Somehow it was close to, or even past midday when I woke up. Maybe it
owes to how tightly the blind on the clear door leading to Leo's
balcony holds flush to the wall, or the capacity to completely
eliminate the ingress of light through his skylight. I don't think
I'd ever slept in a room that dark in my life.
The previous day I'd gotten off a train in the city of Koblenz to a
balmy autumn afternoon. I started walking down the platform and found
Leo within twenty metres or so. We shook hands and started to catch
up on the last five months. I'd last seen him the same night I left
Australia and he'd stayed in our country several more weeks after I'd
left. After travelling the world for a year, mostly in Australia,
then for a couple of months in Asia, he'd arrived back in his home
town of Koblenz mid year, close to half way through my time in
Europe.
We left the station and I immediately noticed “the feel” my
previous experiences in Germany seemed to have for me. Koblenz is
quite and tranquil, almost too much. We walked 40mins in the
afternoon sun, me only carrying the small pack with my laptop and a
small amount of clothes that I'd taken from the car before leaving
the Netherlands. We walked through quite residential neighbourhoods
before crossing a river and entering his town, who's name now escapes
me. I probably should write blog posts closer to the actual events,
not a whole month after.
In my time in Koblenz we didn't do too much. On one particularly
sunny day we went to the city, climbed to the viewing deck of the
statue that sits on the confluence of the Rhine and Mosel, encircled
by the flags of Germany's regions and took the cable car to the
fortress. Leo told me about how the cable car was built temporarily
for a flower show after which they had every intention of taking it
down but after a large number of people signed a petition and the
case worked its way through the German court system it was decided
that it was going to stay until 2020, then it would be reviewed
again.
The area has a relaxed feel about it, that's for certain. The breadth
of the Rhine works it was down lush valleys, passing terraced
vineyards and many small communities, each with a church or sometimes
more, built in a distinctive architectural style. Leo's very proud of
his city and ensured that I saw as much of the city and the
surrounding region during my stay.
It definitely is a beautiful region and feels relaxed like few others
do but I lived there I think I'd struggle to find things to do. For
starters, the topography's gentle. I can't imagine living in an area
of gently rolling hills, flat water rivers and generally conservative
culture. I don't think I could live separated from the outdoor
lifestyle. At home its something I love and it really keeps my life
in check like.
On one night we went to a Shisha bar after trying to go to a wine
festival that had stopped weeks before with a group of Leo's friends,
and on another we went to the twenty fifth birthday of a Turkish
friend of Leo and his sister, followed by cocktails in town. Other
than that we didn't do much at all of significance, just small things
around the city and relaxed. The last time I spent time in this kind
of way was months before in Trento, Italy.
On my second last day in Germany the weather was incredibly dull, it
didn't even drizzle but was somewhat oppressive, like those days we
get every winter in Tasmania. We went for a walk and played a little
soccer, simply to get us out of the house. The following day Dan
arrived in slightly less bleak conditions. He stayed for about half
an hour, I said goodbye to Leo's family and thanked them for their
hospitality before Leo saw us off at the curbside. Just as darkness
was falling we entered Luxembourg, I think the thirty-fifth country
in the world that I have visited. We bought a full tank of fuel at
the lower taxed prices offered in the tiny principality before moving
on into France, marking the beginning of our longest straight section
of driving yet.
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