Litz waited at Frankfurt train station for her friend to arrive. She had not seen Rita since ages and was glad to have finally found a good time to meet her. They would have spent a weekend together in the busy German city at a time when it was the calmest.
Rita had a tiny figure and moved with agility through the station’s crowd. Her career as a war reporter had taught her a few tricks on how to be discreet. They greeted without too many compliments and headed fast toward their hotel. The room was clean and sober. The floor was high enough. The windows didn’t face the street. They relaxed with a non-alcoholic drink and laughed at their memories together. They both switched their mobile phones to airplane mode not to be located nor disturbed and took a walk in the city centre.
None of them had been in the city before and it was exciting to explore it together. Once they reached a quiet area, they took a seat at a little fancy bar, sinking into vintage velvet armchairs, sipping filter coffee in teacups, and eating elaborated cookies with almonds and nuts. Coloured fresh flowers ornated their table. Litz had a clear view on the entrance and her friend had a clear view on all the other tables. That worked great, they didn’t even have to discuss about it.
Walking peacefully along the river, they crossed it by the popular Iron Bridge and headed to the old city for dinner. The two friends spotted a traditional German restaurant. They sat at a big wooden shared table and they diplomatically ordered flammkuchen and beer. They were both fans of decarbonization efforts rather than meat lovers. Afterwards, they enjoyed the wonderful skyline of the city at night. On one side the stunning Eurotower, on the other side the magnificent Opera.
Litz woke up early. She silently sneaked to the toilet, took a shower, and put on clean clothes. Then she left the room, giving some privacy to her friend to gather her personal belongings before checking out, as she suspected she might have a longer way ahead. She left a cute hand note on her bedside table with the meeting point.
The air was colder in the early morning. Litz found the skyline more beautiful with sunrise. She had taken away a coffee and a croissant from the closest breakfast franchising point. Not many people walked around. There were a few traces of the night. A stranger asked her in vain to have a conversation while she was crossing a beautiful park among skyscrapers. Another guy meditated on a hill in front of blooming cherry trees. A few riders were already passing by. One or two disciplined runners were already sweating along the river.
Rita joined her later during the morning. They went for shopping at the popular MyZeil. The peculiar building was very attractive and the area around it was very pleasant to walk through. They had reserved a table for an early lunch at a terrace restaurant in the nearby. While they were eating, they could see the square populating fast with Sunday morning sleepers. They didn’t have time to digest their glass of red wine. They wanted to climb the Main Tower before leaving the city.
Unfortunately, the queue was way longer than they had expected. Having a tight schedule, they had preferred to keep the weekend agenda mostly spontaneous. Discouraged, after only 15 minutes they abandoned the queue and went for an espresso.
How long would have taken to meet each other again? They didn’t know and didn’t even bother planning.
– Where are you going next?
Asked Litz, hiding her worries.
– To the border.
