Germany 1983, Trier an der Mosel (1):
Porta Nigra and The Basilica of Constantine
On Saturday 27th August, 1983, I left Obernhof an der Lahn (see previous posts in this series - you'll find them in my sidebar under the month of March 2026) and took the train to Koblenz am Rhein, and then from there another train to Trier an der Mosel.
I probably had a couple of hours or so in Koblenz between trains - enough for lunch, I presume, and (evidently) a short stroll along the river:
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| My own photo from Koblenz |
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| Postcard from my photo album |
In Trier, I had booked a room at a hotel close to the railway station:
I have no photos from the hotel room, but I seem to remember it: A tiny room with pretty much just a bed, and not even a door to the toilet/shower (perhaps a curtain? but not even sure about that...). But all I needed, really, as in the daytime, I was out and about touristing anyway... The location as such served me well enough, though.
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| Evening view from my hotel room (I think) |
On the very first afternoon/evening, I ended up having something to eat at a café near the famous Porta Nigra, while listening to a live concert - a very pleasant start to getting acquainted with the town!
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| Photo from a postcard or brochure |
Porta Nigra (The Black Gate) is a monumental old gateway which in 1986 it got listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for being the best-preserved Roman city gate north of the Alps. But my visit was in 1983, so that had not happened yet when I was there!
The name Porta Nigra originated in the Middle Ages due to the darkened colour of its stone; the original Roman name has not been preserved.
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| My own photo copied from my photo album. |
The next day was a Sunday, and I decided to start that day with attending a service in the Konstantin Basilika, built between AD 300 and 310 /during the reigns of Constantius Chlorus and Constantine the Great). This too is now a UNESCO World Heritage site.
In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek basilike) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum.
A number of monumental Christian basilicas were constructed during the latter reign of Constantine the Great - Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, and the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity.
During the Middle Ages, the basilica in Trier was used as the residence for the Bishop of Trier. In 1856, it became a Protestant church. In 1944, the building burned due to an air raid of the allied forces during World War II. When it was repaired after the war, the historical inner decorations from the 19th century were not reconstructed, so that the brick walls are visible from the inside as well.
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Basilica of Constantine - photo from Wikipedia (2013) |
Above is a slide photo I bought of the interior of the Basilika, which seems to have kept its original colours rather well.
Attending a regular evangelical Sunday church service (in German) in this huge space was a rather special experience. Knowing that I had three days all on my own in Trier ahead of me was rather daunting in itself, and I have to admit I felt a little bit "lost and lonely" (even if excited at the same time). But then something happened, which to me felt like a "greeting from home" ... I have long since forgotten what the sermon was really about, but at some point in his message, the priest (or whatever his clerical title may have been) suddenly quoted or referred to a story (from outside the Bible) which seemed strangely familiar to me. By now I have forgotten both the specific content of the story, and the point that it served in the sermon. But it was taken from a children's book by the world famous Swedish author Astrid Lindgren: In German, Wir Kinder aus Bullerbü - in English, The Children of Noisy Village. And for me, this served as a sort of emotional confirmation that yes - I was in the right place, right here and now, for these few days... On my own, but not necessarily "lonely".
(To be continued...)
Your own photos are my favorites. The first one and the beautiful view from your hotel room.
ReplyDeleteThanks Ginny. The glow in the sky was actually gone from that slide photo, which made wonder now why I'd taken it in the first place. I was surprised when in the editing process I actually managed to restore it to a state that made me understand exactly why I had!! :)
DeleteWhat a quietly profound moment
ReplyDeleteRo, it was kind of surreal and down-to-earth in the same breath.
DeleteBeautiful photos from an area I know nothing about. I wish my mum had sent more postcards when she went back to visit her mum some time in the 80s or 90s.
ReplyDeleteRiver, I have not travelled abroad all that much in my life, which makes the times when I did all the more memorable.
DeleteThat is a wonderful story at the end, Monica! Love your first impressions of Trier, and the view of the evening sky from your hotel room was beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI am impressed with the line of neatly parked cars in front of the hotel - so unlike what you see nowadays, with horribly big SUVs and other cars often parked any old way, because the original lines painted on the ground are way too small for them.
Meike, now that you mention it, those cars parked in front of the hotel all do seem oddly alike, somehow!
DeleteI recall visiting Trier on a school trip and seeing the porta nigra
ReplyDeleteAddy, I'm glad I chose to includeTrier in that trip, as it does have a lot of interesting old Roman remains.
DeleteThis reads like a Spring Week Holiday. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteThe evening sky above Trier is beautiful as Meike said.
You took us outside then inside the Basilica of Constantine.
I knew it was destroyed in the relentless & savage Allied bombing raids.
I love trains and hate motorways. So your lunch between trains delighted me.
AJP Taylor wrote the text for a black & white photo book, The Last of Old Europe.
Your post was a kind of updating. In colour !
Haggerty, it was the last week of August and my summer holidays back then, but yes, kind of fitting to "re-live" it at Easter time now, many years later... :) I'm glad I got to visit Trier when I did, all the Roman remains were impressive.
DeleteHow lovely that the priest 'spoke' to you. It must have been very comforting in a strange city.
ReplyDeleteJanice, it was, and obviously it made a deep impression even though by now I've forgotten the "details".
Deleteagain I say you were brave. I have only stayed one night in a hotel by myself, one night and I was in my birth town, with Daddy's ashes in the urn on the front seat. so was in familiar territory. I drove there for the funeral to bury him next to mother. you have had a lot of what I call adventure starting when a teen. I don't even like to ride and elevator by myself. ha ha.. these photos are beautiful, and even though the basilica is stark on the inside, it still has that Feeling we expect.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sandra. Yes, even to myself now this journey does seem kind of brave. (I'm not tempted to repeat it now, at 70+!) It was probably a good thing that I had the week at Klostermühle first though, as there one was in a kind of community, even if most of us were strangers to one another from start. In Trier I was on my own, but at least I had then already been "immersed" in the German language for a week. (Trier was also a tourist-friendly town, though, and most people happy to switch to English as soon as they understood I was as foreigner...)
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