Highlight Photos
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Modern Cluj View from Cetatuia -
Downtown View of Cluj from Cetatuia -
New pedestrian mall in Cluj -
Tailor’s Tower in Cluj -
Targu Mures main square -
Targu Mures old downtown -
Inside Targu Mures fortress -
Targu Mures fortress from outside -
Double rainbow over Targu Mures -
Saschiz Fortified Church -
Inside Saschiz Fortified Church -
Rupea interior castle walls -
Center of Rupea fortress -
View over downtown Bucharest -
Former US embassy in Bucharest -
Downtown Poznan -
Rainy day in downtown Poznan -
Famous Poznan goats head butting -
Collegiate Basilica in Poznan -
Inside the Collegiate Basilica, Poznan -
Royal Castle in Poznan -
Eastside Gallery on the Berlin Wall -
Famous mural on Berlin Wall -
Artist Colony Bethanien -
Memorial to the Murdered Jews, Berlin -
Brandenburg Gate, Berlin -
View from Unter den Linden, Berlin -
Berliner Dom -
View of TV Tower from Berliner Dom -
US Army Checkpoint Charlie, Berlin -
Stasi Museum building -
Red City Hall, Berlin -
TV Tower view near Alexanderplatz, Berlin -
Typical street near Hackeschen Hofe, Berlin -
Entrance to Reichstag, Berlin -
Glass Dome on top of Reichstag, Berlin -
Inside the Glass Dome, Reichstag, Berlin -
Beelitz Heilstätten ruin -
Art Museum in former castle in Halle (Saale) -
Downtown Halle (Saale) -
Coffe Baum Cafe and Museum, Leipzig -
St Thomas Church, Leipzig -
Famous Auerbachs Keller, Leipzig -
Old City Hall Leipzig -
Dom Hill View, Erfurt -
Old and modern in central square, Erfurt -
Famous Krämerbrücke in Erfurt -
Old Synagogue, Erfurt -
New Thermen Am Viehmarkt in Trier -
Central square, Trier -
Dom View from Central Square, Trier -
Beautiful timbered houses in Trier -
View from Porta Nigra, Trier -
Trier Dom -
Old customs crane on the Mosel, Trier -
Impressive Porta Nigra -
Relic in The Trier Cathedral Treasury -
Exhibit in the Trier Cathedral Museum -
Constantine Basilica, Trier -
Trier Roman Amphitheater -
Barbara Roman Baths -
Trier Imperial Baths ruins -
Tunnels below the Imperial Baths, Trier -
Electoral Palace, Trier -
Road of Tombs in the Rhineland State Museum, Trier -
Neumagen Wine Ship, State Museum, Trier -
Trier University library -
View of Trier from Mary’s column -
Auerbach castle -
Frankenstein Castle -
Kranichstein Hunting Lodge, Darmstadt -
Darmstadt Castle -
Regional council, Darmstadt -
Hesse State Museum, Darmstadt -
View on Mathildenhöhe Darmstadt
Highlights Map
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For our annual trip to Europe to meet family and friends we have decided to mix it up a bit. Given that our family seems to prefer to stay home this year we decide to fly to Romania for about ten days and then spend the rest of our time in Germany visiting new places and retracing some memories in Trier, the city where we met and spent nearly a year together. And then from Berlin we plan to do a one day trip to Poznan to add one more country to the list of those we visited together. Overall the trip was a great success marred only by weird weather patterns, it is was either too hot or too cold or too rainy most days.
To learn more click on the Links below or Markers on the map above to go directly to a specific part of our trip and follow our visit to these three beautiful countries.
- Arriving in Cluj after a long delayed flight
Flying to Romania is a complicated and long affair at best of times and it is not helped this time by delays from weather but we make it in the end - Three days in the historical city of Cluj
We spend three days together exploring Cluj before splitting up with one remaining a few more days with family while the other one moves to Bucharest - On top of the world or at least Cluj
During our time in Cluj we stay at the Cetatuia Hotel overlooking the city from the vantage point of the old Austrian fortress - The renovated Tailor’s Tower
After many years this is the first time we found the Tailor’s Tower open and visited it climbing to the top and enjoying the historical exhibits - A nice hotel to explore Targu Mures
Two days are spent in downtown Targu Mures to celebrate a relative’s birthday and to explore the beautiful historical downtown - The impressive fortress of Targu Mures
One highlight of Targu Mures is the well restored fortress visible from almost anywhere in the downtown area - The History Museum of Targu Mures
Finally after many years I am able to visit the History Museum of Targu Mures now at a new location inside the old fortress with some interesting exhibits - The impressive Peasants’ Fortress of Saschiz
First stop on the road to Bucharest is the Peasants’ Fortress of Saschiz an impressive refuge fortress high above Saschiz village proper - Foreboding Rupea Fortress
Our second stop on the way to Bucharest is the impressive and foreboding Rupea fortress high on a hill and newly renovated - Exploring Bucharest from a major hotel
We spend a few nights in Bucharest meeting with family and friends and exploring the downtown before continuing to Germany - Two nights near the Ostbahnhof in Berlin
For the first two nights in Berlin we stay near the Ostbahnhof for better access to trains for our day trip to Poland and to visit some nearby attractions - A rainy day in Poznan
Today is our day in Poznan and of course it is a rainy day which doesn’t stop us from walking everywhere and enjoying the beautiful city - The famous goats in Poznan’s Old Market Square
We spend most of our Poznan day in or close to the Old Market Square seeing the famous goats headbutting eating at a restaurant and visiting museums and churches - The impressively pink Poznan Collegiate Basilica
Exploring near the central square in Poznan we discover the pretty and pink Collegiate Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help with some magnificent interior - Surprisingly interesting Poznań Archaeological Museum
To escape the rain we hide in the Archaeological Museum of Poznan for a couple hours enjoying the surprisingly interesting exhibits - East Side Gallery, longest remaining stretch of the Berlin Wall
First stop today is the East Side Gallery which is the longest remaining stretch of the Berlin Wall and was transformed into a free air art gallery - Short expedition into Kreuzberg
Our last outing near the Ostbahnhof takes us to Kreuzberg for about half an hour exploring the historical area and finding a cache - Two special nights at the Ritz Carlton in Potsdamer Platz
Using some rewards we score a two night stay at the Ritz Carlton relatively cheap and enjoy the stay in luxury and good food while exploring Berlin - Potsdamer Platz to Brandenburger Tor
We walk a few times from Potsdamer Platz to Brandenburger Tor to explore Berlin and also visit the Memorial to the killed Jews on the way - Unter den Linden from Brandenburger Tor to the Dom
We stroll on the impressive Under den Linden boulevard today from Brandenburger Tor to the Dom taking in the many imposing buildings on the way - Famous and impressive Berliner Dom
The major visit today is the Berliner Dom a huge Protestant Church that was built early 20th century to counterbalance the Vatican basilica - Visiting Checkpoint Charlie along the way from the Dom
From the Dom we return via a different route to the hotel in order to reach the famous Checkpoint Charlie on the border between East and West Berlin - The haunting Topography of Terror exhibit
One last stop before our hotel is at the Topography of Terror exhibit built on the former location of the Gestapo building - The sobering Stasi Museum
We spend the morning exploring the Stasi Museum to better understand one of the most infamous secret police units from the Eastern Block - Short visit to Alexanderplatz
Back to exploring downtown Berlin we start with Alexanderplatz and the famous TV Tower as well as the Marienkirche and the Rotes Rathaus - Hackesche Höfe area exploration
From Alexanderplatz we move to the Hackesche Höfe a historic area with interesting architecture and lots of shops - Long planned visit to the Reichstag building
In the afternoon the major stop is a visit we reserved online some time ago to the Reichstag building to see the famous cupola and enjoy the views - Into the Tiergarten, the huge park in Berlin
We end the day and our visit to Berlin with a walk through the huge Tiergarten park enjoying the cooler temperatures and finding interesting birds - Abandoned Beelitz Heilstätten sanatorium
First stop after getting our car is the Beelitz Heilstätten a former sanatorium since abandoned and now a major attraction - Halle (Salle) historical city short exploration
We spend some time in the historical town of Halle (Salle) exploring the surprisingly beautiful streets that are hauntingly empty after a strong rain - Halle Art Museum, a worthwhile visit
We spend the majority of our time in Halle hiding from a thunderstorm inside the quite expansive and interesting Art Museum - Two nights in an AirBnB in Leipzig
We spend two night in Leipzig in a relatively cramped and noisy AirBnB close to the downtown area - Famous “Zum Coffe Baum” cafeFirst stop in downtown Leipzig is the famous cafe Zum Coffe Baum which even has a small museum about the history of coffee in Germany
- The church of Bach, ThomaskircheWe continue to Thomaskirche the famous church in Leipzing where Bach was its music director for over 25 years
- Central square in Leipzig and around itWe spend a lot of time in and passing through the beautiful Leipzig Central Square as most roads and paths downtown lead to it
- Nikolaikirche and the eastern downtown area
From the Central Square we make our way to Nikolaikirche, famous as the starting point of the anticommunist protests, and the surrounding area - Mädler-Passage and the famous Auerbachs Keller
We eat lunch at the famous Auerbachs Keller in the Madler Passage which appears in Goethe’s play Faust and still has some great food - The twin landmarks of Erfurt Cathedral HillOur main stop today is Erfurt and we start our visit with the impressive Cathedral Hill topped by the Erfurt Dom and Severikirche
- Beautiful Old Town ErfurtWe spend some time exploring the beautiful Erfurt downtown area before settling for lunch eating some traditional Thuringian dishes
- The famous medieval bridge, KrämerbrückeThe most famous of the sights in Erfurt is the Krämerbrücke one of the few remaining bridges in the world that has inhabited buildings
- Angerplatz and the other side of the Gera River
We also explore the other side of the Gera River where the newer section of the old town is located concentrated along the beautiful Anger Square - A few days in an impressive and hot AirBnB in Trier
We spend a few nights close to Trier downtown in a one bedroom apartment with an impressive jacuzzi in the middle of the living room - From AirBnB to St Antonius
First stop on our exploration of Trier is the peaceful St Antonius church mostly destroyed during World War 2 and since reconstructed - New Roman baths at the Cattle MarketThe first Roman ruin we visit in Trier is the Thermen am Viehmarkt a new ruin for us that was discovered in 1987 and opened to the public in 1998
- First time in the Central Square and St GangolfWe stop for the first time in the central plaza we are going to visit again and again to enjoy the beautiful historic houses and St Gangolf nearby
- Surprisingly interesting Trier City Museum
We spend an hour in the surprisingly interesting Simeonstift City Museum with exhibits focused on city history and fashion - On top of the famous Porta NigraOur major stop today is Porta Nigra the former gate to the Roman walls and the former church of Medieval times now being a gate again and a museum
- Passing by the Dom and an early dinner
Returning we pass by the Dom that we plan to visit tomorrow and then stop to eat at a traditional restaurant some good food - Walking onto the Moselle river bankWe start the day with a walk along the Moselle passing the Roman bridge and ancient cranes before arriving at Porta Nigra
- Huge Trier Dom and the Dom Treasury Museum
One of the other major attractions in Trier that we are visiting today is the famous old Trier Dom including the Treasury chamber - Liebfrauenkirche, the other WHS church in Trier
We spend some time exploring the Liebfrauenkirche the other Unesco WHS church in Trier and one of the earliest Gothic churches in Germany - The expansive Trier Cathedral Museum
We spend a couple hours exploring the surprisingly expansive and interesting Trier Cathedral Museum - Impressive Basilica and the Palace of the Prince ElectorWe pass a few times next to Basilica and the Palace of the Prince Elector through the beautiful park while entering the basilica for a quick visit
- Roman Amphitheater and back to the AirBnB
The last major attraction for today is the impressive Roman Amphitheater located up a hill and difficult to access during the heat of the day - Exploring the free Barbara Baths
We start the day exploring the free but interesting Barbara Baths near our AirBnB and walking across on the suspended walkway - The crown jewel of Trier baths, the Emperor Baths
The most impressive of the Roman Baths in Trier are the Emperor Baths especially due to the underground corridors that you can explore - The expansive and interesting Rhineland State MuseumWe spend most of the time in the unexpectedly comprehensive Rhineland State Museum with a huge collection of Roman tombs
- Exploring the Trier UniversityFirst thing today we revisit Trier University where we spent some time years back exploring the space age buildings and interesting campus
- Looking from above at Trier from Mariensäule
Before leaving Trier we drive up to the Mariensäule and after a short walk we enjoy the great views of the city from above - Stop for caching in Baden-Württemberg
On the way we stopped for half an hour near Mannheim to find a geocache in Baden-Württemberg and buy some provisions - The fairy tale Auerbach Castle
We stop at the Auerbach Castle exploring the fairy tale ruined castle while hiding from the heat and finding a cache also on the way - The literarily famous Frankenstein CastleLast stop today before Darmstadt in the Frankenstein Castle the castle that arguably inspired Mary Shelley to write her famous horror novel
- Staying two nights at Kranichstein Castle
We spend two night at the Kranichstein Castle hotel a beautiful location but a horrible hotel with no air conditioning and virtually no restaurant - Exploring Darmstadt downtown areaWe spend the early morning exploring downtown Darmstadt after eating breakfast at the only open cafe this Sunday
- The Unesco WHS MathildenhöheThe last place we visit in Darmstadt is the Unesco WHS site of Mathildenhöhe a compact example to the emergence of 20th century modernist architecture
- Returning from Frankfurt to Phoenix
Returning to Phoenix we enjoy our lounge benefits to the max and a special phone exhibit in San Francisco while seeing glaciers over Greenland