Happy New Year everyone! Happy New Year! Driving on the German Autobahn.
It's called 'Baumkuchen' in German. Tschüss. Tschüss.
Happy New Year everyone! Happy New Year! We hope you had a wonderful start into the New
Year and just want to wish you the very best. Yes, all the best - yeah - yes - lots of luck
and health. Yes. We are still in Germany as you can see. Yes and yesterday we, yeah say,
spent a nice afternoon in the city of Trier. Yes we did some exploring and we filmed a
little bit and thought we would share it here on YouTube - yeah - so let's go to Trier.
Yeah.
Hello from Trier in Rhineland Palatinate which is considered to be the oldest city in Germany.
Yes. It's more than 2000 years old and dates back to Roman Empire. Yes. It's about a 40
minute drive from my parents house and we just said we haven't been here in ages. Yes.
Oh, it's a long time. Yeah although I think the city is quite nice - yeah - so you find
these very old buildings. So let's explore a bit and yeah, we hope you enjoy the video.
Yes, our morning stroll through Trier.
This is the so-called Porta Nigra here in Trier, a very famous landmark and a Roman
city gate.
Today's the 1st of January and we checked the website of the Porta Nigra last night
and it didn't say anything about the opening on the 1st of January but unfortunately it's
closed today which is a bit of a shame because going up there, like from the second floor
you would have a wonderful view towards the city centre but um, yeah, we have to make
the best of it. And what you can see here above the EuroShop is the house where Karl
Marx lived. Yes. He was born in Trier and he was a philosopher and he wrote The Communist
Manifest. Yes.
And being born in Trier Karl Marx died in London. Yes, he's buried at Highgate Cemetery
which is actually a gorgeous cemetery if - yes -if you can say that. I's very big but it's
like a huge park. It is. We've visited I don't know could it be like 10 years ago? Yes. I
think we have to go again because it's quite fascinating. Yeah. And if we do we of course
we will take you with us. We showed you in previous videos when we visited Germany, here
is an Italian Eiscafé which has been around since 1937. And they are very common in Germany
and we really love it in summertime.
We're here on the market square in Trier - which is very beautiful. It is wonderful. Yeah but
when we were driving to my mother, we we saw another beautiful market square which is in
Bad Urach. Yes, I absolutely loved that as well and we tried to film a little bit there
and thought we would show that to you first. And then continue with Trier. Yes.
Driving on the German Autobahn. Yeah and we're near Stuttgart aiport. Yes.
And we can only drive 100 kilometers so there's speed limit. Yeah but only in this part. Yeah,
it's not too bad. It's quite busy actually today. The sun is out. This is something Jörg
and I absolutely love. Haribo Happy Cola. We sometimes get them in the UK but not very
often. They are very common here.
In German 'Colaflaschen'.
We're on our way to my mother. Yes and we stopped here. So Jörg originally comes from
the Swabian Jura. Schwäbische Alb - in German. Yeah. And in between we stopped at a town
called - Bad Urach. Yes. Say it in Swabian. Yeah. And Bad Urach is very close to where
my father was born. He was born in one of the next villages called Ehningen. I haven't
been here before. It's a very lovely small town with old buildings and yeah, we just
thought we'd just check it out a little bit and maybe have Kaffee & Kuchen in between
as well. Let's see.
Okay, I spotted a Konditorei. A Konditorei? Café/Konditorei - Café Ruf.
Let's see what we've got. Yeah. And look at the lovely houses. This is what I really love
here in this area. Yeah. Fachwerkhäuser.
And they I think most of them date back to the - 15th century. Yes. The 15th century
so that's quite amazing. 500 years old. Very very gorgeous. There's another Café and Bäckerei.
Beckabeck. Or what's it called? Yeah Beckabeck. Beckabeck.
Yeah because the bakery, the guy who owns the bakery is called Beck. Yeah.
It's probably a bit noisy in here. This is raspberry cake. Yeah, Himbeertorte. Hmm. And
this is Black Forest Gateau. And in German - Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte. Yes.
Guten Tag mein Herr. Guten Tag. No, you need you need to speak Swabian. Grüß Gott. Like
here. Yeah. Gulasch mit Bandnudeln.
There's another Café or Konditorei.
Can you see the cake?
Sadly I can't go inside just to film the cake but uh, you get an idea. This is Schloss Bad
Urach, also a very lovely building.
We have to tell you something. What? Having left Germany almost seven years ago. Well,
at least you. It's six and a half years for me. Yeah. We're no longer used to Wednesdays
here in Germany. Yes, yes because what you need to know is in small towns on a Wednesday
the shops are closed in the afternoon. Yes, yeah. So it's actually quite surprising - yeah
- that we were able to have coffee - yes restaurants - and cake. Let's say and pubs are open - hmm
- but normal shops closed. And what we also find so surprising because we are no longer
used to that at all, so we find it big difference. Yeah. I think Bad Urach has a population of
12000 people. Yeah but the number of shops is not that big. No, it's so so different
in the UK. It would feel - you would have a really really High Street with a lot of
shops. Yes, yes. Very sleepy. It, yes. Yeah, that's - but maybe that's because of the time
now. No, I think it is it's still sleepy. Very German. Very Swabian. No. It's so Swabian.
Yeah.
Back to the beautiful market square here in Trier which has a mixture of renaissance,
rococo and classical buildings. It looks absolutely stunning. The only thing which I regret a
little bit but it was impossible because we flew to Germany we couldn't take all of our
camera gear with us so yeah.
So this is the Dom and right next to it is the so-called Liebfrauenkirche. And because
it's New Year they will play some music here.
See, they are right here which is quite amazing.
Where are we? In a Café. As per usual. Yeah. We're having Kaffee & Kuchen. Yeah. Coffee
and cake. Yes, here in Trier of course. And this is something, I don't know a pronunciation.
No, there's no English term for this kind of cake. So in German it's called - Baumkuchen.
Yes, Baumkuchen. Yeah which you would translate into tree cake. Yeah so I don't know. I think
it's actually quite a festive cake so not sure if you would usually have it like in
January but they still have it and it's very very good. Yeah. Very traditional. Hot chocolate.
Yes. This is Latte Macchiato and this is a kind of cheese cake. This is um, it has peach
and passion fruit in it so enjoy my darling. We just love Kaffee & Kuchen. I don't know
being German you grow up with it. And it's always a bit of a highlight for us. I'm not
sure if you can see it but a Baumkuchen usually has a lot of layers. Yeah. It's a bit difficult
to make but - it's got cream, nougat, biscuit.
But you say it's it's very good - delicious. Yeah. And these are all the cakes. In German
it's called Kuchentheke. This is where we had Kaffee & Kuchen by the way. In this gorgeous
building and the Konditorei is called Café zur Steipe. Zur Steipe yes.
This is the so-called Kurfürstliches Palais here in Trier.
And it's quite surprising to find it here. It's a Rococo building and looks gorgeous.
That was a lovely afternoon here - oh yes - here in Trier. A nice first of January.
Yes. And unfortunately Jörg will be flying back to Manchester tomorrow and I'll be staying
here another two weeks but yeah. It's always a bit a bit sad. I I really love being with
my family but um, yeah Jörg has, you have deadlines. Yeah, I'm gonna miss you. Well,
me too. So but um, I don't know a bit of a a comfort for me is always like the saying
'absence makes the heart grow fonder'. Yeah. So it's not only the first of January today
but it's a Sunday. Yeah. And Trier isn't a small city but - no but every shop is closed.
Yes. We got lucky to find a café which had open. I know. I know. We're not used to it
anymore - no - although what we said when we came here we said, it's quite nice to sometimes
like when you grow up here and a Sunday feels like a real Sunday. Yeah but this feels like
a dead Sunday. No, what I meant like in the UK it feels the same seven days a week - yeah
- pretty much. Yes. Shops are open. And here. Yeah. A lot of people do their shopping, their
grocery shopping on a Sunday. Now here everything is closed. Yeah but I think, sometimes, I
I do sometimes miss that - yes - in the UK because a Sunday here feels like quiet. Yeah,
it brings you down. Exactly yeah. It forces you to rest. It does.
We're now at Frankfurt airport. Yes. Unfortunately Jörg has to go or has to go back. I have
to leave for the UK. Yeah it's always sad. Yeah. I'm leaving Kirsten today.
Yeah, we have to say goodbye but um, Frankfurt airport is always -yeah - I don't know, I
I love coming here - yeah - since I was a teenager. Yes, it's a nice airport. Yeah.
It was a wonderful Christmas time and a really nice new year. So here's Jörg dropping
off his suitcase.