The Power of Kindness in Cochem an der Mosel

I haven´t shared too much on my blog lately, but there is a lot to come in the next days and weeks, summarizing a fantastic year of travel - in and outside Germany. Among other things, this year I was able to slowly explore Mosel Valley, a destination I had on my radar for a very long time, finally visit Zwickau, a destination in Saxony which is another craddle of the German automotive industry, as well as to return to Poland for a long wellness weekend. By far, it was my best year of travel in half a decade - post Corona and other personal episodes that kept me mostly grounded in Berlin - which is not as bad as it may sound, but for someone used to be on the road at least every few weeks, was a bit frustrating.

And the year still has more months and there is much travel in the cards for the next weeks!

While my blog was a bit quiet, my YouTube channel was my favorite social media tool to share my travel adventures. And as I do wear many more hats than travel - teaching, relocation, translation - and my technical skills and knowledge definitely need an update, it was relatively hard to update my blog as often as I used to do. But there is still time and I cannot wait to add more travel stories.

One of the main reasons I love to travel in Germany in addition to gathering content for my social media channels is the chance of getting to know the society and talking to people from different walks of life. Compared to many other countries I had to chance to know better, Germany is very special as compared to the capital city, its parts are by far extremely different from the chore: different dialects, different customs, different communication skills. 

Sometimes, as I noticed this year visiting the town of Bacharach, it looked like time stopped and I was invited to visit a wide open air museum with fragments of the past decades exposed to see. Among ruins and stores that seemed to never had a client in long years, I felt so far away from the busy life of a Frankfurt or München - where I´ve been earlier this summer as well - but also from the year we are in: for reference 2025.

Cochem an der Mosel, the city of choice for our summer family vacation, was no different, but it did have an active number of tourists, mostly from France, Luxembourg or the Netherlands. There is a high demand of accommodation and restaurants - displaying a good choice of local German cuisine washed with typical white wines from the region - are very often full during the usual lunch hours.

As we decided to spend more than a week in the region, we decided for a relatively modest accommodation, but with good transport connections. No need for breakfast, just a place to rest and refill the batteries in-between intesive travel. Based on some wise research - thanks check24 for the suggestions! - we decided for a small pension, Pension Regina, which was not so easy to find from the train station, due to some GoogleMaps inaccuracies, but was actually minutes away from the Mosel river, where we spent couple of nice evenings waiting for the sun to set, or raise, or jogging along the way.

It is a small family pension, with small and clean rooms, pet-friendly and with resourceful owner who is happy to share tips about where to eat authentic local food and taste the best wines. From the design or aesthetics point of view, it wasn´t my usual choice of accommodation, but both the location and the friendliness of the owners convinced me that it was a happier choice than any other stay in a chain-like fancy hotel.

And if I wasn´t 100% convinced that it was the right choice, this changed during the last few days of our stay. One evening, we arrived tired from a long cruise along the Rhine from Koblenz, only to be welcomed by a basket literally full to the brine, accompanied by a hand-written postcard. The basket included, among others, locally-sourced products: two bottles of wine, biscuits, chocolate, some fruits.

It was such an awesome great surprise that made me appreciate this place more than any other luxury attraction I´ve been before. There was no fancy reception or room service, but this basket melted my heart and put on hold my usual critical mind. What else can make you feel more appreciated as a customer? 

Actually, I arrived as a customer and left as a friend! If you are visiting Mosel soon, I can only recommend this friendly place! I am sure thare are many more such places in Germany that would be more than happy to discover soon!

Tips for a Lovely One-Day Trip to Ulm

After one intensive trip to LEGOLAND Günzburg, one day left before returning to Berlin, we decided to head to Ulm, a destination that I always had on my mind. Few years ago, this place come to the travel routes of visitors in the South of Germany, and their lush Instagram accounts, but as we visited, shortly after Corona times, it was relatively tourists-free, although it was the peak of the summer season. 

As in many other German cities, expect some permanent ongoing construction works happening all round the year, clock and season, and Ulm was no exception to that. However, few minutes after we were able to find a quiet oasis of nature, in the middle of a modern, business-like architecture. 

Some random sculpture makes even the most mundane shopping experience different. Of course, just another excuse for shopping...

But as we slowly advance towards the old city, we may realize that all the roads will take it inevitably to the famous Ulm Cathedral. 

But Ulm besides the Cathedral, whose building started in the late Middle Ages, the city has a much older history. Remnants of the times when it used to be a Free Imperial City of the Holy Roman Empire are carefully preserved and integrated into the very contemporary architecture.

Nothing compares though with the majestic entry of the Cathedral, the Ulm Münster, whose intricacies may request a very long explanation and examination time. It is an impressive view, no matter your religious belief, if any, particularly in terms of work of art and techniques.

Back to normality, the streets are inviting us to many new discoveries. As usual in this part of Germany, the shops do have their specialty advertising with their typical symbols near the door, testimonies of the times past when the many travellers and locals too, needed some meeting points without necessarily being able to read various directions.

From pastry to chocolate shops, there is so much to choose. And no one seems to hurry up to grab something as there is no tomorrow.

You can just take a seat, sip something slowly in the front of a typical building. Consider it a lesson in local lifestyle. Taking some careful notes.

History nowadays can be taught in so many different ways, including via street art, and Ulm offers some elaborated examples in this respect.

The words on the walls of this educational institution do invite to creative adventures - draw, pain, sing...Sounds like a different take on schooling.

We don´t have too much time for pedagogical inquiries, however, we are enjoying the changing landscape and the many oasis of quietness and relaxation.

And although I really love to discover places off-the-beaten path, the picture-ready traditional places do have my heart and my camera´s attention too.

So much to see though, including for an architecture lover as me.

I wish I can see how those houses are looking from inside. This will be a plan for another trip.

As in many other places I´ve visited in this part of Germany, like Füssen, there are beautiful paintings on the wall turning the city in a cosy, expensive living room.

As Ulm is situated on the bank of Danube, there are more water-related activities and lanscapes as a consequence. In the old times, it may have been an impediment, due to floodings, but we, in the 21st century, we can only enjoy the many opportunities.

Compared to other places, the facade patterns are changing, and I bet here is also something to learn more about.

Given the multi-layered history of the city, there are places to see from so many historical times. Add time travel as another thing to do while in Ulm. 

As we are walking around the old city´s fortress, a very different bridge to a different timeline is displayed in the front of us: Neu/New Ulm and its cubic architecture.

When we turn our eyes to the left, the architectural timeline is a bit different.

In between, the Queen Danube, the one and only I am chasing from Romania, via Budapest and Wien and further on in Germany.

I am moving my camera in different angles, to get, as usual, the best of it. I can imagine that for people living here, talking a stroll every other days alongside the Danube is one of the most natural and pleasant things to do.

Curious by nature, I cross the bridge on the other side to check Neu Ulm area. It is the kind of architecture everywhere in Germany those days, anonymous by nature, but maybe comfortable. Also, this generation is more inclined towards transparency, as the big glass walls testify.

From the Danube point of view, obviously, everything flows.

Back in the old city, we are trying to solve riddles: for instance, is there any secret love story that once happened behind those walls?

Soon we are distracted though by some frescoes displaying interesting historical stories that may need a proper reading too.

Maybe it is about time just to enjoy, without looking always for scientific and historical explanation? Ulm invites me to, it seems.

This colourful colibri bird decorating the entry to the Kolibri store, close to Ulm Münster, may seem to take away our busy thoughts.

But there are more stories to be read on the walls. Maybe street art was after all, a German invention?

The Museum of Modern Art/Kunshalle looks like another interesting addition to the full catalogue of wonders in Um. So sad that I am not able this time to see it from inside.

The Ulm City Library is also bolding facing the historical questions since 20 years already.

We are back in the old city, still wandering around.

It´s a rather pleasant walk, keeping my camera busy.

People use to say a lot of bad things about German cuisine, but every time I hear this, I mention my beloved Schwarzwald Torte. And now, please excuse me while I am having my treat at Cafe Mohrenköpfle. Very recommended for the smooth texture and the delicious taste.

On the way back to the train station, after many intensive walking hours, we are still able to be surprised by unexpected details.

Our trip is done. Just another dream travel trip to Germany made true. And a promise to come back soon to explore more.

For more travel stories, follow my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ilanatravels

Tasting Village Life in Germany: Weekend Day in Coppenbrügge

Over one year ago, I've seen some beautiful pictures of half-timbered red houses featured in a glamorous Instagram post tagging Coppenbrügge. I added the name to my list of places to see in Germany and this autumn I booked a train ticket there. However, a couple of days before the trip, while doing the documentation of places to see, I was surprised to not find anything. Asked on Twitter and none of my 5,000+ followers were able to give me any hint. 'Well', I said to myself, there will be a surprise trip, I suppose. It was too late to cancel my ticket and unless high emergency, I refuse to cancel a trip only because I haven't found any online or print resources on it.

Reaching Coppenbrügge is not so easy. From Hanover, I had to change twice, but listening to the names of the station, was not feeling a complete stranger, as it is close to both Hameln and Bad Pyrmont that I visited a couple of years ago. 

Shortly upon arrival I realized that everything around looked exactly as my documentation about this trip: a quiet village - actually, Coppenbrügge I was visiting is a village part of a municipality with the same name covering other 11 villages. For a second, the thought of just taking the train back to Hanover, that I knew pretty well - as I also wrote a travel guide on it - passed my mind, but why go back to the predictable when I given myself the chance of one full day exploring the Germany village life in Low Saxony/Niedersachsen? 

And, for the next hour, I kept exploring slowly - carefully to not finish walking the streets at least once before the time of my train back - scanning the details of the wooden-roof half-timbered houses.

Or deciphering the signs in the front of stores and parlours that were closed for the weekend.

Or trying to figure out the life behind the cute homemade white curtains covering the street windows of the ground floor of an old house.

If on the streets I've met no more than two wandering souls - one of them twice, after I resumed my walking - the family restaurant Bulut serving Mediterranean dishes seemed more appropriate for meeting the locals. Surrounded by a very simple background, there were over 10 people having their lunch or even celebrating a birthday. Even if it looked like a bigger fast food precinct, it has a friendlier customer service than many elegant venues in Berlin, children-friendly portions and accepts card payments. Prices were also good and my döner in pepper sauce with French fries was simply delicious. 

The delicious lunch asked for more movement. This time, I am reaching the borders near the forest hills, passing near people walking their dogs. Another popular activity in the municipality is Nordic Walking done for groups on the surrounding hills, covering a length from 4 to 12 km. 

In this part of the village, I am passing elegant villas with simple design, in the middle of green spaces, parking places for a car or two and open entries. I even found a small clean playground tucked between close rows of houses. 

This is how village life looks like in Western Europe: slow life, clean streets, high-safety and predictable neighbourhoods. People may know each other for generations or just decide to settle for commuting to work in the cities, but nevertheless they know each other and are there to stay. 

The inhabitants seem to be very much into hunting, as proven by the  huge pair of antlers proudly displayed on the outer walls of a kindergarten (which made me wonder if they have some similar samples overviewing the children sleep or play areas inside), which is a popular hobby in this part of Germany. 

Returning to the center, I am having a look at the old fountain, connected to the traditional healing waters of Bad Pyrmont.

The entertainment options in the village are relatively limited. There is Woodstore offering live music and cultural gatherings and a small bookstore where you can find the latest local and international titles. 

There is also the Burg, a citadel hosting a small museum, a café and sometimes open air concerts. Earlier, a newly married couple was taking pictures in the front of the gates, while some families with children were slowly walking in the park around. (Indeed, everything happening during this day trip is on slow motion).

Although small the park is a beautiful natural venue, populated with spectacular old trees. After a little rain, the humidity soaking the yellow autumn leaves gave a certain feeling of loneliness and quietness that added more details to the meaning of village life I was trying to understand.

Although very old school in terms of presentation of information, the local history presented at the Burg added some content to the lack of details about this place (the entire museum information is in German). Besides presentations of local trades, I've also discovered that Coppenbrügge was a stop of the Russian Tsar Peter the Great during his 1697 European trip. Obviously, his trip was not only to discover the beauty of Europe, but also to settle some alliances and find some inspiration for his cultural plans.

The inner yard of the Burg was more interesting for its old touch of the stones and the layers of local histories added across centuries.

Outside, I wanted to take more chances of light hours to tour the streets and get more photo shots of the houses, which displayed a pretty diverse architectural style.

There were also small details that reminded me of the beautiful wooden doors and decorations from the Harz Mountains or Celle.

True is that part of the good impression was due to the late autumn leaves shades turning every facade into a colourful display of natural impressions.

Besides some classical chain supermarkets all the local stores were closed, which stole my chance of having a look at the local consumer patterns. With some time to kill before the trip back, I offered myself a long stop at the Eiscafé Camilo, where besides meeting a younger audience, I enjoyed some fresh waffles with fruits and icecream.

Not all my trips are spectacular, leading to fantastic discoveries and unforgettable human connections. Some are just like this trip to Coppenbrügge, involving turning round and round the same streets, taking pictures of houses and walking small compounds of houses whose inhabitants will instantly look at me suspicious because from the first and second sight I am clearly no local. Plus, I am visibly wearing a professional camera.

Such trips though, give me a grasp of humans and places better than any of my popular or glamorous choices of destinations. Booking my trip to Coppenbrügge was based on a mistake, but it was one of those mistakes I've learned a lot about.

For more travel stories, follow my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ilanatravels