Exploring Saarbrücken

During the first week, we didn't do any long distance traveling.  Instead, we took the liberty to explore Saarbrücken.  One of the first things I noticed in the city was the large windows on all of the buildings.  As it happens, air conditioning is not in common use in Germany.  They have it, but prefer not to use it for cultural and/or energy usage reasons.  Thankfully, their windows usually provide allow for cool breezes to allay the heat of summer.  The city structure is different from Philadelphia in that the roads are not often straight.  Usually there is some sort of turn or curve in every street.  This isn’t too much of a problem though: Saarbrücken is not a large city, as it has a population of about 170,000 in comparison to Philly’s 1.5 million.  Additionally, many people do not drive cars, and ride bikes or take public transportation instead.  This lack of hustle and bustle allows for a quiet in the city not found in Philadelphia.   Cutting through the city is the Saar /River.  Barges are able to use it to transport goods to and from Saarbrücken to/from other cities the river passes by.  Interestingly, the state of Saarland’s parliament house is in Saarbrücken.  We passed by it on our meandering through the city, and it can be seen here.