A medical imaging conference brought our little family to Leipzig, Germany last weekend. It's not what would usually be considered a tourist destination. And the fact that we went their during Oktoberfest, when we live in Munich, makes the whole thing that much more backwards. But, as Will succinctly put it when I pointed this out; "That's just us." And it is.
Munich is lovely. Lovely, lovely, lovely. It's clean. The scenery is picturesque. The citizens are impeccable. And all of this is great. But there is something in me that loves a bit of the rough. That part of me moved me to downtown Detroit for two years where it was well-nourished. Leipzig was part of former East Germany, and as a result it bears the scars of those lean years in the form of abandoned buildings, graffiti, etc. The flip side of such misfortune, however, is that there are fertile grounds for new growth once the environment changes. And so there is an air of modernity, experimentation and- yes - gorgeous grittiness that I don't find in my own fair town that I so loved to breathe in for a few days.
Leipzig is also home to a large university. And what do you get if you have a downtrodden city, mix in some higher education, and shake well? Vegans, of course! You see, we can live on forest scraps, book learning, and patchouli vapors, so such places are quite ideal. I found as many as two fully vegan restaurants there and several veg or veg-friendly places and I was in heaven.
It was fun to blend in a bit more, as I did in Leipzig, and eating vegan gyros was no small event either. All in all, a great change of pace for our clan.
Although I don't share your need for city squalor—perhaps a generational difference—it sounds like a wonderful break from Munich. The picture of Edie shows her impressed with daddy's food and content with temporary city stay.
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