Went to the Royal gardens, did not see one blooming flower

Some things are just not meant to be, till later.
My Schatz and the dog made a weekend hunting excursion. So after trying to get together with relatives without luck for now, but later, I decided to visit the Royal House of Hanover, Herrenhausen Garten in Hannover.
Not now, but later was how the entire weekend went.
Saturday there were storm warnings and they were correct. High winds and rain all afternoon and evening through the night long. Thus the cat and I remained indoors.

Kimmie the cat watches the rain

I decided to go Sunday and as Christians do, start the day off with worship, at a church on the grounds or nearby the Gardens. I knew there must be a church on sight or nearby and there is Herrenhauser Kirche, Lutheran.

Schatz came home Saturday evening, since no hunting or dog search training when bad weather.
Sunday was to be a sunny comfortable 22°C day. So I went ahead with my plan on my own, Schatz and dog wanted to rest.
I got up early Sunday morning and off I went to the train station. Got there so early that I could have paid a bit extra and taken the fast train at 8:46.
 8:46 IC train, but it was cancelled, ausgefallen.

8:43  Hoping to buy a croissant and coffee at the station to eat breakfast on the train is nixed. The bakery café has still not reopened. The convenience store has no Brötchen or pasty or coffee. Since I could park on the first level of parking lot, I took the chance and drove the 4 minutes to McCafé for a much needed coffee. I made it in good time and when I got to the platform I saw the next train is not going to Hannover HBF, but only to Neustadt about halfway to Hannover.
9:04 RE to Hannover, to Neustadt, also ausgefallen.
9:12 S Bahn, is parked in another platform, so I went there and so did everyone else when the RE arrived from Bremen. That train is not going any further, everyone had to get off.   There we all stood waiting for the doors of the SBahn to open, but they remained closed. Nothing happens and no announcement. No information. Nada, nothing, nix, nutscht.

Some checked the DB website on their Handy and realized the train is not leaving the station. Soon no one was waiting at the platform for trains that aren't leaving. So I too headed down.
Remember I mentioning that DB ad about waiting for 3 minutes is too many, because at that time over ten years ago the DB was always on time?  I think about a protest breaking out, as on the ad, but people are quite calm. 
The Bahn information office isn't even open on Sundays, so what to do?
The Nienburg train station is a Schande to the Deutsche Bahn, shameful. They, the DB should do something about it, the bathrooms are locked up because otherwise vandalized, it is not kept clean, no Café. Not a good place to be stuck. So untypical of a city station.
A crowd has gathered around a Bahn personnel and he says due to the storm yesterday the stretch between Neustadt and Nienburg is not functional. Could be functional by noon, maybe earlier, he doesn't actually know.
I stayed outside with all the other people gathered by the bus station, sat on a bench, drank my coffee,and wondered how long I should wait here for the next train that might leave.
Well when you don't know what to do, follow the crowd. A bus arrived and the masses got on.  I only catch on when it is full and half are still left standing, that the DB organized this bus. I am impressed, DB to the rescue. You just redeemed yourself DB.  On the bus it says. Ersatzverkehr zu Neustadt.
I am hoping that lady that had to catch a ship in Passau this afternoon was on the bus. I don't see her anywhere anymore. Within 10 minutes another bus arrives. Before the hour is up from when the first train was to leave we are on our way.   In half an hour we are there in Neustadt train station and at 10:45 after a 30 minute delay a S Bahn comes, off to Hannover. Yippee!

***

I missed the church service, but get to the gardens in good time at 11:30. Just in time for the 12:00 and I think only tour of the Palace Museum. It was a very informative tour, started late and was 90 minutes instead of an hour.
Herrenhausen was once a gathering place for artists and scientists. Tsar the Great danced here with Electress Sophie. Georg Frederic Handel composed and played here and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz  was a regular guest in the palace and garden.  It is said he was a strong influence on Princess Sophie. There is a temple on the Georgen Garden in his honour.  

rebuilt in 2013 Herrenhauser Palace and now Congress Centre

George I of Hannover and first Hanover King of Great Britain and Ireland

In 1701 the British Parliament passed a law that the next ruler had to be of Protestant descent. Thus Electress Sophie of Hanover married to Ernest Augustus of Hanover became the next in line to the throne. Queen Anne had had 17 pregnancies with Prince George but all ended in miscarriages or the children died in infancy. The oldest child died at age eleven. How tragic.

Electress Sophie and her son George I of England are buried here in Mausoleum in Herrenhausen

 The Gardens had their beginnings in 1638 but the Grand Garden was expanded under the direction of Electress Sophie in 1666. It is the only Baroque Garden in Germany.
"The garden of Herrenhausen is my life" Electress Sophie wrote in a letter to Liselotte von der Pfalz, 300 years ago. She died of a heart attack during her daily stroll through the garden on June 8, 1714.

Electress Sophie of Hannover died 54 days before Queen Anne thus her son Elector George of Hanover became George I of Great Britain. He was the 56th in line to the throne but the closest Protestant. He was the beginning of the Hanoverian British rulers, that last being Queen Victoria. Though Queen Victoria only ruled Britain and not Hannover because a woman could not rule the Kingdom of Hannover if there were still male heirs. Thus in 1837 the joint ruling of the Kingdom of Britain and Hannover ended with the death of William IV, Queen Victoria's uncle.

In the museum gift shop, you can see the Hanover Royal Family celebrates its once British rule.
2014 was the 300 Anniversary of the German Kings that ruled Great Britain.

You can click on any photo to enlarge.

The Queen

Hannover with the British colours

 Coincidentally,  I was dressed appropriately in, red and blue and a white necklace.

if not so thick and very heavy I might have bought this book

George V King of Hanover reigned 1851 to 1866

George V made Herrenhausen Palace his permanent residence and not just summer residence. His reign ended in 1866 with the Unification of Germany, when the Kingdom of Hannover was handed to the Prussians. The palace and gardens remained the property of the Guelph family.  The Great Garden was very much neglected during this period, the family fled to Austria. George V died in Paris and is buried in St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle.

Some interesting items in the museum of this period.

1740 Sedan chair used to transport the upper class

A 1716 Family Bible, notice Jesus in a Renaissance garden in a typical Italian scenery

Magnificently ornate coffins documented the honour of a family

 

The bailiff of Schloss Ricklingen buried his son, in a family tomb in the crypt of the church.
Friderich Ludewig Voigt born 1726 died 1727 is buried in this decorated outer coffin made of lead.

At 14:00, I was hungry and tired of being on my feet. I made my way to a Café outside the Berggarten, that the info personnel tells me is more reasonably priced then the Palace restaurant. Okay so off I go, the walk is only 5 minutes he says. I have already walked 15 and am almost back to where I started and no restaurant. So I give up my search and decide to splurge. It is Sunday, I am at the Royal Gardens and I need to sit down.
The meals are expensive but fine cuisine. The Kaffee und Kuchen prices are reasonable 3,50€ for cake that is selling like hot cakes, it is coffeetime more so than lunch. I am happy that unusually late now after 2p.m. I can still get a warm meal. Risotto with Pfifferlinge mushrooms, bacon and a baked parmesan crust.  It is delicious and beautifully presented, but as all too often in Germany, over salted, the Pfifferlinge at least, so I absorb the excess salt with sour dough bread.
Just before I am about to leave I see an English speaking couple trying to ask if they can sit at the table that is not yet cleared, it is in a section where many tables are reserved. The server has to ask and of course, they can't. When they walk by my table trying to find a spot in the fully occupied other half of the restaurant, I tell them they can have my table I only need to pay.  Londoners visiting the German roots of their Royal family.  How nice. They are so very grateful and I enjoy their company while I wait to pay my bill.

The gardens here shown were restored to their full glory in 1936, only to be completely destroyed in 1943 by Allied bombs

This model in the museum and a glimpse outside the window was all I saw of the Great Garden.

During lunch, I decided I am now going to head home. After my early start and having been on my feet so long, at train platforms waiting and the long museum tour. I am done for the day. No Herrenhauser Garten visit for me. I came all this way and effort to see the baroque ornamental gardens but have no energy left to appreciate them. The 8€ ticket I bought for the admission to the Palace Museum, Great Garden and Berggarten is good all season. I can come back and see any part I missed anytime before 31st of October. That is exactly what I will do. Come back real soon.
How wonderful that I can do that, for a person of limited energy like me could never see it all in one day. 
Now I know how to get here with the RE Bahn to Hannover HBF and take the Ubahn from Kröpcke station to Herrenhause Garten stop, which is right in front of the Gardens. It is an 8 minute ( 7 stops) ride .

waiting for the street car outside the Libray Pavilion built 1817-18 in the Berg garden

Or take the S Bahn to Leinhausen Bahnhof,  as I did on the way there. From there hop on the Ubahn ( Street car at this section in the middle of the street) to Herrenhauser Garten, it is 3 short stops away,  direction Anderten or Roderbruch. This is the same direction to go back to Zentrum of the city.   Supposed to be a 15 minute walk from Garden stop to Leinhausen Bahnhof, but I am not so sure one wants to walk in this area, besides one needs to save energy for the Gardens.
 This street car STB comes every 7 minutes, even on a Sunday. On way there no time to buy ticket and would have gone the wrong way had lady not helped me out. She also thought I could use my Niedersachsen ticket for the bus. Just in case, I bought a ticket on way back since I was going further to Kröpcke and did not want any trouble. Ticket cost 2,60 Euro at automat by stop.

On the way back downtown the train passes by the Leibniz University of Hannover. A magnificent looking building and campus grounds. Looks like an extension of the Herrenhauser Garten. Who would not want to study here. I want to stop here sometime soon and just check it out. Very impressive.

Just fmi, ( for my information)I asked the DB personnel as he checked my ticket on was to Herrenhausen the second time and he said that the train ticket is valid for the Ubahn throughout Hannover. Good to know and makes sense as there was a S and U Bahn map on the S Bahn, that I took to Herrenhausen.

I arrive downtown at Kröpcke Ubahn stop and walk the maybe 5 minute walk to the HBF and am very surprised how busy it is downtown. It is full of people, like a workday but no stores are open, with the exception of the stores inside the Bahnhof, which is almost like a mini-mall. 

putting my feet up, on a map, NOT the seat and relax on the ride home

The ride home is also delayed by 40 minutes as the RE stops and waits in Neustadt to take passengers from the S Bahn. Still problems late afternoon. I don't really care, I can relax, read my brochures on Herrenhausen and muster up energy for the short drive from the station to home.

Now having heard the history of the Herrenhausen Gardens and knowing how easy it is to get there, I am ready for my garden tour sometime later, but very soon.

What a relief that I made this excursion on my own and was not trying to show a guest or guests that sights. That would have been a disaster, now it is just something else to look forward to.