Wilhelma is a zoological–botanical garden in Stuttgart … around 11,500 animals from around the world …
I’ve got mixed feelings when visiting zoos. I’m ASSuming it’s worth locking up these bored inmates to bring attention to the survivors in the wild.
I found this zoo to be a bit cramped. And — like Europe — about 30% under renovation.
They do have two snow leopards.
Its urban area has a population of 634,830, making it the sixth largest city in Germany. …
It is spread across a variety of hills (some of them covered in vineyards), valleys (especially around the Neckar river and the Stuttgart basin) and parks. This often surprises visitors who associate the city with its reputation as the “cradle of the automobile“. The city’s tourism slogan is “Stuttgart offers more”. …
My first visit, I can confirm what I’ve always heard: Stuttgart is a good tourist destination.
I took one of the two hop-on, hop-off bus tours — a nice way to get a feel for the town.
The first Waldorf school is here.
Schlossgarten and green spaces in the centre make it feel a smaller town than 600,000. The centre pedestrian malls are very walkable.
Click PLAY or see some of the highlights on YouTube.
The Stadtbibliothek Stuttgart is the public library of the city of Stuttgart. In 2013, it received the national award as Library of the Year.
You’ve seen it on those lists of World’s most beautiful libraries.
TripAdvisor has it ranked #2 of 181 things to do in Stuttgart! I wouldn’t go that far. But it is free. And gorgeous.
As if Apple designed a library. Minimalist and white.
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Worlds in Stuttgart was problematic as it coincided with a beer festival with 4 million attendees!
Not being able to get ANY accommodation at any reasonable price anywhere near the venue, I decided to tent.
I stayed at Campingground “Cannstatter Wasen” about 17 minutes walk from the competition.
As campgrounds go, it was lousy. But at 17 Euro / night, a bargain.
I tucked my Hubba under a concrete lip to keep the rain off.
Security was good. Showers hot. Laundry good.
I kept my worldly goods locked up at the competition media venue.
Happily the campground only got busy with drunken beer louts on weekends.
All in all, a good decision. I’ll tent again in future if accommodation is troublesome.
One attraction I missed was the world’s largest museum dedicated to porkers. 45,000 exhibits.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
I don’t own a car and have never been into them.
But this is one of the best museums I can recall. And I was relieved to see they had not downplayed the participation of the company in Hitler’s Nazi genocide.
Emil Jillinek named Mercedes for his daughter.
It had 35 horsepower and was considered to be one of the world’s first “modern cars”.
Mercedes-Benz Museum is based on a unique cloverleaf concept using three overlapping circles with the center removed to form a triangular atrium recalling the shape of a Wankel engine.
The building was completed and opened on 19 May 2006.
… more than 160 vehicles, some dating back to the very earliest days of the motor engine …
… audio tours in a variety of languages …
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
I’m swearing off single use plastic Diet Coke.
Drinking sparkling water from a machine instead.
Like Greta on Facebook.
Disclaimer – my boycott ends next international flight
One thing North America has done right is to reduce smoking.
I hate visiting Europe for this one reason.
According to the World Health Organization, 21.9 percent of Americans smoked tobacco in 2018. In comparison, the average smoking rate for Europe was 28.7 percent.
When you look at the approximate number of cigarettes smoked per person per year, the picture is even more striking. Out of the 20 countries that smoke the most cigarettes, 15 of them are entirely or partially in Europe. The United States is 68th on the list. …
From U.S. surgeon general warnings to campaigns by groups like the American Cancer Society, the messaging has been clear since the 1960s: smoking cigarettes is bad for you. And it’s worked. About 96 percent of Americans believe smoking cigarettes is at least somewhat harmful to your health. …
Obviously the EU has to educate, educate, educate … and legislate.
Here’s my nearest grocery store in Stuttgart. Nothing but nicotine products while waiting in line to check out.
I’m tenting right next door to second largest beer celebration in the world after the Munich Oktoberfest.
It’s called the Cannstatter Volksfest or Stuttgart Beer Festival.
Over 4 million visitors a year.
Everyone but me drinks big steins of beer then tries not to get sick on rides like this.
Instead I sipped some cheap wine. Ate pretzels and soft cheese for dinner at my tent. I was celebrating.
Quite good. And quite large for such a small island.
But quite a few of the displays were under construction while I was there.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Rick McCharles 