Housesitting in Germany

The summer of 2016 saw us heading off to our first housesit for a month in Germany. More precisely, it was in a small community out of Wiesbaden City Centre.

We were looking forward to experiencing a small slice of German life. It didn’t take much organising; we just needed to purchase two air tickets to Frankfurt, with a quick trip on a suburban train to Wiesbaden, where Yvette met us.

Jake the Cat, the reason why we went to Germany, was waiting at home for us.

Unfortunately, Jake passed away just recently, in June 2018, after an entire life being an ex-pat cat. As he and Yvette just happened to be from America. That event prompted me to write about our housekeeping in Jake’s company while Yvette climbed a mountain. Both have travelled far and wide, though Yvette more than Jake, as he was more of a homebody and much preferred to have the company of housesitters. At the same time, Yvette went away to clock up yet another country to her evergrowing long list of places she has explored. It is with much interest that I still follow Yvette and her travels.

As a side note, interestingly, most of the people we housesit do not come from the country that they are currently residing in. We really do live in a mobile world. This is great as it allows us to meet many varied people who love travelling.

How did we find our first housesit in Germany?

Brilliant fun as we got to appreciate the history and architecture, sample local cuisine and relax around the neighbourhood with Jake.

Jake, the Cat, was a very shy feline. We had ways to improve our interaction with him, which had him seeking us out. He eventually became our constant companion when we were about in his home. As far as laps go, he much preferred to be on the Squires’ knee rather than mine.

Fortunately, we could connect with Yvette and her to converse about her life in Germany and America. We also had the opportunity to chat with her German neighbour more than a few times. She showed an avid interest in what we did; in return, she was an exciting company. So we would share a few laughs over a drink as we listened and learned.

What did we explore in & around Wiesbaden?

Firstly, it was working out where to purchase a weekly bus pass, which we found at the train station in a small building where people caught the buses. A prominent place, I suppose, after spending an hour looking for it.

Learning the local food specialties and seeking them out to try, the fun and joy of cooking and eating came via the local markets and supermarkets. Which meant we got to visit the local farmers’ markets as well as the supermarkets that had an incredibly long aisle dedicated to just pasta, for some reason the Squire suggested he quickly go and grab something instead of me doing so!. Those moments entertained us for over an hour or two, limiting ourselves to short bursts as there was too much to see and do outside those four walls.

After acquainting ourselves with all the practical requirements, such as purchasing weekly bus tickets, supermarkets, and the markets.

Our education on the local history was to begin.

We learned more about a culture than any history book could tell us. How? Walking around the narrow lanes behind the more modern part of Wiesbaden, and coming across small brass cobbles set into the cobbled stone road.

We soon discovered that these stones were Stolperstein or Stumblestones.

They will have a person’s name, birth, and execution date. These are installed in memory of individuals who were killed by the Nazis. It was not only the Jews who were victims. Many of the stones represent people who were killed for the mere fact that they were Roma/Sinti, homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Socialists, Communists, victims of the T-4 Program, and anyone who was seen as a threat to the Nazi regime.

It was a sobering afternoon when we kept finding them as we walked. In such a small area, so many people were affected by the actions of the Nazis. I loved the concept of these stones as it was a strong message for all who walked those streets. More importantly, people who died at the hands of Nazis are remembered in a very public way. We ventured in silence over to the Museum for more of an insight into yet another war we, the human race, don’t seem capable of learning from generations after these events.

Over 67,000 stones have been installed in Germany and 21 other lands. These stones are found in Wiesbaden, Austria, the Netherlands, Hungary, Poland, France, Belgium, and many other European countries.

These will be in front of the homes or workplaces where people last lived/worked freely. Different groups or organisations pay for the installation. If any family members are alive, they are invited to be there when the stones are placed into the walkway.

What got to us the most was when we found a group of these stumble stones together and realised that an entire family had been deported and killed.

As I previously wrote, we learned so much more by walking those narrow cobblestoned streets, with the added stories and photographs of local people that were part of a museum exhibition than any history book could teach us.

The Highlights of Other Places We Visited

Frankfurt

The Light show was one of the major highlights, as well as admiring the historical architecture and visiting a Palace.

Bolongaropalast, Frankfurt, to visit this majestic palace. You could use moovitapp.com, which lets you know which train to catch. Though I would check closer to the time of using it, with most transportation in Europe, time changes and delays are frequent.

The spectacular light show!

Mainz

We visited Mainz on a few occasions as there was much to see and do, like churches and museums. It is generally an exciting place to stroll and admire the architecture when you are a new arrival to Germany.

Over the years, we have seen and explored many churches, as you do when travelling around Europe for an extended period.

St Peter’s church in Mainz has stood out in my memory bank. This impressive Baroque design was created by Johann Valentin Thoman and built in 1749-1756. The building did need to be rebuilt in the 1950s after suffering extensive damage in WW2. It is still worth visiting even without being entirely like the original one.

St. Peter’s Church is located beneath Deutschhaus Mainz in the northwest of the historical centre of Mainz, Germany. It is one of the most important rococo buildings in Mainz. Originally, it was a collegiate church monastery of ″St. Peter before the walls″, which had existed since the 10th century and is dedicated to the apostle Peter as patron.  Today, it serves as a parish church for the parish of St. Peter / St. Emmeran.

Mainz Cathedral

St Peter’s was spectacular, as was the distinctively German Cathedral in Mainz.

The Cathedral of Mainz dates from 975 AD but was continually rebuilt and restored, reaching its present form mainly in the 13th and 14th centuries.

At Mainz Cathedral on March 27, 1188, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I (Frederick Barbarossa) took up the Cross in the Third Crusade called by Pope Gregory VIII.

During World War II, the Allied bombing of Mainz destroyed 80% of the city, but the cathedral was left almost entirely unharmed.

Not only did churches and cathedrals entertain us, but we also had the opportunity to view a few classic cars on a warm Sunday afternoon. Finishing off that afternoon with a cool one, as you do in a country renowned for its wheat beers, Hefeweizen.