Today it's the turn of Görlitz. Another city with a lot of culture and history. City? Pretty small. But we learn that there are even two city tours: one just through the old town and one with the surrounding countryside.
Our journey of discovery begins with a meeting with a town chronicler, Regina Hübler, who enthusiastically guides us through the town. Her knowledge and anecdotes brought the town's history to life.
Görlitz lies on the Via Regia, the "Internet of the Middle Ages". This historic trade route played a central role in Görlitz, a city that was once ruled by merchants - and not by craftsmen, as was often the case in other cities. Particularly fascinating was the story of the cloth makers, who shaped an important part of the city's history. Or rather, they shaped it!
The 600-year-old city wall was another remarkable sight. From the tower, we had a spectacular view over the city. Unfortunately, we didn't have a clear view, as the weather wasn't suitable.
We saved ourselves a visit to the Nikolei cemetery, one of the most beautiful baroque cemeteries in Germany. Somehow we don't like cemeteries that much. But Regina, our city guide, says we should definitely come back. And then we have to stroll through the cemetery. The peace and beauty of this place is simply breathtaking, she says again and again. Well, I'm not so convinced by her idea, but what the heck.
And if we come back, then definitely for Easter: the Way of the Cross on Good Friday is an emotional experience. Regina tells us, beaming, and slowly I realise that we really should come back.
Görlitz is a city that has survived the war largely unscathed and has preserved a level of originality in its buildings that is rare in Europe. The fact that so much has been preserved in its original state makes the city a living museum. It is not entirely clear why Görlitz was spared. Historians argue a little about it, we don't care, we are happy that for once a city and its inhabitants were spared from this terrible war (at least as far as the building fabric is concerned, emotionally it probably looks quite different here too).
We were only able to admire the Görlitz hall houses - multifunctional buildings that had a Bohemian character for over 400 years - from the outside. Today, many of them have been converted into restaurants, offices or public offices. Nevertheless, these buildings bear witness to a rich trading history and cultural exchange.
We briefly imagined what life must have been like 200 or more years ago. People met in and outside the inns, shouted, haggled and traded across the market square and sat together in the late afternoon over sweet poppy seed pies.
Regina doesn't let up: she talks about the "little Semper Opera House", as the people of Görlitz call it, about the smallest Catholic diocese in Germany and about 55 completely intact Wilhelminian-style villa streets. Some of the still unrenovated streets serve as a backdrop for small and, above all, large films almost every week. Hollywood's high society comes and goes here. (We keep an eye out, but I haven't spotted any George Clooney...)
After this city tour, a cosy late lunch, a break in the old brewery and a glance at the clock, we realise that if we set off now, we could still make it to our family on the outskirts of Berlin today.
We invite ourselves to dinner via WhatsApp and we already have a new destination: family and then our daughter's wedding.
On the last few kilometres, we look back on our wonderful journey through eastern Germany, the Czech Republic, mini-Austria and Slovakia and are simply grateful that we were able to experience it all.
Merci for "travelling with us
We are thinking about taking another break from travelling in the summer and visiting our families in Germany and Switzerland. One of the ideas is to organise a Lecture about our long journey to the Persian Gulf to prepare. If you would like to, what would interest you the most? We will also tell stories here that don't find a place here on the blog. We're thinking of the Bern and Berlin area - simply because we have family there. But other places are also conceivable. Feel free to write to us.
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