Adventures in Kassel

So, Wednesday the 3rd was German Unification / Reunification Day (I think the official name is actually Day of German Unity, but I'm not sure).  It's actually not that big of a deal here.  No traditions like 4th of july picnics, bbqs or fireworks.  But it was really nice to have the day off of work, especially to help recover from Oktoberfest :).


Anyways, so I spent my October 3 in Kassel (yes, of the "Who the Hell goes to Kassel?" fame).  One of the things Kassel is known for is the Herkules Monument in Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe.  It's basically the most famous landmark in the city.


The Herkules statue is copper, so like the Statue of Liberty, it's now completely covered in the green patina, but it still looks awesome. The statue is on top of a Pyramid on top of a stone octagon at the highest point of the park.  It was a hell of a hike, but definitely worth it.

A view of the monument on my walk from the train station

It's pretty awesome cause it was built from 1701 to 1717 (once again, according to Wikipedia - I'm too lazy to do actual research on it).  What is really cool though is that it has a water show built into it that has been going on every Wednesday an Saturday afternoon (From May to October) for almost 300 years!

Herkules - of course it was under construction, but the show still went on

It's crazy that they could even come up with things like this back then.  Anyways, October 3 was the last water show of 2012 so my awesome colleague Anna invited me to come see it with her.

According to Wikipedia, about 92,000 gallons of water are used every time.  You follow the water from the top of the cascade at the top of the stairs just below the pyramid all the way down to the bottom of the park to a lake in front Wilhelmshöhe castle where it culminates in like a 50 foot fountain.

Fun Fact: Apparently back in the day, there was a big competition to see who could make the tallest water fountain.  It was kind of a big deal and everyone tried to one up each other.  This one was the tallest for a year....or so my friends tell me.

The cascade at the top of the monument

 

 

 

 

There were a bunch of other sights to see in the park including this pseudo-medieval castle.  I say pseudo because it was built in the 1700s as a copy of a castle in Scotland or Ireland, and designed to look like what they thought a Medieval castle would look like at the time.

 

 

 

 

Overall, it was a really nice day in Kassel.