Frankfurt

Here are some photos from the Frankfurt and their Römer Christmas Market, which will open this coming weekend.

We were in town for our friend's birthday last weekend, which was a lot of fun.

Being there brought back so many memories of my first days in Germany, although it seemed like another lifetime ago. I used to walk all over that city. Somehow I forgot how many tiny little adorable shops and restaurants they had.

Frankfurt is an interesting place. It's heavily run by money and work life, which makes sense since it's one of Europe's largest financial hubs.

Our hotel room had a balcony that looked onto the Commerzbank Tower and it felt very big city. It's probably an easier city to transition to since it is so international, although we were only there for a short time.

At the party people had mixed responses when I told them I lived in Munich. Some called it posh and wished they lived here, too, while others felt it lacked multiculturalism and was a glorified village.

Frankfurt flashback

Here are a few photos of one of the Chinese gates at the Bethmann Park in Frankfurt. It's called the 'Garden of Heavenly Peace' and was created in memory of the victims of the Tiananmen Square massacre. Legend says if you spin the ball in the lion's mouth that you will have good luck.

What I love about this is the reminder of my early days in Germany 2.5 years ago. We were staying in Frankfurt for several weeks while Stefan finished up some business. I had just moved to Germany and I was nervous to venture out.

I remember thinking, 'What if someone says something to me and I don't understand?' or 'What if I get lost?' Some days it was paralyzing, while other days I would explore the city walking from one end to the other.

On one of my first excursions through our neighborhood, I stumbled upon this beautiful park. Here I could observe the teenagers from the near by school, and the elderly people enjoying the sun. I often went just to take photos of the flowers that were in full bloom. This park was also home to 2 cats that the old men loved to feed deli meat to. One of the men even brought a brush to brush them out. There were plenty of oddities. This is where I would go to think, to read, to draw, and to feel somewhat connected to this new foreign world.

I have not written much about Frankfurt simply because I started this blog long after we lived there.

From the haze that Frankfurt was for me, here are a few places that stick out in my mind that I would recommend visiting if you are there:

• The Ivory Club
• Teelerium, which was on Bergerstraße (I'm not sure if it's still there - I didn't find a website). 
• The Opera House
  

I don't recommend visiting the area around the train station - it's very seedy. I had to walk through to pick up our marriage license translations, and boy was I naïve! I saw business men pouring out of, and being lured into, strip clubs. I saw a man dealing drugs and another smoking something that I presume was crack. I wish I was joking. Even during daylight I didn't feel safe in that area.

But then I did see plenty of random reminders, in English, that let me know things would be OK in this strange new world.

Luck in Germany

Brock + Manel invited me to go to Nürnberg tomorrow, to enjoy the small Bavarian city that is well known for their lebküchen (christmas cookies). Surprisingly I have not been, especially with history that I find so appealing - it was on an old Roman trade route and home to the master print maker, Albrecht Dürer.

It seems many German cities have a legend to go with something you touch. In Munich it is the four lions by the Residenz, however you are only to touch three for luck, touching all four is greedy.

In Frankfurt there was a feng shui Chinese garden created in memory of the victims of the Tiananmen Square massacre. Guarding this park are two lions and it is said to bring luck if you spin the ball in their mouth. This was one of my favorite places to spend my days when we lived there.

Nürnberg appears to be no different. They have a ring in the Schönebrunnen. Their legend says the daughter of a nobel man fell in love with a blacksmith, who her father didn't approve of. In order to prove his love and skill he created this seamless brass ring in the middle of a monument in the Market Square. The nobel man had a change of heart and the blacksmith and his love were able to be together. They say that if you turn the seamless ring 3 times with your love, you'll have a love that endures the test of time.

Hopefully I will be up for that and see what kinds of trouble we can get into. I'd also like to check out the rock cut caves that beer was made and stored in. If it's anything like the chalk caves where they make champagne in Reims, it will be really fascinating!