Trip to Germany

In November 2012, my trip to Germany took place. It was a business trip. I flew from Novosibirsk through Moscow to Frankfurt Airport. Collings were supposed to meet me there. But I would begin my story not with this, but with how I got a visa.

The process was not easy, which was a discovery for me. It would seem that obtaining a Schengen visa should be simple. But it was not that. This process has many formalities and need many documents.

Welcome

When I arrived at the airport and realized that no one met me. I had to hire a taxi and go to the Victor’s Residenz-Hotel, which is located in Frankenthal, eighty-four kilometers from Frankfurt. A ride on a Mercedes on a German autobahn, about an hour later I arrived at the hotel. Taxi services, even by Novosibirsk standards, are very expensive, not to mention the cost of travel by a taxi in Bangkok.

The hotel is in a quiet location, as is the whole city of Frankenthal. In my opinion, having a car there is not the first necessity. The city is quite compact. People in it live cultural, friendly and benevolent, even greet strangers on the street, which reminded me of my childhood in Akademgorodok. Now you cannot saw it. But what has changed? In fact, everything is simple. People no longer respect themselves and others.

At this time of the year there is no snow, the climate is comfortable. There is absolutely no desire to stay in the hotel after a long flight. On the contrary, I want to go for a walk, get some fresh air, and understand where I am.

Nostalgia

There is nothing in common with our reality, everything is thought out to the smallest detail, clean, neat and perceived as taken for granted.

Why in my country not so, well, at least not worse? It seems to me because if you do something, then you have to do it like for yourself. I saw a similar, conscientious approach to business in my favorite country, Thailand. There people make and build for myself. Therefore, the roof of the airport does not leak like a colander in contrast to the Novosibirsk airport, where there is water ankle-deeply after the rain.

Frankenthal

At the entrance to the central part of the city and on the other side have arches.

The streets of the city are mainly for pedestrians and only a few for road transport. The city has many shops, bars, restaurants, small businesses – bakeries, souvenir shops and etc.

My colleagues and I often visited one of the restaurants, but I changed it to a Spanish restaurant, because I don’t like German food, it too fat. In order for everything eaten to be absorbed by the body, the Germans wash down their food with Jughermeister.

There are many private breweries in the city. I was very pleased with the Weizen beer. After it, all Russian beer is alcohol with a dye and flavoring, which can be said about the rest of the wine-vodka products and tobacco products. Maybe it’s enough to sell straw instead of tobacco, or even paper?

I was lucky to come to this small town on Christmas Eve. The holiday atmosphere pervades you, and all worries leave you, you get a huge charge of positive emotions.

Also I managed to go on excursions in the city of Mannheim – this is a larger city with huge shopping malls. But since I was not particularly interested, I will not focus on this. I can only say that in comparison everything is very expensive.

Pegnitz

The trip to Pegnitz pleased me. I stopped at the Behringer´s Freizeit hotel. The hotel is located in the nature reserve of Franconian Switzerland. A trip to Germany became more and more interesting.

It’s very quiet place in the vicinity of three mountain rivers, in which trout are found. Fishing there should be excellent. The way of life is calm. You are relaxing with your body and soul.

Zum Elefanten

I returned to Frankenthal, on the eve of my birthday. I missed one more trip. Called too late, and had to meet the birthday alone. But fate was favorable to me. I wandered into one, at first glance, not noticeable bar called Zum Elefanten, where Larry Hawthorne performed with the group.

This is something that I could not have dreamed of. That I wanted immediately appeared a cheerful company, the evening went perfectly.

Early in the morning I was returning to Russia, the trip to Germany left positive impressions.

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