Tag Archives: eu

Heidelberg and the Neckar River

Heidelberg and the Neckar River
Heidelberg and the Neckar River

Heidelberg and the Neckar River. Heidelberg, Germany. July 11, 2013. © Copyright 2013 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Overlooking old Heidelberg, Germany and the Neckar River from the Philosophen Weg

This is another “postcard” photo of Heidelberg, from our July 2013 visit. (Which was part of a larger trip that included London, Bavaria, and a bit of Austria.) The scene overlooks the Neckar River as it flows past the old town section of Heidelberg, surrounded by forest and sitting below the historic castle.

Although it is a postcard view, those people are members of our extended family, many of whom joined us on this memorable trip. (You know who you are! :-) The little overlook is along a path known as the Philosophen Weg, or “philosophers way,” that follows along the side of a ridge that parallels the river above the bank opposite the old town. We stayed within a few minutes walk of the lower end of this route and we used parts of it to walk to the old town and back. On this morning, all of us climbed the hill and then followed the path beyond the area seen here, descended to a little place for brunch, and then headed back into the town.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Reading on the Steps

Reading on the Steps
Reading on the Steps

Reading on the Steps. Heidelberg, Germany. July 11, 2013. © Copyright 2013 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A student studies a book on steps at the Physikalisches Institut of Heidelberg University, Germany

On our several walks to and along the Heidelberg Philosophen Weg, we passed by this university building, so I finally stopped for a moment and made a few photographs. The main building looks like an academic structure of some sort, so I had made a guess as to what this place was before I found the sign. One student reads on the steps, and a few of the ubiquitous bicycles are parked nearby. Also ubiquitous is the bit of political graffiti – found in many places near the University buildings, and often relatively small compared to the stuff we frequently see here in the US.

Yes, in a general sense, another postcard photograph. :-)

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Salzburg Cathedral

Salzburg Cathedral
Salzburg Cathedral

Salzburg Cathedral. Salzburg, Austria. July 15, 2013. © Copyright 2013 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

The Salzburg Cathedral, in the city of Salzburg, Austria

While we stayed in the Schönau am Königssee area of Bavaria, we were very close to the AUstrian border and to the city of Salzburg. In fact, we ended up there on parts of at least four days during our week in Bavaria. Our train arrived at and departed from Salzburg, and on two other days we found ourselves in the area for various reasons. Of course, with our music backgrounds, neither Patty nor I could pass up the opportunity to visit the birthplace of Mozart – though we managed to resist the temptations of virtually all of the Mozart-focused tourist attractions, only taking time to walk past the building where he was supposedly born and then looking at but ultimately not purchasing any of the ubiquitous mozartkugeln, including the version that is supposedly “only available in Salzburg.” On the other hand, we were unable to resist the Salzburg “coffee culture,” which we enjoyed on more than one occasion!

The spectacular Salzburg Cathedral dominates, even in a city with many spectacular things. (If you look closely, you can spot a couple of the other church spires in this photograph.) The interior is, to my eye, astonishing, and I spent a good amount of time inside just standing and staring at the structure, the decoration, and the light. I made a few photographs there, too. It turned out that just the right viewpoint for this exterior view – in more than one way – was from a hillside terrace restaurant that we visited twice, sitting outdoors and overlooking Salzburg as we had late lunch.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | FacebookGoogle+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Boat on the Neckar, Heidelberg

Boat on the Neckar, Heidelberg
Boat on the Neckar, Heidelberg

Boat on the Neckar, Heidelberg. Heidelberg, Germany. July 11, 2013. © Copyright 2013 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

A ferry sails up the Neckar River past the Heidelberg altstadt, Germany

I grabbed this shot while walking across a bridge over the Neckar that crossed between the part of Heidelberg where we were staying and the Hauptstrasse area with all of its commotion and shops. In a case of very lucky timing, the boat emerged from beneath the bridge just as we happened to walk across. I think it is some sort of tourist cruise, judging by the activities that appeared to be taking place on board.

When I look at this photograph, the first thing that comes to mind is the word “postcard.” :-) The scene looks up the section of the river that passes by the old town section of Heidelberg, with its very narrow streets, shops and restaurants and the castle on the green hills above the town. The boat thoughtfully points right into the scene! We spent a total of a week or so here, in two segments separated by a week in Bavaria, and because of that and because we have relatives there with whom we stayed (thanks, Greg and Jan!) the town of Heidelberg began to feel like our home in Germany.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | FacebookGoogle+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.