Konstanz, Germany
Just two days after watching news coverage of the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral, my flight from Philadelphia to Zürich took me directly over Paris. I was able to make out the Arc de Triomphe thousands of feet below at the center of a spiderweb of roads. What a small world we share.
I was looking out my window intently as the sun rose on Europe after hours over the dark expanse of the Atlantic. Just a few minutes before Paris, I had caught my first glimpse of land. We were over the beaches of Normandy.
Goosebumps.
Although we landed in Zürich, Switzerland, to overcast skies, the sun broke through during my short train ride over the border. To begin this trip, I’m exploring the Bodensee area in the very south of Germany, using the city of Konstanz as my base.
Konstanz escaped bombardment during World War II by keeping its city lights blazing during blackouts, tricking the British and American pilots into thinking it was neutral Switzerland.
A statue of Imperia rotates slowly over the entrance to Konstanz harbor. She holds a naked pope and king in her hands, a satire on power. The controversial statue was clandestinely erected by a sculptor in 1993. Because it was on private land belonging to a rail company that didn’t object, it stayed. She’s become a symbol of Konstanz in the years since.
The towering Münster (cathedral) in the center of town drew my attention immediately. I climbed its 200 or so stairs for a view east across the Bodensee and south into Switzerland.
“1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue”. Before Europeans even knew the new world existed, this cathedral was hosting important events.
As I walked along the narrow alleys of the Altstadt (old town), I came across a small shop which exclusively sold cereal. Here, you could mix ingredients for your own special morning bowl. As a cereal connoisseur, of course I had to create my own muesli mix. I’ll let you know if it was edible.
I haven’t slept in a while but the best way to reduce the effects of jetlag is to stay up in the sunlight for as long as possible. We’re seven hours ahead of Central Time back in the States. I took a chair in the square opposite the Münster and ordered my first beer.
While I enjoyed my Hefeweizen, I watched a woman deliver mail for Deutsche Post from her company-yellow bike.
I needed to stock my fridge with a trip to the grocery store. Germans are crazy this time of year for white Spargel (asparagus) during its short growing season. I think I’ll try some in a restaurant and not risk my limited cooking skills.
I’m staying at an Airbnb in the Niederburg district of Konstanz just a few steps from a bridge spanning the very beginning of the Rhein.
My jetlag is kicking in so I’ll wrap up. I’m thinking I’ll follow the river to the west and visit the Swiss town of Stein am Rhein in the morning. Bis später!
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