Thursday 31 December 2015

Dresden and Meissen

Monday 28th December, 10:30am and we set off on a 2 hour drive to Dresden.

One thing to keep in mind when travelling into a city on a busy work day, especially if you are not familiar with that city, go to the bathroom en route before you hit the city outskirts. Bernd asked me and Heidi if we needed the bathroom  just before we got to the centre and I declined~stupidly as it turned out. Because it was the first shopping day after Christmas, the roads were a carpark in the city centre of Dresden plus we took the wrong turning for the hotel~AAAAAAH it was a little stressful and I had to run to the bathroom as we got to the hotel.


                               Carpark coming into Dresden just after Christmas

We spent a lovely afternoon looking around this city which has both new and very old architecture. The shopping is very good in the new part although the architecture is cold and severe whereas the old city is just amazing. It was a very cloudy, murky and cold day when we visited but you could see it would be absolutely stunning on a sunny day. The Frauenkirche was magical to see after looking at it in books for years. You can see very clearly where the new reconstruction starts.










                                          The beautifully restored Frauenkirche

This is a big city with absolutely loads to see so leave the heels in the hotel, and put the walking shoes on, especially since the roads in the old area are mostly brick cobble stone. The Zwinger architecture is incredible to see, you need a couple of days to see this all properly, it is all just gorgeous.

                                                   Bernd, Heidi and Victoria
                                              History of the kings along the wall


                                                       The Zwinger




We were going  to Dresden for a concert at the amazng Frauenkirche at 8pm that evening by the Blechbläserensemble with Ludwig Güttler. I had never heard of this ensemble but it was magic to see and even more wonderful was the superb acoustics. Ludwig Güttler was one of the instigators for promoting the reconstruction of the church after bombing had destroyed it during WW11 by theAnglo-American forces.



                                               The dome in the ceiling
                                   The Blechbläserensemble with Ludwig Güttler

After the concert we went across the square to a lovely bar called the Freiberger Shankhaus for a couple of German beers in a cosy ambient atmosphere.













Tuesday 29th  saw us shopping for presents and we ended up glued inside Peek and Cloppenburg in the shopping sector with it's range of lovely classy clothes. Thalia.de also is a bookshop that has the most fantastic selection of books and calendars I have seen over 4 levels.

We left at around noon for Meissen which took us approximately 35mins along the River Elbe. There is a striking entry into the city with the beautiful Albrechtsburg in full view. Our visit here was to go and look at Meissen Porcelain. WOW, this is really gorgeous workmanship. The range of designs on show along with an incredible history makes it an absolute joy to venture through this wonderful museum/shop/workshop. I would love to own a set of plates and teacups but unfortunately it is far removed from my budget and the thought of breaking a piece would just set me on fire.

                                          Albrechtsburg Castle on the River Elbe
                                                    Meissen Porcelain









We visited another friend on the way home from Meissen at Hirschfeld where German hospitality came out again in the form of deliciously baked home cakes and another horrendously lethal schnapps with herbs. My God, it set my throat on fire, how does one get used to this drink?



We arrived back in Annaberg at about 5:30pm after an hour's drive from Hirschfeld. It was now starting to get much colder, especially noticeable after Dresden which sits in flatter land, Annaberg being about 800m up in the mountains.





                 


Monday 28 December 2015

A Visit to the Mountains

Saturday 26th December was a lovely sunny day and we drove up to Keilberg in the Czech Republic then back into Germany to go up Fichtelberg, berg in German is mountain. You can see both the mountains in the distance as you drive towards them which is about a 1/2 hour  from Annaberg. Keilberg is 1244m high and is on the opposite side to Fichtelberg which is1215m, they are both famous ski resorts for the both of their countries. By the time we got to the top of Keilberg there was thick fog with a bitter blustery wind blowing consequently the photo shoot was very short.
You notice the difference in the two countries almost immediately, buildings, which once would have been quite lovely are now dilapidated or completely derelict. The lack of affluence  is also very notable. Mind you, it does not help travelling in winter when everything looks rather austere.

Coming from New Zealand and Australia it is odd crossing into another country without going through customs! I also found the sky full of contrails, something else we do not see in Australia, not that many aeroplanes crossing each other in the sky.

                                              Ficthelberg on the left and Keilberg
                                                    on the right in the distance
Crossing into the Czech Republic
                                                                Czech Republic
                                             Top of Keilberg with the fog and wind
                                           Overlooking the Czech Republic from the
                                                               top of Keilberg
                                             Crossing back into Saxonia, Germany

I finally saw my first bit of snow arriving at the top of Fichtelberg, even if it was only about 1m deep by 50m across and icy. Everybody has been talking about how bad it is because the snow is usually metres deep with the ski season in full swing. We heard on the radio that it is the warmest winter on record for Germany. From the top of Fichtelberg we drove down to the village of Oberwiesenthal, a small village 914m high being the highest in Germany and also the other end of the very famous Fichtelberg Schwebebahn cable car. Oberwiesenthal is also where young people are trained for all winter sports.

                                           We are about to have hot chocolate and cake
                                                        in Café König behind us
                                               The cakes in Germany are utterly lethal,
                                                               cannot be resisted.
                                                               In Café König
                                                               Oberwiesenthal

                                                 I love Malamutes,  this time I got a kiss.

                                            There should be thick snow everywhere here
                                                       Cable car coming out of it's
                                                            Oberwiesenthal home

                                              Germany to the left and the Czech Republic
                                                          to the right behind me.

                                              Cable car at the top of Fichtelberg

We arrived back home late in the afternoon driving through delightful villages and stopping to overlook Annaberg-Bucholz then having a tiny glass of apple schnapps after wonderful Christmas dinner leftovers of goose, rotkraut (not to be mixed up with sauerkraut as we often do in Australia) and new potatoes.







                                               One of the very steep streets in Bucholz
                                              Overlooking Annaberg from Bucholz

                                                Sunset from my friend's balcony

                                            One must take lessons in drinking schnapps!!
                                                            It is an acquired taste.