Karlsruhe - Katze Kindergarten, Karlsruhe Schloss und ZKM

Hallo Alle!

A lot has happened since I last posted from Darmstadt.  At dinner, after visiting after the Wasserturn, I mentioned to my new friends that I was really interested in checking out Karlsruhe.  I was delighted when my friend Sabine told me she had an aunt there that we could go stay with for a few days while we explored the city.  Sabine accompanied me to Karlsruhe that night.

Karlsruhe is about 70 miles from Darmstadt, so we were able to drive there in less than 2 hours.  

The Kindergarten in Karlsruhe where Ingrid worked.  

Sabine's aunt, Ingrid, welcomed us with open arms.  She had prepared our room and after the long day we had spent in Darmstadt, we quickly fell asleep.  We awoke to Ingrid laying out the most incredible breakfast spread.  She had a few different types of rolls, seedy breaks, some fruit spreads, cheeses, fruits and an array of cold cuts.  It was INCREDIBLE!  After breakfast, Ingrid invited us to stop by her work.  Sabine laughed and agreed to come.  Slightly confused, but not wanting to offend my hosts, I agreed as well.  After a short walk from Ingrid's small apartment, we came upon the cutest building I have ever seen! Children were running and playing around a small building shaped like a cat! This was the Kindergarten where Ingrid worked. I was delighted by the creative and quirky architecture.  After a brief tour, Ingrid directed us to the nearest train stop and set Sabine and me free to explore Karlsruhe.

Our first train pulling into 

When Sabine and I arrived at train station we each purchased a Citykarte Solo for 4,90 €.  This was a day pass that allowed both of us unlimited access to any sort of public transportation in Karlsruhe (bus, train, tram, etc.). Though crowded, I was impressed at how cheap and effiecient the transportation system was.  Within a few brief minutes, we were on our way the heart of Karlsruhe.

Though Karlsruhe Schloss had a variety of statues
surrounding it, this one was my favorite.
The palace is in the background!

We made our way to Karlsruhe Schloss and joined in to a last minute tour.  Our guide told us that city plannes built Karlsruhe Schloss to be the center of the city.  From it, thirty-two streets radiate out to form a city like spokes on a wagon wheel or ribs on a fan. This made sense, because when Sabine's aunt had welcomed us, she told us she was glad we could come visit the "fan city".  The tour ended at the Bandische Ladesmuseum (where the admission was free because it was Friday - woohoo!). This just gave a little more explanation as to the history of the city, and the Karlsruhe Schloss's builder, Jakob Freidrich von Batzendorf.








From Karlsruhe Schloss we bought some cherries from a street vendor and took a stroll through the city. it was 11 degrees and sunny, so we took our time peeking into small shops and sampling snacks from vendors.We then headed to  the ZKM - or center for Arts and media.  They are open 10-6, so we arrived in plenty of time to catch a huge part of their silent film festival. The admission was  14 €  and included entry into both the galleries and the festival.  The film festival was extremely entertaining - it captured the history of cross-dressing in international films. Sabine and I stayed for two short black and white films before heading to check out the galleries.  

My favorite combination of art and technology within the museum was with their anniversary display.  Using touch technology, we were able to play with various ipad apps to create a holographic display of us.  This was then projected into one massive installation with the holographs of all of the other visitors.  The main hall was effectively transformed into one massive 3D gallery!  I even got to take a 3D printout of myself home. Such integration of art and technology is farily characteristic of the ZKM a curator told me.  Their goal is to transcend traditional art genre boundaries.

Karlsruhe ZKM!

Sabine and I are now headed to Cafe Palaver - it has Frühstück all day!  We are just going to walk there, as the weather is still quite warm. From what I can see online, the menu looks fantastic!

That's all for now!

Until next time,

Andrea