Daytrip to Dresden

Looking for the beauty and relaxing atmosphere that Berlin seems to lack, the girls and I decided to take a trip south to Dresden AKA "the Florence of the North." I am happy to report that the city did not disappoint. Using our Eurail passes, we hopped on an early morning train and enjoyed scenic views of Germany for two hours until we arrived at Dresden Central Station. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, with very few clouds and lots of sunshine. We made our way to the tourist office and purchased a map that featured tips on how to take your own walking tour of the city. So Katie was our tour guide, navigating us from place to place and explaining things as we went. The city has gorgeous architecture, spacious squares, quaint winding streets, and the most relaxing atmosphere of any city I have ever visited. Despite being in a bustling location, it was always very quite - no horns beeping, no one yelling...everyone just going about their business without making a scene. We saw countless Baroque style buildings, including museums, churches, and the Dresden Fraukirche (Church of Our Lady) that was so beautiful it put the Notre Dame to shame. The inside was elaborately decorated in pastel shades rather than the deep reds and browns that tend to dominate most 18th century churches. We crossed the Elbe River on the Augustus Bridge to see the parks where people were enjoying the weather, statues, and museums that surrounded the area. 

It was too nice to sit inside for lunch, so we grabbed some sandwiches and had lunch outside, where people kept stopping to talk to us. It's funny, no matter where we went in our travels, people stared at us and sometimes came up to chat. Admittedly, sometimes we were probably making a scene if we were lost and confused, but most times we were just acting like normal civilians. There was one man in particular who came up to us and kept saying "Schvet, schvet!" and holding his stomach. We looked at him dumbfounded and I asked if he was asking us if we were full. He laughed and walked away, us not thinking much of it until we realized he had been calling us fat! Needing a second opinion, we asked the next woman who walked by if she spoke English and since she did, we asked if "schvet" meant fat, and she responded "Um, yes. I think he was calling you fat." We were mortified, but what could we do but laugh? I guess some Germans are just not as hospitable as others, huh? But anyway, after lunch and a lot of laughs, we headed back to catch the last train to Berlin, happy with our day trip even if we are "schvet."

Love and day trips,

Haley