Some storks like it dangerous...

The storks really seem to like power poles to build their nests on like here in Wiesbaden Schierstein. Every year the people from the electric power company take down the nests but the stroks keep coming back and build new ones (although they usually "re-use" the old ones).

Old Birdcage

Spotted this in a window of one of the numerous antique stores (this one being on Taunusstrasse). I guess it's for decoration purposes only, though.

Cuckoo

Since you all had been curious about the cuckoo, I went back and checked what happens at the full hour:

First the right door opens and the cuckoo comes out - you really need good eyes to spot it since it's quite small considering that the clock is so big (but if you don't see it, you definitely hear it!). Then afterwards there's some music playing and little puppets start to "dance" after the door on the left opens.

Click here for a photo of the large Cuckoo Clock.

Non-smoking Areas

Unlike other European countries, Germany doesn't really have a smoking ban yet. But it's definitely discussed! A lot of public places are non-smoking areas several companies don't allow smoking in their offices and some restaurants offer non-smoking tables, indicated with signs like this one ("Nichtraucher").

If you're up to a Photo Quiz today, check out my Rheingau Daily Photo blog.

Graffiti No. 5

A graffiti next to a playground. I don't know why the artist left out the head but someone else took care of it... ;) (not me, though)

Also check out graffiti No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, and No. 4.

Doors No. 3

Some more doors from my archive. Everytime I see an interesting door now I think of you and take a picture of it. And there are some nice ones out there... !

Also check out my previous door posts: No. 1, No. 2.

Decorated Car

Decorated car waiting for another freshly married couple to come out of the Civil Registry Office. Behind it is the entrance to Wiesbaden's City Hall.

Happy Father's Day to all the dads visiting my blog today!

I'm gonna get you...

This little guy was having so much fun at the fountain, trying to get everything and everyone around him wet, that he didn't want to leave. So funny to watch him...

This is a newly installed fountain by the way (you have already see it in this photo). The place where it is - Mauritiusplatz has been "redecorated" last Fall/Winter and it looks a lot nicer now. The fountain's water comes from one of Wiesbaden's hot springs and has a temperature around 65°C!

Details of a facade

This house was built 1900 (it's written below the window when you click on the image to enlarge it) and the decorations you see are all from that time. Also included in this facade decoration is Wiesbaden's coat-of-arms: yellow/golden "fleurs-de-lys" (stylized lilies) on blue background.

Walking Soccer Balls

Some people don't have an easy job and these guys are part of that group I'd say. I've been walking behind them for a while since we had the same direction and I noticed people started to smile when they saw them (which I guess can be a good sign as well).

It's funny to watch the different kinds of advertising "walking around" in the pedestrian area especially during the weekend. We had clowns of course but also walking sandwiches, teddy bears or other kinds of animals, different kinds of vegetables, cell phones, you name it...

Geese

Geese at the lake in the park. While trying to find out what kind these are I came accross some interesting mythological information about geese.

The old Greeks admired geese for their beauty and it was common to keep them as some kind of "decoration" or give them as a present to a beloved one. The Romans held them as guards because of their distinctive senses.

Apparently, in China geese are the symbol for marital truth and fidelity, whereas in India they are a symbol for wisdom and clarity.

Landeshaus

The building called Landeshaus in Wiesbaden is from 1907. It hosts the Ministry of Economics, Transportation, and Development of the state Hesse (Hessisches Ministerium für Wirtschaft, Verkehr und Landesentwicklung).

It's built with the typical kind of sandstone you've seen in some of my other photos already. I like how you can see the texture of the stone in these columns.

Civil Registry Office

Passing by Wiesbaden's Civil Registry Office, I noticed these guys waiting outside for the bridal couple to come out. It had started raining (as this lady who walked into my photo can prove) and they lined up at the wall to stay as dry as possible.

A lot of couples have two ceremonies here in Germany. First the mandatory civil ceremony and then a church ceremony which is optional but usually a lot more festive. That's also where the bride dresses up with the white wedding dress, whereas the civil ceremony is usually a bit more casual.

Motorcycle Combination

Unfortunately, I don't know a lot about motorcycles, but I thought the turquoise one was quite cool! The one on the right is probably a bit easier to navigate, though, no?

"Shopping Dome"

Doesn't this reflection make this shop look like a "shopping dome"? I guess, for some people it is...

This is the backdoor of a large clothing store downtown (doesn't open, that's why no people are around) and the reflection shows part of the St. Bonifatius church.

P.S. If you have a yummy receipe for left-over Easter chocolates, please share on my other blog!!!

Garden Gnome Buddha

This is the outside display of a shop that actually sells flowers and plants mainly, but part of their concept is to provide possible gifts or everything else you could need for your house and garden as well.

The little guy on the chair immediately caught my attention - looks like even garden gnomes are doing yoga nowadays. :)

Dancing to the music of the organ

Just behind the organ I spotted this scene - a dad dancing with his daughter to the music of it. They had so much fun, especially the daughter. It's so nice to see what parents sometimes do just to make their kids happy. I'm sure my parents went through a lot as well of which some of it I don't even remember anymore ;).

"Altobella Furiosa"

Wiesbaden had a guest yesterday - the organ "Altobella Furiosa" from Waldkirch. In 1999 Waldkirch celebrated its 200 year anniversary of organ manufacturers and for that special occasion they ordered a special organ to represent it. It's more like a full orchestra (like the mechanical orchestras I've shown you on my Rheingau Daily Photo blog). Later on, unfortunately not when I took the photo, I saw lots of kids gathered around it - they loved it!

By the way, if you look up from the organ you'll see that there are still soccer balls in the trees...

... almost forgot:

HAPPY MOTHER's DAY to all the moms visiting my blog today!!!

Cuckoo Clock (Kuckucksuhr)

May I present: one of the largest cuckoo clocks of the world. I'm only saying that it's one of them because I know of at least two other ones claiming the same title. ;)

Cuckoo Clocks are originally from the black forest but this store sells them together with other souvenirs from all over Germany.

Wilhelm I von Oranien-Nassau

In Wiesbaden we have two statues of a Wilhelm I. I've already shown you Kaiser Wilhelm I. (1797-1888) a while ago, but this one is Wilhelm I. von Oranien-Nassau (1533-1584). He was also called William the Silent, was born in the House of Nassau and became Prince of Orange (Oranien) in 1544. In the Netherlands, he is also known as the "Vader des vaderlands" (Father of the fatherland) and the Dutch national anthem, the Wilhelmus, was written in his honour.

The reason, why we have his statue here, is that Wiesbaden is part of the former dukedom Nassau. Also, it is said that Wilhelm died for his Lutheran beliefs and the church behind the statue is the Marktkirche (right next to the city hall) which is Lutheran, so to honor him his statue has been set up in front of the church.

To find out more about William the Silent, check out the article at Wikipedia.

Red Bubble Mural

Please note that this is not the official title of this mural, it's just what comes to my mind everytime I see it. In fact, I don't know if it has a title at all. The house and mural can be found close to the city hall in downtown Wiesbaden. I like the style of the mural on the right where it imitates the rest of the facade. What made the artist include these red "bubbles" I have no idea (and to be honest I wish he or she hadn't)...

Doors No. 2

Today seems to be my door day since I've also posted one at my Rheingau Daily Photo blog.
This door has an elaborate decoration with a peacock - not exactly my style, but maybe the lady with the pink dress and the pink scooter lives here ;).

Also check out my previous doors post.

Trees in Reflection

This is the facade of the Theater parking garage. I just liked the reflection of the trees across the street in the windows and was happy that I'm not the one in charge of cleaning them... ;)

Women Memorial Labyrinth

The event which I happened to ran into was called "Frauen-Gedenk-Labyrinth" (Women Memorial Labyrinth).

Women from all over Germany had gathered here, each of them representing a memorable woman from the past. The labyrinth which was layed out in the grass of the park was made of stone plates with their names on them. I saw names like Sophie Scholl, Florence Nightingale, Edith Piaf, Agatha Christie, Clara Schumann, Evita Perron, Hatschepsut, Hildegard von Bingen, and a lot more, some of them known, some not. Alltogether, the labyrinth has 1000 plates like that.

For more photos and information check out my other blog.

Sunday at the Park

Being lazy and spending some more relaxing time at the Kurpark... There was also an event happening in front of the opera/theater house which I found out by coincidence. You can see it in the background of the photo. I'm gonna tell and show you more about it tomorrow.

Also, here is a snowy version of the same view.

Luftmessnetz-Box: View No. 2

Another view at the "Luftmessnetz" station I had shown you earlier. Unfortunately, I couldn't find out neither the name of the artist nor the story behind the artwork yet. I'll keep me eyes open, though.

Please, not here...

I think this image is selfexplanatory. The titles says "please, not here". I liked the fact that it was handpainted!

Roman Gateway

As promised, here is a photo of the newly renovated Römertor (roman gateway). They've just redone the roof with new wood tiles, that's why it looks nearly golden right now. The old roof had more the color of the rest of the bridge (dark brown) - I guess, in a while it'll look like that again.

Next to the gate (which was built 1902), there are still some parts of the old wall left, which was part of a Roman stronghold dating back to 364-375 AD. It was there to ward off the attacks from the Germanic tribes.

British Phone Booth

They seem to be spread out all over the world - here is Wiesbaden's version of a British phone booth.

Also check out the ones here:
Chattanooga, TN, USA
Dijon, France

(If you have/had a photo of a British phone booth on your blog as well, please send me your link - I'd be happy to include it here in this list!)

Cleaning up

Although we had a holiday yesterday, I've had two crazy days of work. That's life as a freelancer. No selfpity, though, I'm totally enjoying it!

Tonight I'll have time to clean up, as this guy in my photo, whom I caught emptying the public garbage bins. Yep, those are their uniforms. I actually don't know what the official description is nowadays. Shame on me! We used to say "Müllmann" (garbage man) but I think it has been changed to something more "official"... Maybe one of my visitors knows???

Early Dinner at Lumen

Remember the place where I had my "bionade"? We went to the 'Lumen' again to have an early dinner and since it's asparagus season now, I had some together with fish and a yummy dessert with tamarille parfait (on the left). I had never heard of tamarille before but apparently they are berries from South America tasting like a mixture of raspberry and apricot.

Today is Labor Day here, so Happy Holiday!