Laasan

I organized and led a hike back when the weather started to warm up a bit in Jena (before the onset of Second Winter), and while it didn't go quite as planned (large group trips never do), the group had a pretty nice time.

We started at the Jenzig on a very windy Sunday afternoon and followed the Saale Horizontale hiking route across the plateau and down into the valley to a little dorf/village called Laasan (population ~50). We accidentally ran into a guy there who had keys to the old Rathaus town hall building (which is both a Denkmal/historic site and bat sanctuary), and he showed us the inside and told us a little bit about the village's history.

From there, we headed back to Kunitz, grabbed a tram into the city center, and feasted on a late lunch at the restaurant Cheers. We didn't quite make it to the Kunitzburg itself, but we could see it from Kunitz, and that was good enough.

Jackson Oak

On a quick reprieve from the grey European winter (which actually wasn't that much of a reprieve, because Alabama was a little grey, too), I met the Jackson Oak in Daphne, Alabama. I guess Andrew Jackson gave some big, rousing, inspiring speech there en route to New Orleans in the War of 1812. This picture doesn't give an adequate sense of scale, but it's still majestic and moss-covered.

 

I also noted a Rapture Preparation Center in Mobile..

 

.. and a funky little sci-fi statue in Tuscaloosa.

 

Skiing in the East

Back in January there was some significant snowfall and cold weather, so I went with a few friends on a little weekend trip to Vejprty, Czech Republic to do some skiing. Summary: the skiing part was a disaster, but the weather on the first day was utter perfection.

We went to the Klinovec ski slopes, which apparently don't really have a lot of bunny slopes, and the ones they do have require some interaction with steep intermediate slopes. Needless to say, this situation didn't go well for me, having been off the ski slopes for 10 years and not really being a great skier back then anyways.

There was another nearby ski area called Bozi Dar that appeared to be a little flatter and more cross-country-oriented. I think that would be more my cup of tea in any follow-up trips.

Vejprty is full of abandoned and for-sale buildings that inspire the imagination and make an American Millennial fantasize about buying / fixing one up. Our hostel owner did just that (minus the fixing part..); a young woman who bought out her family's old, run-down hotel and runs it as a backpacker hostel, and manages it on the side along with her wolf tracking volunteer work. Reminiscent of The Shining? Absolutely. Cheap and warm? Sure. (Very important, as this was probably the coldest temperatures I've ever experienced in my life. Something like 5 or 8 degrees Fahrenheit in the late evenings.)

I sat out the second day of skiing after my first disastrous day, which worked out fine with the weather, which was rather white-out conditions on day two.

Rock Claw

.. not to be confused with Wroclaw, Poland (pronounced something like "Vrot-suave").

 Above: the main square at night. Below: cathedral at night.

I visited Wroclaw one rainy weekend in March, and it didn't disappoint. I don't understand why people hate on Poland so much, because it seemed pretty nice to me. Wro is in the area of Poland that at various points was actually part of Germany, so it was like visiting a German city like Leipzig but with slavic writing everywhere.

I took a Flixbus to Dresden and then Wroclaw, passing through numerous little German and Polish towns, including the sort of unattractive Chemnitz (shown above with cheerfully painted smokestack) and Goerlitz, which is on the border and seemed like a pretty sweet little city.

Since I had a few hours to kill in between my connections in Dresden, I walked to the nearby Russian Orthodox church and had a look. The above photo doesn't really do justice to the beautiful blue minarets/Zwiebelturm. The interior was pretty but not nearly as elaborate (read: gawdy) as the Greek Orthodox church in Mobile.

While I don't speak Polish at all, I found it somewhat easier to get around in Poland than in Germany because there's so much English everywhere, and all the young Poles I met spoke English really well and seemed unbothered using it. (Side note: in Germany it's not unusual to encounter young people who either shame you for not speaking German very well despite living here or just refuse to use English with you. While the latter can be very helpful in improving one's German, the former is not and makes you not really want to interact with Germans and just stick to your English-speaking circle of friends.)

Like everywhere else in Europe, Wroclaw is an old city, with buildings and monuments around that are handfuls of centuries old. The main market square has an iconic clock tower, some beautiful architecture, and a pretty installation that actually used to serve as the public whipping post/imprisonment viewing spot. Dark.

It also has many newer additions, such as a collection of several hundred little bronze dwarf statues that you can find around the city, in a variety of poses and occupations. This little guy has had a bit too much to drink at what was the oldest pub in the city (but is currently closed and seeking new ownership).

 

I went on a walking tour of the city and learned some interesting factoids, including that Wroclaw ranks 5th in the world for number of bridges (crossing water) in the world (1st is Hamburg). Not to mention just seeing the sights, including Wroclaw's own "Manhattan" with some 1970s-era funky architecture and various churches and the cathedral (Church of St. Peter and Paul shown below).

My trip back to Jena was with Blablacar (kind of an Uber/ride-share for long-distance trips) and took about half the length of time that the Flixbus trip did, for about the same price. Poland is nice, go there.

A Little More Leipzig After All

.. but not too much more.

An organ bench whereupon J. S. Bach sat his rotund butt 

 Some sort of interesting building in downtown Leipzig.. the Concert Hall, I believe.

 Weird statue of kids with a duck, overlooked by a creepy gargoyle-y face

 The man, the myth, the legend.. JSB

Frankfurt, Gateway to the World

I've spent a few evenings in Frankfurt, in anticipation of flights the next day heading to the States. It's aight.

A Very Belgian New Year

Almost caught up.. since plane prices are fairly high around Christmas and New Years, I opted to stay in Europe and delay a holiday visit to the States, taking a road trip to Belgium instead. Here's the German city of Koeln (Cologne)..

.. and its bridge covered in love locks. I'd like to see the engineering plans that accounted for the added weight of about a billion padlocks.

Then onto Bruges, Belgium, with their famous frites...

.. and some lovely scenery and buildings. Bruges went through hard economic times several centuries ago and was never really updated architecture-wise. Finally in the 20th century, they realized they could capitalize on the medieval appearance of the city and become an attractive tourist hub, so now most of the buildings in the city are protected, such that you can't change the exterior, and with certain buildings you can't even change the interior's appearance!

The main square..

.. and iconic clock tower and canals. They don't call it the Venice of the North for nothing! (Actually, I think there are several cities that share that nickname, but whatever. Still aptly nicknamed.)

Then NYE in Brussels, with its own main square/Grand Place/Grote Markt..

.. with a church you can pee on the side of, if you happen to use urinals...

Plus some creepy steampunk carousels for kids..

.. the Atomium..

.. Monument of the Dynasty in Laeken Park..

.. a piece of the Berlin wall in the European parliament headquarters..

.. and lots of Belgian beers, chocolate, the iconic Manneken-Pis (peeing boy) statue, and curious mix of French and Flemish language. (Not to mention the terrifying firecrackers being set off by teenagers on the streets and sidewalks all night every night.)