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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!

Photo Hunting in Gdansk

Februar 19, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 4 Kommentare

My thing will always be writing. Going somewhere, slowly walking about, trying to take in the space with all my senses and transforming the feeling that I get into words. It is a somewhat sacral act to me. And while I love music and art in general, what I truly am is just a writer.

Yet what would be a more perfect place to elaborate my skills of visual artistry than Gdansk – one of the places that I have tried to capture in words several times, a place I love and cherish, and that I can never get enough of? When I set out with my camera to capture the essence of this true love of mine in photos, I am sure that looking for images that respresent Gdansk to me will open up new perspectives to me and, in turn, inspire my writing anew. And so it does.

The crisp winter air is painful in my lungs because it is so cold. Yet I breathe it in deeply as I walk along Dlugie Pobrzeze, the street that lines the Motlawa River, enjoying the crunching sounds the snow makes beneath my feet. The sun is mirrored in the frost and makes everything glisten. I turn right on Mariacka street.

I have always had a thing for this street with its beautiful houses that have strange little front buildings: stairs leading up to terraces from which you enter the houses. I think I have read about their history somewhere, but I forgot what it was. The street is narrow and, now in winter, it is wonderfully secluded and quiet. The way the sun hasn’t reached the street, but only the church that you see in the very end (the largest brick stone church in the world), makes it a more magical little alley, all toned in shadow. Like from a Harry Potter movie.

Making a turn, there are yet more details to discover. Cast-iron grates. Little pillars. Lanterns screwed onto otherwise unremarkable houses. Small things that don’t mean anything to your regular by-passer. But I like the way the pillar has that round little nub on top, and I like the leave ornaments moving down from it. I like the grate with its twists and unobtrusive beauty. I like the lantern on the wall, old-fashioned and reminiscent of gas lantern times.The turn from Mariacka street has brought me to a little alley that leads right up to the Long Market. This is the core of the old Gdansk. This is where its classic beauty manifests. This is also where it sometimes feels like Disneyland, because after World War II none of this was there anymore. It was all re-made. But I never had the fake feeling here like I had it in Wroclaw or Warsaw. I just think it’s beautiful. It is not my favourite place in the city (we’ll be getting there). But it make my heart wide to stand in sight of the town hall. Looking further up the street, beautiful house borders beautiful house. You’ll find the best Bar Mleczny, Milk Bar, on that street, to the left. It serves delicious Polish food for virtually no money. I love how in this picture I captured the old couple holding hands. I want to walk in a city I love with someone I love, with this natural intimacy on display, when I am that age. Back toward the river, I walk through the Green Gate onto the Green Bridge and turn, and the view that opens up is what makes this my favourite place in Gdansk’s Old Town. But to tell you the truth, I honestly think that if this was all that Gdansk was I wouldn’t love it as much. I would think it too clean, too tidy, too dressed up or perky. I love it because it also has a very different side.

The next day (which you will be able to tell by the weather change in the photos) I go with my friend to Dolne Miasto, a slightly less central, but especially less wealthy part of town. Actually it is just across the Green Bridge and thus very close to the pretty Old Town. But here the streets aren’t well kept and the houses are run down – with few exceptions.

The houses here have the exact same potential for beauty, but for some reason gentrification doesn’t hit. There is no sensible reason for that, but laws of market seem to work differently in Poland from Germany. Surely the beautiful Kamienice, secession houses, would be renovated and rented out for a LOT of money if this were in Munich, Berlin, or Hamburg.

I adore this picture. It shows the place in all its morbid beauty. The brick stone. The balconies. The way time has gnawed its way into the cold stone. And the woman in the red coat carrying home her groceries on the slippery snowed in sidewalk.

Dolne Miasto is also where there is wasteland left in the middle of the city. Economically that is not good, not smart for the city I am sure. But I like it because it opens up potential as of yet unfulfilled. Once the potential will be fulfilled, this won’t be half as interesting a place anymore. Ironic, I know. But my heart wants what it wants – morbidity and wasteland.

And things are changing already. Walking back towards the Old Town, with a beautiful view onto the towers of Mariacki church and the town hall, there seems to be construction work going on at the Island of Granaries that cuts through the Motlawa River. But now, all snowed in, the place looks as morbid and out of time as the wasteland above. The ruin of the old granary adds to that. Fugitive. Momentary. Perishable. What a strange thing time is, and how sweetly strange it is when it is visible like this.

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!

Bremen – The Key to Heaven

Februar 4, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 5 Kommentare

There is a German city rivalry, maybe not as viscious as the one between Cologne and Düsseldorf, but quite profound nonetheless: The one between my hometown Hamburg and it’s fellow Hanseatic city Bremen. I am in a bit of a double bind there because I was born and raised in Hamburg, but my mum is from Bremen, and while Hamburg is unmatched and unrivaled as my home, I do have a soft spot for Bremen as well. If I must take sides in football, I even support their team Werder Bremen (but shh! Don’t tell my dad!).

The coat of arms of Bremen shows a key – and it is said to be the key to the gates of heaven. It is in the coat of arms because Saint Peter, who holds the key to heaven, is the patron saint of the Bremen Cathedral. Hamburg’s coat of arms has a gate, they call the city the Gate to the World, and when I was small I heard the story that the Bremen key unlocked the Hamburg gate. Either story works fine by me – Bremen opens the gate to something wonderful, be it heaven or the world. Or just its own beautiful urban scenery.

I went to Bremen to see family between Christmas and New Year’s, and I took my most amazing Christmas gift – my new camera, a Sony NEX-3N. I am only just starting to get into photography, and I am not going to give you a professional review of any kind (because I am not nearly knowledgeable enough), but I know that quite a few will be interested in knowing which camera took these pictures. I for my part am insanely happy about the pictures‘ quality and feel like I can now finally support my writing with images that are more than plain visual aids, but an inspiration in themselves. So I set out on my trip to Bremen intent on capturing some beautiful images.

The day is mild for the middle of winter, and the sky is overcast as I make my way from the train station to the city centre. Shamefully I must admit that I don’t know Bremen well, so I need to use my phone for orientation, but it isn’t difficult. Once pointed in the right direction, I just let myself drift a little and quickly find the market square with its beautiful cathedral – to me, one of the prettiest churches in Germany – and the town hall in its red brick beauty.

Eastern facade of the Bremen town hall

I love the Northern German market squares. I love market squares in general, but the ones in Nothern Germany are wide and open and not cozy and overloaded with quirky architectural knickknack. I could linger here forever amidst the pretty buildings and do people watching. On I go toward the cathedral.

Bremen Cathedral

There has been a church in this place since 789 A.D.! No, there is no 1 missing in that number. Yes, that is over 1200 years ago. It was wooden then, the first stone construction came about in the 11th century – that is still a really long time ago… My mum had her confirmation here, and I feel a strange deep connection with the church. Maybe it is the blood red net vault, or generally the intense colours of blue and gold against whitewashed walls. Not even the fact that it isn’t a red brick church can turn me against it.

After having lingered on the market square for a little while, I make my way toward the Weser River /for what would a Hanseatic City be without the water!), say hi quickly and take a picture of the bridge I find there, which is soon bound to be on my Bridges on Sundays series 🙂 and then I am happy to roam the Schnoor, an amazingly pretty narrow lane in a riverside district by the same name. The word is lower German for „string“, and strings were what used to be made in this area.

Today the small houses that line the tiny alleyway house souvenire shops and coffee places, and tourists are all around. I still like the cobble stone and the occasional half timber, and all the details you can spot on the facades.

The Schnoor is a place for those who want to discover small, random trifle; little things that might escape someone else’s eye, like decorations or inscriptions or grown over reliefs on house walls. It also invites for getting lost in the little aisles and walkways of the quarter, and to dream yourself away to hundreds of years ago when fishermen would live here, in close proximity of the river, and it would smell of salt water and fish and harbour.

My time for discovering and photo hunting in Bremen is all too limited, but by the time I must leave to get to my family meet up, the sun has emerged and flooded the city with slightly golden bright winter light. I take another picture of the market square, of the townhall bathed in sunshine.

The way the shadows creep uopn the building, claiming it, while the sun still triumphs over them and makes the red bricks shine colourfully, looks so beautiful to me. The line between shadow and light – between evil and good? sad and happy? mournful and hopeful? – is so clear cut, so nicely absolute, radical, no grey zone, nothing that is hard to grasp or define. Life is much more complex than that. But beauty, very often, is plain and simple. It is just there. All around.

2013 in pictures

Januar 15, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 4 Kommentare

I know I’m a wee bit late on this reviewing 2013 business, but I didn’t think that should keep me from sharing with you some of my favourite photo moments of the past year. It might get a bit more quiet around the blog in the future due to massive work commitments, so revelling in the travel joys past might be all I get to do for a while (except the next weekend get-away is booked already and I cannot wait to write about it – but more on that when I get there!). So without much further ado I give you my travels of 2013!

1. Gdansk, Poland I love Gdansk. I love it in ways that have my heart jubilate and my soul sing and my mind dance. I went there twice last year and it was not nearly close to being enough. I have written about my feelings for the city before, and I will write about it again, because it is unfathomable that I should ever run out of words to declare my deep love for this place. I took the picture in February from a viewpoint on Gora Gradowa, a hill in the city crowned by a large red cross that you cannot miss when you come to town – for its spectacular views!

2. Stuttgart, Germany I never thought much of Stuttgart. Mainly I was annoyed that it was so hard to reach by train from Tübingen inspite of only being 30km away. But when I went there in March, and the Castle Square was covered in powdery snow, it was really quite pretty – and hanging out with a local friend really helped me to get a better sense of what the city has to offer.

3. Tübingen, Germany

Now the thing about Tübingen is – it is just so cute. It is so picturesque and gorgeous that you cannot dislike it. The longer I have not been living there, the more I like it – I still meet acquaintances in the streets on accident, everything is in walking distance, and everyone hangs at the same pub because, let’s face it, it’s the only acceptable one. I am glad I still have to keep coming back there every now and then for work.

4. Cologne, Germany

I passed through Cologne twice last year and the most beautiful thing about it, in my humble opinion, is the fact that even if you only have a 90 minute break between trains, you can always make a stop at the cathedral because it is literally right next to the main train station. Seriously, even if you just have half an hour until your next connection leaves, do step into the cathedral for a quick glimpse. It is magnificent. And it allows for a bit of quiet contemplation even if there is a lot of tourists around.

5. Düsseldorf, GermanySome people may consider it blasphemy to even mention Cologne and Düsseldorf in one post, let alone one right after the other – those two places have the greatest city rivalry in the country. But I did happen to visit them on the same trip in March, and I won’t hold back on either one. I have to admit I was quite surprised at the many pretty corners that Düsseledorf had to offer. We did a guided tour in what felt like minus 20 degrees which led to us cutting the walk a little short, but it seems there is much more to Düsseldorf than carnival.

6. Munich, Germany

Being a Northern German (and patriotically so!), I don’t have all too much of a thing for Bavaria. But the more I get to know Munich, the more I like it. This view off of Alter Peter, a church tower right by the famous Marienplatz, is something every tourist should do. Everything looks a bit like a miniature wonderland from up there.

7. Grudziądz, Poland

To my admitted surprise, my post on Grudziądz was one of the most sucessful ones this year. It was a city that hadn’t been on my radar much, but one of my friends from Gdansk grew up there and made the generous offer of taking me and another friend there on a day trip. This view of the cityscape should make you fall in love already – what’s not to like in a town with a majestic river and lots of buildings made from red brick stone?

8. Nottingham, England

While Nottingham is probably not the English city on top of anyone’s bucket list, I was happy to get to know it this summer. I was in a good place, I was happy, and in that state it was much easier to discover the hidden beauty Nottingham had to offer. I perceived it as a down to earth, honest and unpretentious place – yet very English in a way that is hard for me to explain.

9. Spreewald, Germany

A weekend getaway to the Spreewald was just what I needed during a hot Berlin summer. If it hadn’t been for the mosquitos, it couldn’t have been more perfect – the water, the greenery, and the many many little bridges were truly idyllic. I hope to go back and explore some more.

10. Chicago, Illinois, United States

The big journey in 2013 took me back to the first country outside of Germany I ever called home – and a home I had in staying with one of my oldest friends. Chicago swept me away with its architecture, nature and cultural offers. I spent entire days lazing at the beach of Lake Michigan, marvelling at the fact that it felt like a sea much more than a lake and getting a nice tan which I didn’t expect from this trip at all. And with the Chicago River running through, I also saw my fair share of bridges. I think I am most thankful for the appreciation of modern urban architecture that I developped in the much two short 17 days I spent there.

11. Rügen, Germany

The Baltic is my favourite sea, and Rügen is not only Germany’s biggest island, it is also my favourite. The views you have from the large chalk cliffs on its shores are infinite and eternal, and the September weekend there was sunny and breezy and beautiful.

12. Porto, Portugal

Funnily it seems that I did most of my abroad time in 2013 in the second half of the year. Porto was a very spontaneous getaway with an old college friend. I had wanted to go to Portugal for forever, and after having loved Porto for the food, the port wine, the bridges, the people and the history (to name a few), I seriously cannot wait to finally get to know Lisbon sometime in the hopefully near future.

12. Brussels, Belgium I had thought for the longest time that it was a shame I had never been to Belgium, Luxembourg or the Netherlands, them being Germany’s neighbouring countries. All the happier was I to attend a conference in Brussels in December. The time of year was not unwisely chosen: the first day was very cold, but other than that the weather was perfect, it wasn’t overcrowded, and I had a chanced to be truly surprised at the immense beauty I found there in so many places. I can only recommend the Belgian capital!

That was 2013 for me – may 2014 bring me, you and everyone at least as much travel joy and beauty, as many discoveries and random findings that put smiles on all our faces!

Lombardsbrücke in Hamburg, Germany

Januar 5, 2014 / bruecken_schlag / 2 Kommentare

The last bridge of 2013 was one in Hamburg. It only makes sense that the first one in 2014 should be too. After all, Hamburg is home, and as such unmatched. Besides it prides itself in the fact that it has more bridges than Venice 🙂This is Lombardsbrücke in the very city centre of Hamburg. The bridge marks the line between the Outer and the Inner Alster, two artificial lakes formed by the River Alster that define the cityscape of Hamburg. Where other cities have a market square – Hamburg has water. It has spoilt me forever that way with its hanseatic beauty. Even the day I took this picture, when it was almost too cold to hold the camera straight and it kept drizzling, the look of the low-lying boat drifting slowly into the arches and on to the Outer Alster put a smile on my face.

The best thing about this bridge is not its architectural beauty. It is the view from on top of it across the Inner Alster onto all the important landmarks of Hamburg. And this view includes the street lanterns with their cast-iron bases and their five-branched candelabras. When I come home to Hamburg by train, I cross over Lombardsbrücke between the main station and the last stop Altona. When I look out the window and see this, I tear up almost every time. There is no more iconic view of my city.

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!

Train Station Blankenese in Hamburg, Germany

Dezember 29, 2013 / bruecken_schlag / Kommentare deaktiviert

Quite likely you will see this picture and think to yourself: „Why in the world did she choose *that* bridge?!?“ It’s not pretty or remarkable in any way, I guess. But it means a lot to me, which is why I thought it fitting to be the last bridge in 2013.

This is the metro station close to my parents‘ house in Hamburg. Most of my adventures started from here. When I was in primary school, I would take my dad’s hand in the morning and walk with him to the train station, across this very bridge, he would descend to the platform to take a metro to his office, and I would walk a bit further to school. I often went to pick him up in the evening when he came home from work, too. We would make little poems about the plants, trees and bushes we discovered on the way between the station and our house (my dad is a passionate gardener).

When I started high school I took the metro for two stations from here myself in the winter – in the summer I went by bike. As I grew older, I would go on the metro to the city center of Hamburg more and more often – first for shopping or to go to the cinema, later for going out at night in the infamous Reeperbahn red light district. Even my five month backpacking trip through Central and South Eastern Europe started at this very metro station on this bridge. It has been the beginning of so many things. And now, when I come home to visit my parents and I cross over it again, it is always crossing back into my childhood and coming 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!

2013 in Bridges – A Review

Dezember 22, 2013 / bruecken_schlag / Kommentare deaktiviert

My blog is all about bridges. If you follow me, you know that I put a picture of a bridge up on every Sunday in the category „Bridges on Sundays“. Quite a few of them have been from my archives, but there were also many I found this year – ever since I have started self-hosting, which I have just over a year now, I have been looking for bridges even more carefully than before. I will give you my favourites in a review of my year 2013. If you click on the bridge’s name above the respective picture, the link will redirect yo to the full post on the bridge.

1. Oderbrücke, Frankfurt (Oder) / Słubice, Germany / Poland

I didn’t make it to Poland as often as I’d liked this year, but I did cross this bridge between Germany and its Eastern neighbour twice. This bridge makes me reflect history and appreciate living in a unified Europe today. And it makes me realize that I love Poland. A lot.

2. Karlshöhe in Stuttgart, Germany

In the post about this bridge I talk about my yearly meet-up with my three girls from grad school, and how we have crossed into adulthood together and on the way passed several bridges and overcome various obstacles. Friendship is such a valuable thing.

3. Bridges in Nottingham, England

In this picture, I see two bridges working together to make up a system of connections – a traditional stone bridge to the left and a modern steel one straigth across. There is not just „the“ one bridge to cross in life. There is bridge upon bridge upon bridge.

4. Abteibrücke in Berlin, Germany

This is the bridge to the so called Isle of Youth in the Spree River. When I posted the picture, I hadn’t even crossed it yet. I have now, and I regretfully say that I haven’t become more youthful to my knowledge. But maybe I am just so youthful altogether that I didn’t realize 🙂

5. A Bridge in Spreewald, Germany

I found this to be a nostalgic bridge that seemed to me to bridge gaps between different layers of time. Still now I think it is a romantic place, as is the entire Spreewald which is full of bridges spanning the small canals.

6. Bridge at South Pond, Chicago, Illinois, US

I keep using this picture, but I have to say I love it because I know that I was so truly and deeply happy in the moment it was taken, and I think that shows in my smile. This was on my big trip this year, to Chicago, and the pictures shows how that city connects greenery and urbanity beautifully to create a whole.

7. Bridge at Graceland Cemetery in Chicago, Illinois, US

The small bridge at Graceland cemetery, a large, quiet and peaceful place in Chicago, seemed to me to be magical, enchanted, spellbound even. It led onto a small island where time seemed to stand still, and conversation with the deceased seemed to be possible.

8. Ponte Luís I in Porto, Portugal

Ponte Luiz I in Porto may have been the prettiest and most impressive bridge I came across this year. The resemblance with the Eiffel tower is not entirely coincidental, as you will be able to read in the post. It was majestic, and made me fall in love with Porto.

Which one of my Bridge discoveries from 2014 do you like best? Did you come across a beautiful bridge in 2013 that I should put on my Bucket List? So you have any plans of crossing bridges – literally or metaphorically for the up-coming year?

Bizarre in Brussels – Random Findings

Dezember 17, 2013 / bruecken_schlag / Kommentare deaktiviert

Last week, I let you in on how Brussels swept me away with its enchanting architecture and the beauty of some of its main landmarks, the Grand Place and the Cathedral. Today I want to show you another side of the Belgian capital. One thing that all the guide books point out about Belgium is that it is a bit weird – in the good sense of the word. It is that sense for the grotesque, absurde, bizarre that makes Belgium what it is. The most cited example for this is Manneken Pis – the statue of the little boy peeing that is perceived as the iconic symbol for Belgium: small, weird, and leaving you with a slight sense of „WTF?“ While I get that he’s funny, I thought there were a lot of things going on in Brussels that displayed the same thing, but did it with less of a hype around them, which is much more supportive to the nature of the sentiment itself.

It started when I was walking along Rue d’Arenberg, in the very city center, and came across this very cool sign:

Cinema Nova is Brussels‘ downtown non-profit cinema

Looking at it, I felt directly transported into a Tim Burton film. The different figures looked so alive, so full of character, and yet the cinema behind it did not seem to be very prominent or chic. The internet tells me it is a non-profit place, so I would expect a certain level of hipsterdom to be included, but who cares about that when it is so lovingly done. I felt like standing there and having quiet conversations with those little people in the sign for hours, finding out if they carried the character that they displayed on the outside and turning them into a children’s book. I didn’t, but really just because it was so cold that day.

I also fell in love with this dress:

Window Shopping in Saint Gilles – thanks to Jenny and Luise who let me know that the label’s name means „But where is the sun?“ I guess that is a question that has some validity in Brussels.

I would never wear this (apart from the fact that I probably couldn’t, even if I wanted to!), but I thought it was so individual and fun – and I am not a fashion victim. To tell you the truth, if anyone described an item of clothing to me as „fun“ I wouldn’t know what they meant. But this dress – and the ones to the side – were equally pretty and fun. I felt about the fashion at „Mais il est ou le soleil“ that, like many things in Brussels, it didn’t take itself too seriously while still keeping up a high standard.

Something a little more prone to show up in guide books, also very Belgian and a tad funky were the comic strip pictures randomly strewn about walls in the city.

I especially loved the one with the pillar. Very self-referential to draw an edifice on an edifice. The cultural studies nerd inside of me must have come out when I noticed this. In general those little pictures just added something cheerful to the sometimes stern and grey urbanity (because inspite of the architectural beauty I raved about last week, Brussels also has some seriously ugly corners – all part of the absurd mix that makes the place what it is!).

And what do you do in a place like this if you want to have a nice view over the city? No mountains close by (welcome to Northern Europe!). Not really a tower to climb either. Those two options would be too conventional anyway. No, in Brussels, you take the elevater to the tenth floor, that is the roof top, of Parking 58, a run down and dirty car park in the city center, close to the Metro station de Brouckere and just behind Place Saint-Catherine.

View from Parking 58 onto the Cathedral

View from Parking 58 onto Grand Place and the town hall

It is a bit strange to go up in the elevator that feels like it belonged in a museum and might just stop at any second – but the views are stunning indeed.

A place that absolutely amazed me – and in which I thought the amiable randomness of Brussels culminated – was the Flea Market at Jeu de Balle.

Jeu de Balle Flea Market, Brussels, Belgium

Jeu de Balle Flea Market which is on every day – beautiful chaos!

Berlin prides itself in having a flea market culture – but compared to this, Berlin’s markets are commercialized, capitalist shopping malls. Now this was a true flea market. I half expected to leave carrying those little parasites with me. It would have fit. There was anything and everything to buy at the stands, mostly old useless crap, but put together it felt like the entire world was spread out on those carpets and put itself on display in infinite beauty.

Who wouldn’t want a rusty yet charming candelabra like this in their flat? I adore it!

Look at those porcellaine ladies seductively, nay, lasciviously flinging their legs…

My last discovery was at the Christmas Market at Place Saint Catherine. My friend Stan had told me to go to see the carousel. To be honest I nearly skipped it. How interesting could that be? Turns out very! It wasn’t just any weird ride. It was a beautiful old-fashioned carousel with carefully created creatures on it, purposefully looking a bit morbid and run down, but ever so enchanting, with a beautiful nostalgic quality. Even the music that it played transported me about a hundred years back in time, and watching the children ride it with such enthusiasm and pure joy was a true gift on that cold winter day.

Brussels was definitely wonderfully weird in addition to being pleasingly pretty. It had so many surprises ready for me, and I loved its slight randomness and the quirky little things that were to discover everywhere. I am sure there must be tons more of them. I have a feeling that this wasn’t my last trip to Belgium.

Did Belgium surprise you with anything bizarre, wacky, absurd or funny? Have you made random discoveries like mine in any other place? Tell us about it in the comments!

Thielenbrücke in Berlin, Germany

Dezember 8, 2013 / bruecken_schlag / 1 Kommentar

From the big wide world last Sunday, I am coming back home to Berlin with my bridge today, and to one of the golden autumn days of September.

This is Thielenbrücke, Thielen Bridge, named after a Prussian Secretary of State for Employment in the 19th century. It crosses the Landwehr Canal between the districts of Neukölln and Kreuzberg.

I do love the canal. I love it for walks in the spring, for long nights in the summer on its banks with friends and too many beers, for the trees that line it colourfully in the fall and for its bridges that I rush over in the bitter cold of winter. Thielenbrücke is not outrageously exciting, it’s covered in graffiti, and probably most Berliners aren’t quite aware that it exists. But it’s been around for nearly a hundred years and it’s a part of the city’s history, which is always so inconspicuously strewn about here. In this photo, the juicy green grass, the yellow tree leaves and the playful light on the water make for a very typical Kreuzkölln autumn atmosphere. I know winter has only just started, but I’m already excited for the warmer seasons in Berlin to come around again.

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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