Ornamental water fountain in Bern, Switzerland

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 02:25 PM PST

Originally posted on the Everything Everywhere Travel Blog. Discover great travel photos.

Monday Links and Travel Update – Wartburg Edition

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 01:41 PM PST

The last week has been a busy one for me. I was given a 2-week rail pass by Eurail.com and so I’m in the middle of a trip through Germany trying to make the most of it. I began in Amsterdam on Friday and have been on the move ever since. A big change of pace from spending two weeks in LA and one week in London.

My goal is to try and visit as many UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the region as I can in the time allotted for the rail pass. In the last four days I’ve visited 5 sites: Canals of Amsterdam, the Rietveld Schröder House in Utrecht, Cologne Cathedral, Augustusburg Palace and the Wartburg Castle. The next few days have me visiting another seven more in Weimar, Dresden, Wittenberg, Potsdam and Berlin.

Despite having been in Germany several times, I haven’t traveled very extensively here. The Cologne Cathedral was the first UNESCO site I’ve visited in the country, and they have one of the highest totals in the world: 33. For all practical purposes, Germany is a new country for me to explore. It has given me a good opportunity to brush up on my German as well. It is the only language I studied in high school.

After that I’m back to the UK to visit Wales, Northern England, the Isle of Man, Ireland and Scotland.