........................................................................Had to do it, a little architectural pilgrimage to the "heart and soul" of modernism. Gropius, Klee, Kandinsky, Van der Rohe, and now Ahlberg. As I passed the Abfahrt sign at the train station, I had low expectations, picturing Dessau as a rugged industrial town and the Bauhaus being run down and dirty. So I was pleasantly surprised to see a nice un-touristy town and a newly renovated modern gem set in a nice campus setting. The sweetest part however, was I was staying in one of the dorm rooms, which was a huge studio apartment furnished with nice modern furniture and complete with its own iconic little balconies overlooking the entire town and the Saxon countryside! I took the tour which unfortunately is not offered in English, then did a water color and thought about how ahead of their time these folks were. Now I'm no die hard modernist, and honestly think that a lot of their thinking was brutal and unrealistic, but the Bauhaus building is quite nice, and the idea of bringing together all the crafts and arts under one roof was a great idea. Also went and checked out the Meisterhauser around the corner, which were not as nice. The best part of the whole experience, I must say, was the kick ass shower, best of the whole trip for sure. And I needed one bad too.
