The joint company celebration with our colleagues from INTEGRIS took place this year in Eisenach. On Friday evening, the employees from Dresden as well as those from the concert arrived with their families in the Thuringian small town on the Rennsteig. After checking into the hotel rooms, everyone met in the city center of Eisenach and ended the evening with good food and lively conversation.
On Saturday morning, the team hiked after breakfast from the city center of Eisenach to the nearby Wartburg. The castle, located above the birthplace of Martin Luther, was built in the 11th century and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The joint ascent to the castle was occasionally interrupted by small detours to indulge in the amusing search for small plastic boxes in the woods, known as geocaching. This activity also led us to Metilstein, an old castle ruin with a great view of Eisenach and the nearby Wartburg. After reaching and visiting the castle, where Luther, according to legend, was harassed by the devil and drove him away with an inkwell, we stopped at the castle café. Following coffee and cake, the team split into one part that returned directly to Eisenach and another that chose the detour through the Dragon Gorge. The approximately 3 km long and cool, damp ravine stretches from Eisenach to the forest site Hohe Sonne on the Rennsteig and is home to mosses, ferns, rare snails, and fire salamanders - a paradise for nature and hiking enthusiasts. We spent the evening again united in the Lutherstuben in Eisenach. During the Luther feast, we were entertained by a juggler with a hurdy-gurdy and amusing sayings to conclude the typically medieval course of dishes with flambéed fruit skewers. The highlight of the evening for all football enthusiasts was probably the World Cup group match between Sweden and Germany, which was broadcast in the outdoor area. While especially the little ones were excitedly following the chase for the ball, the rest of the colleagues enjoyed the lively conversation in the restaurant.
On Sunday morning, it was time to say goodbye and start the journey home. The successful weekend in Thuringia allowed us to sit together and exchange personally with our colleagues from the Rhineland, but like the last times, it was again much too short. We look forward to seeing each other again soon.
