The Mosel(le) Towns - Cochem and Metz

Was so glad to escape my tiny village on the Belgian border. The previous "Vatertag" celebration nearly finished me off. It was dead silence 20km all around me, but the only party is happening right next to my hotel room window, with booming stereo and loud people...all the way until 2am. And the hotel staff were acting as if they didn't know this is about to happen. According to my inquiries afterwards, it happens year after year on this specific day and somehow still no warning is given to hotel guests. They were sympathetic, but not apologetic. Guess that is what a small town feels like. Anyway, I showed up sleep deprived in Trier and checked into my (comparatively) big city hotel. The hotel was also fully booked but I had the most peaceful rest ever (nobody waking me up at 6am anymore thank god) I'm seriously contemplating sacrificing rest time and commute everyday from Trier, just so I could wake up whenever I wanted and not be forced to follow somebody else's schedule.  

Anyway I digress. After getting some focaccia (?) for breakfast and enough caffeinated, and also doing some much needed Saturday shopping, I started driving towards Burg Eltz after noon, thinking most of the efficient German tourists must have concluded their tours already. Indeed when I arrived, there were more cars leaving the lot than entering. Still, there were way more people than I anticipated. From what Rick Steves shot some years ago, it should be a hidden gem. I feel like the car lot must have been expanded twice already. Anyhow I parked my car and followed a muddy trail to the castle (turns out this was non-scenic longer path that they wanted us to take for some reason, the other shuttle car path was way easier and shorter) The only benches were used by some rowdy teenagers so I decided to just stand this time. I think one of the teenagers wanted to take a look, but I took a step away from him and I think he understood the hint and left me alone. When I was almost done, a man asked me to help take a photo. As I took the phone I realized it is a huge family of close to 20 people. And mostly importantly I have no idea how to take photos for people in German?? Anyway, then I realized that they're in fact Dutch and can, of course, speak perfect English. Crisis resolved.

When I was drawing I could hear the loudspeaker repeating that the wait for castle entry/guided tour is 1 hour. And it seems that you have to actually stand in queue to wait for your turn. Waiting in queue is not my cup of tea, so I just bounced after finishing my painting.  

I followed some comments on googlemaps and found myself the supposedly dirt cheap parking lot at Cochem train station that is 3 EUR for the whole day. I was not in a hurry (plus the day is long) so decided to get a bite at the train station restaurant. Man it was hard work trying to impress the grumpy old lady running the restaurant, but I think I managed it with my passable German and nice attitude. In the end, she even (slightly) smiled at me!! But seriously, why is it on the customer to make the effort. A restaurant would be the wrong business if you hate interacting with people!

Anyway, after getting fed, I strolled through the town center. It was pretty crowded, but not suffocating and I found some cute old buildings! (Also the sun came out!) This time a little girl (from an Indian family I think?) also took notice of me, but she came onto me so suddenly that I thought she wanted to sit where I was sitting. So I apologized and quickly moved a few inches away from her. This time the parents didn't try to stop her from bothering me and indeed she was standing a little too close for comfort (and also licking an ice cream??). Anyway, I was glad when the family left...

I was just strolling around and saw a sign up a small hill that says "Auf Eigene Gefahr". It immediately got me interested. After hiking up the small hill I came across this gem of a view. I didn't do it justice, being rubbish at doing overview scenes. It was super peaceful up here and I could sit on a bench and put my feet up! It was heaven! (okay, minus when a little boy rushed by and demanded to be photograph by his mom when he shoots imaginary cannons at the town below) 

The next day I left my car parked and headed to the train station to take that rickety old SNCF train I saw during my last trip. Everyone on the platform was waiting for another train to Mannheim and there were at most 3 of us who were taking the slow train to Metz. Anyway, I saw the train driver finish the last of his cigarettes and started our diesel train. The ride to Metzville was a solid 1.5hr, and there were almost no one until when we got to Thionville. It was pretty cool to roll by Perl/Schengen and see the triangle border between Germany, France, and Luxembourg. Okay, technically we just rolled by patches of wild grass and abandoned warehouses, but geographically speaking it is very interesting!

The inside of Metz station was a little underwhelming. Yes it has the honour of being voted France's best looking train station 3 years in a row, but it is also a working station so there wasn't much fanfare, just a lot of people coming and going. You do notice the Roman arches and detailed work on the columns, but only outside were there people taking pictures of it. There were some random young men just loitering/sitting on the benches, so I crossed another street so I could sketch away from viewing eyes.  

It's kind of hard to comprehend this is the same river that i saw yesterday, only this time in France. When driving it is always through different road networks. So the fact that these 3 cities are actually connected via a single waterway is kind of mind blowing. 

French cuisine definitely lived up to its reputation though. I didn't even try to pick a restaurant. It was kind of late already, so there were only a handful of restaurants that are still open at 2:30pm. I just picked the closest one (that is not even a proper restaurant, just a cocktail bar that serves some food) and had hands down the best meal of my trip. I feel like the best of the German restaurants have at most met my expectation and the food was tasty. But this tiny French restaurant had me sat there wondering what the heck did my tongue just taste. (it was a beet salad with a savory underlayer with green onion, and topped with whipped cream and sliced pear) 

Am I... in London, again??

So through some genius planning skills, I somehow ended up exactly where I left off last time...which is London. Unfortunately I only had 4 pages left on my previous sketchbook and it would be space inefficient if I bring 2 on the road, so I just started a new one, feeling rather guilty. (I honestly have no idea how I'm gonna fill the last 4 pages...given there is nothing of value to sketch around where I live)

 

-British Museum- 

I didn't expect much from British Museum's Great Court, since I'm usually an exterior-only sketcher. But I dunno, this place kind of blurred the line between inside and outside. I read that the Museum forbids wet media inside the galleries, so I just found myself a spot on the spiral staircase (I think I would have done the Benin bronzes otherwise) Loads of people were sitting on the ground, on the stairs, basically everywhere, so nobody really paid any attention to me. A lady with a hard shelled briefcase stopped to chat, so I thought she probably works in the museum. And then she asked me how one could get into the galleries...ooops

-King's College, Cambridge-

Not exactly in London, but I kind of squeezed in a quick sketch while we were waiting for lunch. It felt like it is going to rain, so I was really rushed. The restaurant staff was even nice enough to come out to tell me that food is ready (while I totally underestimated how fast they prepared the food) We attended the evening chapel service to check out the famous chapel without paying (we did end of standing 70% of the time though) and the sun came out in the end! It was pretty great except visitors are not allowed to linger during exam time...so a missed opportunity

-London Sketching Day 1-

 

I think this must the best of my St Paul's attempt so far! The shape of the dome is finally somewhat making sense! When I was there a French tour group stopped dead in front of me, and a little French girl promptly latched onto me, despite pleading from parents to not disturb me. I ignored her throughout (an artist must concentrate!), but we did say bye to each other when the group left. 

I took a break later at St. Bart the Great and almost crashed a wedding (??) Anyway so I was just sitting there minding my own business, and then I heard some exaggerated small talk in posh English. Whatever, I filter these out automatically and concentrate on counting my arches. But the small talk continued and somewhat multiplied (?) Finally I was curious enough to see who exactly were talking...they were very nicely dressed people like suits, nice dresses, definitely not how people would randomly dress. Then it finally clicked and I realized either a wedding or a wedding reception is about to begin in this church. (throughout this time the choir was also rehearsing) I looked around and there were no other tourists in sight. So I quickly packed up my things, ducked my head and bolted out of the church (on my way out, I saw another finely dressed couple walking in, the lady wearing the most outrageous hat that I've only seen on the news)

A couple more London classics. Found a few construction workers in full relaxation mode. I was pretty shocked when I saw that the mayor's office is getting dismantled, apparently they are moving to another location with lower rent and the current building is getting a redesign.

 

The view is technically better on the Tower of London side (where the sun hits the bridge), but it was way quieter here. I guess I have done this view a few times already, but this is definitely the first time with the bridge opened! (a boat with huge sails was passing through)

-London Sketching Day 2-

 

On the 2nd day I attempted 2 places I haven't done yet, sort of. I have sketched Westminster across the river before, and also in silhouette. The crowd in front of the Big Ben was huge, but luckily I found a traffic island in the middle of the road where tourists don't usually linger. I could lean against the fence on one side because there was no view of importance behind me, and tourists can still take pictures in front of me. (I reassured 2 couples they're not blocking me at all. They were taking some time in front of me, getting balloons ready for a milestone birthday I think) I didn't quiiiite capture the shape of the clock tower, but happy with the overall result, in a super chaotic environment.

Technically I have done Piccadilly Circus before, but never the iconic view of the fountain and the billboards behind it. I drew the figure way too big so had to scale down the fountain itself many folds to fit in the entire scene. Probably the most chaotic place I've ever done a sketch in, right up there with Rialto Bridge. Luckily I found a little place to sit at the underground exit, so I wasn't in the way of other people (except when they needed to read the map next to me) After this I already felt both my social and artistic battery drained

 

Not overated Stonehenge + Bath

I was too excited, so I actually couldn't fit the one last stone block on the right. Getting to Stonehenge was rather low key but kind of way more interesting in different ways. I was expecting hordes of tourists descending on Salisbury, waiting to get on the shuttle bus to Stonehenge. Salisbury itself was somewhat busy with tourists, but there was absolutely no one waiting for the bus (and there were definitely people waiting for buses, but just to some places with fanciful names) Anyhow, we just missed the hourly bus when we arrived, so we decided to grab some quick lunch in the town. Maybe it was as well we kept our lunch light, because nobody expected the double-decker shuttle bus to do a fast furious run through the rolling English countryside. The plastic seats were so smooth that people on the upper deck (like us) were definitely sliding furiously back and forth. I think the bus trip itself is worth 80% of the entry fee.

-Stonehenge- 

We didn't know that there was a frequent shuttle bus connecting the visitor center and actual Stonehenge. We saw people walking on a footpath and decided to hit it as well. It was a solid 30 min trek in I don't know where, probably somebody's field. At some point, we definitely lost sight of everyone. And I was shouldering my full overnight bag..it was heavy! Anyway, when we got to the actual ticket checking point, the guy was actually surprised we were able to produce tickets, given our disheveled look emerging from the bushes. It was good exercise though and yes we definitely took the free bus back to the visitor centre.

-Bath-

Another Roman monument! Actually it was really exciting to see a roman bath this well preserved after seeing all the other ruins scattered across continental Europe. I found a good bench to sit on the top floor and thought might as well, assuming (correctly) that people would be probably jostling for photos on the lower floor. So I wasn't actually able to draw the actual bath itself...There were some French enfants on a school trip  

No Sun...No Problem! - London

The opportunity presented itself that I had a chance to stopover in London for a weekend. Between sleeping off a jetlag comfortably through a weekend in the US or starting a work week the night after getting off a transcontinental flight, I choose the latter every time. This also means I get to spend a true full weekend in London, flying in and out on workdays (I already sacrificed a Sunday on my way in, so I feel fully justified in burning a Monday traveling)

 

I basically sleepwalked my way from the plane to Elizabeth line, then again from the train to the hotel, because everything has been done more than once before. It was pretty surreal crashing in the tiny but (in my opinion) perfectly laid out room in London. From a remote village in Southwest Germany to the biggest metropolis in Europe, that's what I call a proper commute. (I got to FRA way way too early, after mistaking the boarding time as departure time, even after the disaster logistics that is to get to FRA terminal 2 non schengen departure) Everything after getting to London was peak efficiency, meanwhile FRA only had 1 guy doing all EU passports on a Friday night! while 30 people queued behind me.

 

Day 1

After having a proper full breakfast with an overly sweet Chai, I headed to what I didn't get to do last time, One New Change's roof terrace. The terrace was impressive, also impressive that they had 2 people watch the crowds at all time. I thought they're gonna say something to me about open water jar or whatever, but they left me alone. When I was almost done, a group of maybe 20 school kids roared in. I think they are from some Eastern European nation, but their guide spoke English. While their guide dismissed the kids to "take selfies for Instagram or whatever", 3 girls approached me and asked if I was doing "aquelle", which I guess is every non-English term for watercolour. And yes, of course teenage girls are more observant than their male counterpart, whom I noticed barely paid attention to the guide's speech.

 

I got a feeling that my St Paul's is not chubby enough, so I decided to do another one from Watling Street. Situating myself in front of an alley way to what I thought is just a barber shop (I think it is actually some sort of apartment or AirBnB, because quite some people filed out when I was standing there) My policy is to not block the sidewalk unless I really have to, so I just poke my head out when I need to see more. (Probably a good choice, because foot traffic definitely picked up while I was there) I also got to hear some free explanation when tour groups passed by. One guide mentioned that Watling Street is the last remaining section of a Roman road that used to go to Wales, and that Sir Christopher Wren built the pub (green) first before starting on St Paul's so that the workers have a place to eat. 

Then I stopped by Guildhall and checked out the Roman Amphitheatre that I definitely did not know about when I visited last time. Because it was getting cold and I was getting hungry, I decided to skip Guildhall for another time. After a late lunch I did Spitalfield Market before the sun went down

 

Day 2

 My favourite store's Brick Lane location was temporarily closed, so I had to head to the West End to finish my shopping. Then I thought why not and did a freer rendition of Trafalgar Square, while standing next to the Canadian mission. The square was busy, but there was almost no one on this side of the street. Honestly I have no idea why I kept on getting St Paul's wrong and had no trouble with Trafalgar Square.

Case and point, I could never get St Paul's to work. This is probably the worst and most vexing of all my drawings this trip

After deciding I cannot end my trip on a low point, I gave myself some warm food and headed back over to Guildhall. It was as damp and cold as yesterday, but with my stomach filled, I sat down comfortably on one of the many fixed benches provided and leisurely finished this very satisfying rendition. Probably my favourite one on this trip!

 

A Short Train Ride Away - Luxembourg

 From Trier, Luxembourg was only a short 50 mins ride away on the regional train. I almost regretted my pre-purchased ticket when I saw an SNCF train pulled into the opposite platform, destined for Metz. That was my runners up destination! For some reason, I thought it was only accessible from Saarbrücken, but I guess it makes sense that the bigger city Trier would have a direct train connection too. In the end I decided to stick with my original plan and do Luxembourg.

 The train station area was nothing fancy, so I only started my once in old town. It is pretty liberating when all public transportation is free. Or else I'm pretty sure I would have walked.

Warm up with the main cathedral (turned out rather well I think) 

After taking the public elevator down, I did this one of the old fortifications across the river Alzette, Eich Gate

I debated if I should stand at the edge of the walkway, but ended up just choosing higher ground to avoid tourist traffic. While I was doing this super complex piece, I had 2 German girls posing and taking photos for 20 mins at least, each coaching the other one. And then a little girl asked her parents to put her up on tree behind me (??) so that she can watch me paint. And then her parents begged and begged her to leave me alone and she wouldn't listen. I ignored her in the beginning so I had to stay in character. In the end, after a good 10 mins of parents begging and then threatening to leave, the little girl finally agreed. 

I think I still suck at drawing grand overviews from the top...but that never stops me from trying lol

I left earlier than I usually do because of the 1 hr commute back + 1 hr drive from Trier and I really don't want to drive in the dark. After getting food at a surprisingly super empty five guys (during which I totally forgot how numbers work in French and had to endure the shame of having to have my number also called in English) I got a sudden chocolate milk crave and impulse purchased probably the only truly Luxembourg produced product in the convenience store, and then I just drank straight from the carton at the platform because I'm desperate enough. And yes, I did blissfully fell asleep during the train ride home. It was very satisfying

Mosel, Roman ruins, and Karl Marx - Trier

 I managed to squeeze in a weekend of free travel while out in South Western Germany for work. I only got to stop by Trier in a high-pressure 30 mins window before I had to fly back to Berlin last time, so this time I decided to really take my time and just stay over for the night.

I was originally gonna take my time and chill a bit before heading over from the hotel, but then I remembered how backed up the only street into town was last time (basically down a steep winding road, then across the Mosel in one lane traffic, then finally into town. I ended up arriving before 10am, way before the weekend crowd arrived managed to easily snag a parking space on the 1st floor! 

I did a warm up at the main square before heading to Porta Nigra. The red silhouette in the back is the main cathedral, which sadly I didn't get a chance to do this time.

The side facing the city was covered up for restoration (apparently to make it less black...which is slightly questionable given its name) so I found a vantage point across the street on the other side. I guess, it is the most famous Roman monument in the whole of Germany?? I think originally it was symmetric, but it then lost one of its towers and was converted to a church (hence the extra bit on the left). The sun also came out at this point, which was great!

 

 

Next I made my way back to where I drove from and found a bench along the Mosel to do the Kaiser Wilhelm bridge. A guy actually turned around on his bike when he noticed me sketching. Out of whatever reason, he decided to speak with me in English at first, which is a huge red flag whenever I'm in a non-English speaking country, so then I just pretended I don't speak English but can understand German. He ended up asking if I'm doing a Erasmus program. I have no idea what that is, but said no lol, and then he just left. 

 

I challenged myself to do a overview, which I was never good at. It turned out...okay? probably because the shape of the river was doing most of the structural heavy lifting. I also got the chance enjoy the now super heavy traffic into town crawling past me. It was a little windy (the wind kept closing the lid of my palette), but still warm and sunny.

  

 

During my visit to the Kaiserthermen (where the lady selling ticket decided to hand me a guide in Dutch, after I told her I prefer English), it drizzled a bit, but I guess the structure above ground was not as interesting as the catacomb underneath (and I ain't sketching anything in the cold damp underground tunnel). By the time I hiked to the Amphitheatre, the sun is poking out a little again. After getting my ticket and heading into the arena, I saw 4 people in costume and gear fighting gladiator style, I almost thought I got like some "become a gladiator for the day" random experience ticket. And was relieved when they just ignored me. Again, the underground section was a little eerie, but very serene. This is probably the least crowded Roman amphitheatre I've ever been to, but also kind of random because there are vineyards on the hills all around it lol

  

Quickly remembering that tomorrow is Sunday, I managed to procure some toothpaste and a Kirschkernkissen from DM while waiting for my dinner!