HEMISPHERESMAGAZINE.COM
•
MAY 2013
99
COLIN UTZ/ALAMY (GREEN U)
STUTTGART
||
THREE PERFECT DAYS
and a pot of drippings), you take the
subway to the Degerloch district to visit
the
Fernsehturm Stuttgart
,
the world’s first
TV tower built from concrete. A serious-
looking a endant whooshes you 711 feet
up in the rickety elevator, mumbling
something about a café, then gestures
for you to exit at the top. The wind up
here takes your breath away, so youmake
for the afore-mumbled café, where you
take in the panorama from a less breezy
perch. A er procuring a hot coffee and
a wedge of custardy
apfelkuchen
(
apple
cake), you gaze out over rolling vineyards
juxtaposed with the bright building
blocks of industry.
A short cab ride takes you toNordbahn-
hof and the lushexpanseof
Rosensteinpark
,
part of the so-calledGreenU. As you stroll,
the hills soon come alive with the roar of
tigers—whichmeans you’ve arrived at the
zoo and botanical garden
Wilhelma
,
where
visitors get as close to nature as they’ll
ever want to be. The black bears, accom-
modated seemingly without barriers, are
a notably arresting sight. It’s rainingwhen
you finally say goodbye to thewildlife, but
the smell of damp pinecones is pleasant,
so you wander the gardens until the
golden lamps start to flicker to life.
For your second night you’ve moved
on to the hip, modern hotel
Le Méridien
,
TOWNANDCOUNTRY
When is a city not a city?
Stuttgart’s bucolic Green U comes
close to answering this question.
Despite having some of the
world’s finest car manufacturers
on their doorstep, Stuttgartians
love to walk, and the city has taken
every opportunity to make itself
pedestrian-friendly. The core of
this effort is the Green U, a nearly
7-
mile route that runs from the
Schlossgarten in the city center,
along the Neckar River, and
through a series of parks and
gardens. Thanks to thoughtfully
placed bridges, there’s never a
need to cross a road.
The project started in the 1930s
with the aim of giving this indus-
trial city the feel of a large village,
but it also represents a journey in
the evolution of landscape design
and urban history. Highlights
include Killesbergpark, a former
quarry, andWeissenburgpark, with
its art nouveau pavilion. Locals are
also given to frequent stops at the
U’s strategically placed
biergartens.
THE YOUNGANDTHE RESTLESS
The callower-than-thou charm of Stuttgart’s Hans im Glück neighborhood
While Stuttgart has plenty of engineers and business types, it’s also home
to around 30,000 students. This gives the city a youthful edge, particularly
in the quaint, tiny enclave of Hans im Glück. The neighborhood’s clutter of
Mediterranean-style cafés and bars overflow with young people musing
about the tension between pride and authenticity in
Doktor Faustus
while
trying to set a new world record for longest-lasting beverage. It’s a fun,
lively and surprisingly unpretentious part of the city—if not an obvious
destination for those who are a bit self-conscious about their age.
NATURAL HIGHS
The spa
at the Steigenberger Graf
Zeppelin; opposite, a view
of Schlossplatz from the
Kunstmuseum Stuttgart
STROLL ON
Broad walkways
beckon pedestrians at
the Schlossgarten, one of
the jewels of the Green U
