102
MAY 2013
•
HEMISPHERESMAGAZINE.COM
THREE PERFECT DAYS
||
STUTTGART
In a happy daze, you take the sub-
way to Südheimer Platz, where you’re
hoping to find
Waldfriedhof
(
Forest
Cemetery). Exiting the station, you take
in the Hansel-and-Gretel houses—and
a rare splash of graffiti, which screams,
“
RUMPELSTILTSKIN!”—before joining
two kitted-out hikers on the Standseil-
bahn, the 84-year-old funicular railway
that trundles up to the hillside cemetery.
The sun slants through the trees, the birds
are singing, the neatly tended graves are
adorned with ferns—not a bad place to
spend eternity, or even a quiet morning.
Havingworkedupanappetite, youhead
back into the city. Lunch today is at the
Kunstmuseum Stuttgart
,
the cube-shaped
modern-art museum, at the top of which
is a popular upscale restaurant. You dine
on sausage and sauerkraut as you enjoy
the view of Schlossplatz, and are pleased
to discover that, even in a trendy place like
this, you still get served five sausages.
Outside, a young busker performs a
folky lullaby on Königstrasse, along which
the locals stroll in tailored wool coats and
neatlyangledscarves. Everynowandagain,
you spot a chap for whom Movember
seems to be a lifelong undertaking, but
the handlebar mustache looks refined
in this setting. Soon you happen upon
the 1,000-year-old
Stiftskirche
(
Collegiate
Church), a Gothic structure that looks like
a cuckoo clock. As you wander in behind a
stoopedold lady, youare takenabackby the
pink-and-red stained glass windows, the
gleaming organ and the steel girders, all of
whichwere installedduringa controversial
renovation a decade or so ago. Religion,
meet
Wallpaper
magazine.
Yourmindandspiritmightbenourished,
but your body isnot. Soyou take theoppor-
tunity to feast on yetmore heartyGerman
grub at
Zeppelin-Stüble
,
a typical Swabian
restaurant. It has a warm, lighthearted
atmosphere, and as you tuck into your
leberkäse,
a meat loaf topped with an egg
and roasted onions, you decide that you’re
quite fond of Stu gart.
It doesn’t seem right to end your stay
without visiting a proper German pub, so
you stroll down a cobbled street to check
out
Weinstube Kachelofen
.
As a big collie
lolls on the threadbare rug, awomanwitha
towering auburnbouffant andpenciled-on
eyebrows reels off the bar’s wide selection
of local beers in a weary monotone. Even-
tually, she brings over a fragrant Sanwald
Hefeweizen. You linger here for a long time,
sipping beer anddevising filmplots for the
oddball characters around you.
It’s late now, and you’re tired. As you
walk back along the Königstrasse, a full
moon is rising over the New Palace—but
the rotating three-pointed Mercedes star
on the station clock tower shines even
brighter, and it guides you home.
Since returning from Stuttgart,
Hemispheres
contributor
HANNAH STUART-LEACH
has
been busy working off all the sausage weight.
BOARDING PASS
From its lively
biergartens
to its one-of-a-kind museums, Stuttgart offers a
getaway to remember. United can take you there with service fromNew York/Newark—or fly to
nearby Frankfurt from its U.S. hubs in New York/Newark, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco and
D.C. and connect conveniently with Lufthansa. Before you go, remember Premier Access, the fast
lane through the airport. An earlier place in line and the opportunity to board and get comfort-
able sooner will make your trip even more relaxing.
To book your flight, go to united.com.
TIME KEEPER
The Stiftskirche clock
tower; right, spaetzle and
local Sanwald beer at
Weinstube Kachelofen
