Pictures from my trip to Germany, Paris, and beyond...

My trip was partly conferences and partly sightseeing. I began this trip in Kloster Seeon (outside of Munchen/Munich) for the MAGPOP conference on Multiwavelength Analysis of Galaxy Populations and ended in Paris for the GALEX Science Meeting. See the map of my journey (yellow was by train, red by car)... map

Kloster Seeon (Germany)

MAGPOP website
Besides the conference, the group took a tour to one of mad King Ludwig's castles in the middle of a lake. The "castle" was disappointing, a cheap knock-off of Versailles... but the excursion was fun. Pics

Salzburg (Austria)

This was one of my favorite places... the mix of old and new was perfect. Anyplace that adds chocolate liqueur to coffee holds a special place in my heart!
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Rothenburg (Germany)

A real medieval city (though it seems like something out of a Fairy Tale...hard to remind myself this isn't Disneyland). Lots of interesting history. However, didn't love it as much as I expected. pics

Freiburg & Black Forest (Germany)

Freiburg is like most other university towns- vibrant, interesting, colorful. However, I was more fascinated by the Black Forest-- which wasn't as much forest as verdant hills with clusters of trees. Nothing as scary, mysterious, or magical as what I expected. Still, we had a nice hike and the people were lovely (despite our total ignorance and laziness with the German language).
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Fussen (Germany)

I loved the town of Fussen with its magnificent views of the Bavarian Alps and from our hotel even a glimpse of Neushwanstein... well, it was misty and you have to squint at the pictures, but trust me-- the castle is there! Although the wetness put a damper (ha ha) on our sightseeing plans a bit, it certainly added to the magical mystere of the place. The "Sleeping Beauty" castle was not so impressive (it rather reminded me of mis-matched Lego sets brought together to form one giant castle) as the surrounding forests and scenery. I may someday like to return to hike around here.
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Liechtenstein

It's a small place. But picturesque. The castle is a real one-- the Prince didn't invite us in for a drink, so we only have pictures of the outside. Maybe next time...
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Switzerland

We spent the night in Lucerne, and took the morning to enjoy roaming the town: fresh markets and flea markets. Then we drove on to Interlaken, where the views can't be adequately captured by words or even photos... you'll just have to go visit to see what I mean. Fondue and some rambling later, we stop again in Bern.
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France

Our tour of the French countryside: including our adorable Bed & Breakfast in Peintre, and then a drive through Wine Country along the Route de Grand Crus, and a quick stop in Vezeley, a Medieval town of artists and tourists! We took the drive rather leisurely and allowed our senses (including taste and smell!) to drink in all the magnificence of the region...all while the rain chased behind (or ahead of?) us.
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Paris

In between our technical GALEX discussions, we did manage some fun. I went to the Rodin Museum one day (while it was raining- quel dommage!), and accidentally happened upon the House of Astronomy (no, not even near the IAP!), and toured the Observatoire to learn that once the North-South meridian went through Paris.
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Last modified: Sun Aug 26 18:04:44 EDT 2007