From Africa To Russia

Head out in the morning on the metro into Frankfurt, once again nicer than expectations, a la Madrid. Whenever a lot of people talk a place down, I am almost always subsequently impressed. The Romerburg is a charming little square, as are the buildings and churches that surround it. A little brass band plays a tune as I walk through. Earlier in the day, I had stopped to grab a sausage (the Europeans often eat on the street standing around tall tables). A little kid rushes by with a pack on his back, and gets a strap caught in a truck door. I have to disentangle him before he is on his way again. It is a humorous little episode. I walk up and see the Eschenheimer tower (cool, but out of place there rising up out of the road), walk down the Zeil and see the shops and touristy stuff. I get another dizzy spell where my head swims and I have to sit down and rest. I have a little cup of beer and some potatoes at a stand and get scammed once again on the euros. Walk back along the river, and then up to the train station, on one particular street the girls come out of doorways, “Want a massage?” Across the river on the metro, then back to the motel to rest and recharge, watch a little World Cup (for a change). Am reading my way through ‘Big Sur’ now – Kerouac was goddamn brilliant. His hunger for life inspires me. Walking back, I pass the ‘shanty town’ again from last night. A kid is pruning the hedge, I ask him about it. He tells me it is actually a vacation spot of sorts, where people come to live simply for a while, plant gardens and relax.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 18th, 2007 at 10:30 pm and is filed under Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.