Walking through history in Heidelberg
In 2000 I was an exchange student at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto. A lot of my life ties directly back to that experience, a real turning point. For one, it is where I met my wife. I lost touch with most students on the program. One, who I will call Tee, I have kept in touch with these past few years, exchanging birthday greetings and family updates.
After wandering the southwestern German village of Dühren on a dead Sunday morning, Tee arrived to pick me up — our first time meeting in person in 25 years. We spent the day together in nearby Heidelberg, the cute little college town with a 16th century red sandstone castle on the hill overlooking the Neckar River and the valley below from a strategic (and scenic!) spot.
On Sundays most shops in Germany are closed but the narrow cobbled streets of old town Heidelberg were filled with tourists under the watchful gaze of the castle. Things were generally pretty lively. We had lunch and caught up on the last two and a half decades.
I had been to Heidelberg once before, on a decidedly less clement day back during my first trip to Germany in late 2024 (see the photos), so I knew my way around. It was nice to see things in spring weather, but we were mostly here to spend time together picking through our personal pasts.
Walking through the grounds originally constructed in the 12th century we talked a lot about board games. Tee has really got into them in the past decade, and I related my own picking up of the hobby and TTRPGs. I asked him to fill me in about Das Schwarze Auge (“The Dark Eye” in English), a German alternative to Dungeons & Dragons with a massive following… that I had never heard of until the day before (at the wedding I attended no less!?).
We walked up long curving paths, down wide stone stairs, and through the flat gardens, viewing the castle and town below from various angles taking selfies. Work was a common topic, not surprising for two middle-aged dudes. Things have been very good for him for the last couple of years. Hearing about how fulfilled he is feeling after all these years just made me feel warm inside (cf. mudita).
Back down in the town we sat for a coffee and Tee treated me to a “real” apple strudel and then drove me to Frankfurt where I was to spend my last few days in Germany. It was on his way back to his home in the northwest. We gabbered on more about board games, digital sovereignty, AI, kids leaving home, evolving marriages, health and aging — all while hitting 209 km/h on the Autobahn (a personal record for me!).
Our time was limited, but we had developed the trust of a 25-year-old correspondence, allowing us to get deep. Altogether we spent 8 hours together and never stopped talking the whole time. It was brilliant, and I think if we lived near one another we would be close friends.
Oh, and it was nice to walk through old Heidelberg Castle again too.
