Memories and hints of a travelling IT professional.
The Batschkapp in Frankfurt am Main, Germany is a legend: a left-wing rock music club founded in 1976. It was first located in Eschersheim and moved to a new place in the city district Seckbach in 2013. There it has been enlarged to a modern music club which can also host big concerts – and even the old Batschkapp has already been a stage for R.E.M., Nirvana and Die Toten Hosen.
Some cities in Germany have their own events and special times of the year: like Karneval in Cologne, Oktoberfest in Munich or the Canstatter Wasen in Stuttgart. In Bremen it is time for the Freimarkt in the last two weeks of October; always beginning on a Friday. It’s a tradition reaching back to the year 1035 and as the typical limitations and monopolies of markets in the city where revoked within this time frame, the name free market was established.
The airport of Düsseldorf, Germany is a modern and very well designed airport. It is the third largest passenger airport in Germany after Frankfurt and Munich. If you arrive here by long distance train you’ll have to take a hanging monorail train to the terminals; fun already at the beginning! As Düsseldorf is the main air base of Air Berlin the counters are directly behind the entrance – five minutes after arriving my luggage was correctly checked in and I had a lot of time left.
The zoological garden of Heidelberg, Germany (“Tiergarten Heidelberg”) is located in the north-east of the city, between the river Neckar and the famous university. It dates back to 1934 and in some parts you can really see that it is an old zoo – sometimes because the animals don’t have that much space and sometimes because of the special flair of the old houses surrounding the area.
The Deutsches Museum in München, Germany (official name: Deutsches Museum von Meisterwerken der Naturwissenschaft und Technik) is a vast technology museum located on the museum island south-east of the city center. It has been opened in 1925 and attracts 1.5 million visitors a year. It is the biggest natural science and technology museum of the world and you can roam the 28.000 exhibits for hours and days.
The Bar Centrale is a wonderful Italian bar in München, Germany. It is located close to the city center near to the Hofbräuhaus. From the outside you wouldn’t expect what’s inside: a traditional bar and coffee bar in the front and a small room to sit down and enjoy some pasta in the back. The staff is all-Italian, the coffee is classy and it is a good hint to stop by for an Aperol Sprizz.
Schloß Berlepsch is a castle in the no man’s land surrounding Witzenhausen, Germany (close to Göttingen and Hann. Münden). Situated within the hills along the river Werra it can be seen from near and far. It has been built from 1369 on and has been invaded by several armies crossing the country during the centuries. Today it is a well preserved castle still owned by the family that once built it.
The Rias Baixas is a Spanish restaurant within the city quarter Linden of Hannover, Germany – close to the old Hanomag plant, once producing railway locomotives, motor lorries and construction machines. It offers food from Galicia; wonderful tapas, fish and meat. And of course some Estrella beer to make the evening complete.
The Irish Pub is one of my favourite bars in Göttingen, Germany. In the summer a nice beer garden invites you to enjoy a Guinness, Strongbow or Cider under the trees within the center of the town. When the weather conditions are bad or in the evenings, there are two floors inside with a dark but very hospitable atmosphere.
The Stadion am Böllenfalltor – its name referring to a city gate and cottonwoods standing there in earlier days – is a soccer stadium in Darmstadt, Germany. It currently holds up to 17.000 supporters and is home to the SV Darmstadt 98, wearing blue and white and calling themselves “The lilies” – because the lily is part of the city arms of Darmstadt.