Stuttgart on a Saturday

Stuttgart.
I have a terrible migrane but I need to get this out while it’s still fresh. Took the train into Stuttgart this morning. The train was worth the 5euros for the trip. The train was clean and no one smelled bad :-) and there were some American’s at the platform so I had help getting my ticket from the ‘automat’ ticket machine. It was actually kind of funny because the natives had more trouble using it then this american guy and his family. Took just about 20 minutes to get to Stuttgart from Oesterfeld (about 15 minutes or away). Stuttgart was incredible. The Germans seem to have this way of integrating life with living. I’m not sure how else to explain it. Yes there was a lot of everyday shoping going on - there was a farmer’s market and a ‘fish market’ which was kind of like a food festival with all sorts of fish prepared just abaout any way you could imagine and lots of ways you would NEVER have imagined, all in the shadow of buildings that were hundreds and hundreds of years old. I walked for hours, down side streets and back to the main road. I saw a Mont Blanc store on this little side road and noticed across the street in this little building that looked like Hanzel and Gretle lived upstairs there was a small Cartier jewelry shop with sparkle in the window that was so beautiful it made my tear up. In the shop next door there were 300 euro shoes and 200euro Louie Vatton (sp?) purses. One block away there was a dollar store! The contrast here is quite thick. New buildings next to old. Castles and museums next to glass and steel office buildings. The main square near Schloss (castle) something or other was filled with tables and beer vendors so I had to stop. I had a brat and a bier. Cost me all of 5euros and it was wonderful (see picture with the wooden tables in the foreground). I sat and listed to a mix of German and English big band and Jazz. On the way back down toward the train station there was a three-woman string trio playing classical music so I had to stop there too. Had my book with me so that was a really nice way to stop and people watch inconspicuously :-) Oh and native american music. Fully decked out trio with traditional instraments - Had to buy the CD. To much money but I listed to it last night and it was worth it. I kept crying - my eyes just would tear up and they would come. It was so wonderful and so beautiful and I'm here alone.