Sunday in the Park(s)

This is the continuation of my previous post, which ended with last Saturday.

As we had already seen on Saturday how terribly busy the palace grounds were, O.K. and I decided to go somewhere else on the Sunday (27 October).

A local train took us into Stuttgart, and another few stops by tram to Höhenpark Killesberg. Killesberg is a part of Stuttgart, and its name has nothing to do with killing - it is most likely derived from the Ancient celtic word "Külle", which meant mount or promontory. It is indeed mainly located on a mount (the "berg" part in the name indicates that), and best known for its extensive and beautiful park.

Getting off the tram and arriving at the top end of the park, we had a good view of the unusually shaped viewing tower. I'd been there many years ago, but not visited the park at all since then - I'd say ten or more years back, most likely with my Mum on a Friday off or something like that.

Click to enlarge - there's the viewing tower!

As children, my sister and I would come here with our parents and grandparents. The park as such was created in 1937, lay dormant through WWII and reopened in July 1949. It was the location for various flower and garden exhibitions throughout the years, and some of the structures built for those shows and exhibitions are still there today.

The park has a lot to offer for families with children; there are playgrounds, animals such as alpacas, goats and sheep in pens, and a small funfair (not sure how permanent that one is, though - it certainly wasn't there in my childhood). For other visitors, there are many beautiful trees to admire (some of them rare), winding paths to explore and sculptures to contemplate. 

Several places offer food and drink, and a little train operates inside the park's boundaries. I was actually looking forward to a ride, but when we reached the station, the queue was so long that we agreed it wasn't that important.

I enjoyed the walk a lot, and of course the tower with its double helix stairs was a highlight. (That tower even has its own wikipedia entry - click here if you're intested.) We stopped at one of the cafés for coffee and cake and then walked back to the tram station at a very leisurely pace, even resting on one of the sunbeds for a while.

View from the tower. We later sat in that café - I can even see at which table.

Another view from the tower...

...and another one...

...one more...

...and the last one, with the small funfair at the bottom of the hill where the tower stands on.

View from the bottom of the tower.

It's very cleverly built, light and airy, making it easy to withstand strong winds because it offers little resistance.

So many paths to explore!

A mysterious little building

After we were back at Stuttgart's main station, we did not take a local train directly from there, but walked until North Station, from where we took the train to Ludwigsburg. I made that walk twice this year, as you may remember; those walks are here and here. 

It was a beautiful day in a park I visit not often enough, in spite of it not being difficult to reach, as well as walking through two other parks between Stuttgart main and north stations.