August
Germany…Jena
Fri 1st
9I booked a taxi with Jill for 04:30 to Gatwick. I got a boarding pass quite quickly and proceeded to departures/security. There was an hour and a half until boarding. It was only an hour and a half flight.
Had a great chat with the 2 guys next to me. It transpired that Alex …who lived in London…had been to Forest Row a few times, and when I asked why, he said to attend Roger’s Party…!!! Did I know of it…well, most definitely ??!! What a coincidence.
Straight through immigration at Berlin airport, and of course I had no luggage to collect.
I had a 4 hour wait for Flix bus to Leipzig. Bus 20 mins late so arrived around 5 in Leipzig. Heck of a surprise as Tor was there to meet me. I had no idea. We walked around the center of the city …there was some street music. Then we met up with Josi at an Irish pub and drank a few beers. It was nice to meet her, and we all got on well.
Josi came with us to the railway station and Tor and I took the one hour journey to Jena. We just had to call in for a Guinness at Fiddlers Green before getting the tram back to the flat.
Tor had bought a packet of bratwurst which sufficed for dinner, and then I was pretty exhausted and we went to sleep.
Sat 2nd Aug
There was no hurry to get going. After breakfast drinks we went over to Kaufland for some food basics, incl. bread and something towards dinners the following week. Supermarkets are vlised on Sundays. From the flat, we caught a tram to half way into town.
By now it was early afternoon and we went to Grunowski for a beer. Then up the road a few meters to the Beer Garden which was looking particularly well kept with nice flowers/plants. That’s where there is in the men’s toilet which I call the ‘peecasso’…old looking paintings above the urinal..!!!
We were on our way to Addis Abebe for an Ethiopian dinner, but as we were a bit early we stopped at Fiddlers Green. We never realised before that they had a Happy hour between 5 & 6. After a Fiddlers ale we went for dinner at 18:00. One of Tor’s work colleagues works at the restaurant part time. Tor had a Wot and I had a Tibs…very tasty.
We got talking to Ethiopian and Eritrean students. The biology student came from Arba Minch and studied directly opposite the lodging where I stayed…overlooking the valley and the 2 lakes. I should get Tor to ask Emanuel what year his friend was studying in Arba Minch.
I was given a glass of Tej and Tor a small beer, on the house. After that it was a matter of getting the tram back to the flat…or did we go back to Fiddlers ? I cant remember!! Anyway, it was a fun first full day in Jena.
Sun 3rd Aug
I had a good night’s sleep. Breakfast consisted of marmite on sour dough toast. We had a video call with Gabriella. We had to catch the 09:38 tram to Jena Paradies to catch the 10:00 ish train to Leipzig; it takes just over an hour.
We were met at the station by Josi and we went on a ‘walking tour ‘ of the city of Leipzig. Large, old buildings with interesting cornices and turrets/spires. We stopped for coffee refreshment.
That was followed by more walking along the quiet streets as a number of shops don’t open on Sundays, esp supermarkets.
There was some live street music. We walked quite far before we stopped at a bar for a beer. It wasn’t far to go for our 5 ‘o’ clock lunch/dinner; we had decided on a Vietnamese meal. I chose a noodle dish which was very delicious and got me thinking in terms of Malaysian cuisine for the end of August when I go to Kuala Lumpur.
Then we strolled back to the railway station through a little green park area. And that was it, and Josi saw us onto the train. It was a real pleasure to meet her…a very nice young lady, and she and Tor really seem to click.
After just over an hour to Jena Paradies, and a tram ride, we reached the flat at around 20:30. A good day out.
Mon 4th Aug
Tor was on early shift so he was out of the flat at 05:25. I got up at about 07:00. After my tea and toast I decided to make myself useful with ‘housework’. I cleaned the long window sill of the large window looking over Jena. Then kitchen worktops and the inside of the fridge. I took my time, as it was drizzling outside and didn’t want to leave the flat anyway.
Around midday it started to clear outside. I had to make sure I had everything I needed for the day as Tor didn’t have a spare key…. l walked a short way up the hill behind the flats and on to and through the cemetery and into town.
By this time the sun was hot, and was glad I had decided on wearing shorts. I sat on a chair outside in the sunshine for half an hour before ambling over to The Bean to have a coffee before meeting Tor there at 14:30. I like the Bean for its large, open location near the centre of town, and for being a good people watching spot.
After a cappuccino and a chai between us, we walked via the edge of Park Paradies, to arrive at the Garden for 4 ‘o’clock, which is its opening time. After a drink there, we went to Fiddlers Green…arriving at their opening time of 5 o’clock..!!!
After a couple of pints we headed for the tram and home to cook dinner. Actually, we’ve switched from drinking Guinness to drinking Fiddlers Ale to save nearly 2euros. However, we’ve since realised that a Guinness is sold in a 0.5L glass, unlike the Fiddlers which comes in a 0.4L glass..!! So we’re not saving the full 2euros..!!!
For dinner we cooked turkey with vegs in coconut milk and served with basmati rice. Very tasty. Oh, and I drank the red wine that I’d bought.
Tues 5th Aug.
Tor left early for work as usual, and I got up a bit early at around 06:30. I hand washed my ‘Dad’ and my ‘zebra’ shirts after tea and toast.
It was a matter of pottering around as it was raining quite hard and I couldn’t leave the Flat anyway. I texted Tor and said we would still meet up in town. The rain temporarily stopped around 12:00 so I left. I hopped on the tram for 2 stops and walked the rest of the way using my umbrella.
I took my time, popping into a couple of shopping arcades and having a coffee at L’Osteria…somewhere different. Then I went to the Bean for 14:30. Tor arrived soon after, and we both had lattes.
After that we went to buy a new cable for my plug; my cable for the Lyca phone had died. Tor wasn’t sure if the Garden would be open as it had been raining, so we went to the Gasthaus instead. We ate a typically Thuringian meal there a couple of years ago.
After one drink we popped into Aldi so Tor could buy a cheap towel for his physio session at 17:30. We added a cauliflower and bottle of wine to the shopping basket !!
As Tor had a few minutes to kill we called in on Fiddlers at 17:00. Tor had a quick half before heading to his physio on his shoulder.
I had 2 quick pints before meeting him at the Afghan shop near his physio…about 10 minutes walk away. There was no interesting chevda to be had in the Afghan supermarket.
We went straight to the flat. Cooked coconut milk and vegs with the 2 leftover bratwurst…quick and easy and tasty.
Wed 6th Aug
Clear blue sky in the morning encouraged me to leave the flat a bit earlier. After breakfast and some vacuuming…my gosh, the fluff and dust was so thick under furniture, in corners, and especially under the shoe rack. !!
I walked along the main road into town. I got lost/disorientated when I reached a larger road at the end. Eventually I figured out I wasn’t far from the railway station.
I went inside the Park and sat on a couple of benches for about an hour and half just soaking up the sunshine. Then I went to the Bean for 14:00 to have a coffee while waiting for Tor.
After another coffee and a latte and a long chat, we went into the Park and had a beer at Cafe Paradies on the river. It was busy; there was a good atmosphere, and the sun was shining….perfect spot for a summer drink.
Then over to Fiddlers for one for the road, followed by the tram to Kaufland. The main purpose was to buy some pork steaks for dinner, but I bought a litre bottle of wine as well.
It’s only a 10 minute walk to the flat. I chopped the meat and vegs and Tor cooked the food. It was delicious as always. I had an email reply from HSBC and much of the time we spent discussing the options on dealing with the fact that my mortgage arrangement was ending in September. Do I put money from my premium bonds towards clearing the balance of the bank loan ??
And then it was bed time.
Thurs 7th Aug
I woke up at 02:30 and struggled to get any good sleep after that. I had my usual breakfast then did a bit more vacuuming and some bathroom floor cleaning. The sun was shining and I had a nice walk into town.
I sat on a bench at the big car park for nearly an hour, then had a cheap coffee in the Rewe restaurant of the JenTower. I stayed there for quite a while before walking slowly to meet Tor at the Bean. I had my usual cappuccino while Tor had an iced chai latte and a sandwich.
At about 15:30 we ended up at Grunowski. An hour later we were next door at the Garden pub. By 17:30 we were at Fiddlers, having popped into Rewe along the way to buy steak, wine, courgette, and new potatoes towards dinner.
Fiddlers was great; I was sorry that it was my last visit. There was a lot of jokey banter with the barman. We had one drink then went for the tram back to the Flat. Tor cooked the steak beautifully and prepared a very yummy gravy as well.
Fri 8th Aug
Tor went to work by 05:30 as usual…we said goodbye. I took my time and headed off around 10:00. There was no rush as my train from Paradies wasn’t until 11:15. Next stop Halle at 12:30.
There was 30 mins transit at Halle and I had a coffee… No small change to pay for the toilet though..!! There was a delay of 20 mins leaving Halle for Berlin so I missed the originally planned train to the airport, but there was another one less than half an hour later.
About 35 mins to the airport. I checked in then spent about 30 mins in the queues going through a couple of security checks.
Phew…once through to departures I found a bar to use up my last 12 euros on a pint and a half of lager. Then on to the departure gate from where the plane left bang on time.
It’s only about an hour and a half back to Gatwick. I was straight through with my small hand luggage, and onto the shuttle to S terminal. I only had to wait 10 mins for the 400 bus to East Grinstead…arriving at 20:00. Although there was a 291 directly behind, I was still in travel mode and popped into Spoons for a nightcap before catching the 21:00 to Forest Row.
The end of a brilliant week visiting Tor in Germany. All the travelling went very smoothly and Tor was in good form.