Heidelberg - Germany's Oldest Town

I don't know whether it's true or not. But people say that Heidelberg is Germany's oldest town. The general of US during the world war II didn't bomb this town because he had studied and lived there for a while. Well, it is probably true.

Heidelberg is famous for its good college. People from Germany and also from other countries dream to live there to study medicine. If I hear someone say that he studies medicine in Heidelberg, I'll be so amazed.

Heidelberg is also not famous for its good university, but also for its beautiful landscape and ancient buildings. Located in Baden-Wuettemberg, the city is crossed by the Neckar, an important river in Germany. I told you before, Heidelberg was not bombed during the world war II and that's why you can still find many ancient buildings. The Altstadt (old town) is the biggest I've ever visited in Germany.

I went there with my Indonesian friends. We went by train using this 24+ Ticket. It's a cheap ticket for travelling in Rhein-Neckar. Some of the cities in Rhein-Neckar are Kaiserslautern, Neustadt, Ludwigshafen, Mannheim, Heidelberg, Speyer, Landau, etc. It costs only 20EUR for max. 5 persons. And you can travel by train or tram or bus in this region.

I told you I went there with my Indonesian friends. And yeah, just like most Indonesian tourists, we looked for an Asian restaurant for our lunch. And our friend who lives in Heidelberg suggested us this Japanese restaurant, Mosch Mosch.

Mosch Mosch
Hauptstraße 136
69117 Heidelberg
www.moschmosch.com

It's a very nice and cozy restaurant located in the Altstadt. The cost ranges from 7 to 12 Euros. Not bad at all for an Asian restaurant. I recommend you having the homemade tea (hausgemachte Eistee).




After having lunch, we continued our journey to the Heidelberger Schloss, the most popular attraction of Heidelberg. And I was stunned. The castle is very very very gorgeous. I was blessed with a good weather too.

You should take a Bergbahn. It's a train to go there. It costs 5 EUR (3 EUR for students) and you can also get in the castle with that ticket.

The view from up there is way too epic. We can see the whole Heidelberg from the castle. And, oh the blue river, the ancient buildings, the alte Bruecke (old bridge), I think I fell for Heidelberg. This town is a really great destination in Germany. I love it. And I really want to visit this city again.







We walked to the old bridge, which is also famous. The bridge crosses the Neckar. And the view from the bridge is also spectacular.




And finally after enjoying the beautiful landscape of Heidelberg, we went to a pub for a traditional beer of Heidelberg. It is stronger than normal beer (but not stronger than wheat beer). And yeah I really had a good time there.

Tips for Travelling in Paris

Finally I've finished posting my trip in Paris. And here are some useful tips for you.

1. If you're under 26 years old, buy this ticket Jeune Week-end. It's a day ticket on Saturday and Sunday, it costs only 3 or 4 EUR. Normal day ticket costs about 9 EUR. (more info: ratp.fr)

2. If you're not under 26 or if it's not weekend, buy this ticket 10+. A ticket costs only 1,20 EUR, normally it costs about 2 EUR (more info: ratp.fr)

3. Bring your student ID and show it before entering a museum. All museums in France (incl. Louvre, Musée d'Orsay, etc.) are free for students under 26.

4. Buy souvenirs in Montmartre, and bargain.

5. Do not visit Versailles on Monday.

6. If you're in a restaurant and want to drink water, order a carafe d'eau (read: karaf dow). It's free. Otherwise you'll have to pay for overcharged evian.

7. Cheap restaurants can be found in St. Michel near Cathedrale du Notre Dame.

8. It's better to bring 3 small luggages than 1 big heavy luggage. Most Paris metro stations don't have elevator and escalator. It can be really stressful sometimes.

Paris - Part 3 (Louvre and Sacré-Coeur)

Day 3

On our third day, we decided to visit the world's largest museum in the world, Musée du Louvre. This is not just an ordinary museum. The glass pyramid is also one of the famous landmarks in Paris.


There were so many people there. I had never visited a museum that crowded before. Students under 26 have free entrance fee to all museums in France. So, I gave it a try. I couldn't believe I could enter Louvre with 0€.

The proof:


It is amazing. I think I will revisit this museum if I have the chance to go to Paris again. I mean, look at all those art works!





And finally, there we were. That is why everyone is so crazy about Louvre, Da Vinci's Monalisa. Everyone tries so hard to get a picture of this painting.


And then, the Venus de Milo.

And many other stuffs from various continents.




We spent like 5 hours in the museum. Seriously. It is huge! And we continued our journey to Montmartre to see the Sacré-Coeur. I can say Montmartre is my favorite place ever in Paris. From Sacré-Coeur you can see the whole Paris. And it is very gorgeous. Montmartre is also a place for artists. Unfortunately I was there in winter so I couldn't find many artists in the street. If you want to buy souvenirs, buy them in Montmartre. The price is lower than in Champs-Ellysées. And, bargain! They don't have fixed price.


We wanted to go to Pigalle actually to see Moulin Rouge. But my friends were all so exhausted after 3-day sightseeing. And we didn't get there.

Day 4

My host and I went to visit Versailles. It's quite far from Paris. And we were disappointed! Versailles is closed on Mondays. So, do not go there on Monday!





And finally, we went to St. Michel to have lunch and we found these artists in front of Notre Dame.



Then, I went back home to Saarbrücken. I had a wonderful time in Paris for sure.

Thanks to Gerry Prayogo and Yana Jurnatan for some of the pictures.

Paris - Part 2 (Eiffel Tower and Cathedrale du Notre Dame)

Day 2 of my Paris trip

I woke up early in the morning. My head felt so heavy. Damn, I was having a hang-over. I had had a party with my host till 3 AM or something. And, oh it was Christmas. It was Christmas. And I was in Paris for Christmas. How awesome was that.

I immediately dressed up to pick my friends in the hotel. And then they phoned me like "Ricky, we wanna go to the China Town!". What the heck? You guys were in Paris but you wanted go to the China Town? Typical Indonesian tourists. But of course I took them there. So, we went to Place d'Italie, the Asian district in Paris. Well, not exactly, the real China town is actually in Porte de Choisy, not far from Place d'Italie.

So, we began food-hunting. It was extremely cold. It was about -8C. And, oh damn, no restaurant was open. It was Christmas! But finally we found this Vietnamese restaurant called Le Kok Pho Tong. And yea we went in there and had brunch. The food was not bad at all. I didn't regret eating there. They have warm Pho (Vietnamese dish), and it tasted even better in winter.


After that, we took a metro to Trocadero. What's that actually? It's a spot to see Eiffel Tower! You know, Eiffel Tower is big, and you cannot take any picture if you stand exactly under the tower. The right spot is Trocadero.

view from Trocadero at day

You will notice there are so many people selling souvenirs, mostly Africans and Indians (don't mean to be racist, it's the fact). I think they are actually illegal, they are not supposed to sell souvenirs there, but hey the souvenirs are cheaper! What you must do is bargaining. French ability would give you of course some advantages because it will make bargaining easier. The African guy offered us 5 Eiffel key chains for 1 EUR, and we ended up buying 9 Eiffel key chains for 1 EUR.

Eiffel Tower and Tour Montparnasse

We went closer and closer to the tower, which is the most famous landmark in the world. It was amazing, but it was too cold. Then we decided to take a boat tour. It cost about 8 EUR for students. We took this Vedettes de Paris. The boat goes from Eiffel Tower to Louvre. People can see the Place de la Concorde, Louvre, the statue of Liberty, and the tunnel, where Princess Diana died. It offers audio guide in French, English and German. The statue of liberty is very charming by the way. I think I ought to see the one in NY as well. The river Seine was so high! I was afraid it would flood.




Look how high the river was!!
Then, we went to Cathedrale du Notre Dame. You can take metro to St. Michel. St. Michel is HEAVEN! Well, it is the place for cheap foods. We went to this restaurant Le Depart. I can say it was the best meal we had in Paris. The service was amazing, the foods are not expensive, and the restaurant's easy to be found. It is near the bridge that crosses the Seine. And you can see the cathedrale from the restaurant.

So, there's this menu. 1 main course with 1 dessert or 1 appetizer for 13 EUR. Not bad at all. I ordered no dessert. I ordered escargot for my appetizer and duck for my main course. The escargot tasted much better than the restaurant near Opera Garnier the day before. Another friend of mine had a salmon and a pork as main courses

escargot

the pork

the duck

the salmon
Then we took a walk to Notre Dame. I have to say it is overrated. I don't see anything so special about this church. Because it was too late, we couldn't get in. Maybe there's something worth seeing there.

We found this small alley with many cheap restaurants! That's the St. Michel. And we found Amorino. The ice-cream is very delicious and it is flower-shaped. Amorino is actually everywhere in France. Besides St. Michel, there's another one in the food court of Galerie Lafayette.

Eiffel Tower is not only beautiful at noon but also at night. This tower is lit up at night and it is gorgeous. We went there again to enjoy the magnificent view.



Some pictures were taken by Gerry Prayogo and Yana Jurnatan. Thanks for the pictures!