Day Tripping

I'm now on winter break, which is a very nice relief.  Due to several reasons, I've decided to mainly stay in Hannover over break but still take a few day trips.  Luckily there's no lack of interesting places near Hannover.  In fact, I should really explore Hannover the city and region more, but I'm sure I'll have much more time for that.

Recently I've tried to think more about what I want to get out of traveling in an attempt to choose destinations.  This opens up so many abstract questions, but in more practical terms I've thought of some experiences that I really enjoy.  Most of them include the immersion in beautiful architecture or landscapes.  In fact, a blending together of the two (buildings in park, on mountain over city and lake, for example) is ideal.  This also means that it can fit a lot of different places. But one important thing that I'm still working on is enjoying those moments and giving them time.  Most of my strongest memories from traveling are actually from the times when my legs are too tired to walk so I just go and sit somewhere for a while.  Maybe they're not always in the most exciting places, but they do cause you to stop and just really experience the place you're in, and that sticks in your memory.  These places include a river bank and green patch in Regensburg, a little neighborhood park in Rome, and a bookstore in Krakow.  The key though is that it has to be a new place, or otherwise it's too easy to have my thoughts go somewhere else.  Unfortunately it's getting a little chilly to sit for too long, but the weather has been mild enough that I can explore without freezing at any point.

Yesterday I had one of those nice moments in Hildesheim.  I had looked at a map beforehand but decided to just go without since I had been there once before.  So I was walking in the right direction for the St. Michaeliskirche, but went too far over and then ended up on a path with a stone wall that ran along the entire length of it preventing me from turning left to the church.  But the other side of the path had an overlook onto another part of the city and some sort of manmade pond.  It was just a wonderful mix of exploring with a great view!

Stone wall with the church I was headed towards.

The one gate in the wall led to this.
It was locked.

Today I went to Quedlinburg, which is on the UNESCO World Heritage list for its well preserved historical center.  There are half-timbered houses everywhere!  Quedlinburg is definitely one of my favorite historical cities in Germany now, but somehow I missed having a memorable moment there. It could be because I was over-saturated with awesome buildings, but probably because I was moving too quickly and there weren't many options for sitting.  However, I'll leave you with a photo that represents the neat buildings and streets.

As always, click to enlarge!