FRANKFURT-SUMMER OF LOVE, RED LIGHT DISTRICT, AND RENT
While in Germany we saw a museum show and a musical that were straight from the US culture. Now I suppose it is silly to go all the way to another country to see American things, but we immersed ourselves in the German Christmas marketing system (we participated in 3 separate ones, Frankfurt, Ladenburg, and Heidelberg), and the food customs (I think one day we ate 3 knockwurst sandwiches apiece) so it is not like we ignored German things. Besides, we always look for American music and books when we travel, so American stage shows and art are not so far off. It didnt mean that we were rejecting the culture of the country we are visiting, we just werent in the mood for peep shows! More on that later.
The Shirn museum is in the heart of the restored old section of Frankfurt, and it is beautiful. There will be more shots tomorrow of this area with the Christmas market views. But the museum itself did not allow cameras into the exhibit, and the only way I got the shots that I did was by not knowing I couldnt take them! These scenes are from a large walk-in lightbox on the first floor of the exhibit. The hippy art is stuff that any of us over 40 remember from news, ads, fashion, posters, music, and just everyday living. But this show was interesting in the scope of the presentations. It seemed to have every album cover, magazine article, Fillmore poster, and film that ever concentrated on the hippy scene. I watched most of a 16 mm camera film of the first draft card burning in Central Park and it all looked so familiar, like a part of my past that was just waiting to be remembered, and I played the game of looking for people that I knew then. There were typical light shows and a colorful hippy pad platform to watch them from in case you were in a drug trance (it reminded me of a padded multi-level cat playground), scenes of experimental theater involving famous people like Andy Warhols troupe at The Factory, John and Yoko, and just plain silliness like kaleidoscope glasses to look through. All in all it was a fun time.
As we walked around town, we happened on The English Theater and were delighted to find a performance of Rent that was reasonably priced while we were in the city. So we went one evening and it was fabulous! I had seen Rent on Broadway and we owned the soundtrack and played it a lot. This performance was excellent, and I did not know until the next day when I went back to buy the program that it was not a local group but the London Touring Group. I took some set shots before the play started, being aware that cameras would probably not be allowed during the performance. So I was surprised just before the intermission as I was fumbling for a tissue when someone tapped me on the back and said, No cameras allowed! I told the person I was just getting a tissue and tried to concentrate again, but it was really strange. I wonder if she stood back there the whole performance to see if I would take other pictures?
We spent two nights in the central city before we went out to Gene and Nancys in Lampertein. The hotel was part of a package deal from Expedia.com, and all we knew about it was that out hotel was close to the central station. No one bothered to tell us that it was smack in the middle of the red light district! Yes, the sex shops and peep shows were on every corner, along with the tattoo parlor called The House Of Pain. To be fair, that is only one of its locations. It has several branches, and I vaguely remember seeing it also in Amsterdam.
But we had no problems, for downtown Frankfurt seemed to be more full of well dressed business people than any other types. Again, the bank and office buildings were quite sensational!
The Shirn museum is in the heart of the restored old section of Frankfurt, and it is beautiful. There will be more shots tomorrow of this area with the Christmas market views. But the museum itself did not allow cameras into the exhibit, and the only way I got the shots that I did was by not knowing I couldnt take them! These scenes are from a large walk-in lightbox on the first floor of the exhibit. The hippy art is stuff that any of us over 40 remember from news, ads, fashion, posters, music, and just everyday living. But this show was interesting in the scope of the presentations. It seemed to have every album cover, magazine article, Fillmore poster, and film that ever concentrated on the hippy scene. I watched most of a 16 mm camera film of the first draft card burning in Central Park and it all looked so familiar, like a part of my past that was just waiting to be remembered, and I played the game of looking for people that I knew then. There were typical light shows and a colorful hippy pad platform to watch them from in case you were in a drug trance (it reminded me of a padded multi-level cat playground), scenes of experimental theater involving famous people like Andy Warhols troupe at The Factory, John and Yoko, and just plain silliness like kaleidoscope glasses to look through. All in all it was a fun time.
As we walked around town, we happened on The English Theater and were delighted to find a performance of Rent that was reasonably priced while we were in the city. So we went one evening and it was fabulous! I had seen Rent on Broadway and we owned the soundtrack and played it a lot. This performance was excellent, and I did not know until the next day when I went back to buy the program that it was not a local group but the London Touring Group. I took some set shots before the play started, being aware that cameras would probably not be allowed during the performance. So I was surprised just before the intermission as I was fumbling for a tissue when someone tapped me on the back and said, No cameras allowed! I told the person I was just getting a tissue and tried to concentrate again, but it was really strange. I wonder if she stood back there the whole performance to see if I would take other pictures?
We spent two nights in the central city before we went out to Gene and Nancys in Lampertein. The hotel was part of a package deal from Expedia.com, and all we knew about it was that out hotel was close to the central station. No one bothered to tell us that it was smack in the middle of the red light district! Yes, the sex shops and peep shows were on every corner, along with the tattoo parlor called The House Of Pain. To be fair, that is only one of its locations. It has several branches, and I vaguely remember seeing it also in Amsterdam.
But we had no problems, for downtown Frankfurt seemed to be more full of well dressed business people than any other types. Again, the bank and office buildings were quite sensational!
posted by Sicilian Mama at 5:34 AM
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