We had finally made it to Germany! This stop was an exciting one for us, because one of my great friends lived here. Mike had been living in Germany for about 2 years and had been nice enough to let us stay with him for quite some time. It was such a great feeling of finally having a ‘home base’ with a good friend. The plan was, we would continue to travel all around Europe with Mike, but we would unload quite a bit of our stuff at his place so we could travel lighter. At this point, Rainier and I had been traveling with each other for 2 months straight, so it was a much needed change as well! Traveling with your partner is a blast, especially when you work together so well, however, being with anyone nonstop does take it’s toll. I think this was perfect timing in the trip.
Now as for Heilbronn… It’s a really nice, quaint town, but not somewhere you’ll find any tourists. There are a lot of major companies based out of Heilbronn and Stuttgart (right down the road) so there are a few Ex-Pats, but it’s relatively isolated.
There is a really nice ‘Downtown’ area located right on the Neckar river. At the center of the area is a beautiful church (St. Killian) and an amazing 16th century astrological clock. The Christmas market’s were in full effect so it was a blast enjoying some nice weather and drinking all the gluvine we could. Mike let us know that Summer is really the time to be there. Around the city, there are so many great beer garden setups and everyone is outside. There is a huge park nearby that is typically littered with people.
We did find out some really interesting information about Germany in general when staying here.
– Most of their cans and bottles come with an additional recycling tax. It may be around an additional quarter per bottle or can. You can return these items into a machine at their grocery store for credits toward your next purchase.
-You CAN get speeding tickets on the Autobahn. There are areas that are deemed ‘high traffic’ in which they have cameras setup for some rather large fines.
-Almost everything is closed on Sundays, particularly in the Bavarian areas and smaller towns where the culture is heavily influenced by Christianity.
If you know of any other unique German facts, please leave them in the comments!
Overall Heilbronn was a great place to visit, mainly because what it meant to us. It was finally a spot for us to slow down and relax, but more importantly it was the start of seeing some familiar faces and great hospitality. Thank’s Mike!! We look forward to seeing you soon!
Chasing Rain 