It was a rainy day in Paris on 11th Sept, when my flight landed from Bangalore. It is the first time I'd stepped on a foreign land. It was a different feeling altogether. The Charles de Gaulle Airport is very huge. You've signals for the buses to transport people from one terminal to another, and there are traffic jams also (just kidding), but there are flyover built in the Airport where only planes ride !!.
And then after 4hrs. I'd a flight to Stuttgart, which was thoroughly enjoyable, since I could spot Eiffel Tower from the top. When I landed in Stuttgart I drove in an E-class to my Hotel, and I was greeted in open arms by the Auto-bahn. The roads in Deutschland(about which I would speak later) are of top class quality in terms of space and cleanliness, love at first sight !!. The first few days was spent in knowing the surroundings of my office and my Hotel. And a strange thing I noticed about Deutschland was that they respect the pedestrians and signals very much. Thanks to my friend Deepak, who helped me get along soon. On a evening we had a Karaoke and dinner at my colleague and friend Pascal's home. Although I didn't knew many songs, but still managed to sing a few English songs (God help those who heard me singing).
So here was my first weekend and I planned to join Pascal and Franziska (Pascal's wife) to his home town in Thüringen. It is around 430kms from Stuttgart which took us 4hrs by drive, and the Auto-bahn ride was the best I had ever felt, Speeds more than 200kph is easily reachable. Inexplicable feeling at 200kph!!. I was riding in Pascal's Mercedes B-Class, and I observed quiet a lot about the Germans and their traffic, which is very disciplined. For me it was hard to believe but even traffic jams take place in an orderly manner !! And I was constantly reminded of Bangalore's jams and we look even for a inch space to move ahead. In Mühlhausen along with Dominique, Daniel and Paula (Pascal's family) we saw beautiful castles and the medieval period churches. Pascal's mother is the best cook in Thüringen, because I loved the German cuisine for the first time and in German as they say "Schmekt gut" ("Tastes good") and it did taste good. Streets and churches in Erfurt were beautiful, with side by preparations going on for the Pope's visit (Pope Benedict).Ride back to Stuttgart was memorable as we rode under the biggest tunnel in Germany which was 8kms long, and as we crossed valleys we could see the clouds hovering around us, it was indeed a enjoyable weekend.
And then after 4hrs. I'd a flight to Stuttgart, which was thoroughly enjoyable, since I could spot Eiffel Tower from the top. When I landed in Stuttgart I drove in an E-class to my Hotel, and I was greeted in open arms by the Auto-bahn. The roads in Deutschland(about which I would speak later) are of top class quality in terms of space and cleanliness, love at first sight !!. The first few days was spent in knowing the surroundings of my office and my Hotel. And a strange thing I noticed about Deutschland was that they respect the pedestrians and signals very much. Thanks to my friend Deepak, who helped me get along soon. On a evening we had a Karaoke and dinner at my colleague and friend Pascal's home. Although I didn't knew many songs, but still managed to sing a few English songs (God help those who heard me singing).
So here was my first weekend and I planned to join Pascal and Franziska (Pascal's wife) to his home town in Thüringen. It is around 430kms from Stuttgart which took us 4hrs by drive, and the Auto-bahn ride was the best I had ever felt, Speeds more than 200kph is easily reachable. Inexplicable feeling at 200kph!!. I was riding in Pascal's Mercedes B-Class, and I observed quiet a lot about the Germans and their traffic, which is very disciplined. For me it was hard to believe but even traffic jams take place in an orderly manner !! And I was constantly reminded of Bangalore's jams and we look even for a inch space to move ahead. In Mühlhausen along with Dominique, Daniel and Paula (Pascal's family) we saw beautiful castles and the medieval period churches. Pascal's mother is the best cook in Thüringen, because I loved the German cuisine for the first time and in German as they say "Schmekt gut" ("Tastes good") and it did taste good. Streets and churches in Erfurt were beautiful, with side by preparations going on for the Pope's visit (Pope Benedict).Ride back to Stuttgart was memorable as we rode under the biggest tunnel in Germany which was 8kms long, and as we crossed valleys we could see the clouds hovering around us, it was indeed a enjoyable weekend.
