Bridges – Seite 3 – bruecken_schlag

Schleusenbrücke in Berlin, Germany

März 16, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / Kommentare deaktiviert

In the foreseeable future there won’t be too much travelling, I warned you about that (and believe me, no one regrets that more than I do!). So there will be many bridges from Berlin on Sundays. Luckily my home of choice has much to offer in the bridge department. Such as this beauty:

Schleusenbrücke (literally: Watergate Bridge) in Berlin Mitte is one of those little gems that are easily overlooked – especially with construction work going on all around it. I am starting to develop a real thing for bannisters. And how did I notice? Because I realized that I have been using that word on my blog in just about every post that deals with a bridge. But just look at this one – even apart from the fact that there’s a fisherman leaning against it! So beautifully art nouveau, so pretty with its bronze medaillons embedded into it that show the cityscape at different points in the 17th and 18th century.

The construction site in the background, by the way, is where the City Castle is being rebuilt after the Palace of the Republic was torn down, the parliament building of the German Democratic Republic, or „East Germany“. I am dead set on writing about this project in the near future because I have a thing or two to say about it. For now I am just happy to have discovered yet another unique bridge in Berlin.

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!

Admiralsbrücke in Berlin, Germany

März 9, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 6 Kommentare

Today was one of those beautiful days in early Spring when the air is pregnant with sunshine and the smell of flowers. I took a bike tour along the canal to photograph bridges, and today I am presenting you one that I have been excited about for a long time. I have been in love with it ever since I moved to Berlin. This is Admiral’s Bridge in Berlin’s Kreuzberg district. From the first time I saw it, I’ve loved its wrought-iron bannisters with the secession ornaments, or the cobblestoned street that leads across it. It has a romantic, old-fashioned feel to it inmidst the rather trendy area – altough one must admit that the people who reside here have come to be more and more settled, as have the restaurants and coffee places.

It isn’t only its architectural beauty that has taken me by storm, though. On a day like today, the bridge is packed with people relaxing in the sun. It is in a traffic-calmed area, so hardly any car ever disturbs groups sitting on the street and relaxing. It will be even more busy once summer hits. In fact there is a 10 pm curfew for parties on the bridge because it is so popular. People go to the nearest „Späti“ – little kiosk places where you can buy tobacco, alcohol and snacks – to get a beer and then just have it sitting outside, on the bridge, leaned against the bollards that calm traffic. It is lively and colourful and relaxed, and it is very much Berlin.

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!

Lichtensteinbrücke in Berlin, Germany

März 2, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 2 Kommentare

My bridge archive is slowly running out. No more bridges from around the world (or at least Europe). I wish I had started to actively collect them sooner, and I would have so many more. But then today I realized that there is a ton of amazing bridges right under my nose. Berlin has so much to offer, it never ceases to amaze me. This is Lichtensteinbrücke, Lichtenstein Bridge, in the Tiergarten district of Berlin. It crosses the Landwehrkanal, a canal that connects different parts of the Spree river. It is solely a footbridge as it is in the middle of the biggest Berlin park, the Tiergarten – while the word „Zoo“ exists in German as well, „Tiergarten“ is the more oldfashioned, nicer expression as it literally means Garden of Animals.

I came across this today completely by chance when I cycled through Berlin to meet a friend for coffee in this area. When I saw the bridge, I stopped right away and regretted so much not to have my camera on me, and it dawned on me that I will have to take a bike tour along the canal only taking photos of all the nice bridges that cross it. I especially loved the reflection of the bridge on the even surface of the water.

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!

Landungsbrücken / Landing Stages in Hamburg, Germany

Februar 23, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / Kommentare deaktiviert

Doesn’t look like a bridge, you say? Ah, but it is. In fact it is many bridges.

This is a view of the St Pauli Landing Piers in my belived hometown of Hamburg. There is nothing like a harbour. I am all about industrial romanticism. I think cranes, boats and dockyards are sexy and beautiful. I am not joking about this. To answer your question of how there is bridges involved in this, maybe this picture clarifies it: The German word Landungsbrücken means landing stages or just piers, but it literally translates to landing bridges. And bridges connect the promenade with the pontoons. The big sailing boat in the background is a museum ship called the Rickmer Rickmers, and it just induces wanderlust in me whenever I see it. I just want to sail the seven seas on it. The harbour in Hamburg does to me what all airports do too, only a million times more: It makes me want to get out there and see the world. I would love any place at all that is capable of doing that.

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!

Galata Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey

Februar 16, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 2 Kommentare

Today, I thought about which bridge I might write about in my Sunday post for quite a while, and digging through my archive I didn’t really come across anything. That is partially due to the fact that ever since I started using my new camera (so much love for my Sony NEX 3n!!), my old photos look crappy. But then I came across this. And I cannot even believe I haven’t used it yet when it makes my heart sing songs that no earthly words can possibly describe.

This is Galata Bridge, in Turkish: Galata Köprüsü, in Istanbul. This is the bridge that connects the two sides of the Haliç, the Golden Horn, connecting the districts of Karaköy and Eminönü. Tourists often get confused standing on one side of the bridge thinking that on the other side they see Asia. This is not the case – the Golden Horn is an inlet of the Bosphorus, stretching into Europe, and the bridge connects two European parts of the city.

Being on this Bridge, the Bridge of the Golden Horn, is very hard for me to put into words. I don’t know what it is about Istanbul that caught my heart so forcefully. The fishermen that cast their lines from behind the bridge’s bannisters. The smell of salt water. The sound of waves, ships, seagulls, and of so many people all around you.

The first day I ever spent in Istanbul, I got there early in the morning on a night bus and, before checking in with my couchsurfing host, had breakfast in one of the touristy restaurants under the bridge. It was simple, fresh, overpriced, but delicious. And I felt my heartbeat accustom to the city’s pulse. It didn’t take long until it was in sync. And when I returned to the city, it was the same feeling right away. Istanbul has placed a kiss on my soul, and I have never been the same person ever since.

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!

Mini Bridges in Tübingen, Germany

Februar 9, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 4 Kommentare

I only went photo hunting this afternoon for you in Tübingen where I am to visit my Alma Mater for the weekend. Having almost forgotten about these, I was happy to re-discover the teeny-tiny bridges that line the side of the cute little alleyway Ammergasse.

Strolling through the romantic old town of Tübingen I never tire of looking at the beautiful half-timbered houses and the cobble stone alleys. And as much as I resent the notion that Tübingen had a lot of water just because it is by the Neckar (which is no more than a creek here), I love the second little streamlet, the Ammer, that runs right through the oldest parts of town.

Often, the Ammer is redirected to go underground. On Ammergasse, it lines the street which has no car traffic. Here, little crossings lead across the Ammer to connect the small street with the houses. How unique to have to cross a bridge every time you go home!

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!

Ponte da Arrábida in Porto, Portugal

Februar 2, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 2 Kommentare

Only recently did I remember that I had been saving some more pictures from Porto to share with you on a rainy day. It now turns out it is a snowy day – Berlin’s streets are covered in mud, the parks are white, it is too cold and slippery to go to work by bike and the sky is generally grey or white. Time to dream ourselves away to sunny November Portugal.

Ponte da Arrábida may not be as majestic as Ponte Luiz I in its old fashioned grandeur, but it is a mighty and impressive bridge. Of course, it stretches across the River Douro as well, connecting Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia. Reading up on the bridge, by the way, I learned the term „arch bridge“ (self-explanatory, I guess) – never a bad idea to brush up on your architecture vocab.

I took this picture on our way to the Ocean from the city center, looking back into the mouth of the river, to the seclusion of the inland, in anticipation of the untamed, endless surge of the Atlantic I was to see just a little later. I enjoyed that about Porto very much – the immediate proximity of nature and culture, of the wilderness of the sea and the civilized city. It was a city that bridged gaps indeed.

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!

Green Bridge, Gdansk, Poland

Green Bridge in Gdansk, Poland

Januar 26, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 2 Kommentare

There had to be a bridge in Gdansk. There was no way one of my favourite cities of all times did not have a bride. In all honesty, though, the most well-known bridge in Gdansk’s Old Town, across the river Motlawa, is not all that exciting. But when you cross it coming from the Old Town onto the Island of Granaries and then turn around to look back – that is when it is stunning.

This bridge is called the Green Bridge, Zielony Most, as it leads up to the Green Gate, Zielona Brama. There has been a bridge in this place since the 14th century, while the gate was built in the late 16th century and, so I read, shows Flemish architectural influences – something I have yet to find out for myself since I have never been to the Netherlands.

I have to say that to me the gate is just very hanseatic with its red bricks. Also I quite like gates. In a way, they complement the idea of the bridge – they allow you to pass through somewhere. Of course they have another semantic component when they are closed. But I have never seen the Green Gate closed. Instead, it is always inviting with its four passage ways onto the Long Market and onto the Long Street – the gems of Gdansk’s Old Town. From the bridge you have a view of the Dlugie Pobrzeze, the street that lines the banks of the river Motlawa. In the summer souvenire stands are pressed up against each other there side by side. In the winter it is wonderfully empty and quiet. And cold. Seriously cold. But even the cold is different in Gdansk. It is crisp and genuine and of amazing clarity. Oh, the beauty.

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!

Travnik Castle Bridge in Travnik, Bosnia & Hercegovina

Januar 19, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 2 Kommentare

In spite of the fact that my roommate has today, truthfully, noted that the sun has been shining in Berlin for the past three Saturdays, I miss summer. And I miss the Balkans. And most of all, I miss Bosnia. On today’s Bridges on Sundays, therefore, I am indulging in reminiscence of the wonderful time I had there.

This is me in May 2010 on the grounds of Travnik Castle in the heart of Bosnia & Hercegovina. Behind me is the bridge crossing the moat – white, eternal, covered in moss and weeds, delightfully morbid and beautiful. This was about 6 weeks into my trip and I had finally truly come to and found my place in this lifestyle that I was so incredibly lucky to live for another 3 1/2 months to come. I was utterly happy, and I think it shows in my face.

I went to Travnik with my couchsurfing host from Sarajevo. When I had written to him if I could stay with him for a bit, he’d replied: „Sure, but me and my best friend are going on a road trip that weekend. You wanna come?“ I never hesitated for one second, and ended up on a road trip through Northern BiH with two Turkish expats. At the time it was starting to get incredibly hot in Bosnia. The white scarf around my head I wore as a head scarf half of the time against the burning sun. The guys joked that I would make a pretty Muslima, and then stopped the car by the side of the freeway at what to me were random intervals – for prayer. The green hills, white fortresses and the muezzin’s call for prayer fell right into my heart and I fell for Bosnia head over heels. I haven’t been there in over two years now. But there’s a piece of my soul in that country, always waiting for me, always calling.

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!

Bridge across Steinlach in Tübingen, Germany

Januar 12, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 9 Kommentare

When I started Bridges on Sundays round about a year ago, I thought my photo archive was infinite. Now I am starting to realize that I should have started collecting bridges much sooner and much more excessively. But I still have a few up my sleeve, like this nearly forgotten gem. This is Tübingen, the town where I went to gradschool. I posted the most well-known bridge in town for you a while ago, but this one is actually much closer to my heart. I used to cross it by bike on my way from home to uni. The little river is not the Neckar that famously runs through Tübingen, but the Steinlach, a little affluent only 25km in length. When I needed to get away from everything, I used to take walks along its banks.

The view across the bridge onto the hillside that Tübingen is set against almost makes me feel a sense of home, although I always kept the town at a bit of a distance. That house on top of the hill that looks a bit like a medieval castle is a frat house – fraternities in Germany have a very specific tradition and history, so it may not be what my English speaking readers associate (except if you associate lots of alcohol, you are most probably right!). In this specific case, the house has been property of the fraternity for more than a hundred years. Sometimes it is easy to imagine student life in Tübingen in the 19th century. It really is a quite romantic little town.

If you have read My Mission statement, you know why I love bridges. To me they are the most universal symbol of connection, of bringing people together and overcoming anything that may seperate us. I want to present to you pictures of bridges that I really love in places that I really love on my blog every Sunday. If you have a picture of a bridge that you would like to share with my readers as a guest post, feel free to contact me!

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Kategorie: Bridges (Seite 3 von 8)

Schleusenbrücke in Berlin, Germany

Admiralsbrücke in Berlin, Germany

Lichtensteinbrücke in Berlin, Germany

Landungsbrücken / Landing Stages in Hamburg, Germany

Galata Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey

Mini Bridges in Tübingen, Germany

Ponte da Arrábida in Porto, Portugal

Green Bridge in Gdansk, Poland

Travnik Castle Bridge in Travnik, Bosnia & Hercegovina

Bridge across Steinlach in Tübingen, Germany

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