#deutsche bahn tower

[greenbagjosh]

Saturday 11 July 1998 - First time across the Oberbaumbrücke into East Berlin - Alexanderplatz and the world clock - Love Parade from 2 PM to 9 PM - supper at Escados and a long S-Bahn ride home to Nikolassee

11 July 1998 Love Parade in Berlin

Hi everybody,

Today 20 years ago, is part two of three, of the weekend in Berlin. It was also the day of the Love Parade 1998 - hence the hearts from my last post. It would not start until about 2 PM on Straße des 17 Juni, so I could get some sightseeing done before that and still take the U-Bahn.

The night was not too bad. My other roommates were not particularly noisy. The temperature was fair, about the low 50s by 7 AM. The showers were located in the hall.

My hostel had a breakfast room and breakfast was complimentary. It was the usual kind of breakfast at a typical Deutsches Jugendgästehaus, breads, cheese, butter, jam, hazelnut spread, sliced deli meats, orange juice, coffee and tea. I spent about half an hour. Then I went back to my room to get enough film for sightseeing. What I did not know was, I should have packed an extra camera battery. With the Samsung Evoca 115, it does not use conventional batteries. It uses a special U-Shaped battery about 5 volts called a "CR123". Will talk more about that for Sunday the 12th July. Then I walked the half mile to the Nikolassee train station but did not board a train, but a bus. This was because I wanted to go to Krumme Lanke along the U-1 into downtown and then take the S-Bahn from Heidelberger Platz to Innsbrucker Platz and take the U-4 to Nollendorfplatz. As for the Berlin U-Bahn map, please bear with me, as the lines have been reconfigured in the past twenty years that I last visited on my own, so I will likely mention the lines I remember from back then, rather than refer to the current line structure. As long as I still had the 72 hour pass, I did not need to worry about any "Fahrscheinkontrolle" that charged 80 D-Mark for not having a valid ticket.

I took a double decker bus from Nikolassee to the Krumme Lanke U-Bahn station and took the U-1 to Heidelberger Platz. The line ran at-grade up to Podbielskialle and went underground for two more stops. I had to come out of the tunnel for the S-41 that went to Innsbrucker Platz. The entire U-4 is still underground as it was in 1998. When the train arrived in Nollendorfplatz, there were two underground levels and one elevated one. That is what makes Nolledorfplatz unique. I went farther on the U-1 to Warschauer Straße, across the Spree by the Oberbaumbrücke. I believe I already mentioned, that up to 1995, the U-1 terminated only at Schlesisches Tor on the east, as that was where the wall was, and Warschauer Straße happened to be in the Soviet-controlled "East Zone". Many of the stations in the East Zone in 1998 appeared to be preserved as they existed in the Cold War, but have in the last twenty years been renovated, so if you happened to be born after 1989, you might not be able to recognize which stations were in the East Zone and which were in the Allied sectors. Allied being the USA, UK and France. It was a profound feeling to see the Warschauer Straße station, as it was cut off from the rest of the U-Bahn network for decades.

I had to walk across a pedestrian bridge at Warschauer Straße to be able to access the S-Bahn line. I wanted to see Alexanderplatz, the tower and the interesting world clock that must have 24 faces. The clock for many years did not have Tel Aviv or Jerusalem mentioned until that was changed in 1997, as it was GDR policy to not recognize the existence of Israel. I think The Bourne Supremacy had a scene in that particular square years later. I found a place where I might want to eat dinner, the Escados steak restaurant. They would be open until very late, I guess just before midnight, so I made a point to come back later that evening.

After seeing Alexanderplatz, I wanted to go back to West Berlin, and the Checkpoint Charlie museum. To get there from Alexanderplatz, I needed to take the U-2 to Stadtmitte and then south to Kochstraße by U-6. In the Cold War, the U-2 was an operating line on both sides of the wall. However the U-6 had several "ghost stations" that had just the lights dimly lit while the trains just passed through and did not reopen until after Reunification.

What luck, when I arrived at Kochstraße, the location of the iconic Checkpoint Charlie border crossing, the eponymous museum was open that day, so I decided to go inside for an hour or so. It was very interesting inside, with so much Cold War memorabilia. There was a Trabant that had a secret compartment to smuggle out people from East Germany to the West. And yes there was a controversial painting of Erich Honecker and Mikhail Gorbatchev, I will not go into any detail, you might look it up for yourself. As I had my passport with me, I paid 2.50 D-Mark to get a historical East Berlin border crossing stamp.

I think at Alexanderplatz, during the Cold War, that was one of the official border crossings for the U-Bahn and S-Bahn. One of the rules for entering East Berlin from West Berlin, was that you would have to change 25.00 D-Mark into 25 Ostmark. More information about the Ostmark at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_German_mark. And all the Ostmark was required to be spent before returning to the West. Because the cost of living in East Berlin as compared to West Berlin was so cheap, it made spending money difficult. One way to tell the Ostmark from the D-Mark, is that the Ostmark coins were made out of lighter metal than the D-Mark coins. There were also Intershops that accepted only hard currency and sold western wares. All I am aware of, is what my high school German teacher taught in class, and also other peoples' experiences.

After visiting the Checkpoint Charlie Museum, it was getting close to 1 PM. I stopped at a Kaiser Tengelmann store to buy food to make sandwiches, as I wanted to save money for a nice steak at Escados later. I love my Lyoner and Blutwurst so I bought some of that with slices of good looking white cheese, and some more soda cans. After that, I went on to Alexanderplatz, and then walked along Unter den Linden past the Berliner Dom and the then-standing Palast der Republik. The Palast der Republik was up to 1990, the parliament building for the East German government. Appearancewise, the Palast der Republik was made out of brownish copper and similarly tinted glass. It was a postwar brutalist style. People were gathering east of the Brandenburger Tor, as the Lovemobiles with the loud music were along Straße des 17 Juni.

So what is the Love Parade supposed to be? It was started in 1989 by DJ Dr Motte as a non-partisan political demonstration for peace and international understanding. And a great deal of electronic music which evolved from that of Kraftwerk. The Love Parade drew in later years up to 2003, about a million participants. To have a successful Love Parade, it is necessary to obtain funding and sponsors. In 2004 it was starting to be difficult to find sponsors and also the required permits in a timely manner. As for the music variety, I think there were 20 Lovemobiles in total, DJ Motte was at the head, there were others like DJ Marusha, Paul Van Dyk, Sven Väth, and Da Hool

Two of the drawbacks are, one of which, getting inadvertently dirty as a result of others drinking on the streets - glass was allowed as was aluminum and plastic, so it was necessary to watch one's step around areas where glass bottles were broken. There must have been an inch of garbage along the Straße des 17 Juni on average. I would not want to be part of the sanitation crew the next morning. Also, 11th July 1998 was one of the days that Germany had forgotten about its Mehrwegflasche recycling scheme - sad. The other drawback is if you do not have proper ear protection, you might have a horrible ringing of the ears. Foam earplugs were given out for free (someone donated for a bulk of them). Also during the Street Parade, the weather did not cooperate very well. Though it was in the upper 60s to lower 70s, there were periods of drizzle, alternating with periods of sunshine, and the DJs took special care to protect their equipment, so the music would last well into the late hours of about 10:30 or 11 PM.

The Love Parade was very large, in comparison to the little Marlboro cigarette garden parties from 1997 that I attended July 1997 in Hamburg and Munich, similar attire as the Love Parade, turnout of a thousand people each at most. Statistics show that there were 800,000 participants for 1998, so good turnout.

Recommended videos Da Hool - Meet her at the Love Parade https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KO4y3nkJXDA Dr Motte & Westbam - One world, one future (the theme for the 1998 Love Parade in Berlin) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDJ20spGymE

There have to be about a dozen Love Parade 1998 videos online, some lasting as long as six whole hours. I leave it to you to decide whether to watch those, especially if you are on a mobile data plan – be careful of how much bandwidth you use unless you’re on Wifi or ethernet.

I have to give the cleanup crew, security and first responders compliments on their professionalism. There was a little bit of humor when an ambulance was driving through the Straße des 17 Juni, and he said "Please clear the street. You know how to do that, right? We all went to school didn't we?". Then some silly person shouted "Not I! Not I!". Both exchanges were in German.

The next such parade I would attend would be the Street Parade, on 8th August 1998 in Zürich. That had a good turnout. I will tell more about it early next month.

I got tired about 10 PM and thought it was time for dinner. I had to walk past the Brandenburger Tor, along Unter den Linden to Alexanderplatz. Escados was still open for late dinner. I ordered a 5 ounce steak with chili and summer vegetables, and had a Berliner Kindl beer with it. It was a fairly relaxing dinnertime after a long afternoon and evening with loud electronic music. But it was fun nonetheless.

To return to the hostel, I should have taken the direct S-Bahn to Nikolassee, but I chose a different route. I took a line 100 bus to Rosenthaler Platz to catch the U-8. This was part of the U-8 Ghost Station line in East Berlin, up to Gesundbrunnen which was considered to be in West Berlin. Then I took the S-1 "the long way" back to Nikolassee. Somehow Ingo Ruff's voice put me to sleep until about Mexikoplatz. I made it back to the hostel about 11:45 PM and I went to sleep.

The next day I would have to check out and make my way home to Munich. I did not know about the Third Place match for FIFA 1998, but I later found out Croatia beat the Netherlands 2 to 1.

Tomorrow, Part 3, including Spandau and my impressions of Cold War Berlin’s U-Bahn line U-5.

Gute Nacht, bis morgen.

[mylegoarchitecturecollection]

Berlin Skyline

[marchelino666]

[mauerfrau]

Home (Closed Drabble)

How many times have I passed through these alleyways? How many times have I crossed these streets? How many times have I stood on the platforms, waiting for the ever tardy Deutsche Bahn? I don’t suppose there’s any possible way to count all the times. People use the stars to illustrate a countless number, but I would say “How many times have I passed this building? More than there are stars above. How many stars are there? Not as many as the times I’ve passed this building.” 

I had taken the past two days off to really walk through it all. No stopping for rest or food. This was the last thing I needed to do to be sure of what I was thinking. I had gone, from the east end to the west via the south, and back around to the east via the north. Then down to the middle, where my old Wall had once stood. With every step, I measured the feeling inside of me, that little fire that burned and was my life. Although it flared some in the East, especially in spots significant to my own history, it remained strong even going into the West. Even at the furthest possible Western point, the fire was in my heart. There was no longer any bit of Berlin that wasn’t in me. 

And now, my restless trek has brought me to the final stop, my beloved Fernsehturm. It was nearing midnight. It was closed to visitors. But that was what I needed. I had already arranged it with them a few days ago. This was, after all, my tower, in some sense. At least, no one had as much claim to it as I did. I was allowed special privileges. After speaking to the guard, I was let in and given the keys I would need. 

I took one of the elevators up. As I walked through the hall, my eye caught sight of the gorgeous view out the rotating restaurant windows. It was tempting to go over and simply look out from there. But not tonight. I continued on, until I found the maintenance stairwell. This would take me all the way up to the base of the striped tower. It was a mild climb, and the lack of rest and food added to that. Yet at the same time, it felt as easy as going downhill. I suppose adrenaline does that to you. I hardly noticed it at all, and soon I was standing outside, craning my neck to look up at the red and white point. Now came the real climb. 

Taking hold of the rungs that protruded out, I began my ascent. The wind was incessant up here. I could feel the cold penetrating my leather jacket, despite it being summer. But I continued on, past the first platform, and the second, the third, up to the fourth. Here was where my journey had to end, but no matter. I was now the highest standing person in Berlin, perhaps all of Germany. I breathed in the air deeply and closed my eyes. I could feel it all pounding through my veins. I flexed my fingers and my mouth opened wide in a great smile as I titled my head back. I had never felt this alive, truly, in my whole life. Not even at the height of the Cold War, despite being born for it. Oh, I had felt great then, fully alive and proud. But now, in this moment, I felt suddenly at home. I had come home, or some part of me that I hadn’t known about before had come home. I was alive and complete. I felt as though I had come out of the fog and I finally, truly knew myself.

As I looked out over the platform, an impulse came upon me. Without a single pause for thought, I gripped the railing and hoisted myself up to stand upside down on it. For any other person, the wind would have knocked them down to a painful, messy death. Had I done it on any other building, that fate might be mine as well. But not here. Oh, no, my beloved Tower was mine, and he would not betray me. He was my spine: I would always be at home on him. He had been mine from the start and now he was an iconic part of all of Berlin. As I stood there, head down, feet up, and looking at the dazzling, upside down city, I laughed. What a fate we had shared! And I only now just saw it? Well, better late than never. 

I began to walk on my hands, my rigid body keeping balance. I didn’t even think of the cold anymore. The fire in me was plenty hot to melt through even a blizzard. I thought of how this Tower and myself had lived the same life. We had begun on one side of the city, very much a part of a certain section of history. The familiar sights around us had crumbled overnight, and we were left alone and uncertain. But not destroyed. Over the years, we had become iconic, perhaps even synonymous, with Berlin. A part from the past, yes, but not left behind in history. Iconic to a certain time and section, but no longer beloved by only that part We were living Berlin,  we were whole Berlin. You could not tear us from this city anymore. We were here to stay. 

I was back where I had started now, and I took one last look at the upside-down city. With a laugh, I flipped onto my feet on the platform with little effort. I turned around, gazing at everything before closing my eyes to take a deep breath in. I held it, then let it out. This air was mine. The lights shining down below were mine. Every car honk and siren was mine. Every shout and song that came from their lungs was mine. Every new memory being formed tonight and beyond was mine. 

Every beating heart, from the north to the south, from the east to the west, each one was mine. 

I turned to leave now, to finally return to my apartment. But not to “go home.” No, not at all.

I already was home. 

[helenebaasner]

Mein Ausflug in die USA, Maine und Massachusetts vom 5. bis zum 10. Dezember 2019

So, da bin ich endlich wieder.

Unser Trip in die USA kam ziemlich spontan. Eigentlich wollte ich nach Quebec, aber nachdem wir die Wettervoraussichten gesehen haben, laut denen es in Quebec sehr, sehr kalt sein würde, haben wir uns kurzfristig anders entschieden. Da ich ein VISA für die USA habe, war es auch nicht wirklich schwierig, die Grenze, die von Wayne aus nur ungefähr zwei Stunden Fahrtzeit mit dem Auto entfernt ist, zu überschreiten. Sie wollten 6 Dollar für ein weiteres Stück Papier, und wir haben nicht so recht verstanden, weshalb, aber immerhin ging es einigermaßen problemlos, das kam erst bei der Rückkehr, aber dazu später.

Wir fuhren Richtung Portland, machten aber vorher noch einen kleinen Abstecher nach Camden, einem kleinen hübschen Ort in Maine mit einem kleinen Hafen und später nach Freeport, ebenfalls ein kleiner Ort, in dem wir hauptsächlich zum shoppen waren. Es gibt dort ein paar outlet stores, unter anderm L.L.Bean, eine kanadische Marke, die normal sehr teuer ist. Wayne kauft hier gerne ein, mich hat dort nichts wirklich angelacht, aber ich bin ja auch noch nie ein große Markenfan gewesen.

In Portland haben wir, nachdem wir im Hotel eingecheckt haben, in der Stadt etwas zu Abend gegessen und sind noch ein wenig durch die Straßen gelaufen. Die Geschäfte waren noch geöffnet, und es liefen viele Menschen, vor allem Frauen, mit weihnachtlicher Dekoration im Haar und etwas zu trinken (Alkohol, nehme ich an) in der Hand herum. Ich war ziemlich erstaunt, denn ich hätte gedacht, dass es in den USA genauso wie in Kanada verboten ist, auf der Straße Alkohol zu trinken, aber offensichtlich war das nicht der Fall.

Am nächsten Tag haben wir noch den Leuchttum in Portland besichtigt, bevor wir dann weiter nach Boston gefahren sind. Es hat an dem Tag sehr starkt geschneit, so dass wir länger brauchten, als wir eingeplant hatten.

Wir haben in einem Hotel etwas außerhalb von Boston übernachtet und sind am nächsten Tag mit der Bahn (subway) in die Stadt gefahren. Auf meinem Wunsch hin waren wir zunächst im Prudential Tower, von dem aus man einen fantastischen Blick auf die Boston hat, und zwar in alle Himmelsrichtungen.

Anschließend liefen wir ein wenig durch die Straßen, und ich fühlte mich sehr wohl hier, endlich mal wieder in einer richtigen Stadt! Wir kamen an der öffenltichen Bücherei vorbei und gingen hinein, da draussen angekündigt war, dass sie genau an diesem Tag einen Bücher-Sale machen. Der Abstecher hat sich gelohnt, wir haben zwar keine Bücher gekauft, aber es ist eine wahnsinnig schöne Bibliothek mit einem beindruckenden Innenhof.

Weiter ging es zum CommunPark. Es war einer dieser schönen Tage mit Sonne und blauem HImmel, aber sehr kalt, so dass wir danach in einem Café einkehrten, um uns aufzuwärmen. Es hieß Caffé Nero, und es saßen viele junge Menschen dort mit ihrem Laptop, Studenten, nehme ich an. Ich fühlte mich wohl und hätte hier Stunden mit einem guten Buch verbringen können. Aber ich wollte natürlich noch mehr von dieser interessanten Stadt sehen, und so gingen wir weiter zum Faneuil Hall Marketplace. Schon auf dem Weg dorthin sahen wir viele junge Menschen, als Weihnachtsfrau/mann verkleidet, die durch die Bars zogen. Es war Samstagnachmittag, offenbar gehen in Boston die Partys schon deutlich eher los als bei uns.

Die Faneuil Hall ist eine der ältesten Gebäude von Boston. Innen drin befinden sich diverse Geschäfte und kleine Imbissstände mit Essen aus allen fernen Ländern. Auch außen herum gibt es viele kleine Geschäfte, Bars und Restaurants. Als wir am frühen Abend hungrig wurden, war es schwierig, in einem der überfüllten Restaurants noch einen Platz zu bekommen. Wir endeten schließlich an einem Thekenplatz in einem großen Irish Pub. Später kam ich ins Gespräch mit einer Frau, die neben mir saß, und sie war total fasziniert, als ich sagte, dass ich aus Deutschland komme. Sie fand es sehr “exciting”! Sie selbst war aus der Nähe von New York und war auf Besuch bei iher Tochter in Boston, die auch mit in der Bar war, so wie eine weitere Freundin, die schon mal in Deutschland war, u.a. in Köln, meiner Zweitheimat in Deutschland.

Am nächsten Tag waren wir wieder in Bostons Stadt unterwegs und shoppen ein wenig in der Newbury Street, einer großen Einkaufsstraße.

Am Montag, den letzten Tag, unseres Aufenthalts hat es wie aus Eimern geschüttet, und wir fuhren nach Salem, einen kleinen Ort in der Nähe von Boston, Die Stadt wurde durch Hexenprozesse von Salem, die im Jahr 1692 stattfanden, bekannt, was ihr den Beinamen “The Witch City” beitrug. Es gibt natürlich ein paar Hexenmuseen, die allerdings  alle saisonsbedingt geschlossen hatten. Trotzdem hatte ich noch ein wirklich gruseliges Erlebnis in der “Hexenstadt”. In einem Einkauszentrum suchte ich eine öffentliche Toilette auf, und als ich hineinkam, stand am Waschbecken eine Frau mit Sonnenbrille, was ich angesichts des weiterhin anhaltenden Regens schon etwas befremdlich fand, und auch sonst sah sie etwas merkwürdig aus. Als ich mich in eine der Toielttten einschloss, fragte sie mich nach der Uhrzeit, auch sehr strange, wie ich fand. Sie war immer noch da, als ich rauskam und zum Waschbecken ging und sagte mir, sie versuche ihre nassen Haar zu trocknen. Wir sprachen ein wenig über das Wetter, und sie fragte mich, wo ich herkomme. Als ich antwortete, sagte sie: “I`m on a punishment, the cops watch me all the day!” Ich dachte nur: Zeit zu gehen, verabschiedete mich höflich, und zerrte Wayne Richtung Parkhaus, während ich ihm mein Erlebnis erzählte. Als wir dann im Parkhaus waren, erklang ein schrecklich lautes Alarmsignal. Wir konnten zum Glück ohne Probleme rausfahren, aber es kamen sowohl Polizei, Krankenwagen als auch Feuerwehrwagen angekarrt. Und ich sagte zu Wayne: “Vielleicht hat das mit dieser Frau zu tun!” Vielleicht war sie ausgebrochen und wurde gesucht, womöglich hatte sie eine Waffe, vielleicht geht auch meine Fantasie mit mir durch. Auf jeden Fall war das ziemlich aufregend.

Am Abend haben wir uns mit einem mit Wayne befreundeten Ehepaar getroffen, die in Boston leben, Jeff und Holly. Wir waren in einem Restaurant, das ihr Sohn empfohlen hat, und ich habe zum ersten Mal, seit ich hier bin, wirklich lecker gegessen. Es geht also doch, es gibt eine Küche in Amerika außerhalb von Burger und Pizza. Ich war wirklich angenehm überrascht. Jeff und Holly sind sehr nett, und wir hatten einen geselligen Abend. Holly sagte mir, dass das einzige, was sie auf deutsch sagen kann “Mach schnell” ist. Ich glaube, dem ist nichts mehr hinzuzufügen, und es sagt so einiges über den deutschen Lebensstil aus.

Am nächsten Tag sind wir nach Hause gefahren, nicht ohne etwa zwei Stunden an der Grenze aufgehalten zu werden. Wir mussten in das Grenzgebäude gehen und viele, viele Frage beantworten, eigentlich alles Fragen, die ich erwartet hatte, als ich in Kanada einflog, da ich ja noch keinen Rückflug gebucht habe. Wie wir uns kennen gelernt haben, warum ich in Kanada bin, was ich dort mache, Englischkurs, ja wo denn, wo ich vorher in Deutschland gearbeitet habe, und, und, und...... Letztendlich füllte er dann aber ein Formular aus, das mir erlaubt, bis einschließlich Ende Februar hier zu bleiben, aber es war wirklich sehr anstrengend und ich fühlte mich wie eine Kriminelle.

So, das war es zu meinem Ausflug in die USA, den ich trozt der anstrengend Rückkehr nicht missen möchte.

[mobianflame]

Is Flight Shaming to Blame for Falling Domestic Air Travel in Germany? – Skift

Rising concern concerning carbon emissions may be actually affecting travel routines in Europe's biggest economic condition as numbers from German airports present a consistent downtrend in guests taking domestic flights.The amount of

people soaring between German urban areas dropped 12% in Nov coming from a year earlier, depending on to the ADV field group, denoting a fourth straight month to month reduce as well as matching a design developing in Sweden, where teen activist Greta Thunberg has spearheaded a project against air transport. Rail agency Deutsche Bahn AG has actually in the meantime disclosed file passenger numbers.The data adds

to signs that environment improvement is cultivating a sense of so-called flying shame-- flygskam in Swedish-- that is actually resulting in some individuals to stay clear of some of the best polluting types of traveling. The phenomenon might be actually much more advanced in Germany after the nation experienced a set of excessive weather condition occasions that observed it buffeted by electrical storms and the River Rhine running completely dry.

"To me, this is actually documentation of improved understanding of weather adjustment looking to customer action," claimed Stefan Goessling, instructor of transportation economics at Linnaeus Educational institution organisation school, Sweden, who assessed the information and also located a slowing down economy, strikes and also airline company failures didn't completely explain the slump.The numbers happen as Germany's parliament votes on an environment package including a tax obligation reduce targeted at lowering train ticket costs through around 10%, while Deutsche Bahn is targeting 100 %sustainable electric energy to power trains on inter-city courses. UBS last month claimed Europe might be actually prepared for a" high-speed rail awakening"as deregulating help a lot better companies and much cheaper fares.The ADV amounts present that trips coming from Germany to various other International nations have also

gone down to a minimal degree, something that could be represented by the loved one uncompetitiveness of rail on journeys considerably beyond four hours.The tally for inter-continental journeys, where area transportation isn't efficient and which are actually usually much less optional than much shorter ones, involving family members brows through as well as vital business activities, is actually still increasing.The German styles imitate those observed in Sweden, where airport driver Swedavia Abdominal Muscle stated in April that guest varieties had actually

gone down for seven consecutive months, just like state rail driver SJ published document figures.In Germany, which has suffered record-breaking heatwaves and a decrease in Rhine water amounts that halted barge shipments, triggered energy shortages as well as interrupted

power manufacturing, the environment has actually come to be the best urgent problem amongst citizens, according to pollster Matthias Jung. Support for the country's Green veggies towers 20 %, trailing just Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats. William Wilkes and also Richard Weiss, © 2019 Bloomberg L.P.ADV has actually advised various other issues may go to play in

the downtrend, featuring strikes at Deutsche Lufthansa AG and also the termination of routes in between Berlin and also 3 various other cities. Goessling mentioned that illustration does not accumulate provided that air-passenger varieties have actually dropped throughout the nation. Neither is the economic condition very likely to have actually been a primary factor, along with house spending up 1.8%in the 3rd fourth and also consumer confidence measured "extremely higher." Kepler Cheuvreux expert Ruxandra Haradau-Doeser said it is actually prematurely to make sure what's cuing the slide in domestic soaring, though income tax regimes aimed at reducing train prices are going to unavoidably weigh on airline company quantities as well as put companies stretching over Lufthansa to mark down specialist EasyJet Plc under extra pressure.Deutsche Bahn reckons annual guest numbers on long-distance learns will certainly arrive at 260 thousand by 2040, just about double the 2015 total amount, while Austrian's state railroad operator is actually incorporating night-train ability in assumption of increasing demand.The European Union intends to establish a jet-fuel toll as part of its brand-new Eco-friendly Bargain. Companies featuring Ryanair Holdings Plc oppose the action and mention countries could extra properly lower carbon dioxide exhausts through acquiring maintainable energies as well as electric planes as well as simplifying air traffic control service networks.Alexandre de Juniac, head of the International Sky Transportation Affiliation, last month recommended providers to better communicate what they're performing to minimize exhausts, warning:"Our team assume anti-flying sentiment to increase as well as disperse."© 2019 Bloomberg L.P.This article was created by William Wilkes and also Richard Weiss from Bloomberg and also was legitimately accredited through the NewsCred publisher network. Feel free to instruct all licensing inquiries to legal@newscred.com.

This content was originally published here.

[umichenginabroad]

Koblenz. Paris. Berlin.

07.07.2018 - Written On This is going to be a large post, and you’ll get to know me a little later but WOW, my first two weeks in Europe have been by far one of the best times of my life. I left on Tuesday June 26th from the Detroit Metro Airport (DTW) and had a direct flight into the Frankfurt Airport (FRK) in Germany.  As soon as I landed and collected my luggage, I needed to find a train to Koblenz, Germany. Koblenz is town where the Mossel River flows into the Rhein River in western Germany. The train ride into town was beautiful.

Once I arrived in Koblenz, my host mother Petra Schreiber picked me up. I previously stayed with the Schreiber family before in a one-month exchange program with my exchange partner, Arved Schreiber.  I stayed in Koblenz for five days. It was nice to settle in and adjust to the jetlag. While in Koblenz, we visited the Deutsches Eck, saw a PiNK cover band, and played the game Taboo (completely in German). It was a very good time. On Sunday, we then took a train to Worms. Here we visited the Nibelung Museum and saw the Martin Luther Dankmal.

On Monday, I then traveled to Berlin by train. I had to take four different trains, and three of them were different types. I took the RE, IC, and the ICE that day. I arrived two hours later than I should have. One of my trains was so late I missed the connecting train, so I had to talk to the people at the service center and they gave me another set of directions and a new train ticket to Berlin. Once I finally got to Berlin, I took the S-Bahn and the U-Bahn to where my apartment was, although I stayed in a hotel and then moved into my apartment the next day. 

The next day, I walked around the area for a little and discovered the Charlottenburg Schloss, pictured above. It was very beautiful and really made my walk nice. Once I got back to the apartment I had to find a way to the airport, because I planned to travel in Paris the next five days before classes would begin. I took the U-Bahn half way to the airport then decided to walk the rest of the way instead of taking a bus. It was fun and a good experience.

The next thing I knew, I was taking train after train trying to find my Airbnb in Paris. Luckily everything worked out perfectly. When I arrived to the Airbnb, Nate Fisher, a senior on our rugby team, was waiting for me on the front steps of the building. I unpacked my things and then we explored a little of the Paris nightlife. I have so much to say about Paris, but I’ll keep it real short. The next morning I woke up and walked to Notre Dame, the Louvre, and the Opera. That night we went to the Eiffel Tower. The next day we went to the Palace of Versailles and then meet up with Pierre, our former French teammate. That night we saw the Arc De Triomphe light up the night sky. The next day, I visited the Louvre again and saw the Mona Lisa. We watched France win their quarterfinal game in the World Cup, then partied in the streets. I then spent my 20th Birthday at midnight in front of the Eiffel Tower, before catching my flight at 6:05am back to Berlin from CDG. 

Wow, there it is. That was my trip to Paris as short as it can be. Now I am here in Berlin at my apartment waiting to get Wifi at the University tomorrow so I can post my first blog, and start my semester here at TUB. I look forward to the next six weeks and writing about my experiences.

Bryce David Watson (BDW) - ChemE

TUB - Berlin Summer 2018

[portaldaindustriaimobiliariabras]

#repost • @langhofberlin Westkreuz Berlin The sustainable high-rise is designed in the unused area between the Deutsche Bahn and the S-Bahn tracks and the motorway routes. The centerpiece of the tower ensemble is the sustainability of new buildings: wind farms are located right at the top of the high-rise buildings, which, together with photovoltaic modules on the facades, will make a significant contribution to the production of energy for personal use. More about the project at langhof.com #langhof #berlin #germany #deutschland #hochhaus #skyscraper #skyscrapers #highrise #highrisebuilding #archdaily #architecture #sustainability #vsco #architecturephotography #architecturelovers https://www.instagram.com/p/CEppy6PFnxS/?igshid=17jtbtcqfanq5

[maahaat-blog]

Nordamerika-Trip 2017/18

Station 13: Chicago

Mein Host

Nach der, wie zuvor beschrieben, etwas stressigen Busfahrt, kam ich gegen fünf Uhr morgens in Chicago an und suchte mir zunächst ein Starbucks-Coffeeshop, da ich warten wollte, bis Paul, mein Host hier, aufgestanden und bereit für Besuch wäre. Gegen halb 8 wurde ich wie bisher immer äußerst freundlich empfangen und bekam erst einmal Kaffee und Frühstück, bevor ich mich für ein paar Stunden hinlegte – geschlafen hatte ich die letzte Nacht nicht wirklich. Paul ist 56 und arbeitet für die nationale Eisenbahn, weshalb er bereits unzählige Male mit dem Zug durch die ganzen USA und Europa gereist ist. Er kennt sich auch in Bayern und Deutschland sehr gut aus – seine Familie kommt ursprünglich aus der Schweiz, weshalb er auch fast fließend Deutsch spricht, was dazu führte, dass wir die ganze Zeit eine witzige Mischung aus Deutsch und Englisch sprachen, da wir immer die Sprache wechselten, wenn wir einen bestimmten Begriff in der jeweils anderen Sprache nicht kannten. Mit ihm hatte ich einige Mahlzeiten zusammen und wir besuchten Donnerstagabend ein von Schülern der örtlichen Musikhochschulen veranstaltetes Konzert, welches als alljährliche Bach-Marathon betitelt alle sechs Brandenburgischen Konzerte sowie einige ausgewählte Einzelstücke bot. In einer schönen Kirche stattfindend war dies ein sehr gelungener Abend, bei dem ich auch einige sehr nette Freunde Pauls kennenlernen konnte.

Dieselben Freunde traf ich auch wieder, als ich an meinem letzten Tag mit Paul in den Gottesdienst seiner Kirche ging, die als moderne, freie evangelische Kirche mit Christenpopmusik und offener Religionsdiskussion einen offenen und einladenden Eindruck bei mir hinterließ, was auch an den Gesprächen mit verschiedenen Mitgliedern im Anschluss lag. Von Pauls Apartment direkt neben einem der örtlichen Colleges konnte ich die meisten Sehenswürdigkeiten Chicagos zu Fuß erreichen, wobei ich hier täglich einige Meilen abspulte. Da Paul seit kurzem keinen Mitbewohner mehr hat, konnte ich dessen altes Zimmer nutzen, weshalb ich ein ganzes Queensize-Bett für mich alleine zur Verfügung hatte – ein Traum!

Die Stadt

An meinem ersten Tag in Chicago besuchte ich den Willis-Tower, der mit einer Aussichtsplattform in 412 Metern fast dieselbe Höhe wie der CN-Tower in Toronto aufweist und von dem man eine fantastische Aussicht über die ganze Metropolregion sowie den Lake Michigan hat. Da ein ganz gutes Timing erwischt hatte und gegen 16 Uhr am Tower ankam, konnte ich die Stadt gerade noch bei Tageslicht, aber auch im Dunkeln mit unzähligen Lichtern überall bewundern. Im Laufe meiner Reise habe ich es mir angewöhnt, in einer neuen Stadt anfangs einen möglichst hohen Punkt zu finden, um von dort schnell einen ersten Eindruck und eine gewisse Übersicht erlangen zu können. Gepaart mit den langen Touren zu Fuß, die für mich eine weitere gut geeignete Möglichkeit darstellen, möglichst viel von der jeweiligen Stadt zu erkunden, habe ich mittlerweile eine gute Methode entwickelt, innerhalb weniger Tage enorm Viel einer weiteren Station meines Trips zu sehen. Die nächsten zwei Tage waren dann auch vor allem von langen Spaziergängen entlang des Sees quer durch Downtown Chicago geprägt, den Milleniumpark, „The Bone“ und „The Magnificent Mile“ eingeschlossen.

Das Stadtbild Chicagos im touristischen Teil um Downtown herum hat mich stark an London bzw. generell europäische Großstädte und ist mir als besonders sauber und mit guter Infrastruktur in Erinnerung geblieben. Von allen bisher besuchten Städten empfand ich Chicago rein optisch mit als schönste Stadt, wobei sich dieser Eindruck vor allem auf die abgelaufenen Stadtviertel bezieht. Fährt man mit dem Zug einige Meilen aus dem Zentrum in die angrenzenden Gebiete, wie ich es am Samstag auf Empfehlung einiger Locals tat, bekommt man ein komplett anderes Chicago zu sehen. Da die Bahn große Teile der Strecke erhöht oberirdisch fährt, kann man unterschiedlichste Straßenzüge sehen, die zum Teil stark heruntergekommen sind und wo ich erkennen konnte, warum die Stadt als eine der gefährlichsten der USA gilt, inklusive der meisten Opfer und Verletzten von Schusswaffen jährlich. In Chicago fiel mir der Zustand einer Zweiklassengesellschaft in den USA besonders stark auf, wie es eigentlich schon auf der gesamten Reise der Fall war. Ich bekam bei einem kurzen Besuch in das örtliche Macys-Kaufhaus, das vor Prunk und Dekadenz nur so schreit und den davorsitzenden Obdachlosen, die oft verkrüppelt im Dreck liegen, den Gedanken, dass die extrem materialistische Gesellschaft der USA ein solches Bild abgibt, wie es in einem dystopischen Deutschland in 20,30 Jahren aussehen könnte. Die extreme Armut, die hier in eigentlich jeder Großstadt vorzufinden ist, parallellaufend mit der überbordenden Werbung an jeder Ecke und der Kaufsucht all derjenigen, die ihr weniges Geld für plastikdurchdrängten Mist zum Fenster hinauswerfen, ist eine der traurigsten Beobachtungen, die ich auf meiner Reise machen musste, wobei ich natürlich weiß, dass es weltweit noch schlimmere Zustände gibt. Die Tatsache aber, dass die USA als eigentlich reiches, modernisiertes, westliches Land gilt, lässt die Zustände hier in einem für mich fast perversen Licht erscheinen.

Nach diesem soziologischen Erguss aber wieder weiter im Text: Am Freitag besuchte ich das hier hochgelobte Institut of Art, das von Griechisch-Römischer Kunst bis hin zu Andy Warhol und tagesaktuellen Künstlern ein breit angelegtes Repertoire an Kunst aller Art bot und auf beeindruckend großer Fläche den ganzen Tag beanspruchte. Am Ende dieses Tages merkte ich, dass ich im Laufe der letzten 2,5 Monate in wahrscheinlich zu viel Museen dieser Art gewesen war, da sich Vieles schlichtweg immer wiederholt. Trotzdem konnte ich hier einige Stücke finden, die mir besonders gut gefielen, vor allem in der Galerie mit den impressionistischen Gemälden von z.B. Monet oder van Gogh. Am selben Abend besuchte ich noch den Christkindelmarket von Chicago und das Caroling an der berühmten Bohne, bei dem ein Kinderchor Weihnachtsklassiker zum Besten gab. Nachdem ich am nächsten Tag wie beschrieben die angrenzenden Viertel der Stadt erkundet hatte und auch in etwas besseren, bei der jüngeren Bevölkerung beliebten Neighbourhoods unterwegs gewesen war, ging ich am letzten Abend in eine der bekanntesten Bluesbars der Stadt, wo ich fünf Stunden feinste Livemusik genießen konnte.

Als eine der größten Städte der USA konnte ich in meinen fünf Tagen hier in Chicago viele unterschiedliche, von starken Differenzen geprägte Orte besuchen, Weihnachtsstimmung genießen und einen Einblick in das Leben vor Ort bekommen. Als nächstes stand nun die erste Etappe mit dem California Zephyr, einer hierzulande berühmten Zugverbindung von Chicago bis San Francisco, an. Von Sonntagmittag 14 Uhr bis Montagmorgen 7 Uhr Ortszeit ging es die nächsten 18 Stunden 1000 Meilen quer durchs Land weiter bis nach Colorado – hierzu bald mehr, lots of Greets 😊

[getgamez]

Train Sim World 2020

.ugb-44f4532 .ugb-video-popup__wrapper{max-width:1774px;border-radius:0px;background-color:#1b2838;background-image:url(https://getgamez.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Train-Sim-World-2020-free.jpg)}.ugb-44f4532 .ugb-video-popup__play-button svg{fill:#ffffff !important}.ugb-44f4532 .ugb-video-popup__wrapper:before{background-color:#1b2838;opacity:0.3}.ugb-44f4532 .ugb-video-popup__wrapper:hover:before{opacity:0.6}.ugb-44f4532.ugb-video-popup{margin-top:-7px !important}@media screen and (max-width:768px){.ugb-44f4532 .ugb-video-popup__wrapper{max-width:400px;height:200px !important}} Game Overview Train Sim World is an immersive first-person simulator perfect for everyone, with complete in-cab interactivity, accurate detail on locos, real-world routes and hours of gameplay. Take to the rails with the brand-new Train Sim World 2020 Edition and find everything you need to master new skills, from general to advanced operation of locomotives as you operate smooth passenger and freight services, scenarios and much more. START A NEW JOURNEY Train Sim World puts you in the engineer’s seat of breathtakingly authentic machines. Balance your brake pressure, control your speed, manage refuelling, switching, yard work and more. The ‘Journeys’ feature will guide you through over 24 real hours of scenarios, tutorials and service timetables for each route – plus a new progress tracker will highlight hundreds of railway jobs available for you to complete as you master the routes. EXPERIENCE AUTHENTIC SIMULATION Powered by SimuGraph®, Train Sim World locomotives accurately recreate not only the appearance of their real-world counterparts, but also under-the-hood physics, cabs, control desks, sounds and even the feel of the trains. All of this is set on a collection of real-world routes from around the world. Fight your way up Germany’s Spessartrampe incline, navigate the sprawling underground station at New York Penn or simply gape at the cavernous wonder of Manchester’s Victoria Station – and on every route you’ll find true-to-life regional signalling systems and a brand-new set of challenges. MASTER THE RAILS Step into any Train Sim World cab and you’ll be greeted with the same sight as any engineer – banks of controls ready for your command, giving you power over every aspect of your locomotive’s operation. In Train Sim World 2020 we’re taking you one step further with updates to the sim experience such as the new Action Point scoring system that rewards you for accuracy and debriefing screen will help you track your performance. Key Features Explore famous routes from around the globe. Main-Spessart Bahn – Carry freight and passengers over the Main-Spessart Bahn, a wondrous mix of steep gradients, scenic hillsides and swooping turns. Northern Trans-Pennine – Control icons of British motive power on the towering moors, challenging grades and tight curves of the famous Trans-Pennine Railway. Long Island Rail Road – Experience America’s busiest commuter railroad and all the bustle of railroading in New York City in Train Sim World: Long Island Rail Road. Great Western Express – Departing the busy London Paddington, you’ll have to negotiate the intense traffic and adverse signals, keeping-to-rule, and your nerve. CSX Heavy Haul – Explore Rockwood Mine, Sand Patch Summit and Cumberland Yard in the powerful CSX AC4400CW. New for Train Sim World 2020: Journeys – Blends together more than 24 hours of sequential gameplay for each route. Start a Journey on any route and enjoy hundreds of scenarios, service timetables, and jobs to complete around the railway. Tutorials – Improved tutorials will teach new players all they need to master the rails – and even old hands might find something new to learn. UI and HUD – We’ve overhauled our user interface to give players more control and confidence as they master some of the most powerful machines in the world. Action Points – Rewards you for completing objectives, driving with accurate timing and records your best performance for each route scenario and timetable service. 12 incredibly accurate locomotives and a control car, including the iconic Inter-city 125, Metro-North’s memorable M7 and Deutsche Bahn’s workhorse BR 185.2 bringing you a range of challenges to master. Powered by Dovetail Games’ proprietary SimuGraph® vehicle dynamics engine and Unreal Engine 4® technology Download size: 4.4 GB Screenshots for System Requirements MINIMUM: OS: 64-bit Windows 7 Service Pack 1, Windows 8 / 8.1 or Windows 10Processor: Intel Core i5-4690 @ 3.5 GHz or AMD Ryzen 5 1500X @ 3.7 GHzMemory: 8 GB RAMGraphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 TiDirectX: Version 10Network: Broadband Internet connectionStorage: 20 GB available spaceSound Card: DirectX CompatibleAdditional Notes: Requires mouse and keyboard or Xbox Controller RECOMMENDED: OS: 64-bit Windows 7 Service Pack 1, Windows 8 / 8.1 or Windows 10Processor: Intel Core i7-4790 @ 3.6 GHz or AMD Ryzen 7 1700 @ 3.8 GHzMemory: 8 GB RAMGraphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970DirectX: Version 10Network: Broadband Internet connectionStorage: 20 GB available spaceSound Card: DirectX CompatibleAdditional Notes: Requires mouse and keyboard or Xbox Controller Read the full article

[topfygad]

The Ultimate One Week Germany Itinerary

Germany, a land of beer, castles and gorgeous landscapes.

It’s also the place I name house for the final three years. And what a luxurious it has been to have the ability to discover this lovely nation at a sluggish tempo.

It’s house to superb historical past, artwork, structure, nightlife and identified the world over for its beer – whats up Oktoberfest! You possibly can keep right here all of your life and nonetheless not have the ability to pattern all of the beer Germany has to supply.

Getting Round Germany

If getting round by prepare is your purpose then Germany has acquired quite a lot of InterCity (metropolis to metropolis) and InterRegio (inside areas) choices for you.

The German nationwide rail go offers you with limitless rail journey all through Germany together with the super-fast InterCity Categorical (ICE) trains. You may both get the limitless go, a weekend go or a day state/area go such because the “Bayern Ticket” that offers you limitless entry to S-Bahn (subway), Regional trains in addition to public transport for a flat value.

The rail go even consists of public transportation journey to a few of its neighbors – Italy, Belgium, Austria, the Czech Republic, and Poland. It even provides you further reductions on bus and boat excursions. However do test earlier than hand which leg of the journey is roofed and which isn’t. You may simply test this with the Deutsche Bahn or vacationer workplace positioned at just about each prepare station.

On this publish, we’ll cowl the most effective of Germany in a single candy week!

One Week Germany Itinerary

Day 1: Munich, Outdated City

You’ll begin your journey with grandeur in Bavaria’s attractive capital, Munich!

Munich is considered one of Bavaria’s most gorgeous cities and you’ll not depart this place dissatisfied.

After your arrival in Munich head to the Outdated City to start out your immersion within the majestic structure that this nation has to supply.

In case you’ve landed on the Munich Airport, the Munich Marienplatz Station is 30 minutes away. In case you’ve arrived on the station, you possibly can simply stroll over to town middle.

Join a strolling tour of Outdated City and discover the medieval structure and the neo-Gothic new city corridor with its bell tower.

Have lunch in one of many many conventional beer gardens particularly the lakeside one at Englischer Garten, which is an 18th– century park and the biggest one in Germany, is a complete delight. In summer season the place is chirping with guests and also you received’t have a uninteresting second.

After consuming (and ingesting!) to your coronary heart’s content material you possibly can loosen up or take a stroll within the English backyard.

Subsequent, you’ll head to St. Peter’s Church which is the oldest church within the space and includes blended architectures for varied components or Asamkirche (Asam Church) which is a Baroque-styled church.

You may then head to at least one (or extra) of the various museums on the town to study extra about historical past, sculpture, and artwork. In case you’re taken with science and know-how then the Deutsches Museum is for you. Glyptothek is devoted solely to historical sculptures. There’s even an Egyptian Artwork Museum that’s set beneath the bottom. There’s one thing for everybody!

Tip: Many museums are closed on Mondays so make sure to try the timings beforehand. Or go on a Sunday because the tickets within the state-run museums are ridiculously low cost.

INSTA @SHRUTIPANGTEY

Within the night, you possibly can head over to the 200-year-old Victuals Market (Viktualienmarkt) which, because the title suggests, has over 100 meals stalls in addition to a beer backyard. In case you are a cheese lover, look no additional!

Munich even has a beer corridor, Hofbräuhaus, which is a big 3-floor, beer corridor relationship again to the 16th century. So, you possibly can finish the day on a ‘excessive’ be aware! The meals right here is superb as effectively, however put together to attend as this place is at all times packed.

Day 2: Neuschwanstein Citadel, Munich

Begin day two on a dreamy be aware. Neuschwanstein Citadel is about 2 hours away from Munich so you possibly can take a day journey to Füssen to discover this 19th century hilltop fairy story fortress of King Ludwig II of Bavaria.

INSTA @SHRUTIPANGTEY

Aspect be aware: It’s stated to be the inspiration for Disney’s Sleeping Magnificence fortress. So, you’ll truly be strolling right into a fairy story.

From this fortress, about Three to Four hours away is one other fortress you could go discover. The Heidelberg Citadel (Schloss Heidelberg) truly includes the ruins of a fortress relationship again to the 16th century.

It’s perched atop a hill and might be reached by taking the mountain railway (Bergbahn). It additionally homes the world’s largest wine barrel. ( the place I’d be headed to first!)

Spend your night at one of many beautiful cafés within the metropolis. Similar to the museums, there’s one for each form of café lover – a comfy retro one, an Instagrammable one, a terrace one or a contemporary one.

Head again to Munich and finish the day by happening considered one of Munich’s pub crawls to expertise the nightlife.

Day 3: Romantic Highway, Rothenburg ob der Tauber

The Romantic Highway (Romantische Straße) is a picturesque route via forests and close by cities of Augsburg, Wurzburg, and Rothenburg, amongst others.

It has views of the mountains and finally ends on the Neuschwanstein Citadel and the Alps. So, for those who didn’t get an opportunity to discover the fortress earlier than you are able to do it now.

You may take this Romantic Highway route for about Three hours from Munich to achieve the quaint city of Rothenburg with its cobbled streets and timbered colourful homes.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber interprets to ‘pink fortress above the Tauber River’ as a result of this medieval city was as soon as identified for its red-roofed homes.

In case you’re in a Christmassy temper or a lover of all issues Christmas, you possibly can head to the Christmas Museum which is open all 12 months spherical.

On the opposite facet of the spectrum is the Prison Museum which helps you to witness the torture gadgets and strategies that had been utilized in medieval instances.

You may head to the Roedertor Tower to get an exquisite aerial view of the city after which go to the imperial Rothenburg Citadel. Right here you possibly can loosen up and spend a peaceable night on the Citadel Backyard.

Enjoyable Truth: This city has been an inspiration for various books like Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Manufacturing facility.

For a novel expertise, you possibly can take the Evening Watchman tour via the darkish alleyways and dimly lit paths within the firm of the Rothenburg Evening Watchman.

Day 4: The Black Forest and Lake Constance

Black Forest is Germany’s iconic forested and mountainous area popularly often known as the birthplace of the Grimm Brothers’ story of Hansel & Gretel. It’s a 3-hour drive from Rothenburg.

It’s the good household vacation spot stuffed with journey and rest choices, Gothic-style hamlets and vineyards.

Journey seekers can try Steinwasen Theme Park or higher but Europa Park which is Europe’s 2nd largest theme park with varied themed rides and curler coasters. Children and adults alike will like it right here!

You may also try Germany’s highest waterfall, Triberg Waterfall. The pathway resulting in the highest has a number of viewing platforms from the place you possibly can benefit from the view.

You may head to the Higher Center Rhine Valley or popularly referred to as Rhine Valley to discover the gorge which is a UNESCO World Heritage website. It’s house to a few of the greatest vineyards in Germany.

Tip: Autumn is the most effective time to discover this space and revel in wine tasting classes, mountain climbing journeys and delicious meals as a result of the grape harvest pageant is well known then.

Alternatively, you possibly can head to a different UNESCO World Heritage website, Lake Constance, additionally referred to as Bodensee, which is 2 hours away. This lake borders 4 nations and has a stunning view of the Alps!

One other UNESCO listed website is the small island of Reichenau, satirically the biggest on Lake Constance.

It additionally has a monastery of the identical title and chapels relationship again to the 9th century. Benefit from the gorgeous view of the lake from the island.

There are a selection of actions you are able to do on the lake. Take a leisurely boat or ferry experience, take pleasure in a thermal tub or experience on the Zeppelin to see the lake from above. Catch the sundown by the lakeside after which dine at one of many eating places close by. Don’t neglect to strive the Lake Constance wine.

Day 5: Dresden

The subsequent cease is town of Dresden, on the banks of the Elbe river, which is 6-7 hours away from the Black Forest.

You can begin by visiting the Baroque-style Dresden Frauenkirche church or Girl Church. Right here’s a small story about this iconic landmark of the city.

The unique, Romanesque-style 11th-century church was torn down and changed by a bigger Baroque-styled one within the 18th century however sadly, it was destroyed within the bombing of Dresden throughout World Conflict II.

The stays had been left for half a decade as a warfare memorial. The church was later rebuilt after the reunification of Germany and accomplished by 2005. It’s now an emblem of recognition of Dresden metropolis’s skyline due to its unconventional excessive bell-shaped dome.

You may take a metropolis tour to study extra about Dresden’s tumultuous previous.

Take a look at the Inexperienced Vault (Grünes Gewölbe) whee you will see that the royal treasury. It’s considered one of Europe’s most guarded chambers.

Dresden additionally has a captivating facet with its quite a few European fashion cafes and bistros and a vibrant leisure space alongside the banks of the Elbe river.

Your subsequent cease is Hamburg.

Day 6: Hamburg

Catch a prepare or drive from Dresden to Hamburg which is able to take you about 5 hours and discover this port metropolis for the day.

Though Berlin is nearer to Dresden, I’ve left it for the top of the itinerary in order that it’s a handy exit level from Germany.

The picturesque central boulevard of Hamburg that connects the Outdated City to the New City is price exploring.

Are you a chocolate lover like me? Then Chocoversum is the place for us! Stepping inside offers you Willy Wonka’s chocolate manufacturing unit feels. Not solely can you’re taking a tour of the place and find out how sweets are made, you even get to style quite a lot of sweets. Plus (and that is the most effective half!) you possibly can even create your personal customized chocolate bar!

Then you possibly can head to Miniatur Wunderland which is the star attraction of Hamburg. It’s a mannequin railway and miniature airport museum, satirically the biggest on this planet. It’s a marvel to see the sync by which the setup works.

Ever heard of a pageant being held thrice in a 12 months? Properly, Hamburg has it. It’s referred to as the Hamburg Dom and it’s held in Spring, Summer time, and Winter over a interval of a month every time, making it the longest pageant in Germany.

Aside from the river, Hamburg additionally has a lake within the coronary heart of town referred to as Lake Alster the place you’ll discover swans gracefully gliding over its waters.

You may finish the day by having fun with the nightlife on Reeperbahn which is the leisure (and red-light) district of Hamburg. So, exit and benefit from the vigorous streets, the place the Beatles have been rumored to have performed, hit the golf equipment or join a nightclub crawl.

Day 7: Berlin

There are hourly trains heading from Hamburg to Berlin and takes about 90 minutes to an hour to achieve your final cease on the itinerary.

To begin your day on a excessive be aware, head to the Reichstag dome and expertise an aerial view of town. This landmark is the glass dome constructed above the Reichstag.

The Reichstag is essentially the most vital and iconic historic constructing of the German empire, also called the Imperial Weight loss plan or the Parliament. It’s positioned within the authorities district of Berlin.

You may even take pleasure in a ship experience previous the Reichstag.

Then take a strolling tour of the Brandenburg Gate and Holocaust Memorial.

The Brandenburg Gate was a preferred political gathering spot in the course of the Chilly Conflict. It’s the solely surviving historic metropolis gate and is an emblem of reunified Germany after the autumn of the Berlin Wall.

The Holocaust Memorial is a painful reminder of the departed, consisting of hundreds of concrete slabs on gray pillars to recollect the misplaced lives.

To carry your spirits up a little bit after this, you possibly can head to the East Aspect Gallery which is an open-air gallery on the biggest remaining stretch of the Berlin Wall to discover the murals and artworks. It has the standing of being a heritage-protected landmark.

After this inventive marvel, you possibly can head to the Museum Island that homes 5 world-class museums. It’s a World Heritage website that gives insights into completely different spheres.

The Pergamom is house to historical structure, The Altes Museum hosts Greek and Roman artwork, the Bode Museum has works of the Byzantine empire, the Alte Nationalgalerie reveals glimpses of the 19th century and The Neues Museum has archaeological artifacts.

From there, you possibly can try the Berlin TV Tower (Berliner Fernsehturm) for some extra aerial views of town. To your final sundowner in Germany, you possibly can chill on the cocktail bar and benefit from the skyline.

To your final evening in Germany, you possibly can head to Berlin’s largest backyard and well-known landmark, Tiergarten, for a leisurely late night stroll.

Otherwise you head to the hip neighborhood of Kreuzberg to sit back at a café and revel in craft beer at one of many many fast-food joints and eating places across the space. This neighborhood additionally has golf equipment which are open until the wee hours of the morning.

I’d recommend spending one further day or two days in Berlin, if potential, due to the number of locations you could go to.

So there you have got it, one week in gorgeous Germany! Inform me, have you ever been to all of those locations? And if sure, how was your expertise?

Just like the publish? Reserve it for later.

This publish was initially printed in November 2019

from Cheapr Travels https://ift.tt/2Mf4vFP via IFTTT

[hhtnews]

Wo Towers-Trainer Mike Taylor ist, ist eine Taktiktafel nicht weit

Hamburg. Mike Taylor hat seine Arbeit getan, wie immer mit äußerster Akribie und mithilfe einer speziellen Basketball-Software. In einer diesmal gelben DIN-A4-Mappe, jeder Gegner erhält bei ihm ein eigenes Heft, hat er auf wenigen, eng beschriebenen Seiten alles sportlich Wissenswerte über die BG Göttingen, die am Sonnabend (20:30 auf Magenta Sport) in der Wilhelmsburger Edel-optics.de-Arena antritt, bis ins kleinste Detail dokumentiert. Auf der Innenseite des Ordners hat er handschriftlich mit roter Tinte die wichtigsten Spielzüge aufgemalt.

Taylor lächelt. Sein Matchplan steht. Und er ist optimistisch, dass dieser am Spieltag von seinen Profis auch erfolgbringend umgesetzt wird.

Göttingen ist das dritte Bundesliga-Heimspiel der Hamburg Towers. Die Halle ist wie immer mit 3.400 Zuschauern ausverkauft, und nach zuvor zwei klaren Heimniederlagen gegen Weißenfels und Bamberg würde ein Sieg gegen den Abstiegskonkurrenten dem Aufsteiger ein bisschen Luft im Kampf um den Klassenerhalt verschaffen.

Towers-Trainer Taylor ist von Gutiérrez überzeugt

Der Mexikaner Jorge Gutiérrez (30) wird dabei sein Debüt für die Towers geben. Im Training hinterließ der ehemalige NBA-Profi, der auf 53 Einsätze in der nordamerikanischen Eliteliga zurückblickt, einen starken Eindruck, sagen seine Kollegen.

Taylor (47) ist von seinem neuen Spielmacher längst überzeugt. „Er ist ein Gewinn für uns. Er wird noch mehr Variabilität in unser Spiel bringen“, sagt der US-Amerikaner. In den vergangenen acht Tagen hat er ihm erste Kapitel des taktischen Rüstzeugs zu vermitteln versucht, mit dem die Towers in der Bundesliga auf Korbjagd gehen.

Gutiérrez weiß nun, dass er in den nächsten Wochen noch sehr viel lernen muss. Das „Towers-Playbook“ des Trainers ist fast 200 Seiten dick, das in weiten Teilen ähnliche der polnischen Nationalmannschaft, die Taylor ebenfalls betreut, umfasst derzeit 162 Seiten. Beide Spielbücher werden ständig erweitert.

Pick and Roll in fast jedem fünften Spielzug

Taktik, sagt Taylor, ist ein Krückstock für das Team, der in möglichst jeder Spielsituation mentalen Halt geben soll: „Dahinter steckt die Überlegung: Wie können wir es den Spielern so einfach wie möglich machen, um Routine, Automatismen in ihre Abläufe zu bringen? Wie können wir sie gedanklich entlasten und Aufmerksamkeit steigern, damit sie sich auf ihre Würfe und das Verteidigen gegnerischer Angriffe konzen­trieren können und nicht ständig im Spiel auf der Suche nach Lösungen sind?“

Derart einfach, wie es auf der Grafik auszusehen scheint, lassen sich die Vorgaben auf dem Feld indes selten umsetzen. Den dort gezeigten Angriff nennt Taylor „Zipper 2“. Zipper, auf Deutsch Reißverschluss, ist eine Serie von Spielzügen mit verschiedenen finalen Abschlüssen. Die Zwei steht für den Shooting Guard, einen weiteren Flügelspieler, der in diesem Fall am Ende zum Wurf kommen soll. Das ist zumindest der Plan. Weil der Point Guard (Spielmacher), die Nummer eins, vom Zen­trum auf den Flügel dribbelt, der Shooting Guard dann an ihm vorbeiläuft – auf dessen vorige Position an der Spitze der gewöhnlich farblich markierten Verteidigungszone (Paint) –, sieht das ähnlich aus wie bei einem Reißverschluss.

Der Center, die Nummer fünf, soll in dieser Spielsituation den Gegenspieler blocken, ihm den Laufweg versperren, ihn so an der Verteidigung des Angriffs hindern, seinem Mitspieler damit freie Bahn zum Korb geben oder ihm die Möglichkeit für einen Pass zu einem ungedeckten Nebenmann eröffnen. Diese Standardvariante wird „pick and roll“ (blocken und abrollen) genannt. In fast jedem fünften Angriff taucht diese Kon­stellation im Basketball auf. Towers-Talent Justus Hollatz (18) exekutiere diesen Spielzug in der Bundesliga laut Statistik am effektivsten, sagt Taylor. Die beiden Forwards, die Flügelspieler mit den Nummern drei und vier, sollen derweil ihre Stellung halten, ihre zwei Verteidiger dadurch an sie binden.

Im Spind jedes Spielers hängt ein Taktikbogen

Die wesentlichen taktischen Abläufe, ihre Spielideen haben Taylor und seine Assistenten Benka Barloschky (31) und Austen Rowland (38) der Mannschaft in der zweimonatigen Saisonvorbereitung im August und September vermittelt. Taylors Didaktik: zuhören, aufnehmen, lernen, ausführen. Während des Spielbetriebs geht es vor allem um Wiederholungen, die Einstellung auf die Gegner. Wer wann wo zu stehen, wohin zu laufen, zu passen und wie zu werfen hat, wird im Training ständig simuliert. Zudem erhält jeder Spieler eine Übersicht aller Statistiken, dazu die erwarteten Spielzüge, ausgedruckt auf Papier und gespeichert auf einem USB-Stick.

Dort sind zusätzlich die entscheidenden Sequenzen auf Kurzvideos zu sehen, zusammengeschnitten von Barloschky und Rowland. In der Towers-Kabine hängen in jedem Spind taktische Anweisungen, auf einer Stellwand in der Größe eines Flipcharts sind mitten im Raum die wichtigsten Spielabläufe gut sichtbar zum Verinnerlichen ausgestellt.

20 Minuten Videostudium vor jedem Spiel

Das Videostudium ist bei den Towers grundsätzlich Chefsache. Taylor nimmt sich dafür zu Hause in St. Georg – meist bei laufendem Fernseher – sehr viel Zeit, diskutiert seine Vorstellungen aber immer auch mit seinen Co-Trainern und der Mannschaft während des gemeinsamen Studiums der Bilder. Dafür sind in der Regel 20 Minuten angesetzt, meist zwei Tage vor dem Spiel.

Laufen, dribbeln, passen, blocken, werfen – diese fünf Grundkomponenten des Basketballspiels optimal zusammenzuführen, das ist die Aufgabe der Taktik. Zum Schluss eines Spielzuges soll in der Theorie immer eine optimale Wurfposition entstehen. Es gibt dafür grobe Grundmuster, dazu die entsprechenden Verzweigungen. Den meisten seiner Spielzüge hat Taylor einen Namen gegeben. Denver ist einer, auch andere NBA-Clubs stehen Pate. Der Spielmacher kündigt oder zeigt gewöhnlich das gewählte System an, in den Auszeiten demons­triert der Trainer auf seiner Taktiktafel die bevorzugte Angriffsvariante.

Taylor hat das Offensivspiel, für das jeder Mannschaft maximal 24 Sekunden Zeit auf der Shot clock (Wurfuhr) bleiben, in drei Achtsekundenabschnitte eingeteilt, in den frühen, mittleren und späten Angriff. „Es gibt in jeder Situation einen Plan, wer wohin läuft, wer passt, wer wirft“, sagt der Trainer. Ziel bleibe es, den treffsichersten Spieler in die optimale Wurfposition zu bringen. Der Rest ist dann Sache von Technik, Konzentration, Wille und mentaler Stärke. Fliegt der Ball am Ende in den Korb, ist das immer noch die beste Taktik.

[180abroad]

Day 169: Frankfurt

From a historical and economic perspective, Frankfurt is fascinating. It was one of the largest and most powerful cities in the Holy Roman Empire. It was where emperors were selected by an electoral college, and it was the home of the first trade fairs in Europe. In the 19th and 20th centuries, Frankfurt an epicenter of attempted democratic reform. Today, it remains one of the most important cities in Europe for trade and finance. It is home to the EU's central bank and one of Europe's largest stock exchanges. It's train station and airport are likewise among the busiest in all of Europe.

From a tourist perspective, Frankfurt is a bit odd. Despite being such an important city, the historical tourist quarter is quite small. Unlike Munich and Nuremberg, Frankfurt was rebuilt as a fully modern city after WWII, filled with gridded streets and steel skyscrapers. Just a few blocks around the medieval city hall and cathedral were preserved for posterity.  A few hours proved more than enough for us to feel that we had gotten a good taste.

Of course, it probably didn't help that we visited on a Monday, when most of the tourist shops and attractions were closed.

Yeah, we probably could have planned our visit better, but having planned every other part of the trip to the point of exhaustion, we tried to give ourselves the gift of going with the flow for once and just seeing what happened. I have to admit that it didn't come easily to me, and I constantly had to fight a rising frustration that we were missing out on things because we hadn't planned enough. We definitely did miss out on some cool things, but that's bound to happen no matter what.

After a calm hour-and-a-half train ride east from Oberwesel, we arrived at Frankfurt's central station. With plenty of time and very little planned, we decided to buy tickets for the City Sightseeing hop-on hop-off tour buses. It was a lot cheaper than it had been in London, but there was also a lot less to see.

The entire route took less than an hour, and the commentary track wasn't nearly as interesting--a lot of pointing out which banks owned which skyscrapers. More interestingly, we did get to appreciate the city's peculiar love of odd statuary.

Still, even if the bus tour was a little underwhelming, it was a nice way to get our bearings. Plus, it dropped us off right at the entrance to the city's historic core.

The first sight to greet us there was the red-brick Church of Saint Paul. Architecturally, it is interesting for being round rather than cross-shaped. Historically, it is interesting for being the site of Germany's first democratically elected parliament.

In 1848, a wave of democratic revolts surged across Europe from Ireland to Romania. Germany (then a confederation of largely independent states) was caught up as well, and Frankfurt became the epicenter of a movement to unite all of Germany into a single democratic nation. A provisional parliament was set up in the Church of St. Paul, and for a while its success seemed inevitable.

But as it so often happens, forming a government proved much harder than forming a revolution. The monarchs and aristocrats stood aside and bided their time while the provisional parliament endlessly bickered over the details of the proposed constitution. Eventually, the parliament collapsed under the weight of its own frustrations and disillusionment. Two decades later, Germany was instead unified under the autocratic rule of the King Wilhelm I of Prussia and his ruthless chief minister Otto von Bismarck.

The church was the first historic structure in the city to be repaired after WWII, and it was honored as a symbol of Germany's commitment to a democratic future.

Upstairs from the ground-floor museum is the church's main hall, a towering and impressively airy space that is now used for concerts instead of religious services. Along the circular wall hang the flags of Germany's 16 federal states.

Moving further into the old town, we soon reached Römerberg, the old town square. At one end stands the Römer building, which as served as the town hall since 1405. It was also where Holy Roman Emperors celebrated after being coronated at the nearby cathedral. Like everything else here, the Römer was almost entirely rebuilt after WWII. As far as we could tell, they did a great job.

At the center of the square stands a statue of Justice without a blindfold, keeping careful watch over the Römer. At least, it usually does. Today it seemed to have gone on vacation--whether voluntary or not, we couldn't say.

On the ground nearby, I found a bronze memorial for a Nazi book burning that took place in the square in 1933. Around the edges of the plaque reads a quote by the 19th-century German-Jewish poet Heinrich Heine. Roughly translated, it reads: "The burning of books is but foreplay to the burning of people."

I wanted to say something about how chillingly prophetic those words proved to be, but of course they weren't prophetic at all. As we've learned by this point, the Nazis didn't do anything new; they just did it bigger and on camera.

The square was fairly quiet since it was a Monday and most of the tourist shops and exhibitions were closed. After getting a last look around, we headed over the two small blocks to Frankfurt Cathedral.

The cathedral, officially known as the Imperial Cathedral of St. Bartholomew, is a hulking Gothic construction of red stone. Despite the high vaulted ceilings, the atmosphere felt dark and heavy to me. One small but fun design element involved the walls.

See how the walls are made of cleanly cut and squared red stone? Look again.

The walls are actually covered in red plaster and painted with thin red lines to give the illusion of mortared stone. Apparently this was all the rage in medieval German church design.

The church has some beautiful art and altarpieces on display, but the real reason I was so interested to visit was a small room tucked behind a small door in a side chapel, so inconspicuous that I searched up and down the transepts twice before noticing someone going through it.

It was in this small room that the most powerful lords and clergy of the Holy Roman Empire would gather to each time it came to choose a new emperor. Granted, for most of that time it was little more than a rubber stamp to continue the Habsburg dynasty, but still. Imagine if, once in a generation, the governors of all 50 US states gathered to elect a new president for life in a dark little room like this.

Turning south, we walked a couple blocks down the river Main. Walking out onto the 19th-century wrought-iron Eiserner Steg bridge, we were treated to a wonderful view of the city skyline.

The rest of our visit was mostly spent shopping. Jessica had hoped to find a scarf for a somewhat niche German soccer team, but we never did find it. I had better luck at a Samsung store, where I picked up a USB adapter to replace one I'd lost at some point during the previous week. I also made a small detour to look at some pens.

For some reason I was under the impression that Faber-Castell was headquartered in Frankfurt, when actually it is headquartered in a castle just outside of Nuremberg. Still, it was fun to visit this little shop and admire some nice pens. Upstairs, we got to play with a set of watercolor pencils.

Nearby, there was also a broad square dominated by a statue of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, who was born in Frankfurt. I'd always just known of Goethe as the guy who wrote Faust, the iconic story of a scholar who sells his soul to the devil for knowledge and power.

In Germany, however, Goethe isn't any mere writer. Imagine Shakespeare and Leonardo da Vinci combined, but an even bigger deal--that's what Goethe is to Germany. Not only is Faust often credited as the greatest thing ever written in the German language, Goethe also dabbled extensively in science and philosophy in addition to writing an overwhelming volume of novels, plays, and poems.

Like Mozart, Goethe was a prodigy and recognized for his genius at a young age. Also like Mozart, Goethe spent pretty much all of his adult life far away from the home city that so proudly claims his legacy.

As we made our way back to the train station, we walked through a few blocks of clean, high-density skyscrapers, a lovely park, and then a grim half-mile of brothels and open-air drug use. There are three parallel streets leading from the train station into downtown Frankfurt, and apparently it makes a big difference which one you choose.

Back at the train station, we picked up a couple bottles of "apple wine," a local specialty for us to enjoy on the train ride back. It was basically a very dry, somewhat bitter cider, much like the cidre sec we had in Normandy.

One last bit of excitement for the day: For the most part, Deutsche Bahn--the German train service--was easily the most reliable of all the ones we used in Europe. Even the Swiss trains let us down by comparison. But as we waited for out train home to leave Frankfurt, the departure time came and went. There was some jolting and screeching, and some lights flickering on and off. And more time went by. Our glasses of apple wine were long finished. Then, a voice on the PA system announced something in German, and everyone bolted off the train. Naturally, we followed.

As it turned out, two cars of the train that needed to be separated had become locked together, and the engineers couldn't get them apart. So the speaker had told us to head over to the next train, which was leaving in just a few minutes--plenty of time for a prompt German traveler. Luckily, we had plenty of prompt German travelers to take our lead from.

Once on the new train, everything was back to clockwork, and we enjoyed a smooth hour and a half ride back to Oberwesel. We didn't get very good seats due to the last minute change. We spent the first twenty minutes or so on fold-down chairs in the bike storage area. The train emptied out quickly enough as we escaped the urban sprawl surrounding Frankfurt, however, and a quiet hour and a half later we were back home.

Overall, I probably wouldn't recommend visiting Frankfurt the way we did, but I'm still glad we went. For anyone interested in visiting Frankfurt, I would recommend either a well-planned day trip that connects its various sights or staying in the city and using it as a base to explore the nearby towns and villages along the Rhine.

[wordacrosstime]

The Monsoon Ghost Image

[The Monsoon Ghost Image by Tom Vater 2018. Crime Wave Press, Hong Kong. Cover Designer Hans Kemp. eBook ISBN 9789881493897]

Martin Ritter takes a photograph of Americans torturing a man which becomes known as The Monsoon Ghost Image, the centre of this adventure.

It’s just before the American war against Iraq and some time after two towers were blown up in New York killing Americans. Americans were not allowed to torture people in their own country, so instead shifted suspicious people to places where it was OK. Provided no-one found out who shouldn’t, this was satisfactory all round except for the ‘high value detainee’ aka KVD who was tortured.

In this said-to-be fictitious account the torture takes place in Thailand. Those present are Martin Ritter, 38, German ex-combat photographer and son of ‘a reliable  accountant from Düsseldorf’; Dr Suraporn, Thai, a surgeon; General Thongsap, Thai, army; the prisoner; Dobbs, American; Williams, American. The process of torture/killing is described as wet work.

We’ve met Martin Ritter swimming away from his exploded boat The Carabao. He’s blown it up killing the crew and his fisherman friend Fat Fred to take on a new face done by Dr Suraporn.

Emilie Ritter, French, his wife knows he isn’t dead. There’s been a message to Hamburg, home of the Sundermann Detective Agency from ‘the Wicked Witch of the East’ - who turns out to be quite nice - that he is alive. Emilie Ritter asks Sundermann to investigate. He summons his key men, Mikhail and Maier.

Maier is drinking Campari Orange in his flat in Altona, part of Hamburg on the Elbe. Born in Cold War East Germany, he’d lost two fingers in a prison camp in Vietnam and been a foreign and war correspondent for dpa [Deutsche Presse-Agentur] the major news agency based in Hamburg.

Mikhail is '150 kilos of Russian super power’. It’s fortunate because shortly into their conference with Emilie Ritter and Herr Sundermann at the agency’s office near Baumwall U-Bahn station, Mikhail and Maier are held up by Americans they nickname Ginger and Fake Bronson. Shots are fired. M&M win. The funeral for Martin Ritter is held at Berlin Cathedral. Maier and Mikhail are off to Bangkok.

Adventures lie ahead with a rip-roaring cast of characters: Hans the ladyboy and his four avenging friends; Khun Pattama an agent - but whose?; Sixty-four-year-old Mason ‘the Poet’ Springdale from North Carolina; Winston Powers, an alias; Hom a mother with murder on her mind and her small daughter Mae; Herr Wuttke, ex-Stasi; Herr Krieger, island proprietor; and many more, though Dr Suraporn stands high above all as perhaps the most dastardly chap in fiction since whichever of Jekyll and Hyde was the naughty one.

Locations include The Dolly House, Chinatown and the Sunshine Bar in Bangkok; the island of Ko Pha-ngan and its Full Moon Party (nothing to do with bottoms); the ferry from Surat Thani to Thong Sala; Herr Krieger’s prison island full of wild beasts and protected by sharks.

John Buchan wrote of The Thirty-Nine Steps that it was his tribute to the American dime novel:

I have long cherished that elementary type of tale which Americans call the dime novel, and which we know as the shocker – the romance where the incidents defy the probabilities, and march just inside the borders of the possible

Tom Vater’s The Monsoon Ghost Image has thirty-seven chapters, just short of thirty-nine, but in an entirely different way of writing it has very much the feel of a Buchan novel: chaps are chaps and villains are hissable.

It’s a quick read, gruesome but compelling; definitely one for those who like their fiction as rare and bloody as an American steak. But there’s also a lot for the traveller, and for the animal enthusiast - many animals, or parts of them, get stitched onto the remains of human beings by Dr Suraporn’s excellent needlework. Bedtime reading perhaps for killers on holiday or medics around the world who long to do just that little bit more with their scalpels.

John Park

Words Across Time

wordsacrosstime

29 January 2019

[universallycrownpirate]

Bolliger & Mabillard Ingénieurs Conseils SA (kurz: B&M) ist ein Schweizer Ingenieurbüro und bekannter Hersteller von Achterbahnen aus Monthey.

Privat Gründung  1988 Sitz   Monthey, Schweiz Leitung   Walter Bolliger und Claude Mabillard Branche   Achterbahnhersteller Website   www.bolliger-mabillard.com

Walter Bolliger und Claude Mabillard arbeiteten bei der Intamin unter anderem am ersten Stand-Up Coaster und gründeten 1988 ihr eigenes Unternehmen. B&M leistete nicht nur Pionierarbeit beim Inverted Coaster und Floorless Coaster, sondern baute mit Oblivion in Alton Towers auch die erste Achterbahn mit einer fast senkrechten Abfahrt. Abseits von ihrem Hauptgeschäftsfeld – den Stahlachterbahnen – bauten sie auch die Züge für die Holzachterbahn Psyclone (Six Flags Magic Mountain). Während B&M vor allem in den USA vertreten ist, gibt es in Europa deutlich weniger Bahnen des Herstellers. In Deutschland sind dies Black Mamba (2006) im Phantasialand, Silver Star(2002) im Europa-Park sowie KRAKE (2011) und Flug der Dämonen (2014) im Heide Park Resort. Die Achterbahn Shambhala im Port Aventura bei Tarragona ist auch von B&M.

Erster Dive Coaster Oblivion. Zusammen mit der 2000 eröffneten Bahn Diving Machine G5 in Janfusun Fancyworld ist ihre Abfahrt aber im Gegensatz zu den Nachfolgern nicht 90°, sondern 87° steil. Dass ihre Abfahrt von 55 m länger ist als ihre Höhe von 20 m liegt daran, dass ihre Abfahrt in einen Tunnel unter die Erde führt.

Oblivion in Alton Towers (Alton, Staffordshire, UK) ist eine Stahlachterbahn vom Typ Dive Coaster des Herstellers Bolliger & Mabillard, die am 14. März 1998 eröffnet und vom Ingenieurbüro Stengel konstruiert wurde.

Oblivion besitzt sieben Wagen. In jedem Wagen können 16 Personen (zwei Reihen à acht Personen) Platz nehmen. Die Fahrgäste müssen mindestens 1,42 m groß sein, um mitfahren zu dürfen. Als Rückhaltesystem kommen Schulterbügel zum Einsatz.

Werner Stengel (* 22. August 1936 in Bochum) ist ein deutscher Ingenieur, der sich vor allem durch bahnbrechende Neuerungen im Achterbahnbau einen Namen gemacht hat.

Er studierte von 1959 bis 1962 an der damaligen Baugewerkschule (Vorläufer der Universität Kassel) Bauingenieurwesen und von 1962 bis 1966 für seinen Diplom-Ingenieur an der Technischen Hochschule München.

1964 wurde Stengel vom schwäbischen Vergnügungsanlagenbauer Schwarzkopf GmbH engagiert, um statische Berechnungen für die erste deutsche Stahlachterbahn durchzuführen. Bald ging Stengels Arbeit über die reine Statikberechnung weit hinaus: 1976 entwickelte er eine Lösung für das Problem des Kreisloopings bei Achterbahnen, der bis dahin aufgrund der einwirkenden physikalischen Kräfte nicht ohne teils schwere Gesundheitsschäden für die Passagiere zu realisieren war. Stengel erfand den ersten vertikalen Looping der Nachkriegszeit, indem er statt einer reinen Kreisform eine Klotoide wählte, was sanftere Übergänge bei Ein- und Ausfahrt aus dem Looping ermöglicht. Diese Neuerung war es, die den Vertikallooping bei Achterbahnen erst risikofrei fahrbar machte. Außerdem war er der erste, der das Prinzip der Herzlinie zur Vermeidung gesundheitlicher Belastungen bei der Gestaltung von Achterbahnen einführte und damit auch ausgefallenere Fahrelemente möglich machte.

Stengel entwickelt weiterhin im eigenen Ingenieurbüro Achterbahnen und Vergnügungsanlagen, die weltweit eingesetzt werden. Unter anderem stammen von ihm der Top Thrill Dragster in Cedar Point, der von 2003 bis 2005 die höchste und schnellste Achterbahn der Welt war, und dessen Nachfolger, Kingda Ka, sowie drei der größten Holzachterbahnen der Welt, Son of Beast, El Toro und Colossos im Heidepark in Soltau. Die längste Dunkelachterbahn der Welt, Temple of the Night Hawk, welche 1988 als Space Center eröffnete, berechnete er ebenfalls. Außerdem war Son of Beast die erste Holzachterbahn mit einem Vertikallooping, der allerdings aus Stahl war und nach dem Saisonende 2006 demontiert wurde. Mittlerweile hat das Ingenieurbüro Stengel weltweit das Design von 600 Achterbahnen entwickelt (Stand 2012). Die 500. Bahn ist Maverick in Cedar Point, Ohio, die 2007 eröffnet wurde.

Im Juni 2005 erhielt er einen Ehrendoktor der Universität Göteborg.

Am 22. Januar 2009 wurde Werner Stengel mit dem Bundesverdienstkreuz am Bande für seine Leistungen im Fahrgeschäftsbau und der Etablierung von internationalen Standards in diesem Bereich ausgezeichnet.

[euralmanac-blog]

French urban climber Alain Robert, popularly known as the "French Spiderman", climbs the Deutsche Bahn Tower in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany Credit: Daniel Roland/AFP via Getty Images