and exhibitions from the war, but the modern Berlin is totally different to what it used to be. But I guess that you need to visit it to see it for yourself.
We stayed at a hotel next to the Tiergarten which was a great starting point for our excursions. We wanted to stay out of the city center to have quiet nights, but I think that there is nothing like quiet nights in Berlin :) We had a few great but tiring days there and we keep coming back. There is still so much for us to see, not only in Berlin but in other cities close to it. I hope that the travel will get back to what it used to be soon, and I will be able to go there again. My birthday is coming soon so it will probably be for another occasion this year.
Thank you for reading!
Cheers!
Martina
Twitter link:
Beautiful architecture around every corner, the city not having high rise buildings make the city not feel too bad.
Great photography taken from trips to lovely places in your region.
@tipu curate
Thank you, Joan! It's so nice to have you stop by! :)
Hope you're doing well!
One day at a time down here, otherwise all well. Thoroughly enjoyed seeing your post again, been some time after moving from the old to new!
Have a wonderful weekend, hopefully you will be visiting in Germany again soon.
Wow, ty hrady jsou fakt nádherné :) Takové tajemné...
Whenever I see photographs of Germany I am filled with curiosity. One day I will visit Germany!
Hug from Portugal🙏
Germany has such a rich history, it must be really a wonderful experience to visit these places. I don't think I would enjoy as much Berlin, but the other regions you visited look so beautiful.
I loved the photo of Hohentwiel, it's so fascinating the nature taking over the ruins, really inspiring.