[Sam Kapasi]

So here I am, deciding what to pack and how. I've been told it's sub-zero in Germany and I'm not terribly fond of the cold.
I'm more of a sun and heat kind of person.

But this should be fun.

I leave on the 22nd night, fly to Frankfurt from Mumbai. Here I will be picked up from the airport and driven straight to Nuremberg. I've been told it's less than a 2 hour drive (a little over 200 kms, God bless the germans lol)

Nuremberg has a wonderful and traditional Christmas Market, called the christkindlesmarkt. (Click on that link to see the history, live webcam and more) This word means Christ-Child Market.
Here are some images from last year's market










It will be an interesting Christmas this year for me, full of Glühwein. Glühwein is red wine with sugar, which is heated (yes, it is drunk hot!) and spiced with lavang and taj and pepper.
This is the perfect drink to keep me warm, because they expect Christmas night to touch -8 or -10 degrees.

I'm also hoping to try some roast wild boar, shades of Asterix and Obelix. Of course there will be snow and hopefully some interesting vehicle shots too (why else are my blogs tolerated? lol)

From Nuremberg I intend to go to the Franconian Swiss Area. While this is called the Franconian Swiss, it is very much in the state of Bayern, in northern Bavaria. This area is hilly and full of caves and natural geysers and springs.



Apart from this, I intend to visit a typical bavarian brewery, discovering the magic of good German beer.
I will spend many days here, trekking and enjoying the German countryside.
There are many natural spas around the area, with steam from the planets core and saunas and mineral baths. As you may have gathered from my last Hungarian trip, I enjoy natural and mineral spas. Of course this will be a mixed spa (Read: I will be naked and so will everyone else and mixed means both sexes) and it is very rude to point. And I don't mean with your finger, lol.
I've done it before, but for a first timer, this can be a little awkward.

Of course Munich is not too far away and it should be fun to see this beautiful city again.
I will also spend New years eve in Germany, either in Hessen or in the state of Nordrhein-Westfalen. Maybe in Dusseldorf. Plans will be made as the days come along.

There is a downside to this trip that you guys might be pretty mad at me for. I'm not taking my Laptop and I intend to keep my mobile phone off. You will appreciate that a man needs to disconnect, once in a while.

I've purchased a Tripod and have my trusty Nikon. But the pictures will now appear in January 2008.

I wish all my friends at Team-BHP a wonderful Christmas and a fantastic New Year, full of everything they desire and more. May you enjoy this festive season.

[Sam Kapasi]

Today I received my tickets and forex and Bajaj Allianz Auslandskrankenversicherung. Looks like nothing is gonna stop me now. I'm gonna do this. I'm just gonna go.

My flight leaves on 22nd night. I reach 23rd morning in freezing Frankfurt.

I will be picked up in an old Opel Corsa (it's a 2 door hatch) and we will travel to these beautiful areas in this little car. I will take some nice pictures of the road and the culture and everything.

[Sam Kapasi]

It's been a long direct flight. It's good to see frankfurt airport again.

I walk with my pushcart full of stuff. We go down to the garage and get into the corsa. Over the next few days, we drive for almost 1600 kms in this trusty Opel Corsa which has been shod with UniRoyal Winter tyres just yesterday.


We drive out and I suck my breath in quickly. I've never seen so much monochrome in my life. I cannot believe how beautiful it looks from within the car.


We stop somewhere. I step out and take a few pictures. It's freezing. My muetze and scarf are packed inside my suitcase. The minute I step out I realize how much I am going to need them.










I find my favourite motif in the middle of all this - benches and a table.


A lovely road shot


My favourite picture from this batch, I purposely oversized it to 1024


It is a wonderful drive all the way to Nuremberg. Even though it's snowing, we are able to average about 140kmph. I had no idea this little corsa could do 180kmph. I am looking forward to Nuremberg. The heater is all the way up!

[revved_up]

Wow.. simply amazing pics ..!
Enjoy your trip Sam.

[hydrashok]

Great pics, Sam! The one with the benches and table made me catch my breath all of a sudden. And made me feel real lonesome (!) That is one loaded pic.

[Sam Kapasi]

Originally Posted by hydrashok

The one with the benches and table made me catch my breath all of a sudden. And made me feel real lonesome (!) That is one loaded pic.

Thanks baba. There will be many pictures of Benches in this travelogue. It was my theme.

[Sam Kapasi]

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Frankfurt. The temeperature outside is minus 4. Holy crap. Minus 4.

I quickly put my overcoat on. Thank you, Bye Bye, Merry Christmas.
I walk.Wow, will you look at this airport, all decked up? Incredible.






I've been here before. It's a beautiful maze. Up and down and left and right, but you cannot get lost. German signs, correctly placed as always.
Immigration. Where is the form? Is there supposed to be a form? I look at the counter. The officer beckons to me. I walk towards the counter. Umm, is there a form? What? Is there a form? Form??
Do I need to fill out a form?? He smiles. You want forms, go to the USA. This is Germany. Looks at my visa. Where will you go from here? Nuremberg. Why? For the christkindlemarkt. Does it still exist?? he asks incredulously. I shrug laughing, of course!
Enjoy and Merry Christmas. Stamp stamp.

I have always wondered why they place the baggage belts after immigration. What if they don't let you through? What happens to your bag on the belt?

[Sam Kapasi]

Our hotel is called the Albrecht Durer hotel. My dad will love this fact. However this hotel sucks and the room is incredibly small. What hurts is we're paying 69Euro for it. Damn Europe lol.

We walk through this historic city. I am armed with my tripod and intend to make some slow exposures.
We have bought me these really thick wool gloves made by 3M(!!!) called thinsulate. Warm as they are, it is cumbersome to handle a camera and tripod with these. Take them off and my fingers are numb in a few seconds. Tonight it is minus 7, almost the coldest it will get in my entire trip.









Now it is time to enter the pedestrian part of the town, where the traditional christmas market is held.

[s0uljah]

Awwww, like a fairytale! Isnt that sweet

[Sam Kapasi]

It's a traditional bazaar. It's wonderful and full of christmassy things. We keep stopping to drink Glühwein, thank God for this hot red sweet alcoholic concoction.













We stop to buy me some traditional Lebkuchen (gingerbread/cookie) and soon I'm happily munching away. This winter is making me hungry.


Walking through, I admire this beautiful market.

















Many more Glühweins later, we return home, walking along the river. It's freezing cold and we decide to jog to keep warm, just like that and soon we're running through the city like kids.
Tomorrow is Christmas eve, we're going to wake up and check out the old city, the fortress and then hop over to the supermarket to buy stuff, before we move to a little Ferienhaus (Holiday home) in a little village called Kleingesee. Nobody even knows where it is except the navigation unit. What fun.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Thinsulate gloves.

Know them well. Best combined with Gortex outer, to keep your hands dry as well as warm.

And then a similar insulating-layer hat, down over the ears. Then the hood over that --- and the scarf around the neck of course.

UK doesn't get as cold as Germany, but still need all this gear!

Lovely to see the snow pics.

[low_bass_makker]

The best travelogue I have seen till date on T-bhp. I also wait for the day when I will be roaming around the street of old European cites.

[speedzak]

Wow!!! I don't have any good words to explain how much I am enjoying now looking at pics and writeup!

Thanks Sam! Keep it up!

[jkdas]

Originally Posted by Sam Kapasi

We stop somewhere. I step out and take a few pictures. It's freezing. My muetze and scarf are packed inside my suitcase. The minute I step out I realize how much I am going to need them.










I find my favourite motif in the middle of all this - benches and a table.

Nice pix Sam.

The first pic really suits a Yeti!

Looks like an Indica at first sight. Same studio and hence i guess.

[Sam Kapasi]

Wake up lazy bones! - In the night I have kept the heater on so high that I'm sweating in the room.

Soon we are out. Nuremberg is beautiful.

We are living next to Albrecht Durers studio, where he worked for many years. I take some photos of the area around our hotel.







and one of our Hotel itself


In Germany, the 24th is a bigger and more important day than the 25th.



We then walk up to the old fortress. To take a look at the city (even though there is a dense fog in the air) -


Unfortunately many Biergartens and restaurants are closed for Christmas.





The city from the top of the fortress. The fog doesn't allow you to see much though.




Then a quick walk through the city - a road shot for you guys


The Rathaus - town hall.


I continue taking pictures.






We stop for brunch. I choose to eat some Kartoffel Puffe. Kartoffel is potato, a staple food for all Germans. Puffe is like a cutlet, fried and flat. Extremely tasty. While I choose to eat mine with sour cream, Some others choose apple jam. Yuck.


Back to the Christmas market, it's even more crowded than it was last night.


We make a joke about how all of Germany is present at the fair. Did you guys know that Germany is suffering a steady poulation decline? Parents are encouraged to have more kids and the govt gives you an allowance of 150euros per child per month, so you'll have more?

As we now approach the Albrecht Durer area, we cross a small Brewery.




Want some beer? Nope, it is too cold for me to have any.

So where do you want to go next? The train station. What? Why?
I have a friend that likes trains and stations. He's normally quite crazy.

OK, los, we will go there now.