#Alsace and Baden

[argacyan]

Updated version of another old map: Alemannic languages /dialects mapped out. Again this new version features all info on the image itself now.

[dduane]

At the very least in Switzerland it's sometimes Flammkueche but otherwise Flammkuchen! I've never seen a round one before...

Aguete!

Thanks so much for letting me know! (& Danke!/Merci!/Grazie!/Engraziel!)

I have to confess I can't think when I might ever possibly have seen flammkuchen in CH, except maaaaaaaaybe in Basel?* which is far, far south on the Alsace/Elsass axis (as it were). It first really started to come up on my/our radar during various trips (for writing and other purposes) to Freiburg im Breisgau. As a result, I mostly tend to think of it as a BaWu/generally Badener thing. (And they do theirs round, up there! Go figure.) 😀

*I am now wracking my brains trying to think whether I might ever have seen it there during numerous Baseler Fasnacht trips. ...I'm thinking in particular of the crowd of food trucks/stalls that would routinely set up shop in/near the squares adjacent to Marktplatz to sell people kaesweie (...sp? ...because Baslerdeutsch is its own whole kettle of fish, seriously; where else do you go to get to see the letter "ÿ" with an umlaut? Repeatedly?😅) and the other goodies that go with the Three Best Days of the Year.

[seekers-who-are-lovers]

Out of curiosity, I googled if I could find a certain Sarah Kemble. So I found two entries all right. Of course, this is only my conjecture. God knows the only one who knows Yana Toboso’s true inspiration is Yana.

A certain Sarah Kemble Knight was an American scrivener and a teacher. There was also a Fanny Kemble, who was a British actress during the Victorian era. Strange though that both of these women were later plantation owners, who were racist toward the slaves they owned, based on the journals they left. Sarah, specifically, had the lowest regard to Native Americans.

Fanny Kemble.

Now Snake being born in 1871, March 15th, was the year the German Empire was proclaimed. Southern German states like Baden, Württemberg, Bavaria, etc. joined the Northern Confederation to found the empire after the Franco-German war with Germany annexing Alsace-Lorraine to boot. No wonder the existence of half-timber houses is very promising in these areas.

Anyway, historical aside, Yana chose a momentous year for Snake.

Yet there are still many questions from whence he came from concerning his physical appearance and the way he was abandoned.

[gwendolynlerman]

Deutschribing Germany: regions

Baden-Württemberg (Baden-Württemberg)

Baden-Württemberg is divided into thirty-five districts (Landkreise) and nine independent cities (Stadtkreise), both grouped into the four administrative districts (Regierungsbezirke) of Freiburg, Karlsruhe, Stuttgart, and Tübingen. The capital city is Stuttgart.

Climate

The predominant climate type is warm-summer humid continental, but the western part (Baden) has a subtropical highland climate. As a result, in most parts of Baden, the climate is warm almost all year round and summers are mostly dry, while winters are wet and foggy.

The rest of the state has more temperate temperatures, especially in summer. Areas of high elevation get snow frequently, and summers are rainier than in Baden.

Due to the climate differences, average annual temperatures range from 5 °C (41 °F) in the Black Forest to 13 °C (55 °F) in the subtropical areas.

Economy

Although Baden-Württemberg has relatively few natural resources compared to other German states, it is among the most prosperous and wealthiest regions in Europe.

The state is known for its strong industries, including car manufacturing, electrical engineering, and mechanical engineering. It hosts the headquarters of some of the largest German companies, such as Borsch, Mercedes-Benz Group, Porsche, and Schwarz Group (owner of Kaufland and Lidl).

Baden-Württemberg is also a popular holiday destination, including a variety of sights like the residential court towns of Ludwigsburg and Karlsruhe, the spas of Baden-Baden, the medieval architecture of Ulm, the Black Forest, and the traditional university towns of Heidelberg and Tübingen.

Famous people

Alena Gerber - model, actress, and TV host

Anja Jantschik - journalist and writer

Anne-Sophie Mutter - violinist

Ayla - producer and DJ

Frank Christoph Schnitzler - actor, artist, and musician

Frederik I - Holy Roman emperor

Friedrich Wilhelm Schnitzler - landowner, business manager, and politician

Jens Weidmann - economist

Sophie Weber - singer and younger sister of Mozart's wife Constanze

Walter Haeussermann - scientist

Gastronomy

There are two distinct regional cuisines: those of Baden and Swabia. The cuisine of Baden is considered one of the best regional cuisines in Germany and is based on fruit, herbs, vegetables, game, poultry, fish, smoked products, wine, and beer. It has many influences from Alsace and Switzerland. Specialties include Flammkuchen (pizza with thin crust) and Schäufele (pig's shoulder meat).

Swabian cuisine has a reputation for being rustic but rich and hearty. It is characterized by fresh egg pasta, soups, sausages, broths, and sauces. The most famous specialties are Maultaschen (meat and spinach-filled dumplings, either fried or served in broth) and pretzels.

Schäufele

Brezel

History

Baden-Württemberg was formed from the historical territories of Baden, Prussian Hohenzollern, and Württemberg.

100 - Roman invasion of Württemberg

3rd century - the Alemanni force the Romans to retreat west

496 - Frankish invasion

915-1313 - Duchy of Swabia

1083-1495 - County of Württemberg

1112-1803 - Margraviate of Baden

1278-1805 - Further Austria

1495-1803 - Duchy of Württemberg

1500-1808 - Swabian Circle

16th century - Protestant Reformation

1524-1525 - German Peasants' War

1618-1648 - Thirty Years War

1803-1806 - Electorate of Baden; Electorate of Württemberg

1805-1918 - Kingdom of Württemberg

1806-1918 - Grand Duchy of Baden

1918-1945 - Republic of Baden

1945-1946 - South Baden

1945-1952 - Württemberg-Baden

1945-1952 - Württemberg-Hohenzollern

1946-1952 - Baden

1951 - vote on the union of Baden and Württemberg

1952 - State of Baden-Württemberg

1956 - opponents of the merger sue and win

1970 - vote on the restoration of the state of Baden fails

Languages

Two dialect groups of German are spoken in Baden-Württemberg: Alemannic and Franconian dialects. These include East Franconian, High Alemannic, Low Alemannic, Rhine Franconian, South Franconian, and Swabian.

Monuments and landmarks

Baden-Baden

Maulbronn Monastery Complex

[adito-lang]

Hiking in the footsteps of the Heckerzug (part 1)

This past weekend, my boyfriend - a history enthusiast - and I did a multi-day hike in the southern Black Forest 🌲Schwarzwald🌲 that followed part of the route taken by revolutionary leader Friedrich Hecker and his armed civilian militia between April 13-20, 1848.

The history

The Badische Revolution was part of the broader revolutions of 1848 that took place across Europe, and it was the first to take place in Germany. The first chapter of Badische Revolution was an uprising known as the Heckeraufstand. It was led by radical democrat Friedrich Hecker with the intention of overthrowing the monarchy and establishing a Republic.

Hecker and his contemporary Gustav Struve (who had relinquished his aristocratic title) organized an armed civilian militia which set out from Konstanz on the Swiss border on April 13, 1848. This march is known as the Heckerzug, and its final destination was Karlsruhe, the ducal capital of the Grand Duchy of Baden (Großherzogtum Baden), where it was to join forces with another armed group, led by the revolutionary poet Georg Herwegh, which had set out from France. Revolutionaries Franz Sigel and Joseph Weißhaar also led civilian militias as part of the uprising that were to join up with the Heckerzug - none of them made it anywhere close to Karlsruhe, as you can see on the map below.

On April 20, the Heckerzug was halted by troops of the German Confederation (Deutscher Bund) just outside the village of Kandern, at a point known as Scheideck. Hecker survived the battle and fled to Switzerland (as did Struve), and later emigrated to the USA.

The hike (day 1: Lenzkirch - Bernau 21,6 km)

Our hike began on Friday morning. We had spent the night in Freiburg and took a train from there to Titisee, continuing to Lenzkirch by bus. The Heckerzug arrived there on April 17, 1848, and Hecker held a speech on the steps of the guesthouse Zum Rößle to encourage the locals to join his cause - he won over about a half-dozen men, and the Heckerzug continued onwards the same day.

From Lenzkirch, we first hiked 8,5 km along the Schluchtensteig over to Aha and around the western part of the Schluchtsee (the largest lake in the Black Forest) before continuing over the next ridge to Menzenschwand.

Part of the path from Menzenschwand over the next ridge was closed due to forestry work, and we considered taking a long detour around the ridge, but ended up bushwhacking our way up a semi-official path... right as we got to the top of the ridge, the thunder started, and we hurried down to Bernau. The storm rolled in quickly from the southwest, and we arrived in Bernau in the pouring rain, but we still managed to see the guesthouse Adler, where Hecker and his men were welcomed with a hearty meal back in the day.

Spending the evening in Todtmoos

We hung out in Bernau for an hour before taking a local bus south to Todtmoos, where we stayed the night. The Heckerzug never passed through there, but Todtmoos was historically a pilgrimage destination due to its baroque pilgrimage church (Wallfahrtskirche). A supposed apparition of the Virgin Mary here in 1255 led to pilgrims from the Black Forest, northern Switzerland and the Alsace region to flock to Todtmoos during the Middle Ages to pray for an end to the Black Death. This was the beginning of the tourist industry in Todtmoos, and in the seventeenth century, several guesthouses were opened to accommodate pilgrims. The oldest is today's Hotel Maien, which opened its doors in 1622.

By the way, if you're thinking of opening up a restaurant or hotel in the Black Forest, might I offer some suggestions?

Rössle/Rößle: horse (dialect) 🐴

Krone: crown 👑

Adler: eagle 🦅

Hirsch: stag 🦌

Ochse: ox 🐂

Löwe: lion 🦁

Sonne: sun ☀️

Kreuz: cross ✝️

You see establishments with these names everywhere. Every town has a Rössle!

[jessebeckerms]

Pfalz is for the Feinschmecker

“The Rheinpfalz Rieslings, especially, are as easy to drink with food as the fine white Burgundies of France” – Frank Schoonmaker, The Wines of Germany

Village of Birkweiler, Pfalz, Germany.

Standing at the edge of the vineyards in Forst, looking upward towards the Pfälzerwald, you could just as easily imagine yourself in Morey-Saint-Denis or Puligny. Like the Côte d’Or, vineyards face east over a plain, and some of the sites, most famously Forster Kirchenstück, are even surrounded by a Clos. Of course, this celebrated section of the Pfalz, between Kallstadt and Ruppertsberg, makes up only a tiny percentage of Germany’s second-largest wine region. The Pfalz has 23,684 hectares of vineyard (only Rheinhessen claims more). While Jesuitengarten, Ungeheuer, Pechstein, and previously mentioned Kirchenstück are planted almost entirely in Riesling, the leading producers of the southern Pfalz deliver some of Germany’s finest Spätburgunder and Weißburgunder. The Pfälzer celebrate their dry and full-bodied wines and their regional cuisine through a seemingly neverending series of festivals, making the Pfalz the region for the Feinschmecker.

As written in English, the Palatinate, a variation of Palast from the Roman Palatium, is the region’s historical name, covering more territory than the Weinanbaugebiet today. The wine region is an 85-kilometer stretch of vineyards running north to south, situated under the lee of the Pfalz Forest on the Haardt Mountains, a continuation of Alsace’s Vosges. Bad Dürkheim, Neustadt an der Weinstraße, and Landau are its three main cities and 130 villages between Bockenheim bordering Rheinhessen, and Schweigen bordering Alsace fall within two bereiche: the Mittelhaardt-Deutsche Weinstraße and the Südliche Weinstraße. In former times, the divisions were Unterhaardt, Mittelhaardt, and Oberhaardt, but the construction of the Deutsche Weinstraße in 1936 (an idea conceived by the Third Reich to encourage economic growth) led to its current organization. The northern vineyards with ecclesiastical origins and classified in the 1828 Bavarian Land Registry were always historically more significant than the southern area, which until recently was Schoppenwein country, its wines served by the tankard in Weinstuben or sold in bulk, sometimes destined for the Mosel.

Back to the food-friendly style of its wines, the Pfalz climate is much like that of Alsace or Baden and is one of the warmest, sunniest, and driest wine regions in Germany. As in Alsace, its complex geology is the result of millions of years of upheaval and tectonic activity, with areas of sandstone, basalt, limestone, sand, gravel, and löss. A broad range of grape varieties can produce a whole lot of interesting results, and while Riesling is king with 6,000 hectares planted, Dornfelder, Grauburgunder, Müller-Thurgau, Spätburgunder are planted in significant quantities along with Portugieser, Silvaner, Weißburgunder, Gewürztraminer, Kerner, Chardonnay, Morio-Muskat and Sauvignon Blanc. All the variety is what’s needed to pair with the local cuisine. Saumagen, literally “sow’s stomach,” is stuffed with a mixture of pork, potatoes, and seasonings, while a variety of Würste become the snack of Weck, Worscht un Woi (bun, sausage, and wine). Dampfnudeln, potatoes, and sauerkraut are part of the regional fare, but as a wise wine merchant once said, Pfalz wine is easily at home with the finest cuisine.

[screenwritinggym]

Chill Sentenza - Very Important Message - Here are the three locations of our virtuous team. Norway - Alsace, France - Germany. Le terme "vaisseau mère" exprime l'idée que tous les membres de notre équipe doivent s'installer et vivre dans ces zones spécifiques.

Voici les trois lieux, les trois emplacements de notre équipe vertueuse :

1- Norway cities of Bergen and Oslo and Trondheim:

Trondheim (Norvège) page wiki link: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trondheim

Bergen (Norvège) page wiki link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bergen

Oslo (Norvège) page wiki link: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oslo

2- Germany cities of Kehl, Mannheim and Frankfurt:

Kehl (Allemagne) page wiki link: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kehl

Mannheim (Allemagne) page wiki link: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mannheim

Frankfurt (Allemagne) page wiki link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankfurt

Baden-Baden (Allemagne) page wiki link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baden-Baden

3- France cities of Alsace, Strasbourg, Mulhouse and Colmar:

Strasbourg (France) page wiki link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strasbourg

Mulhouse (France) page wiki link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mulhouse

Colmar (France) page wiki link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colmar

Pour les transports en Trains et Avions:

1- La gare de Kehl wiki page link: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gare_de_Kehl

2- La Gare de Strasbourg-Ville wiki page link: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gare_de_Strasbourg-Ville

3- L'Aéroport de Strasbourg-Entzheim wiki page link: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/A%C3%A9roport_de_Strasbourg-Entzheim

4- L'Aéroport de Karlsruhe-Baden-Baden wiki page link: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/A%C3%A9roport_de_Karlsruhe-Baden-Baden

5- Frankfurt Airport wiki page link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankfurt_Airport

6- Oslo Airport, Gardermoen wiki page link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oslo_Airport,_Gardermoen

7- Bergen Airport, Flesland wiki page link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bergen_Airport,_Flesland

8- Trondheim Airport wiki page link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trondheim_Airport

9- EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg wiki page link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EuroAirport_Basel_Mulhouse_Freiburg

10- Colmar Airport wiki page link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colmar_Airport

La Lettre commence ici:

Objet : Importance de vivre dans les zones de notre vaisseau mère

Cher Chill Sentenza,

J'espère que cette lettre te trouve en bonne santé et plein d'énergie. Je prends un moment pour t'expliquer un concept crucial qui concerne l'ensemble de notre équipe.

Comme tu le sais peut-être, nous considérons les villes en Alsace, en Norvège et en Allemagne comme notre vaisseau mère. Pour nous, cela signifie bien plus qu'un simple lieu de résidence. C'est un principe fondamental pour la protection et la solidarité au sein de notre équipe.

Le terme "vaisseau mère" exprime l'idée que tous les membres de notre équipe doivent s'installer et vivre dans ces zones spécifiques. C'est notre moyen de nous protéger mutuellement, surtout dans le contexte potentiellement dangereux d'une "Zombie apocalypse". Cette démarche vise à minimiser les effets néfastes de telles situations.

À partir de maintenant, nous encourageons fortement tous les membres de notre équipage à s'installer et à vivre dans notre vaisseau mère. Cette approche renforce notre capacité à nous soutenir mutuellement et à coopérer de manière efficace. Nous croyons fermement que c'est la meilleure façon de préserver notre équipe dans son ensemble.

Nous comprenons que cela puisse représenter un changement, mais nous le considérons comme une mesure essentielle pour assurer notre bien-être collectif. Plus que jamais, il est crucial que nous soyons proches les uns des autres pour répondre rapidement aux défis potentiels et garantir notre sécurité.

Nous espérons que tu comprends l'importance de cette décision et que tu envisageras sérieusement de rejoindre notre vaisseau mère. Ton engagement et ta coopération sont vitaux pour le succès de notre équipe, et nous sommes convaincus que, ensemble, nous pourrons surmonter les obstacles.

N'hésite pas à me contacter si tu as des questions ou des préoccupations. Nous sommes là pour te soutenir dans ce processus.

Merci de ta compréhension et de ta coopération.

Cordialement,

Ton ami. Alien Putin.

P.S.:

Mon ami Chill Sentenza, you think small, but I think Big. I see these three countries as one nation, one mothership, one vaisseau mère.

Je tiens à partager avec toi une perspective qui peut sembler différente, mais qui est profondément enracinée dans ma vision du monde. Alors que tu perçois probablement des pays distincts avec des frontières définies entre l'Allemagne, la France et la Norvège, ma vision transcende ces limites géographiques. Pour moi, ces trois pays ne constituent pas simplement des entités séparées, mais plutôt les pièces d'un tout cohérent. C'est une vision que je porte avec conviction, où l'Allemagne, la France et la Norvège ne forment qu'un seul pays, une entité unifiée. Mon objectif en partageant cela avec toi est de susciter une prise de conscience collective, de t'inviter à voir au-delà des frontières conventionnelles et à considérer ces trois nations comme notre vaisseau mère. J'espère que tu pourras comprendre ma perspective et que nous pourrons discuter plus en détail de cette vision qui m'est chère.

My vision of the world and your vision of the world are different.

You have to wake them up and see the vision of our mothership.

Notre vaisseau mère. La France, La Norvège et L'Allemagne.

[jjeremysstash]

Fun French fact

There are people around having fun with putting city entry board (the ones indicating that you're entering the city/village/etc) upside down.

Germany caught up and they're doing the same near the Alsace-Baden-Wurtenberg border

[ultrajaphunter]

Updated Map of US Navy and Allies in the Mediterranean and Red Sea.

Warships from the following countries underway or deployed

U.S.A.

U.K.

FRANCE

GERMANY

ITALY

SPAIN

TURKEY

GREECE

POLAND

BANGLADESH

DENMARK

USS Mount Whitney LCC-20

Ford Carrier Strike Group

USS Gerald R. Ford CVN-78

USS Thomas Hudner DDG-116

USS Ramage DDG-61

USS Carney DDG-64

USS Roosevelt DDG-80

USS Normandy CG-60

Ike Carrier Strike Group

That is one crowded Carrier. Dwight D. Eisenhower transits the Strait of Gibraltar today [USN pic M Daley]

USS Dwight D. Eisenhower CVN-69

USS Gravely DDG-107

USS Mason DDG-87

ITS Virginio Fasan

F-591 USS Philippine Sea

CG-58 Bataan ARG

USS Bataan LHD-5

USS Mesa Verde LPD-19

USS Carter Hall LSD-50

Not Assigned USS Stethem

DDG-63 USS McFaul

DDG-74 USS Arleigh Burke

DDG-51 USS Paul Ignatius

DDG-117 USS Bulkeley

DDG-84 USNS ships

USNS Laramie T-AO 203

USNS Medgar Evers T-AKE 13

USNS Yuma T-EPF-8

USNS Trenton T-EFP-5

UNIFIL Maritime Task Force

HS Adrias F-459

TCG Heybeliada F-511

FGS Erfurt F-262

FGS Oldenburg F-263

BNS Sangram F-113

KRI Frans Kaisiepo (368),

Enroute

FGS Baden-Wuerttemberg (F-125) which will replace FGS Erfurt.

When this happens FGS Erfurt will go to Standing NATO Maritime Group 2

Standing NATO Maritime Group 2

HMS Duncan D-37

ITS Carlo Margottini F-592

ESPS Méndez Núñez F-104

TCG Yavuz F-240

HDMS Niels Juel F-363

HS Psara F-454

FGS Frankfurt am Main A-1412

ESPS Patiño A-14

Littoral Response Group South

RFA Argus A-135

RFA Lyme Bay L-3007

Tonnerre "ARG"

FS Tonnerre L-9014

FS Surcouf F-711

FS Alsace D-656

Along with Submarines and other support ships Work in progress will update daily.

[greenbagjosh]

28 May 1998 - zooming through the Alsace and what Stuttgart Hbf was like before Stuttgart21

Thursday 28 May 1998

Bonjour a tout le monde!  Guten Morgen!

Today would be the day that I rode to Munich from Paris Gare de l'Est.  I already had my ticket in first class ready for the long journey on the "Mozart" Eurocity, which also went to Vienna via Salzburg.  My apartment room in Englschalking would not be available until 5 PM Friday afternoon, so I stayed a night in a hotel along Schillerstraße.

It was about 5:30 AM and the sun was about to rise in Paris' 11ème district.  Breakfast would not be ready until at least 6:45 AM.  I took a shower in a room in the hallway.  THen I went down the spiral steps of the hostel, and went for a walk along Rue Faubourg.  I made sure to take a photo of a 1970s Citroen DS hatchback.  Those DS series have a low hatch which makes their design interesting.

I returned to the hostel, ate breakfast, which was just a couple of breadrolls, butter, jam and coffee, went up to fetch my luggage, checked out and walked along Rue Trousseau to the Ledru Rollin metro station.  I had to take the westbound M8 train to République and change to the M5 for Gare de l'Est.  I went upstairs to the Grandes Lignes platforms and found the train for Munich and Salzburg.  I was in the rear car, that would be good in the long run, as the train would change direction in Stuttgart Hbf.  Note, in 1998, it was not common knowledge, that in the 2020's, an underground through station in Stuttgart Hbf would be built and replace the long distance platforms.  I had a little time to buy the latest "Canard enchaîné" humor newspaper, full of political cartoons.  Its contemporary publication competition is Charlie Hebdo, which has edgier cartoons.  

The train left about 7:50 AM.  I had my trusty Aiwa HS-JS 475 loaded with an audiocassette and two fresh AA batteries.  I tuned into NRJ 100.3 FM, and listened to it as long as I could retain the signal.  While the train passed Pantin/Ella Fitzgerald station heading to Noisy le-Sec, the Festival Roblès show played a parody of Nomads "Yakalélo", called "Yak de Lolo", a comedy song about going to a beach resort on Africa.  The train went along to pass by Meaux.  By that time, the radio was playing "La tribu de Dana" by Manau, a rap group from somewhere near St. Brieuc in Brittany.  I lost the NRJ signal somewhere about 20 km east of Meaux, but I managed to tune in another song.  There was an English-language song playing but I could not quite get the song title or artist.  The following song "tout n'est qu'un rêve" by Alias Lj, was in French.  The train sped up and maintained its speed until it arrived in Nancy.  The following stop was Strasbourg.  The train stopped to change locomotives, from the SNCF to DB.  It soon crossed the Rhine and crossed into Germany through Kehl Hbf.  There was no passport control between France and Germany, but there was a ticket check, which was not bad.  The staff had changed at Strasbourg.

The train did not go to Oldenburg, but went north through Baden Baden and stopped at Karlsruhe.  While I was recording some radio, I did not realize until days later, that I had accidentally recorded footage from the 29th of May 1998 on top of the footage I recorded on 28th May, effectively erasing it altogether.  I recorded part of a 29th May 1998 Voice of America AM broadcast, when Barry Goldwater, and actor Phil Hartman had both died the same day, imagine that.  I managed to stop, before arriving in Karlsruhe, when an original version of "Dreams" by The Corrs was playing, and later "Küssen Verboten" by Die Prinzen, a band from Leipzig in the former East Germany, with Sebastian Krumbiegel as lead singer.  Prior to 1991, they were called the "Herzbuben" or "Knaves of Hearts".    

Karlsruhe is an interesting city, especially for the trains.  If you remember the y = x^2 graph from algebra, this is kind of the track map of the Basel to Frankfurt via Mannheim, conceptually speaking.  Karlsruhe would be at the origin and to get to Baden Baden, you would be going west and then south.  Only in February 2022 did I visit Karlsruhe for a couple of days, and by then, the track orientation made sense.  Prior to that, it was confusing.  After leaving Karlsruhe, the train went a bit east, then north, and east again stopping in Pforzheim, then east again through Vaihingen (Enz) and ending up in Stuttgart Hbf, somewhere in the middle of the long distance train platform area, long before the Bonatzbau would be gutted to dig the new underground platform area, as a result of Stuttgart21.  While I was waiting for the train to change direction in Stuttgart, I tuned into 102.3 FM, which was called Z FM, long before it was renamed "The Eagle 102.3".  There was the Morning Show going on, and they were interviewing comedian Mark Curry.  It was funny.  Also, the song "Love's taken over" by Chanté Moore.  I think before Stuttgart21 draws to a close and the old surface tracks are dismantled, I will always remember "Love's Taken Over" from the time that long distance platforms at Stuttgart Hbf still existed.  Also the year before, Saturday 2nd August 1997, I had visited Stuttgart and bought a new point and shoot camera.  My Vivitar camera broke on Friday 1st August and could not take flash photography but it could do everything else.  I had to make do with the point and shoot camera until I bought the Samsung Evoca 115, a quantum leap ahead of the Vivitar, which could make a timestamp on film.

Eventually the train left Stuttgart Hbf and went to Ulm through Bad Cannstatt, Esslingen(Neckar) and Plochingen.  It was a bit slow but the scenery was nice.  Already in 2023, the section from Wendlingen to Ulm is now high speed and when Stuttgart Flughafen is complete, trains will go underground from Stuttgart Hbf, come out in tunnel partway, stop in the Flughafen underground station, and then go high speed to Ulm.  At least you can experience from my story, what life was like before Stuttgart21.  

The train stopped in Ulm.  Ulm until 2022 was the place where trains to Friedrichshafen and Lindau were required to change from electric to diesel.  Also, trains for Sigmaringen have their eastern terminus at a head platform or "Stumpfengleis" on DMU's, diesel multiple units.  The train left Ulm for Günzburg, Augsburg and eventually arrived in München Hbf.  I had my reservation at Hotel Helvetia on Schillerstraße, not far from the station.  The strange thing about the Hotel Helvetia, is that the lift has to be called from upstairs.  Years later that was changed.  The second floor, or the first floor in Europe as opposed to the ground floor, was where the reception was located.  I had a single room with a shared bath, for about 60 D-Mark, breakfast included.  In Euro that would be 30.00 €.  

Already I had a bank account in Munich, so I did not need to reestablish one.  This would be essential, for receiving monthly wage payments.  I had my ATM card with me, so I could withdraw funds as needed.  I went into town and rode the U Bahn around.  I have some stories about the 28th May 2018 which will say more about what I did that evening.  I remember there was a major exposition of gymnastics going on that weekend.

The next day I would go to the offices of the HomeExchange (do not remember right now the real name of the company) in Munich.  I would receive my key to the apartment in Englschalking and move in.  Hope you will join me for that.

Bonne Nuit!  Gute Nacht!

-----

A little more from the previous day that I wrote in 2018, you can tell how much time has passed since I had written this.

Hi everyone, Before I log off for the night, I wanted to give a quick overview of Wednesday 27th May 1998, exactly 20 years ago today.  It would be probably my shortest visit to Paris that I could remember, as on the 28th May I would be heading to Munich via Strasbourg and Stuttgart, and back then, it was an eight hour ride by train.   About 7:30 AM on the 27th, I arrived at CDG T1, rode the underground pedestrian link from the gate to passport control and baggage claim, took the bus to the RER station, took RER B to Gare du Lyon, took a  and line 8 metro to Ledru Rollin in the 11th arrondisement and left my luggage at the hostel.  I arrived there about 10:30 AM.  From there I went on to - metro ride to Nation, Gallieni to Porte des Lilas, Places des Fetes to Louis Blanc with the 7B as they use the MF88 stock - Centre Georges Pompidou and the Stravinski Fountain - Chatelet Les Halles - Notre Dame - took the RER C from Saint Michel to Champ de Mars / Bir Hakeim / Eiffel Tower - went farther on the RER C to Issy Val de Seine, transferred to the T2 - rode the T2 the entire route to Grande Arche de La Defense - took the RER A to Cergy Le Haut and found that was the only RER station that did not have fare gates at the time.  I took a photo of the view from Cergy Le Haut towards La Defense. - took the train back to CDG-Etoile, transferred to the Metro line 2 for Anvers, the southern end of Montmartre - Had a look at the Champs des Elysees, walked to the nearest line 8 train back to the hostel.  I was tired but felt I beat my jetlag or put a big dent in it.   I do not remember where I ate dinner that night.  But I had a good sleep and woke up early the next morning, made it to breakfast and caught my intended train to Munich from Paris Gare de l'Est without transferring. I have an album "Paris 27 May 1998" if you would like to see some of the photos I took.

[zeksah]

UID Baden Bölge Başkanı Muhlis Alkan’ın davetlisi olarak çeşitli toplantılar ve görüşmeler yapmak üzere Almanya’ya gelen Ak Parti Sinop milletvekili Nazım Maviş bu vesileyle UID Alsace Bölge Başkanı İrfan Duman’ın da misafiri olarak Strasbourg ziyaretinde bulundu. (Strasbourg, France) https://www.instagram.com/p/CncY7czM09W/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[vasco-portable-translators]

What language do they speak in Switzerland?

Switzerland is a country in Europe, bordered by France, Germany, Italy, and Austria. It is a landlocked country and has a population of 8.5 million.

Known for its rich culture and diversity, Switzerland is a home for many languages spoken by its population.

But what are they? How many official languages are in Switzerland? How many people speak standard German or Swiss German?

Let's answer those and many other questions!

What is the Culture of Switzerland?

Switzerland is a country in Europe, bordered by France, Italy, Austria and Germany. The Swiss culture has been influenced by the cultures of these countries.

The Swiss culture is characterized by the traditions of its four national languages: German, French, Italian and Romansh.

The German-speaking Swiss share a common tradition with the Germans in Alsace and Baden-Württemberg in Germany;

French-speaking Swiss share a common history with the French people;

Italians have their own cultural heritage that is different from that of other Italians living outside Switzerland;

Romansh language is spoken only in Switzerland.

The Swiss are said to be punctual and disciplined people who take their time for everything they do. They are also known for their good manners, which can be seen when interacting with others or even when driving on the roads.

How to Speak Swiss-German With a Little Bit of Practice?

Swiss-German is a variety of German spoken in Switzerland, which is largely mutually intelligible with Standard German. It is one of four official languages of Switzerland, spoken mainly in the Swiss Plateau but also on the left bank of the Rhine, around Lake Constance and in Valais.

The Swiss-German language consists of different dialects and has developed over the centuries. The dialects are so different that it can be hard to understand them when they are not being spoken quickly.

There are many ways to speak Swiss-German with a little bit of practice. One way is by learning basic Swiss-German words and phrases. Another way is by learning how to read and write it properly so that you can understand written texts as well as pronounce them correctly.

How To Speak French In Switzerland​?

Learning a language is an investment in your future. It opens up new opportunities, and allows you to communicate with more people. Swiss French is the official language of Switzerland, so if you are planning to visit or move there, then it is important to learn this language.

There are many ways that you can go about learning Swiss French. You can take a course at a school or university, or use an app on your phone like Duolingo. You could also find someone who speaks the language and ask them for help with your pronunciation and vocabulary. But one thing that all of these methods have in common is that they require time and effort from you!

Is Switzerland a Good Country to Move to?

Switzerland is one of the wealthiest countries in the world because it has an advanced economy that relies on trade with other European countries.

It has a high standard of living because its people have access to good education and healthcare services. The median salary for a Swiss citizen is more than $50 thousand per year.

Switzerland is also a country with extraordinarily low crime rate. So, if you want to find a good job and safe place to live, Switzerland is one of the best places in the world to choose from!

The Complete Guide: What is a love language?

[travel-food-inspiration]

How to get to Baden-Baden from Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden (FKB) - Airport Transfer

How to get to #BadenBaden from Baden-Baden #Karlsruhe Airport / Airport Transfer

If you want to travel to Baden-Baden from Karlsruhe Baden-Baden Airport (FKB), there are a few options available. The Airport serves as a gateway from various European destinations, to this cozy area in south-western Germany and the adjacent Alsace region of France. Baden-Baden is famous for its picturesque Casino, old town and exquisite restaurants, hotels and museums. It’s a city of old money,…

[sustainable-solo-travel]

How to get to Baden-Baden from Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden (FKB) - Airport Transfer

How to get to #BadenBaden from Baden-Baden #Karlsruhe Airport / Airport Transfer

If you want to travel to Baden-Baden from Karlsruhe Baden-Baden Airport (FKB), there are a few options available. The Airport serves as a gateway from various European destinations, to this cozy area in south-western Germany and the adjacent Alsace region of France. Baden-Baden is famous for its picturesque Casino, old town and exquisite restaurants, hotels and museums. It’s a city of old money,…

[fuckyeahcaraddict-blog]

How to get to Baden-Baden from Karlsruhe / Baden-Baden (FKB) - Airport Transfer

How to get to #BadenBaden from Baden-Baden #Karlsruhe Airport / Airport Transfer

If you want to travel to Baden-Baden from Karlsruhe Baden-Baden Airport (FKB), there are a few options available. The Airport serves as a gateway from various European destinations, to this cozy area in south-western Germany and the adjacent Alsace region of France. Baden-Baden is famous for its picturesque Casino, old town and exquisite restaurants, hotels and museums. It’s a city of old money,…

[juniorformulamotorsport]

Friday, 27th September 2019 – Waldkirch-Buchholz, Schonach, Triberg, Vaals

Most of the day was spent in the car on a variety of German autobahns, peering into clouds of spray and trying not to crash but before that we managed both a small amount of shopping and some sightseeing. First though, one more very good breakfast at the Hotel Schlossmühle, before a comprehensive repack of the car boot to make sure everything was secure and wouldn’t rattle too much, and that the grape vine I’d bought at Naturoparc, a Gewürztraminer, wasn’t going to get crushed or otherwise damaged.

After I’d done that I took a short walk into town and stopped off at the butcher’s to buy half a kilo of Black Forest ham, and a large pack of maultaschen that would go into the freezer when we got home. The lovely man behind the counter also handed me a present of couple of large slices of paté-en-croute which would do for our lunch for the first two days after we got home. From there we drove over to Waldkirch-Buchholz to Weingut Moosman to buy a couple of cases of the wines we had drunk the day before at the Alte Wache in Freiburg. And again I was given a present, a jar of local fruit jelly. I was going to struggle when shopping on my return home, because I’d be wondering why no one was giving me a gift along with my shopping.

I then spent a few minutes having a fight with the SatNav. Before we set off I had worked out how to add a driving route to its memory and was able to call that up and set it to navigate us along the way. What it didn’t seem able to handle was taking me to the nearest point on the route, rather than the absolute starting point, and as a result we ended up navigating round the centre of Freiburg more than once in several different directions before I gave up and entered a way point and told it to take us there! I had wanted to cover some of the Black Forest Road but we wasted so much time on trying to achieve escape velocity from Freiburg that we ran out of time. Instead we decided to head for Triberg and Germany’s highest waterfall.

On the way we were sidetracked, as we so often are, by Schonach, which is a pretty odd little place all told. It has around 4,000 inhabitants and is known for winter sports, with a number of famous athletes coming from the town, which explains why one of its advertised attractions is the Langenbach ski Jumping hill, which you can visit every Wednesday between 14:00 and 16:00 and climb up to the jumping point. It doesn’t explain the giant living advent calendar which of course we didn’t see, it being the wrong time of year. The Church of Saint Urban seems standard enough, but then there are two cuckoo clocks, and these are not just any cuckoo clocks. One is the world’s biggest cuckoo clock, and believe me it is big, and then there’s the first world’s biggest cuckoo clock.

This was built by Jürgen Dold and is 3.60 metres wide, 3.10 metres high, and 1 metre deep, and is housed in a small Black Forest style house. It’s open daily from 09:00 – 12:00, though we arrived just after 12:00 and were still invited in. It cuckoos on the hour and the half hour so we settled in on a bench in the garden to wait.

After that we headed into Triberg and parked up. Triberg as a name is first mentioned in any document in 1239 when Peter of Triberc is listed as a witness to a transaction, and in 1330 there is the first mention of an actual place called Triberg which seems to have had a castle as well. The Hohenbergs, who had held the castle for four generations, died our and the property passed in the hands of Duke Albrecht of Austria. It remained an imperial fief of the Habsburgs for around four centuries, and seems to have been a pretty miserable time for the townspeople. In 1654 they finally reached breaking point after years of suppression, poverty and being sold off to the highest bidders, and they raised 30,000 guilders to buy their independence. As a result Archduke Ferdinand Karl of Austria issued an edict that confirmed that the privileges of Triberg could never be pledged or sold.

By 1720 the town consisted of 422 inhabitants, living in 35 houses. By 1800 the population had pretty much doubled to 792. Shortly afterwards, the locals began to try and develop the waterfalls as a tourist attraction, setting up pathways to let the visitors get closer. A year later, after the Peace of Pressburg, 16 German princes joined forces under Napoleon’s military and political protection to form the Rhine Confederation, and Triberg became part of the new Grand Duchy of Baden. After Grand Duchess Stephanie visited the waterfalls in 1815 more and more visitors arrived and Triberg was established as a tourist attraction. A serious fire in 1826 burned down most of the town which is why it’s not packed with half-timbered buildings. The rebuilding was of course done in what was a contemporary style at the time. In 1864 further steps were taken to turn the town into a Spa, with the a beautification committee being set up. They were assitsed in their efforts when the Black Forest Railway opened a decade later. Modernisation continued apace and Triberg was the first city in Germany to erect publicly owned electric street lights.They were keen on the new in Triberg, and also set up the world’s first electric ski lift in the early 1900s, kicking off the area’s development as a winter sports centre.

We didn’t have a lot of time, but we wanted to take a quick look at the waterfall, especially as they would likely be at their best after a couple of days of heavy overnight rain. First though we found ourselves face to face with the second set of Easter island-inspired sculptures of the trip, after the strange ones in the Parc Malraux in Illkirch-Graffenstaden. These five sculptures on the waterfall path are the work of German-Brazilian multi-artist Woody Woodnock, also known as Michael Nock. They started life as the largest Douglas firs that could be found in the city forest, and weigh around 1.8 tonnes each, with a circumference of up to 2.70 metres. They were named Edekaner after a naming competition and they are just subtly insane, wearing, as they do, Bollenhuts, the women’s hats with red pompoms on the top that were worn by unmarried women from just three villages in the Black Forest but which are now regarded as representative of the whole area.

We crossed the road to the waterfall, thinking that the town looked attractive, for another time. The waterfall drops 163 meters down via a series of cascades and pools, as the River Gutach finds its way down to the valley floor. As with may German towns that have some sort of dramatic water feature, the locals will try and convince you that the water is good for your health, and that because it ionises the air, it is beneficial if you have bronchial asthma or a cold. That aside, they really are most impressive, and can be viewed at all times of year, including at Christmas when they are part of the Triberger Weihnachtszauber. They’re also lit up at night, so it would be hard to miss them!

The paths are steep, and slippery and the “easy” path was closed off so it was a case of slipping and sliding my way up about halfway, looking out for the friendly squirrels that are now so used to visitors that they just hang about begging for food. Maybe it was too damp, but I only saw one, and it wasn’t hanging about for a photoshoot, perhaps because I didn’t have anything to give in return.

We ran out of time so I scrambled back down again (which was a lot harder than going up had been) and we headed to the car to set off for the Belgian/Dutch/German border which was rather further away than I really liked the look of but would make Saturday a very easy day in comparison to today. We were staying just inside the Netherlands in a small town called Vaals, where I had managed to find a very nice looking place to lodge for a night. It was also just a short drive from the centre of Aachen so we could have a day there before we headed for the overnight ferry. Vaals is in the extreme southeastern part of the Dutch province of Limburg, in the southeastern part of the Netherlands and borders on both Belgium and Germany. The three borders meet at the Drielandenpunt, close to the highest point in the Netherlands, the Vaalserberg. Around a quarter of the population is actually German, and many of them work in the nearby German city of Aachen. Tourism is now a major source of income, though its fortunes were founded on coal and textiles during the industrial age. It seems to have been occupied by the Romans, and is one of a handful of places in the Netherlands with a name that comes from the Latin. Certainly the Limburg area was densely populated during Roman times, with a focus on Cologne (Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium).

Vaals is first mentioned in documents in 1041 when Emperor Henry III donated land to the Abbey of Saint Adalbert and made a distinction between the city of Aachen and this land by referring to it as “in Vallis” (in the valley). Given its geographical position it saw a lot of action during the various wars, including the time, in 1568, when the forces of William of Orange looted the church. In 1661 Vaals joined the Republic of the United Netherlands and as many wealthy citizens moved in, it became a prosperous industrial hub with numerous famous visitors. The Conference of Vienna assigned Aachen to Prussia and Vaals to the Kingdom of the Netherlands though when Belgium declared independence in 1830, Vaals became part of Belgium for 9 years. Afterwards it returned to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, sitting on four national boundaries (Prussia, Belgium, the Netherlands and the Neutral Territory of Moresnet). As a result of the less than nation-state of Moresnet, there was a Four-Border-Point, but not a Four-Country-Point although the Viergrenzenweg (“Four-Borders-Road”) still exists in Vaals. After 1919 Moresnet was absorbed into Belgium.

After 1840, when the various borders were closed, Vaals turned from a wealthy industrial town into a leisure and holiday destination complete with casinos. The Germans referred to the town as the “Vaalser Paradies” and a tram was built running to and from Aachen, via Vaals. During World War II the town was very isolated and post-war many of the townsfolk found jobs in Aachen legally while illegally smugglers’ routes across the border abounded as the “Owls of Vaals” plied their trade. Nowadays the town can best be regarded as Dutch suburb of a German city and it is even well integrated into Aachen’s transport system with rerular cross border buses.

We were staying at the rather swish Hotel Kasteel Bloemendal, built in the late 1700s for the Aachen cloth manufacturer Arnold von Clermont. A very rich man, with clients that included the Tzar, set about building a palace opposite his new weaving mill. In fact both Peter the Great and Napoleon Bonaparte have stayed in the castle, the latter much later on of course. Arnold died before the work was complete, and it was left to his son to carry on both the business and the building work. After the recession caused by the French Revolution the house was sold to the Aachen City Councillor Johann Wilhelm van Lommessen, who donated the building to the order of the Sacred Heart, a women’s religious order that his two daughters, Anna and Caroline, joined.

It became a renowned Catholic boarding school, both in Europe and beyond, with pupils that included Rose Kennedy. During the occupation of 1940-1944 it became hospital with 350 beds, but reverted to being a boarding school after 1947, continuing until the 1970s when the number of both pupils and nuns started to decline. In 1976, almost 130 years of monastic life came to an end and by 1978 the building was owned by the municipality of Vaals. After slightly more than a decade, the municipality, along with van der Valk hotels, in collaboration with the province of Limburg and the Netherlands Conservation Agency, decided to restore the complex and reopen it as a luxury hotel. It really is glorious and it would have been a shame if it had been left to decay! After a series of irritating delays on the motorways, and a number of detours to avoid it, we were later arriving that we had planned to be, so they moved our dinner booking back, giving us time to clean up. They also gave us an upgrade to one of the castle rooms, free of charge so we were very happy (and very comfortable).

Travel 2019 – Alsace and Baden, Day 15, Waldkirch-Buchholz, Schonach, Triberg, Vaals Friday, 27th September 2019 - Waldkirch-Buchholz, Schonach, Triberg, Vaals Most of the day was spent in the car on a variety of German autobahns, peering into clouds of spray and trying not to crash but before that we managed both a small amount of shopping and some sightseeing.