In Germany

After a horrendous multi-stage trip, including an hourlong wait on a platform in Frankfurt for a LATE German train (apparently that "on time" thing refers only to Swiss trains), I spent a quiet day exploring Gottingen by foot. Europeans do know something about arranging life. The old city center is entirely pedestrian and lined with enticing stores and bakeries. The many squares were scattered with sidewalk cafes full of people drinking a Sunday afternoon beer, casually meeting friends and watching the kids climbing on the statues and riding their bikes. Everything is compact, liveable and eminently human.

A visit to the city museum introduced me to the many Nobel prizewinners of Gottingen, including several Jewish ones who left for the US before the war: the synagogue was destroyed in '38. Fascinatingly, there was also an exhibit on syphilis, with plenty of wax models of the various lesions (the existence of which could have had a significant effect on the prevalence of the disease, at least amongst medical students). Quite wonderfully gruesome. Sorry, no photos (this is a family site).