Wednesday, 7/18/2018 Around Town
So today, Sharon and I split up, and decided to meet at the horse show. I really wanted to see the Aachen Cathedral, and she wasn’t feeling up to. Agreeing to meet in the early afternoon, I headed out towards town (on the right street this time).
Aachen is a real town. I mean that in the sense that Aachen is a place where people live, work, and call home. It isn’t a tourist town, per se. Tourism is important, but not the way it is in Paris, Vienna or Venice. It’s evident in the juxtaposition of historic buildings with more modern construction, often right next to each other. The old is important, but not as important as everyday life. Still, the buildings have same hidden courtyards that many old European buildings seem to have, nowadays housing businesses, or occasionally, a lush garden.
That said, the old town portion of Aachen is lovely. Narrow, curvy streets, cobblestones that will break your ankles, and lovey shops – but not necessarily designer. More middle class type stores. It was fun to wander. I found a terrific Belgium Choclate shop. There is nothing like good Belgium choclate. Since Aachen, although in Germany, it sits right on the borders of Belgium and the Netherlands, there is a real mixture of cultures in the town.
The cathedral is spectacular. Most are, really, but the Aachen Cathedral is special. Cathedrals were built to recreate the splendor of God on earth. Since the Aachen Cathedral is where Charlemagne is entombed, all stops were pulled out. I suggest that you google pictures of the interior. It’s unusual and spectacular.
Sharon and I have been there before, very early one morning two years ago. I sat in the scantuary, under the brilliantly painted dome, and the glittering, inlaid mosaic ceilings, and felt strongly the presence of God in the quiet. To feel God’s closeness in a place that old gives you a sense of being one with those who have worshiped in the ages before. A feeling of continuance. That may be why I love old cities, buildings and churches so much. The feeling on connection is palpable.
After my wanderings (and getting a bit lost – not totally – it’s hard to get very lost when you can see a giant steeple from everywhere!), I headed out to the old town center to catch a shuttle to the show.
Wednsday Afternoon, 7/18/2018, CHIO Aachen Horse Show
So I spent some time wandering in the vendor area. How can I possible have enough words to describe it. I looked at boots. Why can’t I need a pair of tall boots? Getting them home would be terrible and when would I wear them? But the colors, styles and materials available now are amazing.
Not only boots, but anything you can think of. Oh, and the word of the season? “Bling”, clearly. Everything is shiney. If a crystal can be put on it, it’s there. Silver or gold piping? You bet. And color. More color than I’ve ever seen in hunter/jumper land. Not only that, but some kind of unusual things as well. Here is a sampling.
Also, I saw the gentleman with the yellow hunt coat again. He was Brazilian. Since their countries colors are green and yellow, it may be his country’s colors. Who knows. But it is memorable. Also, the pictures below give you the scope of the fences. They are huge. Sharon watched Margie Goldstein Engle walk the course. She’s only about 5’, and she said that Margie only came up to the second rail on the yellow over!
After the feast for the eyes of material goods, I met Sharon at the stands, and we had a different kind of feast for the eyes – amazing horseflesh. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again now – What sets Aachen apart is the quality of horses and riders. Aachen limits the classes to one horse per rider. There are usually 50 riders or more per class. And the horses! Each horse is better than the last. These are not classes where there are 4-5 really top horses and the rest are okay. Each one of these combinations are top notch, and could win. The competition is fierce, and the depth of horses is amazing.
We watched a 125k gran Prix, then a Power and Speed class. The fences were huge. I’ve posted several pictures below of the American Riders.
A final word about the people at Aachen. The horse show is crowded. And since the weather is hot, women’s dress seems to be linen dresses, sandals and hats. I felt like I was at the Kentucky Derby! Although anything goes in the way of dress, like any other event, the percentage of women dressed up was far higher than I am used to.
The only complainant I have about Aachen, is the lack of communication about getting to the show. There are several shuttles that run, but if you don’t speak German, it’s pretty hard to know which to get on. Heaven forbid if you want to know the routes. I still don’t. Last night we got on the C Shuttle, and it took us right up to our hotel. Today, we got on the C Shuttle, and it stopped at the bus station. Most people got off, but not all. We heard the driver saying something in German, and a couple of other people got off. He then said it again, then louder. We finally figured out he meant us. Yelling at us didn’t help us to understand. So we got off, walked up one stop, got on a C Shuttle again, and it took us up to our Hotel and Train Stations. Clearly they have C Shuttles that have separate routes. Maps would be nice. There are a few others that I know of that go to the grounds. One is ‘Showpark Soers’, and another is the 51 bus. Other than that? I’m sure there are more. We will probably find out as the week goes on.
Tomorrow night is the Nations Cup. That will be fun!
Suzanne’s Travels 