Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.
The Leisel is a small river at Baunatal, Germany. Between the city quarters Altenbauna and Kirchbauna it runs into river Bauna (giving the city its name) – and exactly there you can find the Leiselpark, the local recreation zone of Baunatal. It is a nice long-stretched park with different paths to stroll around and a big playground. At one end of the park you can find the Leiselsee – an artificial lake created from the waters of the river.
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If somebody would ask me about my most favourite local beer, I would always answer ‘Hütt naturtrüb‘, a delicious non-filtered Pilsener brewed by the Hütt-Brauerei located at Baunatal, Germany. Since 1752 they brew beer at a location called Knallhütte close to motorway A49. In former times carriages needed additional horses to get on top of the hill and signalled this using their horsewhips – the sound of this gave the place its name (‘knallen‘ = banging). Today you can take a tour at the brewery, buy some beer at their shop or enjoy good food in the restaurant.
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The Warteberg is a 229 meters high mountain in the city quarter Philippinenhof-Warteberg of Kassel, Germany. Living there must be nice and painful at the same time: because of the great views you can have, but I wouldn’t want to climb up this mountain every day; I totally underestimated it. It is located in the north of the city directly at the border to Vellmar. On top, you will find a small park where you can sit down between trees and have a relaxed look at the valley of the river Fulda.
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Locals call it the Nazikaserne (Nazi barracks): the Magazinhof at Kassel, Germany. It was built in 1940 for the Wehrmacht which used it to store grain and other food (it was officially called Ersatzverpflegungsmagazin). After the war, the Bundeswehr took over the three buildings and stored cloth inside. In 1994 the army moved out, the buildings deteriorated, trees began to grow within the buildings, vandalism happened and fires broke out. But the building was protected by monument protection and therefore it was hard to sell.
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Vellmar is a municipality north of Kassel, Germany. It was formed in 1967 by combining Obervellmar, Niedervellmar and Frommershausen. When Vellmar received the city rights in 1975 it was decided that there should be a centrally placed recreation zone and the result is the Ahnepark opened in 1986. It is a beautiful park next to river Ahne with artificial lakes, a restaurant next to the water, a playground, sports areas, a miniature railway and much more to explore.
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The Firnsbach is a small and rather short stream (3.2 kilometres long) that gathers its water in the Habichtswald and runs via river Bauna into the river Fulda. On its way it passes the nice restaurant Herbsthäuschen and the former mine Schlüsselstollen. Walking along the river through its valley is nice because of the basalt rocks around, the little waterfalls and several bridges you have to pass. It doesn’t have a long gorge but it is worth a visit and can be included in longer hikes.
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Friedland is a place that plays an important role in German history – a place in southern Lower Saxony that is deeply connected to migration. It all started after World War II when the Grenzdurchgangslager was opened and people from the lost former eastern parts of Germany as well as prisoners of war arrived here. They started their new lives in this place, were registered, provided with food and housed until they could travel onward. Still more than twenty years after the war people arrived from camps and prisons in the east. Even after that, the Grenzdurchgangslager remained open and welcomed Germans migrating back from Soviet Russia and asylum seekers.
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When you’re travelling south of Göttingen, Germany, you will see a memorial on top of a hill. It is the Friedland-Gedächtnisstätte or Heimkehrerdenkmal located at Friedland. The memorial consists of four huge blocks of concrete pointing north, south, east and west. It is 28 meters high and has been placed there in 1967 because of the Grenzdurchgangslager near the hill – Friedland was the place where after World War II the persons arrived that were living in the lost eastern regions of the country and the prisoners of war. The foundation stone was laid by Konrad Adenauer – the first chancellor of Germany – in 1966.
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The Hallenbad Süd is an indoor swimming pool at the city quarter Brückenhof of Kassel, Germany. It is existing since 1971 but it was completely refurbished in 2010 and is a very modern facility. You will find two pools – one for children and a 25 metres sports pool. Within Kassel, the Hallenbad Süd is rather remote but it is worth getting here. Only day tickets are offered and cost 3,50 Euro – the same you would pay for 1,5 hours in the Auebad (if you get a discount by getting a customer loyalty card).
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The Hauptfriedhof (main cemetery) of Kassel, Germany is located in the northern part of the city and dates back to the year 1843. You will find many old graves and monuments there – but still today people are buried here (graves are typically removed after 20 years). Well known people buried here are Philipp Scheidemann (an important social democrat from Kassel, the family Henschel (important industrials), Ludwig Emil Grimm (a younger brother of the Brothers Grimm) and composer Louis Spohr.
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