Travelog for: Captain Caramel

Hi Mummy,
we tasted the pretzels which we bought yesterday. They are really delicious.



Bye
Captain Caramel

Hi Mummy,
we made a hiking tour today. They have a hiking  trail in the neighbour city Wuppertal, it is called "Rund um Wuppertal" (Around Wuppertal). It is surrounding the municipal area of the city and it is about 120 km long. It is divided into several sections. We made two of them today, it must have been about 16 kn.

We started our tour in Muengsten, here you can meet the River Wupper once more.



From here we had to walk uphill (we always have to walk uphill, I believe). We saw a lot of cut  trees here, funny faces were painted where branches had been cut off.



Our path was following the outer borders of the municipal area. In the background you can see Remscheid.





We rested on this chestnut tree, Can you see its buds?



We were walking along a valley with  a motorway feeder road running through.



We found some horned violets.





We walked through a small hamlet.



In the middle of the forest we reached a tram station. This is a stop station of a historical tram which once connected several outskirts of Wuppertal. The main track is closed and a "museum-tram" is following a part of the former track on a few days in the year.





Also in the forest we saw this old industrial building, a historical grindery. It was built in the 1850 years.







From a nearby outlook platform we had a great overwiev.



We reached a part of the forest than which is an arboretum, a collection of trees. From the 1820 years "foreign" trees were planted here, from 1900 A.D. trees from other continents were planted. After WW II trees from Northern America were planted in search of fast growing trees.

The arboretum is divided into several parts (one for each  continent) and our hiking trail was running through it.

I don't know exactly what sort of tree this is, but it certainly is not a local tree.



Someone carved figures out of tree trunks. I saw owls, little trees and mushrooms.



This is a  marker is telling you that you are in the region "Northern America".











Oh, my feet were still aching when we went to the bus to drive home. In the background you can see Remscheid, the two towers are the city hall and the water tower.



Bye
Captain Caramel

Hi Mummy,
it's Easter Sunday! Katja's family is visiting us. We are having a wonderful brunch.

We have marinated "matjes", several sorts of chesse and and ham, a carrot soup with ginger and egg-filled toast.





I even tasted sparkling wine - yummy



In Germany everybody is given an Easter basket as a present. They are filled with sweets, cooked and coloured eggs and a small Easter decoration.



In the afternoon we had coffee with some sweets.



Now I'm filled with meringue and chocolate bunnies

Bye
Captain Caramel

Hi Mummy,
we took a walk today in one of the valleys which are connecting the city centre with the districts Lennep and Luettringhausen. Both are rather old districts which had their own municipality before they were suburbanized to Remscheid.

You can find forests and pasture land here.





The forest soil is covered with anemones now, we saw white and yellow anemones.



There are only a few houses in the valley.





We had to walk uphill in the meantime. A good overview was the reward for this effort.





We walked into the centre of Luettringhausen and had a look at the historic city hall of the district.



Bye
Captain Caramel

Hi Mummy,
we made walk to day in Remscheid-Hasten. We went through the municipal park to get there. I saw pretty houses.



Katja showed me an indoor swimming pool which is only for schools and swimming clubs.





Here in Hasten you can find industrial buildings close to dwellings. Hasten is one of the oldest districts here. You can find lots of traditional old houses here.





Here you can see "Keiper", a famous company which produces car seats and custom car seats, also for Formula-1 cars.



We were reaching the oldest parts of the district than.











It seems as if you'd only walk uphill here



Here you can also see old industrial buildings and new ones between dwellings.



A pretty Patrician Villa came into sight. It was built in the 1790 years. A museum is situated here nowadays.









On our way back home we went through the municipal park, the observatory is situated here.





This is the police headquarter.



There is a small park in front of the police station.



The next photo was taken when we almost reached  our home. Katja told me that this church is nearly invisible in summer when all the trees are leafy.



Bye
Captain Caramel

I have arrived at Munich

The weather was bad and I did not like to venture out, just stayed around the corner - at least I saw the opera house at Gärtnerplatz.

I went shopping and started at Karlsplatz (however, the locals call it Stachus) - it is the start of one of Germany's most visitied shopping streets.

My host often goes to the Isar river to walk the dog. And then we always pass the German Museum. It is located on an island in the river.

The weather was great today, nice and sunny, so I went with my host to the Auer Dult. I loved it, lots of nice food and stuff 

This is what we found on the official internet site:
The Auer Dult is characteristic of Munich, the Bavarian capital. The history of the popular fair with its folkloric flair can be traced back to the Middle Ages. Nowadays the event is organized by the Munich Tourist Office.

Three times a year, the locals flock to the Mariahilfplatz, in the part of town called the "Au", which means "meadow" or "pasture": here they can walk around at leisure, shop for bargains, have a bite to eat and enjoy a good time. During the "Dult", the fairground, which spreads over 20,000 square meters, becomes an island in the heart of the city, alive with conversation and congeniality. Children young and old enjoy going on the bumper cars, the boat-like swings, the merry-go-round or the ferris wheel.

And if you like Punch and Judy, you must go see their Bavarian cousin, the famous " Kasperl von der AU". The Auer Dult is Europe's largest market for tableware and all kinds of pots and pans. New-fangled household products are proudly praised as "kitchen marvels". The junk dealers' wares conceal many a treasure, sometimes art and sometimes kitsch. Whether glass or porcelain, wax or wicker, cloth or leather, whether it's candy or an old-fashioned herbal remedy you're looking for: your heart's desire awaits you at the Dult. This is open-air shopping with a smile. And if you have children, be sure to go on "Kindertag", when you are able to get more for less.

The weather is still not nice so I only took a short tour of the city center and visited Marienplatz with the mayor's place.

A famous place to see is the Hofbräuhaus. Lots of tourists go to this huge beerhall. And next to the Hofbräuhaus is the Orlando house with a very nice house front.

It is still raining ..... 

Today I had a look at the opera. And I also walked along Maximilian street - that's where all the posh designer shops are. My host told me that we can only do window-shopping as it is very expensive to buy Dior, Escada and others.

The former Bavarian King's residence is located right in the city center - very easy to reach from the apartment, just a 15 minutes walk 
Today it is a museum and in the back-yard everyone can take a walk. In summer people play Boccia or sit outside in a cafe.

The gates of the residence are guarded by lions. I was wondering why they had so shiny noses - and found out that lots of people were rubbing them. But why? It is supposed to bring luck to you if you rub them. And guess what I did? I rubbed and rubbed on the noses, too to get more luck on my travels