To Freiburg

 Another sunny day dawned in Germany. I feel like I have been lucky with the weather! Today I would be heading west, and south into deepest darkest Germany. Freiburg im Breisgau.

I had found the hauptbahnhof - central station - yesterday (and transferred there a couple of times too on the way to & back from the gig) so was pretty happy I knew where I was going. I bought an s-bahn ticket and before I knew it I was there.

Helpfully, the app tells you everything you need to know about inter city trains if you've reserved: your carriage, seat number, platform, and even which bit of the platform the carriage will be at. The overhead signs have all that information on as well, so it was all quite easy to follow.

 I did need to transfer at Karlsruhe. There was a small delay to both trains I'd selected too... but as I was used to atrocious trains in England (and because I was not familiar with anything here) I'd left a half hour transfer window, which looked to be ample.

And then I was off.

The journey was easy. The transfer went to plan, despite the delays. I had some time to wander around Karlsruhe, and popped into a Backerie for something sweet. I saw some doughnutty things with "Roggenbrötchen" written in front. I attempted to ask for one, but baffled the lady, who tentatively picked up a roll next to what I wanted. I resorted to pointing and got the right thing, which turned out to be a Berliner. A later check revealed that at first I had indeed asked if I could have one rye roll. I guess the signs were a bit wonk.

I boarded the next train and enjoyed my Berliner watching the hills and woods roll by. I was later to learn that the Berliner is a somewhat seasonal treat made in large quantities at that time of year. It was not dissimilar to a jam filled dougnut. Very nice.

Then I was in Freiburg! 

After checking into the hotel I didn't have much of a specific plan, so headed out to wander the Altstadt / old town a bit. I was immediately struck with how different from Stuttgart it was!

It was very picturesque & quaint. Much of the buildings here were restored medieval buildings. It had a lively vibe too, being a university town. The Freiburger Munster was a towering spectacle at the heart of it.

As evening drew in I decided to head to a restaurant I liked the look of I'd spotted whilst wandering, which I think was a chain place. I don't mind eating by myself but here they had me surrounded by a bunch of group tables, it was busy too so I felt like a bit of a spectacle!

Still, I couldn't fault the food and the staff putting in the effort.