Doing it like the Romans do

Still raining, but I had to get away for a day or two and enjoy new scenery and culture.  I headed to the ancient city of Trier.  Once known as Augusta Treverorum, it was founded around 16BCE by the Romans.   At that time the Celtic Treveri already had their home here.  Roman emperors in the coming centuries turned the city into an imperial residence, built grand baths, and made it the capital of the western roman empire.  In the 5^th century the city was conquered by the Franks, and the Romans had been long gone…leaving behind their amazing architectural feats.

                In the city, I left my vehicle behind in the “City” parkhouse.  Cost for parking for roughly five hours was 9 euros, or $12 dollars.  This is a convenient location for parking, as the old city center is a minute’s walk away.

                Already it was lunchtime, and I had read about a restaurant across the way from the Dom, that served up ancient roman fare.  Just the kind of place that I couldn’t hesitate to visit.  Called the Domstein, it has several different restaurants within.  I ventured into the cellar, where the Roman Wine cellar restaurant was located.

Wine tasting: (7,20 euro)

1.

2.        2003 trierer thiergarten unterm kreuz Riesling spaetlese (saar-ruwer) *lovely, rich aromas of honey

3.        erdener treppchen Riesling auslese (mosel) *very sweet, syrupy dessert wine

And if those delectable Rieslings weren’t enough, I had to try their special wine, considered a rarity, for the wine taster’s palate – the 1994 mertesdorfer johannisberg, beerenauslese (5 euros for 5cl)

The Roman menu I sampled was one of a few selections, as follows:

(made after ancient roman cookbook from marcus gavious apicius, 25BCE.

Mulsum – Riesling mixed with anise and honey, served in a Roman clayware jar

Mustea – wine biscuits made with flower, fat, cheese, anise seeds, and fennel, baked on a laurel leaf

Gustationes – Lukan sausages made from pigs meat, spices, and fennel

Mensa - (there were many choices of meats, and since I like a culinary adventure, I tried a popular selection of the region: deer…but more specifically, buck meat.  Named cervus assus, in cervum assum iura ferventia, it was basically a roast meat of buck, with a dreamy creamy plum and wild berry sauce…not to miss was the ever popular fennel finish

Mensa Secundae – patina de piris, a custard like dish with sliced pears

                With a heavy wine headache I walked out into a yet cloudy and rainy day at the old market square.

Beneath this is the passage leading to St. Gandolph church

                Leaving the market square is an easy sprint to the Porta Nigra, otherwise known as the black gate.  This is the perfect starting point for any tourist, as the tourist info center is there, as well as the friendly Roman Express.  The Roman express is a 45 minute tour by motorized train on wheels, in three languages.  It makes a virtual roundtrip of the city, and for $8 it is a great edge for getting a grip of what’s where in Trier.  The express passes by the famous Kaiserthermen, the roman baths erected by Constantin the great roughly 2000 years ago, as well as the house where Karl Marx was born.

                Wine tasting is an absolute must in this town, with its proximity to luscious vineyards, thriving on the Moselle river.

2006 Riesling Spaetlese

2005 Dornfelder Red Wine

Champagne with a peach Liqueur

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Things to know:

Walking 

The city is very easy to conquer by foot.  You can easily see everything within the city in a day.

-A two hour walking tour of Trier begins at the tourist center, next to the Porta Nigra, at 1:30pm. (English only Saturdays, in german the tours are daily)

-A special “gladiator” tour takes place Fridays and Saturdays @ 6pm, and 8pm, Sundays @ 6pm (cost is 9 euros)

-The Porta Nigra centurion tour begins Fridays @3pm, sat @ 1:15 and 3pm, and Sundays @1130am and 2pm (9 euros)

Driving

If you arrive here by car, your only and best option is to find a park house and leave your vehicle there.

-One ticket buys you passage on both buses and railways here, and in the region (www.vrt-info.de)

-The tourist center offers 2 hour city coach tours daily @2pm (in german) English tours at 11am and 1pm

Accomodations:

Finding a place to stay isn’t difficult.  Many of the Gasthauses are restaurant and bar on the floor level, and rooms above.  There you can find a night’s stay for (35 euros, or about $47.)  I wasn’t so lucky to find a room in a pension, as my trip was last minute, I didn’t feel like walking from hotel to hotel, and I didn’t book.