Luther slept here

Here we are again, at the Leipzig train station.

 

More travel excitement on the way to Erfurt -- the trains out of Wittenberg Sunday morning had been cancelled, and the buses to the next train stop weren't running because of the flooding.  We milled around the bus station until we met up with some traveling students who were also going south, and decided to share a taxi ride to Pratau, where we picked up a train to Leipzig.  When we got into Erfurt, the rain was pouring down like on a Florida summer afternoon.  We reached the tram stop on our corner, trying to keep our luggage dry and took turns running out into the downpour trying to find our night's lodging.  My brother Paul finally found it a block away, and we ran all the way there, just as the rain was beginning to let up...

The view out our window
into the courtyard of the Augustinerkloster,
Luther's old stomping grounds in Erfurt.

We decided to spend an extra morning in Erfurt after spending a night at the monastery where Luther studied.  The town is charming, with colorful buildings and more history than we can take in in just one visit.  What a contrast to where we are now, in the metropolitan heart of Munich.  Here we see people from every conceivable culture mingling and working side by side.  We are staying at the YMCA, a crowded, loud but happy contrast to the quiet, austere monastery.  Back in Erfurt it felt like a secluded, storybook retreat from reality.  Here on this street of hotels and ethnic restaurants (there's a Uyghur restaurant we want to try) we could be in almost any big city around the world.


The view from the Erfurt citadel

UPDATE (June 25): I think Erfurt was our favorite place on the trip.  It was a wonderful small town, safe and fun to walk around, with a market bridge over the tiny river downtown.  We climbed the citadel for a view of the whole city, and were surprised at how big it really was. 


Luther is served some wine by an under-dressed Mona Lisa
at Pavarotti's restaurant in Erfurt.