Kurgast: Aufzeichnungen von einer Badener Kur

A weary traveler in his forties, plagued by gout and a nagging sciatica, arrives in the historic spa town of Baden. From the moment he steps off the train, the scent of sulfur‑rich waters and the gentle hum of the bathhouse invite him into a world where physical discomfort meets a peculiar kind of contemplation. He frames his stay as a laboratory for “bipolar” thinking—an effort to smooth the sharp angles of aging with soft, hopeful illusions.

Among the other “cure‑seekers” he encounters a cast of characters equally bent on easing their aches, each displaying a blend of skepticism and quiet reverence for the curative rituals. The narrator’s voice is witty and self‑aware, oscillating between philosophical musings on Nietzsche and the everyday absurdities of communal bathing. Listeners are drawn into his deft balance of humor, melancholy, and a yearning for a rounded, gentle life amid the steam‑filled corridors of the Kur.