The Passenger ⋆ Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.

July 31, 2022August 2, 2022

Ederseebahn

I always enjoy riding my bike on old converted railway tracks: the inclination is limited, the infrastructure is often good, many tunnels and bridges are found on the way and you can typically discover remains of past railway times. One of these converted tracks can be found close to the Edersee in Northern Hesse: Between 1884 and 1917 a railway track was opened linking Wabern (Hesse) and Brilon-Wald (North Rhine-Westphalia). While the routes from Wabern to Bad Wildungen and from Korbach to Brilon-Wald are still in operation and served every two hours, the middle section from Korbach to Wega is out of service.

July 30, 2022August 12, 2022

Zissel

The inhabitants of Kassel like to party and after 2.5 years of pandemic limitations it was time again for the biggest party, the Zissel. It is unclear were this name comes from but the best guess is that it originates in the Low German language where it means something like to spend money for having fun. The Zissel is celebrated since 1926 and always happens on the first weekend of August from Friday to Monday. It starts with attaching the Zisselhäring (a large herring) to the Rondell on Friday and ends with removing and releasing the herring to the water on Monday evening.

July 20, 2022August 12, 2022

Bahnhofslichtspiele

The railway station of Kassel is a place that many people pass by, but it is also the Kulturbahnhof; a location to spend time at with bars, the Caricatura and also a cinema. When you pass through the main hall of the railway station you’ll see the entrance to the BALi, which is the abbreviation for Bahnhofslichtspiele. I came here for a show of three editors-in-chief of the famous German satirical newspaper Titanic: Oliver Maria Schmitt, Thomas Gsella and Martin Sonneborn.

July 3, 2022July 6, 2022

Forum Wissen

The university of Göttingen has a wide range of scientific collections. Most of them are open to the public, but they’re distributed throughout the city and only accessible in very limited time frames. Therefore most inhabitants don’t know the treasures stored in the city. This changes with the Forum Wissen which was opened in 2022. It serves as a portal to these collections and presents important items at a central and well-accessible place.

June 26, 2022June 27, 2022

Wasserspiele

The highlight of the Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe at Kassel are the historic water features or water games. To show their power, the landgraves were even taming the elements and in this case controlling water: behind the Herkules monument, water is collected in large basins. At dedicated points in time it is floating down the hill without any electricity, creating sounds and fountains. This event happens every Wednesday, Sunday and on public holidays from May 1st to October 3rd.

June 21, 2022July 3, 2022

documenta fifteen

The fifteenth version of the contemporary art exhibition documenta happens in Kassel from June 18th to September 25th, 2022. It is curated by ruangrupa, an Indonesian artist collective that applies the principle of lumbung, the Indonesian tradition of a collectively used rice barn.

June 10, 2022June 16, 2022

Wo es beginnt

The COVID-19 pandemic created a special situation: for more than two and a half years concerts were shifted continuously into the future. We were always believing that next year everything will be fine and in addition to the concert tickets I had already bought I acquired new ones. In 2022 when everyone had the chance to get vaccinated and many people had already infected with variants of the virus that were at least less harmful, large concerts were possible again. And my calendar was full with concerts; starting with a performance of Madsen at the Stadionsporthalle of Hannover.

June 5, 2022June 10, 2022

Parc de Merl

If you want to get out of the touristy areas of Lëtzebuerg and dive into ordinary everyday life you can turn towards the West and visit the city quarters Hollerich and Bel Air. At their border you’ll find the Parc de Merl which feels like the center of this residential zone.

June 5, 2022June 15, 2022

Villa Vauban

Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban was a French general and an expert in fortification building. He was responsible for many fortresses and fortifications in the French-speaking world and also created a fortress in Luxembourg. As a result of the London Conference of 1867 the fortification of Lëtzebuerg was removed and on the grounds of the former fortress built by Vauban a villa was created in 1873. As the rest of the fortifications has been converted into a large park, this villa is now standing in a nice green area close to the city center.

June 5, 2022August 7, 2022

Hôtel Perrin

Only 300 meters away from the main railway station of Lëtzebuerg the Hôtel Perrin is a good place to stay for people travelling by train. It was built in 1932 and the Art Déco architecture combines well with the modern approach of the hotel. The heart of the hotel is the gentleman behind the desk who seems to speak every language of the modern world.