We arrive at the Hotel Arcotel Camino in Stuttgart, weary after an action-packed day; a morning getting pierced in Paris’ 4th, a cross-country train ride, and an afternoon amongst the great Porsche’s of the last 80 years.
It is long after dark, and we have have just enough energy to trudge into the hotel, our heavy suitcases following closely behind us, clicking quite audibly against the polished floors of the very silent foyer.
This is probably a good time to mention what I love most about German hotels – the price tag. The comfortable 4.5 star hotel was a bargain for just AU$143, breakfast included. (A similar hotel in France would put you back easily triple that!) Our room is basic, but with a real double bed (not two singles pushed together), giant plush pillows, and a TV (while our Paris apartment had a TV we were too busy to have time to turn it on!), we felt completely at home.
Switching on the box we found ourselves mesmorised by Die Bülent Ceylan Show, as a troop of black-clad musicians plastered in white make-up and dressed head-to-toe as KISS stride on-stage, and proceed to belt out a German version of “I was made for lovin you” – the translated rendition is very Rammstein!
After a room-service dinner (a good variety on the menu, plus it’s available 24/7), we head down to see if we can score any DVDs. The concierge glances at us and pulls out a few romantic comedies from behind the counter. The look on my face must have been enough for him. He quickly gets rid of them and instead presents us with a copy of “Mannertrip”, the German title of “Get him to the Greek“. He is nodding eagerly, “This is a great one! Hilarious!”
We loved Russell Brand in “Forgetting Sarah Marshall“, so we give him the benefit of the doubt.
He wasn’t wrong. In short, it was a total shrag, the perfect ending to a night in Stuttgart.
Well rested, we woke up to a buffet breakfast in the bar of the hotel (open til 2.00pm on weekends for late-risers), complete with a counter-top of hard liquor.
Gotta love Germany.
Enjoyed this post? Read the next post from this series: “A Honeymooner’s Guide to six weeks in Europe” now!