24-25 October 2012, Dresden

24-25 Oct 2012
Dresden

The name of our train from Berlin to Dresden is the "Johannes Brahms". It seemed a cozier, more intimate train than usual.  It was Czech. We sat in the dining car and ate seasonal Czech specialties.  The day was overcast and chilly when we arrived in Dresden. Our hotel is the Bellevue. (The famed conductor, Hans von Bulow, was born in it.) It is on the bank of the Elbe River. It faces the old city and the bridge to it. Our room has the same view as the Canaletto painting.

Dresden was a short stay occupied mostly by museums visits. Many of the great buildings of the old city were destroyed in the war. They remained piles of uncleared rubble, some for thirty or forty years. They now have all been rebuilt. The before and after photos are astounding.  And the art collections they house are impressive.

Dresden was the home of Augustus the Strong. He loved beautiful objects like buildings, jewels, paintings, sculptures, theaters. He bought and built like a fiend and much of it is on display in various museums. Most everything he acquired still has his initials. The frames of the paintings have his crest below and a crown on top.

One of the museums, the Grünes Gewölbe (Museum of Treasury Art) was his palace. He had a passion for over-the-top decorative objects.  How about a cherry stone with one-hundred and eighty-five faces carved into it. That is a bit of silliness. But there are, perhaps, eight rooms that were specially designed to hold his collections. Visited sequentially, each room out does the previous in lavish materials, decor and priceless objects. One room has wildly intricate carvings of amber fashioned into platters and cabinets. Another is ivory. Another has bowls and vessels carved from clear crystal. Another has complete sets of jewels. A matching ensemble--buttons, buckles, ear rings, necklaces, pins, a sword handle--of emeralds. Another of rubies. Another of sapphires.  Another of diamonds which include a double necklace with a dozen and a half huge, half-inch, teardrop-shaped diamonds. The Alte Meister Museum holds his painting collection. He bought good stuff. Breughel, Raphael, Vermeer and of course Canaletto. And the building has the best courtyard. Formal lawns, fountains and red earth paths.

Connected to the museum is the Alte Meister Restaurant. It is an elevated stone pavilion with large arches with windows. Comfortable and warm on a chilly night with candle light, soft jazz, good cocktails and great food. Our food begins with a warm tranche of goat cheese in a pool of fresh tomato ragout.  Next up, pumpkin soup with a quail filet on a skewer for Wesley. Coconut-cream, lemon-grass soup with prawns for me. After that, duck breast over roasted parsnips for Wes. And loin and belly of local Duroc pork for me. With the pork, I am drinking 2011 Riesling, (Rothenberg.  Nahe. Weingut Bürgermeister: B. Willi Schweinhardt. "Trocken, fein eingebundene Säure, Pfirsicharomen".)

In the moment.....while eating.....the first bite of the pork: perfect. Tender. Moist. Rich flavor. In a small pool of a rich pepper infused reduction. My wine, a white, is not at all minerally, it is intensely fruity, but not at all sweet.

(With apologies to Meredith. I know you are not here to slice and eat this delicious pork. To sip and swish this delicious wine. But you would really, really love it.)

The meal is over. It was wonderful. Everything prepared to perfection. The meats, tender, medium rare, juicy. A most comfortable place to land after a day of train travel and on a chilly winter October night.

During most of our stay the sky was overcast, but on our last morning the sky was clear and blue. We walked one last time across the bridge to wander in the sunlight. We walked through piles of colorful autumn leaves. We kicked them into the air. It was cold. Winter has come early. And we are excited now to get to Leipzig. To the train.


Marlow and Wes
24&25 October 2012
Dresden
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