Over New Year's 2019/20 I took a trip to Europe. I wasn't planning on doing this until I found flights for $269 round trip Cincinnati to Paris (via DFW layover). A year later, I think it's about time I posted a thread of photos. I landed in Paris, but immediately left for Maastricht, going to Paris at the end of the trip.

 

I did a similar trip last year with a couple of friends. Last year I went to Munich, Prague, Vienna, Berlin, Zermatt, Thun, Bern, and Zurich. You can see those threads in the links to each city.

 

This trip was done solo except for my time in Paris, where I spent some time with a friend who booked a similar trip. I spent the nights in hostels for every city except Aachen, where I stayed with someone on Couchsurfing. I'll have a link to each city below as I upload them.

 

Maastricht, Netherlands - December 28-30, 2019

Cologne, Germany - December 30, 2019 - January 3, 2020

Wuppertal, Germany - January 3, 2020

Aachen, Germany - January 3-5, 2020

Paris, France - January 5-7, 2020
 

Map of my route

 

Maastricht 🟥

All photos taken with a Minolta XD-11 using Delta 400 B&W film

Maastricht from Fort Sint Pieter by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

I flew in and out of Paris at an interesting time. The country was under a National Strike in opposition to changes to the country's pension reform proposals by Emmanuel Macron. A majority of trains were out of service due to this. Luckily, intercity trains I booked were never canceled, so I was able to make it to my destination in Maastricht, but it was delayed several hours from when I was scheduled to depart, so I spent a few hours in the train station just waiting around. My stop in Liege wasn't until well after dark, and I didn't bother taking out my camera for the couple of hours I was there. I essentially walked around, bought some flip-flops for the hostel shower, and got a waffle. My impression of Liege was mostly that it's a car-oriented city outside of a small area in their central core whose streets are way too narrow for cars. If they were wider, I'm sure this district would be filled with cars, too. The waffle was outstanding, though. And only 1 euro.

 

I arrived in Maastricht close to midnight due to the delays, so all of my pictures are from the following day. In addition, I lost all of my digital photos of the city due to a memory card issue, so the only photos I have are from my film camera. All other cities have some digital photos. I also have no film of Wuppertal or Aachen due to a roll of film not loading properly. I was shooting my film on a Minolta XD-11. In Maastricht I was using standard Delta 400 B&W film.

 

Maastricht is an old fortress town that is now largely a college town. It was built around Fort Sint Pieter along the Maas (AKA Meuse) River. The Maas was an important route from central France to the current border of Netherlands and Belgium, pouring out into the North Sea near Rotterdam. Many of its ancient walls still stand today, and it has one of the most intact medieval walls in Europe. Below are a couple of photos of Helpoort (Hell's Gate), which is one of the original gates in the first major fortification of the city. The gate was not used very long because the city expanded rapidly, and walls further out were built. This structure was eventually used for a variety of purposes including storage for the armory as well as an apartment a long time ago.

 

Helpoort (Hell's Gate), Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

Helpoort (Hell's Gate), Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

Just beyond Helpoort is one of the oldest mills in Europe. It was built in the 7th Century and has been used to this day. A public bakery sits inside.

 

de Bisschopsmolen, Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

de Bisschopsmolen, Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

A huge system of tunnels known as the Caves of Maastricht go under the city which were old limestone mines. Eventually the city turned to an open-cut quarry to mine limestone which was more efficient, and the caves were largely abandoned. These caves were used during WWII to protect citizens during bombing campaigns and were used to protect valuable artwork and religious artifacts during the war. In the post-war years, a few people even lived in the tunnels growing mushrooms and raising livestock underground. The city recognized the health risks and safety concerns after children were reported missing in the city and frequently were found dead in the caves after getting lost. They stretch some 300km in length and are completely devoid of sunlight after several hundred feet. The fort was also left unattended. Some of walls of the fort were even partially dismantled by construction companies looking for free materials. The public tours of the caves enter a small fraction of the system around Fort Sint Pieter. I highly recommend taking the tours if you ever find yourself in the city. I didn't take any photos with my film inside the fort or caves because of the poor lighting, so unfortunately I only have a couple of photos from outside with my film camera.

 

Maastricht sits wedged between Belgium and Germany. After every war, the Netherlands has refused to cede the land of Maastricht to any occupying force, leaving it as a weird anomaly of the Dutch boundaries that stretch far from the rest of the country. From the top of Fort Sint Pieter you can see Belgium to the west and south.

 

Looking at Belgium from Fort Sint Pieter, Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

Foothills of Fort Sint Pieter, Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

Because of the extensive cave system and mining that took place, many valuable fossils of aquatic dinosaurs have been found in Maastricht. Some of the streets around Fort Sint Pieter have been named after the fossils found, including Mosasaurusweg (Mosasaurus Way). The Mosasuarus was first found in the 1760's and was one of the first dinosaur skeletons analyzed by scientists and recognized to be of an extinct species of animal. It was critical in understanding evolution, extinction, and dinosaurs. While the first known skull was not confiscated, the French did confiscate a second, more complete skull when they seized Maastricht in the French Revolutionary Wars. The original owner of the second fossil hid it from the French, but they offered "600 bottles of good wine" to the person who would turn in the skull. It was turned in by a group of people the next day. I don't have any photos related to this, but love the story.

 

As we continue we are leaving Fort Sint Pieter and heading back into town.

 

Jekerdal, Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

Jekerdal, Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

The following photos are taken from on top of one of the city walls, which have been converted into a public area to sightsee and exercise. The buildings are built into the fortifications in many locations. The outside of the walls are mostly a small ring of parks. As we continue, we will be entering the main part of the city, and the central square of the city.

 

Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

Maastricht by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

"Magical Maastricht" Christmas Market in Vrijthof Square by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

"Magical Maastricht" Christmas Market in Vrijthof Square by Ryan Lammi, on Flickr

 

Hope you enjoyed the film tour of Maastricht. Next stop is Cologne, Germany!

In B&W, it looks strangely...English.

I've spent some time in Maastricht and really enjoyed it, and learned some things I didn't know, thank you. The old city is a wonderful place, great to see your photos, and I'm sorry we didn't get to see your digital photos as well.  It's not directly on the way to anywhere, but I would encourage anyone to take the detour if they are nearby.

I uploaded the photos from Cologne yesterday, but also wanted to post a few photos I took on my cell phone of the Caves. Like I said, my camera couldn't take any photos because of the extreme humidity, but I was able to get a few with my camera phone by just wiping away the condensation with my finger before taking a photo. The Caves were one of the city's first attempts at preservation, and part of that process was a local historical society making these types of paintings in the caves to tell the story of the city, the Caves, and of the dinosaurs that lived in the area.

 

 

 

 

This last photo inside the Caves shows a map of the Caves. On the right side is a series of blue lines, and those are the only tunnels that are open to public tours. Everything else is closed entirely to the public, and goes to show you just how confusing the tunnels can be, and why kids got lost.

 

 

Also, here's a single photo of a streetscape of Maastricht from my phone.