Living at the Edge

We are landing with a soft pump in the small SAS plain where the majority is businessmen and women. I'm looking out of the window and the first thing I can see is the small propel planes, which are standing next to some smaller private jets.

From the first gleam, it is easy to see that I have arrived to a city with a glory business environment and a glory industry, since Stuttgart is hometown of Mercedes-Benz and Porche.

When I’m walking though the automatically doors is Franziska waiting at the arrival hall. It is good to see Franziska here in her home country after I first meet her for nearly a year ago in Monterrey, when we both were attending the same Spanish Course at Tec de Monterrey.

I have been flying in not only to visit her, but also to do a photo shoot with her newest collection, since Franziska is a German Designer, which there will be a post of later after her show of her collection at an exhibition next week.

The famous star

The cars are big, the engines is playing there own symphony while we are driving into the center of Stuttgart to check out some locations possibilities for the photo shoot. In comparison to the cars I am use to see in Copenhagen, I have entered a new league, do to the high taxes of cars in Denmark, dominated by German Cars do to their huge Car Industry, and with no surprise is the Star from Mercedes-Benz not only easy to find on every fifth car, it is also easy to find at the top of the buildings, such as the big Mercedes-Benz star, that is spinning around at the top of the central station in Stuttgart (Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof).

It is Thursday afternoon, when we are driving out of Stuttgart. The traffic is a bit packed, since we are in the late rush hour. Stuttgart has around 600.000 inhabitants and is therefore a little bit bigger than Århus, the second biggest city in Denmark, but it is a hillier city since it is located in a valley, which makes the traffic even harder because the way in and out of the center is over the mountains.

We are heading of to Reutlingen around 30 min in car from Stuttgart where Franziska lives and Study. Our hear is blowing in the win, since she don’t like to use the Air Condition in the car, so we are inhaling the fresh mountain air. The first thing that really surplice me, when I’m looking out of the open window is how green it is. There are trees and fields all over we are surrounded of mountains when we are arriving to Reutlingen. To begin with does it looks like a normal German City, but after a walk does it open up, it might be the biggest city after Stuttgart in this area with around 8000 students, but it really doesn’t fill like that, when I am passing though the old center of the town, with a curtain wall and two towers… So even though there might not be so many bars and restaurants it is a peaceful historical pearl in the southern Germany, which I have arrived to and just the day after, when we are taking a walk, can I say that the center can be full.

“Schatzi, schenk mir ein Foto.

Schenk mir ein Foto von dir.

Schatzi, schenk mir ein Foto.

Nur so ein Foto wünsch ich mir.

Ich sagte:

Schatzi, schenk mir ein Foto.

ein kleines Foto von dir.

Schatzi, schenk mir ein Foto,

dann schenk ich dir auch eins von mir.

This is the lyrics screaming out of a speaker at a small stage that is one of many this Friday afternoon, when we are taking a walk around the old city center. There are different stages around the center with different types of music. The streets are full of people and the wibe is good, when we are walking from one to another, as you usually do to a street festival, but for the first time, I do receive my tap bear in a glass cup. The price of the bear is 3 Euro and to borrow the cup you do pay 3 euro as deposit. I must admit, that this is the first time, I’ve got a glass cup, which I can be walking around with to a street festival, I can easily say that the concept here in Reutlingen is different from the concept of Distortion in Copenhagen for just a few weeks back.

At the Edge

Germany is famous for their great Engineering, not only in their car industry but in general, so maybe I should not be so surprised as I was to see the Castle Schloss Lichtenstein. With a height of 40 meters does this castle look over Liechtenstein as their protector. The mountains in this area is interesting since they have the A shape, the top of them has been cut off, so the tops are totally flat that makes an interesting view, since there are nothing at the side of them, but at the tops are there houses and fields.

Since Franziska has got her first car for less than a month ago, doesn’t it take long from her to come with an idea of where we should go until we are there. Schloots Liectenstein is only located 40 min. from Reutlingen and after we have been driving though plenty of small curves are we arriving. We are walking the last bit up to the castle and when I see it, can I only say that I haven’t seen anything like that. The Castle is not so big, but it is located just at the edge of the mountain. Even though the corners is straight I does still have the filling that it could be falling over the edge at any time… - but again does good German Engineering and construction work make it stay.

Going to the Lake

If there only are two colors I need to remember from this visit except of the colors of the collection of Franziska it will be the colors: Green and Blue. Green for the mountains, trees and the landscape and blue for the sky and the color of Bodensee.

It is Monday, 20th of June, the birthday of Franziska. After a good breakfast, where she has opened presents are we heading south, the peace from the landscape is hitting me while we are heading south, as many other cars, have Franziska decorated her car with a German Flag, since Germany is a part of the European football championship. We are heading of to Wangen where her father lives, where we will be staying a few days. On the way to Wangen are we passing by her hometown, Ratzenried, where her Mother still lives. Ratzenried is a small city with nearly 10.000 inhabitants, but even though it is small does it still have two castles.

Franziska is turning right. The roads are becoming small and the cows, is just standing next to us, when we are driving at the small roads, after a corner is she driving to the right to a parking place. In front of us are the cows, fields and the mountain chain in front of the Alps. It is a peaceful and peaceful view we are having even though it is not so clear, so we can see the top of the Alps…

After a peaceful break with the panorama view are we arriving to Wangen and even though Franziska has told me about a fountain, which is shooting water after peoples faces is she still trying to see if I am dump enough to get wet. She is trying, but I can see that there is a huge dark spot at the grown, so when it is shooting after me, I am a bit further away so it can’t hit me, even though it is a surprise for me, and Franziska starts laughing. - Franziska has told me how her and her friends can enjoy looking at people who don’t know the secret about this Fontana, which is located in front of the town hall that is painted with different symbols, and without any problems can you sit at one of the benches and enjoying people get surprised and wet…

The area around Wangen is interesting since we are so close to the Alps and the border to Austria and Switzerland since Bodensee is located only 30-40 minuets away in car.

The view is impressive, we have crossed the border to Austria with her mother, since it is the Birthday of Franziska so she invited us for dinner at the Spa and Hotel Fritsch am Berg in Pfänder in Austria. By entering the class doors it is easy to see that we have arrived to a beautiful Spa and Hotel. On our way up here did we pass by some bikers although the increase is over 8 %, does it not stop them for Climbing and when we are sitting at the table, where Franziska also invited her Friend Birgit who lives in Austria, does her Mother explain how the roads to the top of the mountains usually are full of people doing exercisement up at the mountain, and as she finish with a smile over her libs “then the weekend has started”.

The view from up here is excellent, the scenery is stunning with Germany on hour right side and Switzerland on our left, while we are sitting in Austria looking over the Alps on a clear day. There is a there is a quiet atmosphere, since people at the tables don’t talk to loud, the silence and the scenery is only getting disturbed when a black Maserati cabriole is driving in at the parking lot and a bit later when a black Jaguar cabriole is driving out. I’m convincing my self, that if you fill a bit stressed you just need to go here to fill the wind in your hear from the fresh light breeze coming from the lake while you are enjoying the view over the mountains. I’m enjoying every minute of it since I didn’t expect to see this view when I boarded my flight to Stuttgart a few days back in Copenhagen.

A filling that only gets stronger the day after when I am walking out at one of the two terrace at her fathers apartment from where the sun is falling down on my face, when I can hear the cow clocks and the birds singing their own songs since there is a dozen of cows standing just two houses from this balcony.

Since the border to Austria is so near does Franziska want to go back to Bodensee to show me the open opera at the lack called “Bregenz Festival”, from where you doing the summer can enjoy a open opera scenery with space for 6,800 people and the scene flodying at the lake is the setup sat for a good experience. Another factor interesting to go to Austria is also to fill up gas, since it is around 0,30 euro cheaper in Austria than in Germany.

The cloud is still laying as a quilt over the Alps so we can’t see the Alps, when we are walking at the harbor front and visiting the small Island Lindau at the Bodensee.

As the last stop before I am walking in to the ICE – Sprinter, do we visit the Church Ulm Minster in Ulm. We are slowly cluming the 768 steps to the top of this Church with a hight of 161,5 meters and since the construction of it already was started in 1377 was it the tallest building in the world from 1890-1901 and the 4th tallest structure before the 20th century which not only made a great view but also a great end of my days here in the souther Germany, thanks to Franziska, so while I'm now sitting in the train on my way to Frankfurt airport after 5 days in the southern Germany and a short visit to Austria does the speed of this ICE - sprinter say 249 km/t when I'm looking at the screen in the ruff of the cope while I am thinking that I tomorrow will be in Bangkok.