The Incidental Nomads: Westphalia

Showing posts with label Westphalia. Show all posts

The Old World: Cologne

Cologne Dom

Germany has quickly cured any melancholy I felt for the warm sunny Adelaide. Basking in the afternoon sun in a cafe on a cute car-free square in Wuppertal, enjoying my coffee and wholesome German brunch I was reminded why I'm so drawn to Europe.

We spent a couple of days getting over the jet lag, walking and shopping, eating out, relaxing in a hotel sauna and splashing in the jacuzzi. Having got used to Australian food, Germany's menu was refreshingly different. I couldn't remember the last time my schitzel was so incredibly good as this time in April.

Two days of relaxation seemed enough and next day we hopped on a train to Koln (Cologne). The last time I was there was about 10 years ago but I still remembered the beautiful cathedral and the tea cafe at the square. This time around the cathedral seemed even more magestic, glowing in the spring sun; the Gothic detailing - breathtaking. We climbed to the top of the Dome and the Little Nomads counted all 533 steps up and down.

Next we visited Wallraf-Richartz Museum, which is not too far from the Dom. In the city that boasts such an amazing architectural treasure, the museums are often overlooked. I was so surprised to have found this museum! Its collection is extensive but manageable, covering 13-19cc.

Yummy pretzels that you have to try when you are in Koln

Having walked along the Rhone river we headed to the Chocalate Museum sponsored by Lindt. And what a treat it was for the kids!!! 2,5 hours that we had spent there were not long enough for all the things they could and wanted to do. They explored every nook and corner of the 3-floor facility, pressed every button and watched every demo. Finally, we indulged ourselves in the museum's cafe. A Russian-speaking waitress brought us white chocolate for the kids, Aztec coffee for me and Crispy Gold coffee for the Big Nomad. An array of deserts followed.

At least two pounds heavier, tired, but happy (chocoate releases body's happiness hormones) we headed back. The gloomy weather, gusty wind, cold, and drizzle did not seem to be that unpleasant with warm coffee and chocolate warming us from the inside.

Chocolate Art in the Chocolate Museum's cafe

Back to Westphalia

Our flight from Adelaide was the first destination on a 3-leg trip back to the Old World. Only two days ago we had a farewell dinner at our friend's house, where we made our famous Uzbek pilaf in a beautiful Cruisette and drank Barossa wine. We sat outside and I tried to soak in that last impressions of Australia - the fresh pungent scent of eucalyptus, passion fruit vine growing on the fence, the people with whom we had dined. I wondered when I'd come here again...

We flew over Adelaide. Last minute squabble with the management of the apartment, the stress of waiting for the notorious Adelaide taxi service whose only consistency was its consistently being late, days of packing and negotiating with kids on what to leave and what to take - all of this was left behind. The plane soared above Glenelg and the ocean sparkled an unbelievable torquise blue. I could not believe how beautiful it looked and while the boys were chiming "Bye, Glenelg", a pang of sadness stabbed me. I grew fond of Adelaide, the ocean, our new routines and I knew I'd miss it so!

The flight from Australia was uneventful and I couldn't help envy my children who had slept through most of the flights to Singapore and Frankfurt. We landed in Germany and took a train to Wuppertal, another cute Westphalia town.

Luckily, Europe met us nicely - the weather was over 25C and it was April 1.

Mutter Wittig interior
(courtesy of the MW site)

The staples of German cuisine are potatoes and meat. The range of cooking creativity applied to both of these ingredients is amazing.

The country has really perfected the art of potato preparation and brought such variety to this simple starchy vegetable! There were 8 of us in a seriously-German and extremely popular Bochum restaurant Mutter Wittig (founded by a former midwife). Each one of us got a different potato accompaniment with a twist (which doesn't include boiled or mashed potatoes): rosti, croquette, fries, etc. Beside 5-7 chicken and / or turkey dishes, the menu lists 6-8 types of steaks and 10 types of pork schnitzels, roast goose and duck fillet. You truly need to be passionate about meat and potatoes to appreciate such variety!

Other traditional restaurants we visited offer similar entrees, in addition to cutlets and meatballs for kids. Usually, my schnitzels and steaks were delicious, but how often can you eat a slab of meat!?

Kamps bakery chain is a live-savior for a family with kids! They have a huge variety of German pastries, as well as great sandwiches and coffee.

Knorr's and Maggi's (and such) powdered pre-packaged sauces, seasonings, dry soups, and bases seem to be beyond popular. I was browsing through stalls and isles of packages trying to figure out where the real food was. This selection is so minuscule in North America and I really hope it would stay this way!

Having spent a few months appreciating Belgian beer and French wines, I feel I am now lost to international beer and wine markets. I wonder how long it would take to train my palate to start appreciating gastronomy, wines, and beers of other parts of the world! Maybe Barossa Valley is the right place to start?

Endless rows of stalls with
prepacked sauces and bases from Knorr and Maggi

Hattingen, Germany

A historic town of Hattingen is located 45 minutes away from Bochum (by bus). It is a picturesque medieval village with narrow cobblestone streets, timber-framed houses, built between 13-16th C. We strolled around the village taking in the Christmas spirit, went into coffeehouses and enjoyed great pastries!

The 2 weeks we spent in Germany were unusually cold (0 to -5C) and moreover, unusually snowy for the area. This region rarely sees snow and an average winter temperature is well above zero. For some reason, frequent heavy snowfalls caught the ground transport off guard. For several days the trains and metro going through Westphalia were either canceled or delayed. The slowed-down or stalled traffic put our travel plans to a halt and instead, gave us a chance to relax after a trip from Russia, both mentally and physically. We stayed by a densely-wooded area and took lots of walks in the snowy forest, explored the city, and enjoyed the weather.

Bochum has a population around 380,000 and has a feeling of a proper German town - clean, serene, and cute. It has a very well-developed metro system, a great downtown area, a wide variety of cultural activities (orchestra, zoo, gardens, planetarium, an art gallery). Nevertheless, I found the city incredibly dull and unexciting.

Snowed-in woods in Bochum

Throughout centuries nothing much seemed to happen here in terms of historical and cultural developments. It was primarily a mining town, known for coal and steel industries. You can tell how important mining was for this area (and for Germany in general) by visiting The German Mining Museum (Deutsches Bergbau-Museum), the largest of its kind anywhere, which gives you a unique impression of how mining has developed over the centuries. The boys were thrilled to be roaming the underground mines, climbing on, touching, pulling levers of the real mining equipment.

As a weapon-manufacturing and steel-producing area Bochum became a strategic target during the second World War. It was heavily bombed and suffered massive destruction after 150 bomb attacks. Whatever historic buildings and architectural sights Bochum had had, they were decimated during the air-raids.

With the coal resources depleting and steel industry losing its importance, Bochum tried to reinvent itself and invested in developing an exceptional university (Ruhr University) and the arts field.