Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.
There are a lot of old mines in the Harz mountains you can visit – but not many offer to enter them by train. At the mining museum in Lautenthal, Germany (belonging to Langelsheim near Goslar) you can in addition also try to go by boat into the dark. This is possible because the miners established a multiple kilometers long transport system with small boats throughtout the mountains. Continue reading “Train into the mountain”
The city of Hann. Münden, Germany was once the most southern river harbour of the Kingdom of Hanover. That is why King George V. extended the existing railway track from Hanover to Göttingen (“Hannöversche Südbahn”) further on to Hann. Münden (and later to Kassel). To stay on the territory of the kingdom, a route had to be chosen that wasn’t easy to build and operate.
Continue reading “Abandoned railway”
The Kreuztor ist the town’s landmark of Ingolstadt, Germany. It is the only original city gate still standing and was once the connection to the leper house “Holy cross” – therefore the name (“Kreuz” = “cross”). It has been built in 1385 and carries seven medieval turrets.
The 1141 meter high Brocken is the highest mountain in northern Germany, belonging to the Harz mountains. It is also called Blocksberg, a special name used in conjunction with witchcraft and witches meeting there as described within the famous ‘Faust: The First Part of the Tragedy‘ of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. The Brocken is today a famous touristic region used especially for hiking.
Continue reading “On top of the highest mountain”
Riding a light railway train, especially when it is equipped with a steam engine, is a unique experience. It’s a fascinating technology and I like watching the locomotive being refueled with water and I always enjoy watching the steam hovering through the air and the surrounding trees. A good opportunity to do this is the Brockenbahn in the Harz mountains. Continue reading “Brockenbahn”
Hann. Münden, Germany is the place where the two rivers Werra and Fulda combine to a new stream called Weser – which is running through northern Germany to the North sea. In fact there was a linguistic border here and Werra and Weser are the same name in different dialects. The Fulda is therefore only a river floating into the Werra/Weser. But today nobody cares about this. Continue reading “Weserstein”
The Holsten gate (“Holstentor“) is a city gate of Lübeck, Germany. It is located in the west of the old city center just across the river Trave. Holsten in that case means the region of Holstein, an area forming part of the German federal state of Schleswig-Holstein. The city gate is four levels high and contains today a museum about the history of the city.
I’ve got ambivalent feelings about Venezia, Italy. I really love the concept of living with water, of having a city in a laguna. I like the idea to travel by boat instead of a bus. I appreciate standing at places with water masses surrounding me. But most times of the year Venezia is simply overcrowded and the city feels much to artificial. That is why I tend to go there in autumn and winter times when – apart from San Marco – you also have the possibility to roam through nearly empty streets.
The church Santa Maria della Salute is a nice sacral building in Venezia, Italy. It is located on the other side of the Canale Grande in front of the Piazza San Marco. It’s name refers to its purpose: to improve the health of the citizens. Continue reading “Santa Maria della Salute”
A campanile is a singular standarding church bell tower – and this one belongs to the Basilica di San Marco in Venezia, Italy. It is standing on the famous Piazza San Marco and is a town’s landmark of Venezia. Continue reading “Campanile di San Marco”