22nd December 2005 - Day 80

Nan and I woke up at 0745 after some struggle with the sleep monster. We went down to the counter and asked the person how to get to sächsische Schweiz. Apparently, this guy has quite a number of cheaterbug methods to getting there. Like paying one zone less. We also made a booking with the VW Gläserne Manufaktur for a visit tomorrow.

First stop: The local Bäckerei for breakfast. The things here cost about 60% the of those sold in Karlsruhe. It's relatively cheap, maybe because this was a former East Germany area.

Second stop: The Dresden Frauenkirche. This church was destroyed completely during World War II by the fire bombing. It was only reconstructed it the early 90's. As much as possible, orginal stone blocks were used. So you can see that there are patches of darkened blocks among the newer one.

The Frauenkirche

Statue of Martin Luther

The Iron Cross after the fire bombing.

Third stop: The Zwinger. This place houses a number of museums and galleries, notably the Gallery of Old Masters. For someone like me who don't know how to appreciate art, the rental of the Jahreskarte for the museum from the hostel at 1€ was a steal. Otherwise, it'll be 10€ for a day pass. But no pictures though. You'll need a special pass for it. I didn't know (feign ignorance) until some curator came and told me off.

We also visited the Armoury and the Mathematic and Physics Salon (which was a real bore). There's a Porcelain collection housed inside the Zwinger, But we did not visit it. The Nymphenbad, unfortunately, was closed as it is winter.

Fourth stop: Lunch. Lunch was at the Altemarkt Galerie. I had half a grilled chicken and a Brötchen for just 2,20€. I don't think I can find this kind of prices back in Karlsruhe.

Fifth stop: Some church near the City Hall. Originally, we wanted to take the lift up the tower of the City Hall. But it was closed. So we had to make do with the church tower. Not worth it, I say. You have to pay 1,50€ and tire yourself climbing up. Compare this to the City Hall tower. 1,25€ and there's a lift up. And it's higher too.

Sixth stop: Das Grüne Gewölbe. Or rather, The New Green Vault (the orginal one is under construction) which houses a collection of jewellery. The highlight of the collection is this green diamond (green because the diamond came into contact with some natural radioactivity), which is quite huge and under the watch of at least two cameras.

Seventh stop: The Weihnachtsmarkt. How can we miss the Christmas market here. It is supposedly the oldest Christmas market in Germany. But the problem is, there's simply too many stalls selling the Dresdner Christstollen. Every stall claims that that they are the original. I think the city of Dresden could probably have a Stollen day to clear the surpluses after Christmas.

That was about all we did for the day. We had dinner at Burger King, followed by a home-made beer back in the hostel and a chat with some of the hostel owner's friends.

I spent no time convincing them that if a couple were found kissing in public back home, a team of policemen would immediately appear and arrest the offending couple for further interrogation in the Police Station. Hah! No effort at all!

Nan and I went out later again and had Glühwein in one of the many pubs near the hostel. We even went out to buy Kebaps and ate it in the pub, much to the displeasure of the lady boss. She said there's a kitchen in the pub and we could order food from there until 2300. But it was already past midnight when we brought in the Kebaps. Not a very good justification for the lady boss.

I got pestered by a guy who was trying hard to be optimistic about the reunification of Germany. He was 19 at the time of the collapse of the Berlin Wall. It must have been quite difficult for some of them, being forced to change their way of life and thinking, and to adopt a new structure for society. He kept saying that I am from Hong Kong, despite me correcting him with several times with my Kuching-pura identity.

Oh well, we are all the same to them. Just like they are all the same to us.

So, slightly drunk people can be quite interesting to talk to.