Freiburg im Breisgau, Deutschland. Wednesday, 22nd May 2019
The day dawned bright and clear, as was forecast. The sun was out in the bright, blue sky by 06:30. What a pleasant sight! Especially after yesterday's rain which had prevented us from moving out, except to buy some stuff from the supermarket just across the road from Freiburg Apartments, where we were put up. At approx. 07:15, I stepped out of the
apartment to throw the trash, with Urmila unnecessarily following. Bang! The door shut, with the keys inside and we outside! I gave her a mouthful. The door opposite ours - no. 305 - opened and a man who looked Indian, stepped out, wife and luggage in tow. Urmila requested him for help and he kindly phoned the apartment staff. It being too early for them, none answered. He offered us the use of his room, as he was checking out. I went down to the reception to look for help. Soon, a young girl came down the stairs, on her way to work. Though in a hurry, she called up the people, with the same result. Then she pointed to a notice pasted above the reception desk, which said that the back office staff could be contacted after 08:00. I returned to room 305 to wait. At five minutes to eight, I stepped out again and hearing a door slam, went to the reception. I was just in time to see an elderly gentleman exit the apartment and head for his car. I called out to him for help and he obliged. Dialled the number and luckily got through. The lady at the other end said that somebody would come to our aid, but could not say when. Went back to 305 and waited. Within fifteen minutes help arrived in the form of a tall, grinning boy who opened our room in a jiffy. He seemed to enjoy it all and left grinning! It is 09:58 now and we are readying to 'resume play' after yesterday's forced 'rest day'. Booked the Regio 24 on my TAB; the ticket is valid from 12:10 today to 12:09 tomorrow, within the entire Freiburg transport network.
Set off a little after 10:00. Walked in a straight direction, after a halt at REWE supermarket. A short walk, punctuated by Urmila's entering shops, brought us to the shopping plaza seen from the tram the day before, when we had arrived at Freiburg from Baden-Baden. The bright and warm day, after two days of rain and cold, had brought out the Freiburgers in all their glory and the place looked lively and vibrant. We walked down to Martinstor (Martin's
gate) which was an impressive structure. Walked back the way we had come and turned right after a few minutes, in the direction of the Munster. Reached it soon enough and were awed by the massive edifice. At once, our minds went back to the year 2016, to the Ulm Munster. It was located in what is probably the market square, because the entire area around the church was turned into a huge, open air market, the likes of which we are so used to seeing and which we love a lot. There were stalls and stalls of fruit, vegetables,
flowers, honey and other bottled stuff; and a number of mobile vans selling food and drink. We walked around the church and then headed for the Bahnhof, to catch the 12:10 for lake Titisee.
On the way, we came upon a line of tiny tots with their teachers, eating ice-cream. I asked one of the teachers if we could photograph them. She almost said "Yes', but consulted her colleague who politely refused. We appreciated the sense of duty of the teachers who apologetically explained that Germany was very strict in such matters. Walked on and reached the Bahnhof. Ascended the stairs on platform no. 1 to the overbridge which was adjacent to the main road. We had barely five minutes to catch the train but managed without sweat. The 38-minute ride to Titisee was the most scenic one I have ever undertaken! The thick pines of the Black Forest with their grand, emerald meadows and
compact homes of the locals, kept us company for the entire route. The sky was a magnificent blue and the entire setting was surreal! Titisee station reminded us of Herrenberg. Strolled along the road parallel to the station, asking for directions to the lake
while admiring the scenery all around at the same time. Given our experience at Salzburg and Lindau, we decided to eat before proceeding to the lake. As we had spotted an Italian restaurant, we retraced our steps only to find it closed. Our next attempt was a restaurant that just proclaimed, "Kaffee". Thankfully, it was open. However, the person inside - a jolly, smiling man - gleefully informed us that he had only cakes, in food! Wow! Imagine eating only cakes for lunch! However, he helpfully added that there were many restaurants ahead and hoped that they were open!! We moved on, all the while admiring the village, to the next restaurant - a big one, advertising German and Italian cuisine. It was open! On entering, we were immediately gladdened by the interiors - well laid out table in a spacious room, pleasing décor, very good ambience. Settled for chicken soup, minestrone soup and
mushroom pizza - all very good. Stomachs filled, we carried on. Along roads with broad sidewalks that had a string of colourful and interesting shops, ice-cream parlours and restaurants. Ahead, the road sloped a bit and we got a glimpse of lake Titisee. Initially, I thought it would be a small one, rather like Bergsee at Triberg, or a bit larger. However, to our pleasant surprise, lake Titisee was a huge, beautiful, deep blue water body, with the jaw-dropping backdrop of the enchanting Black Forest all around it!
Truly, a miracle of nature - a sapphire set in emeralds!!
There were plenty of tourists - we spotted many Indians too - who added to the ambience. The main road with the lake to its right, carried on ahead right up to an autobahn that ran perpendicular to it and another railway line running parallel to the autobahn. For a while, the artery of Titisee had shops and restaurants on either side but the village boundary ended after approx. 300 metres after the lake; and adjoining the road to the left was a lovely verdant meadow. Infinitely incredible! Urmila suggested that we take a boat ride. I agreed
and we enjoyed a fantastic 25 minutes on the lake, with a short commentary on its history. This is unforgettable!
Walked to the meadow and clicked pictures. Retraced our steps slowly and stopped at a couple of shops selling Schwarzwald paraphernalia. Purchased a set of six coasters, at one. Then trudged back to the Bahnhof - not really wanting to leave the place - to wait for the next train to Freiburg, which was at 16:08; a wait of approx. 25 minutes. Sat on clean chairs
on platform no. 1, enjoying the cold and admiring the lines and lines of pine trees, opposite. The regional express arrived on time and another cool ride, this time on the upper deck, brought us back to Freiburg.
Exited the Bahnhof and spotting the InterCity Hotel close by, thought of relieving myself. We entered the hotel and walked in the direction of the washroom. A voice behind us boomed, " Hallo, what do you want?" We honestly asked the tall, burly bell boy - the owner of that voice - whether we could use the washroom. He curtly and coldly replied, " You can go to the Bahnhof." Saying this, he pointed his thumb backward, in the direction of the station. There was no choice but to leave. Walked back to our apartment by a different route, offering views of a different area.
Set off again at 19:10 or so, to shop at REWE supermarket - for the morrow and for the long wait at Muscat airport. Returned to our apartment, dropped the stuff and went out again.
Boarded tram no. 5 just opposite the apartment, to ride on it till its last stop. Again, we were treated to super views - orderly homes, neat and clean roads, well-maintained pavements, glittering shops and supermarkets; and well laid-out housing colonies. We have seen this on every trip to Europe but never tire of it. At the last stop the tram made a circle to change
direction. The circular track passed closely between the compounds (hedges) of two residential buildings. The hedges were completely covered with leaves and presented a beautiful sight! This area was perhaps the end of city limits as we could see only vast fields beyond - were strongly reminded of that summer evening at Stuttgart when we had gone for a walk with our hosts the Salgarkars, in the neighbourhood of Vaihinger Strasse, three years ago. {The following photograph pertains to that visit}
The ride back was equally interesting. It was 20:52 when we passed the area called Stadttheater which was quite crowded with people, mainly youngsters, laughing, talking, eating drinking and even dancing. Alighted at the stop where we had boarded - just outside REWE supermarket and opposite Freiburg Apartments. Crossed the road patiently and thankfully could open the main door just by pushing it. We had entered the apartment at 20:56. Had it been past 21:00, we would probably have had to key in a code to enter; something that we had dreaded having to do, after this morning's experience!
Had beer, lime juice, Bhel (!) and Ritter Sport chocolate for dinner. It is now 22:54 and we are off to sleep. Our last night in Europe on this trip! Off to Zurich and onward to Mumbai via Muscat, tomorrow.
The night views of Freiburg im Breisgau are lovely!
