Guess this photo - April 2017

[Ian Sutton]

Do you think that bit in front of the "podium" is for cars? I thought it was a field, but now that I look more carefully I see it is part of the track - but for runners I think.

Slightly related, we were once invited to a meal at the RAC club in London. That club has a tradition of having an impressive car on display in the foyer (they have to take the doors off to get the car in/out). On that day it happened to be the F1 Red Bull car of the recently crowned world champion Seb Vettel. Odd to see one up close after watching the sport on and off for many years.

 

[Colo]

My bet is Seb Vettel has been here since it is not far from his birthplace, but I doubt if he ever drove on the track. (the statement in red is incorrect)

I stand corrected, in fact Seb Vettel did drive on the track and was the winner.

 

[Colo]

Here is a hint. If you could jump into a time machine for August 1909 you would have been amazed to see an airship in the field.

 

[Ian Sutton]

I'm not sure the clue gets me any closer, so guessing the two I know - Hockenheim or Nurburgring

 

[chachalaca]

ooh, keep guessing everyone! I love this game and seeing how intelligent everyone is!!

 

[Colo]

Well Ian it is not - Hockenheim or Nurburgring, but going back to Seb it was 2004 and the BMW Jr Championship he won. Maybe if I turn the camera around and look at the podium it may help everyone see the ugly.

The young man on the podium is from Russia and he just graduated from the University with a degree in history. He had to come see the place he studied about. It was his first time out of the country.

 

[JustTravel]

Can it be Motorsport Arena Oschersleben?

 

[Colo]

JustTravel it is not the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben.

I think everyone may be focusing on what it is not what it was.
Looking back over the posts, I think this is what is known…

a) We went from a beautiful place (Saint-Pierre de Beauvais) to a Place that was ugly where there was a podium in disrepair. I wonder how things got so ugly in this place.

b) I did credit Ian that it was an historic venue… but I did not say that it was a historic racing venue

c) Pauline was quick to pick up on the white buildings… or towers

d) At some point the place became a race track and sports field

e) We learned it was not far from Seb Vettel’s home (birthplace) - Not far to me is 2 or 3 hours

f) Vettel won on this track in 2004 as the JR BMW Champion

g) In 1909 an airship (what did they call them in Vettel’s home country) land in the field

h) The final clue I gave would cause one to wonder - Why would a young history major from Russia and American Tourist be drawn to this place, which by the photo is old and crumbling and suffering from a lack of care?

Next Clue:

The place has also been called a Cathedral, but not like any church I have been to. And like Saint-Pierre de Beauvais it had one heck of light show.

 

[Katt B]

Ugly indeed, Colo. It's the Nazi parade grounds in Nuremberg. We visited there last year

 

[Colo]

Katt B you are correct!

The podium in the picture over looks Zeppelinfeld in Nuremberg, Germany. On this piece of concrete mankind arguably reached a nadir, while being watched by evil himself.

Not much remains of the original structure today, having been partially destroyed by US soldiers in 1945, and then time and neglect has taken its toll.

It has been called the Cathedral of Light, but in fact was a place of darkness.

The large fields were used by an American Overseas school after the war as sports fields up into the 1990s, and the road that so many soldiers goose stepped in parade became the track for Norisring street races. Seb Vettel was the JR BMW champion in 2004 with 18 victories in 20 races. One of which he finished in front of this podium.

I visited this site a few years ago, and stood on that podium. I could not hear the race cars of days gone by, or the screams of kids playing on abandoned sports fields, but the presence of evil was prevailing. The experience left me weak and confused with illusions of 1000s of soldiers in front me – such an ugly place. A major restoration to preserve the ruins is underway - lest we forget some of our darkest days!

For more information on the restoration and why, check out: Zeppelinfeld – A Place of Learning

Katt B - You are up!

 

[Katt B]

Excellent description, Colo! Such a chilling but important place to visit.

Now back to something lovely -- the animal heads on this famous fountain have a beautiful iridescent glaze. Where is it?

 

[Colo]

Are we still in Germany?

 

[Katt B]

No, not in Germany. The re-purposed building in the background may provide a clue on which direction to go. This town is known for its glazed porcelain and ceramics, and especially for its unique iridescent glaze:

 

[Pauline]

Beautiful! I love those green colors.

@Colo - what an interesting choice that was. Hard to believe what it looks like now, but it is good that it was not kept as a monument.

 

[Colo]

Agreed the colors are amazing, but it is the tower in the background I keep focusing on.

It looks like the one in Vienna, but that did not sit on a hill. The top kind looks like the on in Munich, but it is not Germany. I wish I knew something about porcelain but I fall very very short in that category.

 

[Ian Sutton]

Reminds me a little of Portugal, but more likely somewhere in Turkey?

 

[JustTravel]

Zsolnay, in Hungary? Never been; I have only been in Budapest in Hungary years ago.

 

[Katt B]

JustTravel, you're close enough! It is the Zsolnay fountain in Pécs, Hungary. Your turn!

By the way, the domed building in the background is a former mosque from the Ottoman era, now converted to a church. Pécs is a lovely city. The Zsolnay porcelain museum is a real gem.

 

[JustTravel]

Church and city?

 

[JustTravel]

Another inside photo of this church -