“To be far from the madding crowd is to be mad indeed.” (A.E. Coppard)
One of the most frustrating aspects of the lingering Corona problem for so many global minded wanderers as we are today manifests in the long term impact of international travel restrictions being enforced now and likely in the unforeseeable future. So Ruth and I in particular realize that if we are unable to soon visit the historic “old town” centers of cities like Vienna, Prague, and Munich… in person, then we should concentrate on finding places that genuinely resemble them as part of our current road trip travels.
So during week two of our present adventure, we booked a two night stopover at the Vinchester Inn in the historic town of Hermann, Missouri. Known for it’s rich German heritage, our first impression of Hermann, founded by German immigrants in 1836 seemed to confirm the authentic atmosphere of “Little Germany” we so desired. For as we ambled from our hotel the next morning along Schiller Street toward the Missouri River, we gazed wondrously at such quaint brick structures as Chalet Luzern, Hermann House Gasthaus ,Weinkeller Hermannhof, and the Inn at Hermannhof along our way. Enjoying tasty brat and sausage cuisine at Hermann Wurst House afterward would suitably fill our desired German agenda as well. After lunch, our walking tour of Hermann’s Germanic influence would continue along the south bank of the Missouri river which served as a historic transportation hub for Hermann’s citizenry so successfully in the past. For German settlers once made Hermann one of the largest wine producing markets in the world during the steamboat/railroad era of the late 19th century.
So how might I assess our one day tour of Hermann now? Overall, I sensed that merely spotting the facades of Germanic looking building there seemed somewhat dull. For with the social isolation of the Corona pandemic deepening, the lack of opportunity here of enjoying diverse human contact as we typically encounter in the big cities of Europe certainly dampened our tourist interest today. So the festive atmosphere of German music, costume, or cookery amid “Oktoberfest” or a beer hall encounter will have to wait for a real visit to Bavaria hopefully in autumn, 2021. Enjoy the following photo display.
Note: For those of you who wish to find other small towns to visit in America of strong European resemblance, click on the website below sent to me recently by my blogger friend Sherry.
Snippets of a Traveling Mind 