Stuttgart

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I've probably written dozens of 'top ten destinations' I wanted to go to over the years, but I don't think Germany ever made it onto any of them. It wasn't that I objected to going or anything, there just wasn't anything there that demanded my attention. Well, my apologies to the German nation and its people; You should have definitely cracked the top ten.

The only reason we actually came to Germany, specifically Stuttgart, is because we wanted to go to Switzerland. Almost all the flights into Switzerland had two layovers, or didn't fit our timetable. I finally started looking at major cities in the surrounding countries with the idea of taking a train in, and Stuttgart ended up being the most reasonable choice. We had only a brief stop in Atlanta, and then an eight hour flight over to Stuttgart. The plane seemed only half-full, and a few people had entire rows to themselves to lay down on. When we landed in Stuttgart, I realized I'd left my ID in my car. When I saw the customs official was randomly asking for them, I knew I was doomed. Fortunately, I got through unscathed.

And I'm glad I did, because these last two days have been some of the best my wife and I have spent anywhere. That's high praise, I know, but I don't think it's unfounded. After we got settled into the hotel, we spent some time walking through the parks in the central part of the city. We ended up on the Konigstrasse, a major pedestrian avenue lined with all sorts of shops. I instantly fell in love with the smell of fresh bread coming from the bakeries that we came across. And believe me, the taste was every bit as good as the smell.

In the evening, we headed out to find some dinner. I really wanted to find a good restaurant that wasn't too fancy, but I didn't see much. We ended up grabbing some pizza from a shop in the Konigsbau, and dined with a beautiful view of the schlossplatz. We did some more walking after dinner, taking in the sights and sounds. The weather had been pretty good up until the evening, but now a slight drizzle was coming down.

We started back toward the hotel when we came across some musicians. We wouldn't have stopped, but we noticed they were singing in english. Then we noticed they were singing Christian music. We kind of looked at each other, a little bewildered but pleasantly surprised. There were probably twenty or so people gathered around when we walked up, and though it was a small crowd, they were all enjoying themselves. The songs were the standard contemporary Christain fare, some in english and in german as well. The drizzle was quickly turning into a good rain, but it didn't stop the music nor disperse the crowd. We chatted with one of the guys in the crowd whose name I believe was Ben. He was a member of the church who was putting on the show. He said they were out at Schlossplatz three Fridays a month, witnessing and encouraging people with the Gospel. We talked about Christianity in America and Germany and how things have changed in both places. All in all, it was a good time.

Oh yeah, we did manage to sneak in a little history, much to my delight and Julie's chagrin. We went to the Landesmuseum Wurttemburg . They had an Egyptian exhibit going on, which was ok. The highlight was in the tower room at the top where they displayed the Wurttemberg crown jewels. Absolutely beautiful. The rest of the museum featured middle age Christian artwork, and various works from antiquity.

Tomorrow, we'll be leaving Stuttgart for Zurich. I'm a little sad about leaving, honestly. The people have been nice, the food has been delicious, and this city has a vibe and an atmosphere that we both enjoy. And to think we never intended to come here.

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