Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Bamberg Germany and Beyond

Last weekend we ventured over to Bamberg, Germany to take in some fun in the sun and a German Bundesliga/Basketball playoff game.  Bamberg is a Bavarian city located on the eastern side of Germany, approximately 3 hours from Prague and worthy of a visit if you are in area.

On our first day we ventured out to the hills to stretch the legs and walk the infamous "Brauereienweg" trail that guides you to 4 small villages and some incredible scenery. The hike itself is a 14km trek (around 8.5 miles) and a great way to spend an afternoon.....especially if the weather is nice (on this day the temperature was pushing the mid-80's, or about 28 Celcius).  

The day's official mascot I suppose.

One of many Bob Ross moments.......


Although not officially part of the walking route, the area does offer some great rock climbing.

Some of the great scenery I mentioned earlier......


Rebels....a perfectly good road and those crazy German friends of mine choose to walk in the fields instead.



Approaching one of the small villages.

The final stretch to the last village.

Final destination reached: Kathi Brau.  Time for some good eats and give the legs a break. 


The next day we headed out to take in game 1 of the German 1 Bundelsiga/Basketball playoffs between the Brose Baskets from Bamberg versus the ALBA of Berlin. 

Loving the parking lot for the commuters. 

Before all the action begins.  The Arena was on the small side, but it was great to know that this would result in being closer to the action. 

Warming up.

The main difference between German basketball and American basketball, for me, was the noise level.  Wow.....the German fans know how to bring the noise!  They were constantly yelling, slapping these paper fans against their hands, blowing horns, etc.  My ears were ringing for the rest of the evening after the game ended.  On this particular shot, the crowd went wild when the ball swished through the net.

The mascot, Freak.  For my fellow University of Montana Grizzly alum, think the WAY early version of Monte from the early 90's.  I will give some props to Freak....I spotted some flips and tummy-slides during the game. 

Once the game ended the players walked around the arena to exchange high-fives with the fans to thank them for their support.  Pretty cool.  I'm happy to say that the home team Brose Baskets edged out the ALBA Berlin 90 to 76 in a very physical and intense game. 

Shortly after the game ended we began the long travel back to our home near Trier, Germany.  Before we officially left Bamberg, we learned one final and important lesson: read the destination sign carefully on the shuttle bus before you enter.  Yeah.....we ended up at some parking lot at the edge of town that just so happened to be hosting a massive carnival.  Luckily for us, we had a local in the group who cashed in a favor with a friend and saved us from a VERY long walk back to the village.  Good times.  Regardless, it was a great weekend and one that I wouldn't mind repeating sometime in the future.  

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