Heiliger Bim Bam! Alt

Heiliger Bim Bam! Old

On our recent visit to Trier, we were inspired to operationalize variations of  “old”  (e.g., “That is an old fountain,” or “Our old hotel is charming,” or “We’re crossing the old bridge.”).  Here is the non-scientific, but useful operationalization scheme we devised:  “old”= about 250 years, “really old”  = about 600 years, and “Heiliger Bim Bam! old” = more than 2000 years.  Trier is a “Heiliger Bim Bam!” town.  By the way, “Heiliger Bim Bam!” is the nifty and highly amusing translation of “holy crap” (or “holy cow” if you prefer). 

The town legend is that an Assyrian prince, Trebeta, founded Trier about 2,000 years before Julius Caesar showed up.  One of the buildings on the pretty main square has an inscription that reads “Trier existed 1,300 years before Rome.  May it enjoy eternal peace.”  Trier was taken over by the Romans in the 1^st century B.C. to become the second largest city in the Empire; in the late 3^rd Century, its population was 90,000, about what it is today. Trier is located in the gorgeous Moselle river valley; it has easy access to neighboring lands for trading; and, as the crow flies, it really isn’t that far from Rome.  Clearly Trier was (and still is) a happenin’ place. For a well-written, enjoyable history lesson on Trier, please check out this site:  http://www.germanlife.com/Archives/1997/9704_01.html.

One Heiliger Bim Bam! location we explored for several hours was the Kaiserbath (one of three Roman baths in the town).  The excavation covering the space of about four football fields is beautiful; we were able to see and walk through all the areas, including the tunnels that housed furnaces, pools, dining rooms, and passageways.

Another Heiliger Bim Bam! site we enjoyed in Trier was the gate to the city (the Porta Nigra) – a 100 foot tall structure, still in remarkable shape (including the exquisite reliefs on the interior walls).  As a matter of fact, according to the previously mentioned website, the Porta Negra is second only to the Pantheon as the largest Roman public building to have survived. 


The Cathedral of Trier is fascinating because it is all of the following:  Heiliger Bim Bam!, really old, old, and new.  It was founded in 329, then it was remodeled and expanded several times over the centuries (including a major sprucing up in 1512), and then rebuilt after sustaining severe bomb damage during WW II.  These views are from the inner courtyard.

Universität Trier is both “really old” (founded in 1483 and dissolved in 1797) and brand new.  In 1970 the university reopened and relocated to the hills, about a 15-minute bus ride from the center of town.  The juxtaposition of the Heiliger Bim Bam! antiquities in town with the 1970s modern university is intriguing and intellectually inspiring.  We relished the beautifully landscaped campus and the pleasant students, staff, and faculty who are lucky enough to spend their days on the wooded hill overlooking Trier and the verdant landscape dotted with vineyards and Roman ruins.

Travis persuades students to study in America's heartland.

Our dear host, Carsten, takes us on a campus tour.