Aaaaaaaachen

Andy and I took a 1 and a half hour train from Dusseldörf to Aachen and, according to me, it was the best day of the trip so far. Of course the old world city had charm and museums and coffee shops and cute little stores and pictures of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary hanging in the church. But what we really came to Aachen for was the thermal baths.

About a fifteen minute walk outside the center of the city, was an oasis. A large, meticulously decorated building, mixing both Roman columns with modern marble, sprung out of nowhere. Inside was better than we could have expected. There was a huge central, circular pool, along with vaulted ceilings about 70 feet high. In this large pool were other small pools jutting off for our pleasure. Included in the price of admission (only 9 euros) was a meditation room with zero gravity chairs and a slight smell of sweet flowers.

There were also outdoor pools at varying temperatures. When I say pool, also, i mean real large pools. My favorite one was the circular outdoor pool that had huge jets along the walls and every 40 minutes they would shoot out air and create a current, almost like a water track, where people could swim together, at fast rates. It was a blast. it also got a little hectic, as you can imagine, but still my favorite experience of the day.

It was never crowded and I was able to relax, really soak my muscles, and let the day pass. It was absolutely perfect. For the first time since we returned home from High Sierra, I finally felt as if I were calm. Just writing about know makes me want to spend a week in Aachen.