Two things worried me: one, of course, the fact that I was driving a manual car; and two, that I doubted the GPS would take me outside of Germany, meaning I would have to try to navigate through Europe and worry about stalling, etc.
I walked up the hill in the dark to the parking lot and turned on the GPS. I punched in the address of my hostel in Belgium that I would be staying in tonight, and lo and behold the GPS brought it up without difficulty! So that was a relief. I decided I may as well take advantage of the quiet morning to go ahead and do some practicing, so I pulled out of the parking lot and did a spin further up the hill. I don't think this practice helped me too much, but it ended up being a lovely way to watch the dawn break, with large dairy cows mooing at me, and the dew rising from the fields. It was really surprisingly gorgeous.
I parked again, and walked back to the hostel. The hostel lobby was WiFi equipped, but it cost 1.5 euro/hour. I went ahead and paid for an hour, and watched YouTube videos on how to drive manual cars. Most merely told me things I already knew, including "its harder than it looks," but I did learn how to use the emergency brake when starting out on a hill, which was something I don't remember ever learning, nor would I have tried it without the tip.
I watched these videos while eating breakfast at the breakfast buffet, which was once again plentiful, and even had kiwis.
Shortly after 9:00 I checked out and punched in the intersection in Aachen that had a park and ride lot. I had planned to simply drive and park downtown Aachen, but now that I was driving stick this idea seemed less appealing. The park and ride seemed a much less stressful option.
I drove the opposite way the GPS told me to, wanting to extend my time around the Eifel National Park and the hills above the Rur Lake.
It was an incredibly gorgeous morning, and in retrospect I should have spent more time driving around there and stopping at the many pull offs/lookouts.
Around 9:30 I finally heeded the GPS lady's commands and headed northwest to Aachen. For about half of this drive the road took me through little towns, which was pretty neat, and I was even able to relax and enjoy the drive. I have come to very much appreciate roundabouts, which do not require me to come to a complete stop and risk stalling.
I got to the park and ride lot easily enough, and then got on a bus to take me into the city.
I got there sometime after 11:00, but sadly the cathedral, which is what I really wanted to see, didn't open to the public until 12:30, since there was a mass in progress (not that surprising, given that it was Sunday morning, but I hadn't thought of it).
Aachen was Charlgemagne's capital and he began building the cathedral, which is the oldest in northern Europe.
Before learning this, I had planned to pass by Aachen without stopping, but the cathedral drew me in.
I considered going into the cathedral's treasury, or Aachen's town hall, both of which appealed to me somewhat, but they both had entrance fees and I decided I'd rather sit beneath the cathedral and have coffee and eat a pastry.
At 12:20 or so I went to buy a ticket for the cathedral, but the man working said I only needed a ticket if I wanted a guided tour. Since I had already talked to him an hour prior, and was pretty sure he told me I needed a 4 euro ticket, I was very surprised to learn I didn't. He did tell me that the tower wasn't open, however, which was disappointing.
I went ahead and bought a 50 cent guide, and it in hand queued to go inside. The massgoers filed out and the tourists filed in, and I was amazed!
The Cologne cathedral had been dark, even dank, and was almost depressing rather than uplifting. The Aachen cathedral, in contrast, was full of gold and other colours, and art and carving, and was really a sight to behold.
The little guide pointed me to the highlights, including the shrine of Charlgemagne (where is bones are), and the chest holding relics, including some shroud of Mary.
Although the cathedral was stunning, I was also struck with how small it was, especially compared to the one in Cologne I had been in yesterday. I do not know what how they would compare in terms of area, but I assume, the Aachen one is as small as a quarter of the Cologne cathedral's size (which granted is absolutely massive).
After leaving the Cathedral, I bought a donair before catching the bus back to the park and ride.
No comments:
Post a Comment