Tübingen
Trip Start
Jul 01, 2008
1
9
13
Trip End
Jul 31, 2008
Tübingen,
Germany
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Pfeffingen is in the southwestern state of Germany called Baden-Württemberg, mostly covered by the famed Black Forest. Elaine's friend, Jenny, and her husband Bill, have a wonderful house with a crazy, overgrown garden that has literally hundreds of blooms. From the rear, you can see rolling hills covered in grain for a long way.
Tübingen, about six kilometers from where we were staying, has been a central hub in the trading routes of central Europe, like Nüremburg, since medieval times. The Alstadt (old town) is simply beautiful. There are several medieval gothic structures (a cathedral, churches, and a castle)that are great photo ops as well as windows into the past. There are also dozens of specialty shops and small businesses tucked away in old-style buildings. Sorry, no outlet stores; but plenty of great deals and good, honest commerce and conversation between consumer and proprietor not seen in the US since before the 1980s and the Big Box stores. We didn't know that much German but we tried and it would start some humorous, most importantly friendly, interactions.
Tübingen is famous for its university, founded just after the invention of the printing press, in 1477. the empiricist philosopher, Hegel, and the astronomer, Johannes Kepler, both earned their cap and gown here. Goethe, a famous German writer, liked to hang out here. It's easy to see why. There are several large, pedestrian squares, with shady benches and outdoor cafes. Plenty of areas to rest and ruminate about the universe within and without.
The Neckar river runs right through the middle of Tübingen and it's very lush citypark. There are gondolas and paddle boats as well as people just splashing about in the sun. There's a large, community beer garden right on the river, underneath some gigantic shade trees that seem to have been there for a few hundred years. The beer garden HAS been there since the beginnings of the town.
There was a lot to like about Tübingen.
We have taken the train ride east into Bavaria, to Munich, for the last leg of Elaine's Fund for Teachers expedition. We are to go to Dachau tomorrow, then a walking tour of Hitler's Munich. The Nazi party has its beginnings here and there was a failed takeover in 1923 called the Beer Hall Putsch that killed several Nazis and landed Hitler and his compadres in jail for high treason. The only reason he wasn't put to death was because he had his trial in front of a very sympathetic judge and jury who who all had National Socialist leanings. More on this in my next post.
