The Passenger ⋆ Page 126 of 317 ⋆ Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.

December 4, 2019December 12, 2019

Schlachthof

Within Kassel, Germany, you will find different smaller concert venues which give you the chance to listen to a wide range of bands – newcomers and bands with a smaller audience. One of them is the Schlachthof in the city quarter Nord-Holland close to the university. At this location, there was once the slaughterhouse of the city until it was moved to Waldau in 1973. The buildings have been destructed and the Elisabeth-Knipping-Schule, a school providing vocational education, was built. Only the gatehouses remained and are now the home of the community centre and concert hall.

November 30, 2019February 18, 2024

Städtisches Museum

I’m always a bit hesitant when it comes to local museums in small towns. They’re often seen as a must-have independent from the question whether there is something to exhibit or not. The Städtisches Museum of Hann. Münden, Germany, is a place I would nevertheless recommend if you’re interested in local history. It feels like a wild mix of topics and some sections look very old-fashioned but it offers enough content for an informative visit.

November 22, 2019November 29, 2019

Bunker

Sometimes you don’t have to travel far to find interesting places. And sometimes they are hidden just around the corner and you’ve passed them many times without noticing. I had this experience with two air-raid shelters (in German often called ‚bunker‘) and a beer-cooling cellar north of the city centre of Kassel, Germany. In the city quarter ‘Vorderer Westen‘ you can find a mountain called Kratzenberg consisting of shell limestone. During the time of the dinosaurs, the area was under water and the remains of shellfish sank down and created this limestone. Within this material many breweries created cellars later.

November 18, 2019April 15, 2022

Երևան

Never did I underestimate a country as I did with Armenia. It was the first Christian country and its capital city Երևան was founded 29 years before Rome, Italy. The result of this long and culturally rich past can be seen in numerous museums and temples throughout the country. During Soviet times the Asian face of Երևան was nearly fully destroyed – today the city centre is very modern, financed in relevant parts by money coming from the diaspora (created by the genocide of 1915).

November 18, 2019April 15, 2022

Armenian

The language of Armenia is an Indo-European language which strong connections to the Greek language and many words taken over from Iranian. It is spoken in Armenia and the internationally not accepted Republic of Artsakh (or Nagorno-Karabakh). But because of the large Armenian diaspora, it is spoken in different other countries. Additionally, it is used together with one of the most beautiful alphabets I’ve ever seen.

November 18, 2019April 15, 2022

Public transport

Getting around at Երևան, Armenia, by public transport is cheap (~100 drams per ride, that is 0.20 Euros) but not that easy. The system is a combination of buses, trolleybuses, shared taxis and a metro system. I dislike taking buses in places like this because it is hard to find out where which bus is going and where to exit – especially because of the beautiful but for me unreadable Armenian alphabet. And on the other hand, using taxis is very cheap for a foreigner in this country and ordering one by the gg smartphone app (which was installed when I received my YerevanCard) is so easy.

November 17, 2019February 13, 2020

Making new friends

The zoological garden if Երևան, Armenia, is a zoo in constant transformation and therefore interesting to visit. Ten years ago the conditions for the animals must have been rather bad but things changed for the better: the lions now have a shiny new area and the wolves and bears can roam around freely in large territories. On the other hand dogs (living on the streets here often) broke into the zoo and killed the kangaroos – which lead to the director quitting because he was unable to protect his animals.

November 17, 2019February 7, 2020

Ararat brandy

If there would be only one thing that Երևան, Armenia, is known for throughout the world then it would by brandy. The good conditions for growing wine in Armenia have been used for a very long time to produce brandy (in other parts of the world also called cognac). In 1887 a state-owned company was founded that is only allowed to buy grapes from Armenia – in 1998 it became part of the Pernod Ricard Group. Ararat brandy was very famous during Soviet times and is now available all over the world.

November 17, 2019February 10, 2020

Sergei Parajanov

Some years ago I decided that I don’t know enough about movies and watched all the classics that I thought one must have seen. Afterwards I believed that that I’m quite an expert. Oh boy was I wrong. Once again I was bound to the things typical for my cultural sphere and I didn’t recognize what was behind its borders. When I came to Երևան, Armenia, I visited the Sergei Parajanov Museum – more by accident than by intention and had to understand that I know nothing.

November 17, 2019February 13, 2020

Erebuni

The germ cell of the capital city of Armenia is located on a mountain called Arin-Berd south of the city. Erebuni is a fortress created in 782 BC which makes Երևան one of the oldest cities in the world. Next to the mountain, you can today find a museum with a very impressive exterior design referring to the time the castle was built. Within you can learn about the excavations made here, see a lot of items found at this place and get more information about ancient Երևան.