Kassel

Hercules Statue

     Story Time!!! I went with my grandmother to Kassel. To get there, we took a three-hour charter bus ride. The best part? I had to get up at 8 A.M! Yeah, I was basically a zombie during the ride. I also felt really nauseous because I could barely sleep the night before so the ride was three hours of me trying not to throw up.

     Then there were our fellow passengers. Um, well, I was the youngest of the group. By far. By about, fifty years. Yup, I was on a bus ride with a group of retirees. I'm used to taking vacations with my parents, and that can be weird when you'd rather hang out with people your own age. But being in a travel group of only retirees is bizarre. I had nothing to talk about and chilled with my grandma while overhearing people say things like, "When someone is five minutes late, I feel physically ill and my throat closes up."

     We also had a delightful bus driver. He was, in the politest of terms, condescending and rude. Whenever someone asked him a question he acted like they were an idiot and was annoyed that he had to talk to them. H was a bit weird and liked to call out people. Apparently people usually give the driver tips on these kind of outings, but not a single person did so on this trip. My grandma said it was his own fault because he didn't even get out of his seat to say goodbye to people when it was time to go.

     Despite all that, seeing Kassel itself was a nice experience. Like most of the towns I've seen in Germany, it's a combination of idyllic village and industry. Fun fact: the Brothers Grimm lived and worked there as librarians for some time and also collected their stories there. That's what the lady giving us the tour guide mentioned many times. Oh yeah, the trip included a guided bus tour. When we arrived in Kassel a woman boarded the bus and she gave us an audio tour as the bus driver drove around the city. After the tour we had an hour break for lunch and plenty of time to walk around the city, as we were told. Um, no. We had enough time to take a bathroom break and wolf down fish rolls and (for me to drink a coca cola) and then had to head back to the buses.

     








         We then went to a nature park, Bergpark Wilhelmshoehe, known for its man-made and natural water features. And a nude statue of Hercules for some reason. That was interesting. My grandmother and I walked down about 200 steps and had to walk further down a steep hill to get to the main attractions. On our way, we saw natural waterfalls and at the end, the Grosse Fontaine, which is basically a strong jet of water.

Grosse Fontaine

      After our exertion we had, what else? Coffee and cake in a hotel lobby. At this point, after about an hour of physical activity, I was starving and I did not want cake. I wanted real food, like a steak and fries. But that was not meant to be. I tried to swallow the cake, which was apple, (I hate cooked apples), but I gave up after the third bite. Then it was back to the bus for the return 3-hour journey. Ahh, fun times in Germany!