Darkwa in the portal

[PearlandLion]

I stayed at a hotel on the other side of the main highway from that area. Still has the old names but is now a German residential area. Doubt it's changed that much. A friend of mine (unfortunately passed) lived in Karlsruhe near another old US base. His wife was part of a team keeping up the old base library as a resource for English speakers or those who wanted to learn English--ca. 2011-2013.

My wife lived in Mark Twain Village but went to the American High School in Patrick Henry Village. We found the high school building when we visited as its now a German day care facility. There's a large NATO facility in that area near the hospital. On a football note, my wife went to school with Eric Zeier and he led the Lions to a championship before coming back to the states.

 

[Midnighter]

Worse.

She would say worse. The subtraction of several thousand Americans probably has something to do with that. The marktplatz she remembers (1980's and 90's) was pretty vibrant and exciting. I thought is was touristy and dirty compared to what I had expected. When we visited, locals told us that large portions of the Army complex were being used as housing for Syrian refugees. Nice to see it being repurposed and for a good cause.

Funny; there was a pretty good bit of resentment towards American GIs in Heidelberg when I was there (nothing too overt, but you would see some t-shirts and stickers in stores that were anti-US military). Not surprising since it is in large part a university town. Still, the businesses loved us - on weekends the bars and restaurants were overflowing with military/government folks. On Friday nights my friends and I would typically catch one of the light yellow Benzo cabs outside of Patton Barracks and hit up the faux, Persian owned Hard Rock Cafe on the hauptstrasse. The waitresses were gorgeous and always willing to do some tequila shots with us. From there we would make our way to the Irish pubs (Napper Tandy's or Sean Og's) to chat with the Brits and drink, then late at night we'd hit the places that were open past 2am but weren't supposed to be. On a good night, we'd stroll back to the barracks as the sun came up. On other nights, we'd walk to the Esso station, buy cans of pre-mixed Jack & Coke, and play NCAA Football or Gran Turismo on the PlayStation (and check to see if any female soldiers were game for some in-barracks partying...).

 

[PearlandLion]

Funny; there was a pretty good bit of resentment towards American GIs in Heidelberg when I was there (nothing too overt, but you would see some t-shirts and stickers in stores that were anti-US military). Not surprising since it is in large part a university town. Still, the businesses loved us - on weekends the bars and restaurants were overflowing with military/government folks. On Friday nights my friends and I would typically catch one of the light yellow Benzo cabs outside of Patton Barracks and hit up the faux, Persian owned Hard Rock Cafe on the hauptstrasse. The waitresses were gorgeous and always willing to do some tequila shots with us. From there we would make our way to the Irish pubs (Napper Tandy's or Sean Og's) to chat with the Brits and drink, then late at night we'd hit the places that were open past 2am but weren't supposed to be. On a good night, we'd stroll back to the barracks as the sun came up. On other nights, we'd walk to the Esso station, buy cans of pre-mixed Jack & Coke, and play NCAA Football or Gran Turismo on the PlayStation (and check to see if any female soldiers were game for some in-barracks partying...).

That's awesome! Heidelberg is at the top of my favorite cities I've visited in Germany. The castle ruins, German military cemetery, and historic buildings were incredible. Had to have been a great place to spend a few years. My wife remembers hitting the hauptstrasse when Germany won the World Cup in 1990. Must've been a fun night!

 

[Midnighter]

That's awesome! Heidelberg is at the top of my favorite cities I've visited in Germany. The castle ruins, German military cemetery, and historic buildings were incredible. Had to have been a great place to spend a few years. My wife remembers hitting the hauptstrasse when Germany won the World Cup in 1990. Must've been a fun night!

Yeah, it was pretty great (pre-9-11 and even after for the most part, but never quite as good as before...). We would run from Patton Barracks to the castle for PT or through some of the neighborhood gardens. Go along the river, across the bridge, etc. Great place to be a single soldier. Weekend trips to France, Italy, or Czech Republic were great too. I recall arriving in 2000 and Germany getting into the WC final against Brazil; people were pretty excited to say the least. But, nationalism isn't much of a thing in Germany until it comes to football I learned.

 

[kgilbert78]

Funny; there was a pretty good bit of resentment towards American GIs in Heidelberg when I was there (nothing too overt, but you would see some t-shirts and stickers in stores that were anti-US military). Not surprising since it is in large part a university town. Still, the businesses loved us - on weekends the bars and restaurants were overflowing with military/government folks. On Friday nights my friends and I would typically catch one of the light yellow Benzo cabs outside of Patton Barracks and hit up the faux, Persian owned Hard Rock Cafe on the hauptstrasse. The waitresses were gorgeous and always willing to do some tequila shots with us. From there we would make our way to the Irish pubs (Napper Tandy's or Sean Og's) to chat with the Brits and drink, then late at night we'd hit the places that were open past 2am but weren't supposed to be. On a good night, we'd stroll back to the barracks as the sun came up. On other nights, we'd walk to the Esso station, buy cans of pre-mixed Jack & Coke, and play NCAA Football or Gran Turismo on the PlayStation (and check to see if any female soldiers were game for some in-barracks partying...).

Last time there I stayed in the hotel next to the Esso station--if it's the same Esso station....

 

[PSUJam]

 

[Midnighter]

Also has offers from Fordham and Temple.

 

[PSUJam]

 

[psuro]

Good for him.

 

[LionJim]

Good for him.

Yup. It wasn't until I left Penn State that my life started taking shape. I was a mess while at Penn State, all on me, no excuses.

 

[VaDave4PSU]

We owed the Owls a DL in return for AK.

 

[psuro]

We owed the Owls a DL in return for AK.

Player to be named later.

it was Darkwa.