After all the excitement of the right-wing demonstration on Monday evening, it was back to normal on Tuesday. I got to know the breakfast waiter Mohatman from Syria and we had an interesting chat.
Dresden by Day
After a hearty German breakfast, we drove to the Altstadt.
First up Rita needed a new pair of boots, so the first thing on the agenda was to find a shoe shop. We ended up in the Altstadt Shopping-Zentrum. The first shop was way too dear, so we sought out a Deichmann store.
In another shop I found a delightful wooden elephant head to add to my already large collection.
I had spotted a Tchibo shop. Originally a coffee brand and coffee shop, they also sell a random selection of clothes, kitchen accessories, gifts and souvenirs.
I bought a couple of presents for our hosts later in the week, ie Rita’s daughter and family, and enjoyed a tasty coffee while I waited for the others.
Together again we headed for den Striezelmarkt, the oldest, largest and widely reckoned to be the best of the Weihnachtsmärkte in Dresden.
We eventually tracked down a stand selling ½ metre Bratwurst.
We each had one!
I washed mine down with a Weihnachtsbier – lecker (delicious).
After lunch, we wanted to do a bit of tourism:
Die Frauenkirche, an ecumenical church, was a pure delight.
The Semper Opera House was unfortunately shut, so we consoled ourselves with a coffee in the Café in the C. Bechstein building. This is a celebrated café on a par with the Sacher café in Vienna, Austria.
After our coffee, in my case a beer from the Czech Republic, I popped upstairs to take a peek at the pianos in the Bechstein showroom.
What a delight! The piano I liked best turned out to be their most expensive model, a grand piano on sale at 193,000 euros! Their cheapest was a reconditioned upright for just 2,000€.
Back to the boat
Home time – it was getting dark – and starting to rain. I went to the ESSO petrol station for supplies.
A small bottle of Sekt for Rita, some Bier for me and a Schweineschnitzel. Supplies delivered I went upstairs to the breakfast cabin of the paddle steamer and watched the TV News, followed by “Der Kommissar und das Meer”.
Then to bed and dreams of the gorgeous Bechstein pianos.
Wednesday and check-out time
We had a hearty breakfast the next morning before setting off for the long journey back to North Germany, a super supper of Asparagus soup, breads and spreads, and bed.
***
Epilogue
Looking back, I had thoroughly enjoyed my first visit to the former East Germany. Dresden ranks highly with other fabulous cities that I have visited: Barcelona, Berlin, Bristol, Bruges, Brussels, Chester, Cologne, Copenhagen, Dublin, Dusseldorf, Edinburgh, Madrid, Moscow, Munich, Oslo, Paris, Prague, San Francisco, San Sebastián, Seattle, Vienna, and York.
Photographs:
www.dresden.de
The Spanish Fly
© The Spanish Fly
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