We took the train from Munich to Nuremberg, then walked across to our quite comfortable hotel, the Meridien. Our purpose in Nuremberg was to visit Courtroom 600 where the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials were held, and also the Nazi Documentation Center at the site of the Nazi rally grounds, both of these visits as research for my novel-in-progress (see separate posts for each at my author blog … http://lewweinsteinauthorblog.com/). But we also had time for exploring.
I just love European train stations
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the view from our hotel window and the nearby entrance to the old town … reconstructed after Allied bombing in WWII
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a restaurant with a charming river view, and real wiener schnitzel … the Cucina Italiana was the only place in town cheering for Italy’s victory over Germany in the European Cup semi-finals
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a large Protestant church in Nuremberg’s old town
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Pat and I often have our best travel experiences just wandering around and poking into places that seem interesting. In this case, we looked inside the church pictured above and found ourselves in the middle of a full-scale rehearsal for the opening performance of a summer concert series … we listened to an exquisite performance of Mozart’s piano concerto #23 … the Staatsphilharmie Nurnberg, conducted by Marcus Bosch, solo piano by Kit Armstrong … with all of the special ambiance and musical interactions of a rehearsal and a huge medieval church for backdrop.
It was just magical being there. We were, aside from concert personnel and musicians, the only audience. We felt like the king and queen of Bavaria enjoying a private performance.
the conductor and soloist in one of numerous rehearsal conferences
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TRAVEL with pat and lew 