Invitation to Germany 4 of 7
Most stores in Germany close at noon on Saturday, except for the first Saturday of the month when they are allowed to stay open until late afternoon. Some communities re-open their stores Monday morning, and others at noon. Except in certain tourist locations, only gas stations, restaurants, and hotels are open on holidays or over the weekend. For RV travelers the weekend grocery shopping should be completed first thing Saturday morning. In 1996 new laws were proposed, and some were passed, that would permit longer open-hours for stores, but the newspaper article that recounted this announcement, stated that unions and some of the workers, were hoping to over-rule at least some of these changes.
Different areas have their own rules or traditions concerning closing the stores for lunch and a nap in the middle of each day. The larger the city, the more likely stores won’t close, and we don’t remember any city where the really large department stores closed for lunch. Do check the local custom before planning a shopping expedition at mid-day, or on a weekend.
%WÜRZBURG
It seems each time we visit Würzburg it is cold and raining, except for one Sunday, and that time many of the city streets were closed for a vehicle race of some kind. Never did find if it was an auto race, but maybe it was motorcycles or bicycles. The race didn’t go right through downtown, so we did get to drive and park and walk around and enjoy the city.
The palace-like building, called the Residenz, is the largest Baroque palace in Germany. (“Residenz” is the name given to the palace that was the principle place of residence of a king or a prince.) Inside is a huge marble stairway, and the Emperor’s Room displays the splendor of colored marble columns and statues, and walls with Baroque decor.
Der Dom (Cathedral) of Würzburg was first built in the year 788. It was burned and rebuilt in the mid-800s, and several more times in the following centuries. Finally the Dom was bombed and reduced to a shell on March 16, 1945. (Jim’s 17th birthday. There’s no connection, but a little extraneous trivia never hurts. He spent his eighteenth on a troop-ship in the harbor at Singapore.) In February 1946, while reconstruction was underway, much that had remained, collapsed. It wasn’t until 1967 that the rebuilt cathedral was consecrated. Next door, Neumünster, a 1700s church, is a fine example of Baroque architecture.
The sculptor, Tilman Riemenschneider, called The Master of Würzburg, moved here in 1483, and is perhaps Würzburg’s most famous “favorite son.” Two outstanding examples of his carvings are the monuments of Prince Bishop Rudolf von Scherenberg (in the Cathedral of Würzburg) and of Marshal Konrad von Schaumberg (in the Marienkapelle at Würzburg). His sculptures have a melancholy flavor, and his splendid altarpieces at Creglingen and Rothenburg, the tomb at Bamberg, and the statues in Würzburg are considered treasures of Franconian art.
We find it interesting that the general layout of Praha, Tschechoslowakei (Prague, Czech Republic), and Würzburg have much in common. The following paragraphs describe a portion of each of the two cities, and in our library, drawings made a couple of hundred years ago, confirm the similarities.
The Main River flows through Würzburg and is crossed by the Mainbrücke, a bridge decorated with Baroque statue groups. On the east side of the river, the downtown area bristles with towers and steeples of several churches. On the west side of the river and high on the hill, is Festung Marienberg (Marienberg Fortress).
The Vltava River flows through Prague and is crossed by the Charles Bridge, a bridge decorated with Baroque statue groups. On the east side of the river, the downtown area bristles with towers and steeples of several churches. On the west side of the river and high on the hill, is the Prague Castle with the beautiful St. Vitus Cathedral in its courtyard.
MAIN VALLEY VINEYARDS
The Main River curves south from Würzburg, and then bends north a few miles to the east. Dozens of enchanting villages are located along the Main River in the wine country south of Würzburg. A few will be mentioned, and others can be discovered during a drive along the river. Towns or villages are on both sides of the river, and the bridges and ferries encourage crossing from one side to the other.
%EIBELSTADT
The stone gate near the Main River has chiseled dates and marks showing the height of many floods this town has suffered over the centuries. The years shown (some with day and month) are 1595, 1633, 1682, 1784, 1830, 1845, 1870, 1871, 1876, 1909, 1920, 1976, 1978, and 1982. Makes us wonder if there were long periods without high water, or if they just didn’t keep score all that carefully. It would seem someone should take action to see the town doesn’t flood again.
%SOMMERHAUSEN
A small walled hamlet or Dorf, with a town hall built in the 1500s, Sommerhausen is certainly an interesting scene. A theater is built into one of the towers over a town gate, and if we tried to describe this village in twenty-five words or less, we would swear we had already been here. When we are in Sommerhausen, if we wish for a change of seasons, we just cross the bridge to Winterhausen.
One year, instead of a bridge, we found ourselves (with the RV) on a tiny ferry boat, with just room for two or three vehicles. As we crossed the Main River a wedge of swans swam with the boat, expecting, and getting, plenty of stale bread from Emmy. Who told them she would be there?
%MARKBREIT
We must have visited a thousand fortified towns, villages, and cities in Europe that have, or at least had, a wall and city gates. At Markbreit we found the perfect town gate — no other compares. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but in this case a visit is worth a thousand pictures, the video is priceless.
As we walked to the town from the parking lot along the river, the first view of the Maintor (Main for the river, Tor means gate), is of the Renaissance building/bridge that is also the picturesque Rathaus. As we continued under the scalloped arch, the gate became a bridge over a small stream. From inside the town, we turned to see another view of the buildings that crowd around the town entrance.
For another view (perhaps the best), we turned left just before reaching the gate, and walked a long block to the next bridge that crosses the little stream. When we turned and looked towards the Maintor, to our left is a group of stone houses built as a wall along the stream. Directly in front is the Renaissance building-bridge that includes the Maintor and Rathaus, with windows and a clock in a rounded gable, and a spire on the very tip of the roof. On the right are several Fachwerkhäuser (little crooked timbered buildings) that dangle over the stream. Now just ignore those TV antennae — we said this was the best town gate, but after all, these citizens must watch “Dallas” and the “Denver Clan” (Dynasty).
We retraced our steps to the gate entrance, continued to the right of the Maintor and stood on the little pedestrian bridge. With weeping willow trees in the foreground and a tall round tower to our right, a completely different view of these old buildings was before our eyes. This is one for the book — the most incredible city gate we’ve found anywhere in Europe.
While on a cruise ship in the Black Sea, Jim was describing Markbreit to some new friends. A lady nearby was just beaming, then we found she was a resident of this little city.
%SULZFELD
One of our favorite villages is Sulzfeld, encircled by a wall with twenty-one towers. Several times we have parked next to the river, and walked around the town, just inside the wall. The towers have been carefully maintained, and several appear to be lived in — except they don’t seem large enough for more than a small room. It’s our guess that people may have adopted a tower and taken responsibility for its well being, but maybe some really are lived-in.
While walking around inside Sulzfeld’s wall one year, we met an economics teacher and his daughter from Bielefeld, a town southwest of Hanover. Each year he comes here to taste and select a supply of table wine. For a few years he lived in nearby Sommerhausen, so gave us information about some towns we may not have visited otherwise. We gave him tourist information about a wine growing area (the Alsace in France), and he said he would visit there later in the year.
One year a lady invited us to visit her home later that day — but first she had to catch a bus and keep an appointment in Kitzingen, a few miles north of here. We had already called Cousin Toni in Mettlach and told her which day we would be “home” and for reasons we will never understand, we did not accept the lady’s invitation.
We could have called Toni and told her we had changed our plans, and there would have been plenty of time to drive the lady to her appointment, then visit in her home. The result would have been a new acquaintance and more information about this lovely old town and its inhabitants. But sometimes on the spur of the moment, things just don’t work out as we would have liked.
Wonderful and stimulating “chance” meetings have occurred in several countries, and it’s a shame to have missed this one. For example, a Polish family we met in Wien (Vienna) in 1980, escaped from Poland the following year, during the Solidarity problems. With our help they moved to Los Angeles in 1981, and have been US citizens for several years. In 1985, while in Warsaw we met a family from Gdansk, Poland. In spite of the 10-million to one odds against reciprocal visits, they have since spent a night in our home in California, and we visited their home in Gdansk. It’s easy to become friends with the people in the next campsite, almost impossible to do with people in the next room in the Ritz or Hilton Hotel.
Twice we visited the boutique in Nice, France operated by the French couple we met in Tangiers, Morocco, and one year they entertained us in their mountainside condominium overlooking the city of Nice. We have twice visited in the Grasse, France home of Renie, the lady who interpreted for us at Oradour sur Glane, France.
And remember Elizabeth and Axel, a few pages back? Emmy’s sister Hannah met them as they were on vacation in Chicago, many years ago. Hannah’s neighbor, Bill, was on the subway, on his way home when Axel asked for directions. Bill said, “Come home with me and meet my wife, she’s painting.” They did, and were surprised to find Emily was not painting a picture, she was painting the kitchen walls. Bill invited his German-speaking neighbor, Hannah, to meet their new friends, and help with the translation. As a result Hannah visited Axel and Elizabeth in Nürnberg several times; we’ve been there twice. Our address book contains a score of European friends.
Chapter 17
Rothenburg to Augsburg
THE ROMANTIC ROAD
Beginning in Würzburg, The Romantische Straße (The Romantic Road) leads through serene valleys and the rolling countryside to link Rothenburg, Dinkelsbühl, Nördlingen, and Augsburg, with the Bavarian Alps, and Füssen, 220 miles to the south. One suggested route goes from Würzburg to Tauberbischofsheim, Bad Mergentheim, and on to Rothenburg; another goes south from Würzburg along the Main River (through the little towns mentioned earlier), then to Rothenburg.
We hope there is time to explore both, but if time is limited we suggest the little towns along the Main should have first priority. In our opinion, they are the most appealing of these two options.
%ROTHENBURG
Each time we approach Rothenburg ob der Tauber (on the Tauber River), Emmy wonders if it can really be as delightful and captivating as she remembers from our last stay. On our several visits so far, she has yet to be disappointed. People who stop by Rothenburg, leave with the impression they have just discovered the consummate little German town. It was the location where MGM filmed the “Grimms Fairy Tales,” and it looks as if, just maybe, it really was built by elves.
Rothenburg is completely walled, and is approximately the shape of a pork-chop, with the bone pointing south. Just over the wall on the south and west side of town, there’s a sharp drop into the Tauber River Valley. Rolling countryside with farmlands and villages, border on the east and north.
Tourists are permitted at many places on the walkway at the top of the wall. Much of the wall has a roof that protected the guards who walked guard duty in days gone by, and the tourist who walks tourist duty today. In addition, the roof protects the wall from the weather, and will extend its life and reduce maintenance costs.
The town wall includes at least thirty towers of one size or another, about a half-dozen gates for vehicles, and several more for pedestrians. There are several parking lots just outside the wall and if we ever look for a place to park and traipse through a town, this is it. Parking places for automobiles are available inside the fortifications if too many other tourists didn’t think of that first.
The drive (or walk) into town through the Klingentor (tor means gate) leads to an archway built right through the St. Jakobs Kirche, the largest church building in town. Inside the church, its principal work of art, the Heiligblutaltar (Altarpiece of the Holy Blood, The Lord’s Supper), is a huge carved wood altar created by Tilman Riemenschneider in 1504.
The Marktplatz, and the Rathaus with a tower that’s a must to climb, are in the center of town. Jim will climb most anything and has climbed this tower at least three times. Emmy will climb only on special occasions, and this tower she enjoyed. We entered the Rathaus from the Marktplatz and climbed the wide circular staircase in the tower. After a few flights of stairs, we walked across a couple of large rooms and discovered a traffic light that glowed green or red, depending on how many tourists were ahead of us. The rest of the climb is up several flights of narrow wooden stairs, and then finally we climbed a short ladder, crawled through a small door, and onto the narrow walkway (with banister) around the very tip of the copper-plated tower roof. Dress appropriately and don’t expect to look too graceful as that last ladder is negotiated. But don’t be scared, it’s really not so difficult.
Of course we had to wiggle backwards through that small door, then back down that same ladder when we were ready to leave. But everyone will agree the rooftop views, the town-wall with its towers and gates, and the countryside beyond, make the climb well worth the effort.
Next to the Rathaus is the Ratsherrntrinkstube, or The City Councillors’ Tavern. During the Thirty Years War the city was treated with mercy because the Mayor was able to drink three-and-one-quarter liters of wine at one gulp, as demanded by General Tilly, who had captured the city. The Mayor then reportedly slept three days and nights. On this building’s wall, the two main characters of the “Meistertrunk, The Master Gulp” appear in the windows on the right and left of the town clock several times each day.
And yes, just a block away there is a restaurant with a very special filigreed, gilded, decorative wrought-iron sign extending over the sidewalk, with small Golden Arches conspicuously displayed. How do we explicitly describe these intricate signs that are perpendicular to the store, hanging out over the sidewalk? Often they are of delicate design with exquisite detail, and may be several feet in either dimension. They are found throughout Germany, and may include the store name and perhaps an indication of the product. We were surprised that the German language did not include a special descriptive term for these beautiful store-front advertisements. We know we haven’t seen a more charming Golden Arches anywhere.
It is amazing what we can learn from tourist brochures. The one entitled “Rothenburg, Worth seeing, Worth knowing,” says “Year 1400, Period of glory under Lord Mayor Toppler.” The very next line says, “Year 1408, Lord Mayor Topple dies in the prison of the town hall.” Just the facts, Ma’am.
While one brochure states, “Rothenburg suffered little damage in any war,” this brochure says, “1944, A bombardment destroys 40% of the old town.” We have a pile of literature about this beautiful city that doesn’t mention WW II, but we’ve seen a travelogue on TV that showed the extensive damage suffered from that bombing. The damage has certainly been repaired, and during our several visits to Rothenburg, we’ve seen no sign of the ravages of war.
It’s really very easy to suggest what to see in Rothenburg — see it all. As we walked down the hill from the Marktplatz, we recognized what is probably Germany’s most photographed Spitzhäuschen (crooked narrow half-timbered little pointed-house), called the Plönlein (little place). Along with all the tourist photographs, it has been featured in TV commercials shown in the US. Each time we were here, our photos of this pointy-house always included cars, motorbikes and people. One time as Jim approached this corner, he noticed that if he could wait for a few seconds that last car would disappear and at last, a “clean” photo. He stepped into the street and stopped the cooperative traffic behind him and got that perfect picture, except — what a let down, it has no character. All that effort, and it’s obvious that people and things “do a picture make.”
If possible, be sure to spend an evening in charming Rothenburg. After sunset, floodlights illuminate the Rathaus, the Plönlein and several of the city gates. Another one of those “not-to-be-missed” wonderful vacation escapades. It’s spectacular, both day and night.
Sometimes we wonder if the local residents ever spend time as a tourist near their home, or in nearby parts of their own country. Emmy’s Cousin Klaus, who lives in Heusenstamm, just east of Frankfurt, had never dropped by Rothenburg or Marktbreit until we talked him into driving there one Sunday afternoon.
%DINKELSBÜHL
This medieval town, about twenty-five miles south of Rothenburg, was founded in the late 1100s, so it’s not an old town compared to others along the Romantische Straße. Dinkelsbühl was almost destroyed in the Thirty Years War (1618-1648), but it is now a well-preserved town with architectural delights well worth a stopover. The church of St. George has a Romanesque tower, and the interior is a Gothic hall church with the ceilings of the side aisles the same height as the center nave. A statue of the Virgin was created by a student of Riemenschneider.
The complete city wall includes twenty towers and gateways. We walked up flights of stairs in one gate-tower to look over the town, and found part of the tower was someone’s home. The Deutsches Haus, situated on Martin-Luther-Strasse, was built in the 1400s, and with its painted and carved façade, is an excellent example of Renaissance architecture.
Our campsite was on high ground just north of town, and permitted a view of the lighted walled town after dark. The next morning we were happy to buy some plain ol’ Kraft American cheese in one of the stores. When we are on a three to six-month trip we do appreciate any taste of home we can discover. We have asked German tourists what they miss most when they travel in the US, and it is almost always “… das Bier und das Brot.” (the beer and the bread).
%NÖRDLINGEN
Aero-photos show that Nördlingen is built in a nearly perfect circle, and is enclosed by a two and a quarter mile Stadtmauer (town wall). Three of the fortified gateways and towers are topped by helmet-shaped roofs. Perhaps the nearest to that aerial view is seen from the Flamboyant steeple of the St. Georgs Kirche that rises 292 feet, right in the center of town.
%DONAUWÖRTH
By the time the Donau (Danube) gets to Donauwörth, it is now wide enough to accommodate small boats. In the Rathausplatz (City Hall Square), and along the Reichsstrasse, there are stores with jagged, or steep, or rounded façades, and of course an old church tower with a town clock.
%AUGSBURG
This Roman city, founded in 15 BC by the family of Emperor Augustus, is among the most ancient in Germany. We walked along Maximilianstrasse and observed the many different styles of homes and mansions built by wealthy residents during the Renaissance (1300s to the 1500s), and the unusually large fountains located in the middle of the street.
Some of Augsburg’s church spires are built in the Bishop’s Mitre style, and others are topped with a modified onion dome. St. Ulrichskirchen and Heilig Kreuz Kirchen (Holy Cross Church) each consist of both a Catholic and a Protestant church sharing the same building.
In the late 1400s, two Augsburg families controlled the world’s trade and money. Jakob Fugger the Rich, built a “quarter” to shelter the town poor, and in the Fuggerei, even today, the eight streets lined by 66 gabled houses are enclosed by four gates that are closed every evening. The Fuggerei protects citizens in need as it always has, and they are charged only nominal rent.
One book tells the story of the Italian travels of a member of the Fugger Family. A German Bishop, he sent a servant ahead with instruction to label the best wine he found as “est.” (“is” in Latin, Vinum est bonum; the wine is good.) The servant found a wine so good he labeled it “est, est, est.” Herr Fugger enthusiastically agreed and drank so much of it that he died. No better publicity could befall a wine in those days, and wine from Montefiascone still clings to the legendary name, “Est, Est, Est.”
Usually a city celebrates a famous “favorite son” who was born in that city. But here, while Leopold Mozart was born in Augsburg, his more famous son, Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart (better known as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) was born in Salzburg, and buried in Vienna, Austria. So perhaps the “celebration” is for both of them.
The Mozarthaus and the Augsburger Mozartsommer (summer festival), testify to the close tie between Mozart and Augsburg. This is the seat of the Deutsche Mozartgesellschaft (German Mozart Society) which celebrates with the Deutsches Mozartfest (festival) every two years.
Although not nearly as exciting (to us) as the Maintor in Marktbreit, the Rotes Tor (Red Gate) in Augsburg is a group of fortified buildings built in the 1500s. Opera is presented in the 2,500-seat open air theater at the foot of the tower. As in many other old cities, Augsburg’s Christkindlesmarkt is celebrated in the Rathausplatz from the end of November until Christmas.
One year when we visited Augsburg, we tried to locate a neighbor’s son who was stationed at the nearby US Army base. After several phone calls we located the wife of a First Sergeant with the same last name. She insisted we wait in front of the local McDonald’s, she would come and get us, and try to locate our friend. We declined with thanks, and when we got home found that Roger had been transferred between the time we left home with his address, and our arrival in Augsburg.
Chapter 18
Braunschweig Area
THE PEOPLE AND THEIR LAND
The towns and cities, and indeed the countryside in northern Germany really does look different from the rest of the country. At first we thought maybe the buildings looked different because so many had to be rebuilt after WW II, but when we see older buildings and pictures from earlier years, it’s obvious they just built in a different style in this part of Germany.
It would be nice to be able to describe the difference in the people and their land, but although we “feel” and “see” a difference, we have not read a description, nor can we really describe that shade of difference. It is perhaps similar to the difference that exists between, for example, the Northeastern and the Southwestern United States. Not a major difference that will make the people incompatible and contentious, but a shade of difference that adds character and interest to both the people and their land.
When people say the US is “… one nation, indivisible … ” consider the few similarities and the many differences between the Maine lobster trapper and his home and way of life, and that of the cowboy in Montana, with the home and way of life of the people who live on the mountain-side of Beverly Hills in Southern California.
In various parts of Germany and the US (and of course most other parts of the world), people have a similar desire for peace and freedom, and all those good things. But when we consider their daily life, and when we see their homes and where they shop and how they dress and how they get from one place to another, and even how they walk down the street and how they talk, we wonder what they really have in common with their fellow countrymen in other parts of their own country.
%BRAUNSCHWEIG
Situated near the Autobahn to Berlin, Braunschweig is a rather stately city, and of course the birthplace of “Braunschweiger Liver Sausage,” a sausage with a special blend of herbs and spices that is, in Emmy’s estimation, the best there is.
The Burgplatz is the real center of the city. The cathedral, a palace, and half-timbered houses surround the square, and the Löwendenkmal (Lion Monument) sits in the center of the square. Bordering the Altstadtmarkt (Old Town Market), and dating from the 1200s, are two remaining buildings of the Altstadtrathaus (Old City Hall) with stepped gables, and other examples of half-timbered and carved buildings from 500 years ago. Built in l408, the Marienbrunnen (Madonna fountain) with its three lead basins, is located in the center of the marketplace.
In 1991 after the Berlin Wall came down, we were touring the Dom (Cathedral) in former East Berlin. The people standing next to us were from near Braunschweig, which for 40 years was very close to the border between West/East Germany. They expressed their relief and joy that they no longer feared invasion from the East. Their home was almost on the border, they were sure they would be among the first overrun and perhaps killed, if war had started at any time.
Farmland in this region of Germany produces excellent crops of sugar beets and market gardening, and the local canning industry supplies much of the food canned in Germany.
In 1985, while the Berlin Wall still stood, after returning from a trip to Yugoslavia, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and a drive across East Germany, we arrived in Braunschweig in need of gasoline and a place to spend the night. When we stopped for gas, Jim noted that the “mini-mart” at the gasoline station contained more calories than a supermarket in Warsaw or Prague. Perhaps not as many pounds of food, but cookies, cakes, candy, and other goodies were piled high. We didn’t want to buy any of those things, but it really felt nice to know we were where all this was available to anyone who wanted to buy — and without standing in a long, long line.
After our drive from Poznan, Poland, we were tired. It had taken about three rainy hours to drive the 100-plus miles from Poznan to the East German border; three hours to overcome the bureaucratic morass and cross the 100-plus feet of the bridge over the Oder River at the border with East Germany; another three hours driving across East Germany; a half-hour for the border crossing from East to West Germany; then on to Braunschweig. By then it was late and dark and raining. Not the conditions under which we like to look for a place to spend the night.
Since we had been here before, we “knew” we could find our campsite destination easily and get a good night’s sleep. We were half right. We found the campsite OK, but it was closed for the season. All we got for our effort was a slight bite on Jim’s leg by the big German Shepherd that actually crashed through the restaurant kitchen door, then right through the screen door, when Jim knocked to ask for information.
The man told us that just a few miles south, in Wolfenbüttel, we would find a comfortable campsite. In spite of the rain, the dark of night, and a confusing detour for road repairs, we found a beautiful grassy spot in the campsite near a river. It’s amazing how quickly we can get settled, fix a simple but satisfying meal, then relax with a good book. That night we slept better, or at least more relaxed than we had for a couple of weeks. As much as we were anxious to travel behind the “Iron Curtain,” we always slept better under a capitalistic democratic government.
%WOLFENBÜTTEL
The next morning we discovered Wolfenbüttel to be a really delightful city, an amazing contrast to the Polish towns we had visited just the day before. (This was 1985, years before the Berlin Wall came down). Here, food was plentiful, everything was neat and clean, the people appeared prosperous and relaxed. This was not a shade of difference, but a very noticeable difference in the demeanor of the people, and in their surroundings. The only line in the grocery store was at the checkout stand, and that was because people had their large shopping carts piled high with an impressive selection of food.
Wolfenbüttel was the first of many places that we found, in a butcher shop, a large “tube” of “normal” colored baloney with a “Happy Face” made from a darker meat, extending completely through the “tube.” Each slice includes a smile.
In the 1600s the Herzog-August-Bibliothek (library) was the largest in all of Europe and, get this; the inventor of the semicolon, Schotell, lived in Wolfenbüttel in about 1650.
We saw block after block of half-timbered, gabled, corbeled, brick buildings in Wolfenbüttel, constructed with all the architectural tricks that elves are known to employ, and tourists are known to enjoy.
HALF TIMBERED BUILDING
A half-timbered building has a wooden framework with plaster, brick, stone, or other masonry filling the spaces. Part of the timber is showing, the rest is embedded in the material that fills the space between. When the term “half-timbered-building” is used, it sounds like a specific architectural term, and those buildings may be expected to look alike — but that’s not what will be found at all. In some towns, the timbers run every which-way-but-straight and look so charming, while other towns have little charm. In Wolfenbüttel the style of half-timbering is neat and straight and very trim with a flair of elegance. An excellent example of a renaissance town.
In one town we watched as a building was being built. The large timbers, perhaps eight by eight inches, were in place, small sticks or boards, maybe 12 to 18 inches apart, went from middle of a beam to the middle of the next. Small tree branches or reeds were woven in front of one stick, in back of the next one, and on and on. Now when plaster was added, the small branches held the plaster in place until it dried. Another name for this is wattle and daub. Wattle for the poles intertwined with twigs, reeds, or branches; daub, a soft substance, such as plaster.
A corbeled building is one where the upper floors are larger than the one below. A “corbel” is the bracket projecting from a wall, used to support the overhanging portion of the upper floor of a building.
%GOSLAR
We enjoyed lunch at a quiet, peaceful road-side rest area overlooking the rolling farmland near Goslar. This is a mining area located near the Harz Mountains, and in the Middle Ages lead and silver mines produced wealth for this region. Timber from the vast forests supplied heat to run the refineries in those days, and some of the lead and zinc mines are still active today in the Rammelsberg, the nearby mountains.
Goslar’s Marktplatz has special grandeur and is surrounded by multi-storied houses with slate shingled façades. The Marktbrunnen (fountain) in the center of the marketplace was designed with bronze basins, fashioned in the 1200s. The Rathaus, the Marktkirche (Market Church), and the Kaiserworth (Medieval Guild House of Tailors, now a hotel) are from the Gothic and Renaissance eras, with some Baroque decor. An arcaded gallery on the ground floor of the Rathaus was used at one time as the town marketplace.
Goslar is practically a living museum: A Patrician House, Baker’s Guild House, pewter figure museum, Old Mint, Water Mill, ancestral home of the Siemens (electronics) family, town gates with town wall and sentry walk, defense towers, and a multitude of churches. To quote a Goslar tourist brochure, “If you really want to know Germany you must see Goslar.”
The square called Schuhhof (Shoe court) is surrounded by Fachwerkhäuser (half-timbered houses) with carved decorations. Walk around near the city center and see slate shingled, corbelled, and timbered buildings, and some with two story oriel windows — Goslar is truly unique and not to be missed.
One year a lady in Goslar, who was washing her car, invited us to visit her house, built in 1540. Her English-speaking husband proudly showed us the old, half-timbered house that had a partial sod roof, and from the back yard, rolling tree-lined countryside as far as we could see. What a contrast. Along the street-side there was an almost continuous several-block-long building of beautiful old half-timbered homes, with words painted on a long horizontal beam; in the back yard, a beautiful countryside.
The cost of some things in Europe, are just so expensive it’s hard to imagine. One year in Goslar we paid 12 DM ($7.20) to wash and dry just one load of clothes. (We paid more on one occasion — in Rome.) They insisted on washing the clothes in boiling water, then drying them in an extremely hot dryer. The clothes were wrinkled, cooked, almost fried and a little melted, but very clean, and very, very dry.
Our home library has many books on architecture, several “coffee table” books on Germany, and maps, brochures, guidebooks, and shelves full of information about travel. But when we talk about this town and that town and the next town, even pictures rarely describe what there is to see. We spent just a couple of hours in the Goslar area on our first visit, and were happy to return two other years.
When we first visit most anywhere we seem to be in such a hurry to see other places nearby, we just don’t spend much (enough) time at each place of interest. However, for us at least, the second and third visit is more exciting than the first. Now that we know something about the area, we discover more of the flavor, and see and feel so much more of interest, than during our first visit.
%BADDECKENSTEDT
Busy farm vehicles, filled with the harvest of the local farmland, crowded the main street of the village of Baddeckenstedt the day we arrived. Of more specific interest, there was an antique shop, open only Tuesday afternoons. Take a guess as to the day of the week and time of the day we arrived in Baddeckenstedt.
Jim discovered a blue and white vase with a stylized flower design, made years ago in Villeroy and Boch’s Dresden factory, a factory that was never re-opened (perhaps it no longer existed) after WW II. Emmy’s eyes were riveted on a boxed set of six serving spoons with the number 800 molded in the back. She wasn’t positive the “800” meant Sterling Silver, so even though they were engraved with the initials “eh,” she couldn’t talk herself into spending the money, so no sale.
%HILDESHEIM
In the very modern shopping mall in Hildesheim we saw a little bit of “home” — a Safeway grocery store. They told us there were only two in Europe, and we have since read that both have been sold. The store had the name and modern fixtures all right, but we’ll bet it was the only Safeway in existence that had neither peanut butter nor American Cheese.
Through the glass roof of the shopping center atrium we could see the 367-foot asymmetrical tower of the 600-year-old St. Andreaskirche (St. Andrews’ Church) — an interesting juxtaposition of old and new.
Legend says that Der Tausendjährige Rosenstock (The Thousand Year Old Rose Tree), planted in the year 815, is still blooming today. During a WW II air raid the church was bombed, the bush was badly burned, but in 1945 the bush suddenly burst into flower and continues to bloom to this day. A basilica was built next to the rose bush in the 1000s, the present cathedral is a reconstruction. Inside the cathedral, a twelve to fifteen-foot diameter chandelier dates from the 1000s, and the fifteen-foot-high bronze doors exquisitely depict scenes from the Old and New Testaments.
%HEERSUM
The campsite in Hildesheim was closed for the season, so we returned a few miles south to Heersum, to one of the nicer campsites we have found in Europe. The shower facilities were excellent, the owners delightful, and the restaurant supplied an order of delicious French fries to go with dinner in the RV. In response to Emmy’s question, the lady at the office assured her that “800” engraved on the serving spoons indicated they were what we would call sterling. Now wasn’t that interesting.
%BADDECKENSTEDT, AGAIN
Jim didn’t think he’d heard the last of the story about those serving spoons, the ones with Emmy’s initials. The next morning we returned a few miles to Baddeckenstedt and of course found the antique store tightly closed.
Emmy went across the street to the florist shop, interrupted the proprietress’ window washing task, and learned that the owner of the antique shop lived just a couple of blocks away. After interrupting her morning chores, for this week at least, her antique shop was open on Wednesday morning in addition to its normal Tuesday afternoon hours.
The spoons are elegantly designed with the flowered pattern on the back of the spoon handle, as well as on the front, along with the lower case initials, “eh.” Inside the box is the name “Franz Jenrich Juwelier, Quedlinburg,” but there is no date, so we don’t know how old they might be. Quedlinburg is a little town, a few miles east of Goslar, that suffered the misfortune of being located in what had been East Germany, for 40 years. We had no idea what might have happened to Quedlinburg, and to Juwelier Herr Jenrich.
One of the special beauties of our 1991 trip, was the chance to discover former East Germany. We made sure we traveled to Quedlinburg, and we stopped to visit Herr Jenrich’s jewelry store, a story that will be told in a little more detail a little later. Stay tuned for the rest of the story, at Chapter 26.
Chapter 19
Hannover to Luneburg
%HAMELN
This is the story-book town, as someone (named Jim!) said, “Hameln, the home of the Piper and the former home of rats and kids.” The tourist literature says, “Sagenhaftes HAMELN Rattenfängerstadt und mehr,” or “Incredible Hameln, the rat catcher city and more.”
From June to September, every Sunday at noon on the Rathausterrasse, the half hour Pied Piper play, called the “Die Rattenfängersage” or “The rat catcher fable,” is re-enacted as it must have happened on June 26, 1284. Many people are dressed like townspeople of centuries ago, some children were dressed like children, many children were dressed, and crouched low, to look like rats. Apparently they never knew where the children disappeared all those years ago, but if this happened today, we would suggest they look for them in the local McDonald’s.
Several times each day doors open high on the side of a building, and fairy-tale figures make an appearance, going round and round to act out the fable. To make sure the Pied Piper doesn’t weave his magic ever again, in the year 1717 the custom of regular boundary walks by the male citizens began, and has been continued even now by the “Grenzbeziehungsverein,” the boundary walking club. (As stated earlier, the German language does tend to just add this syllable and that … .)
Whatever happened in the 1200s, Hameln is now an extremely neat and clean city. While many towns in this part of Germany suffered extensively during WW II, Hameln received only minimal damage, and that was quickly restored or reconstructed.
%HANNOVER
To see what this city was, and what it may become, visit the rotunda in the huge “new” Rathaus (City Hall), built in the early 1900s next to a park, near downtown. The Altes Rathaus, the Old City Hall, built in 1455, is a few blocks away. When we visited in the late 1980s, the grand hall of the new City Hall displayed large three-dimensional models that showed the city of Hannover in 1939 just before WW II; after the war in 1945 when few buildings remained usable; and how it may look in years to come.
Hannover is a city of parks and gardens. Just a couple of blocks from City Hall, boats can be rented for water sports on Maschsee (lake). The Berggarten (established in 1666), Welfengarten (1720), Zoologischer Garten, and other parks, sports stadium, and sports fields range from one side of the city to the other, all covering thousands of acres. The Grosse Fontäne, “The Beauty of Herrenhausen” in the Grosser Garten (laid out in 1666 and virtually unchanged for 250 years), propels water up to 267 feet in the air. We hired a horse drawn carriage and driver for a ride through Georgengarten, created in 1700.
Later as we drove north out of Hannover we passed new business areas, some with very interesting and unusual modern office buildings — talk about contrast.
%CELLE
The difference continues. Celle is a town with hundreds of corbelled, half-timbered buildings, with steep tile roofs that may extend three or four floors above the ground floor. Each floor is corbelled (juts out), and the roof is notched to correspond to each higher, larger floor.
Here again, descriptions of individual buildings on the shopping streets just wouldn’t tell that much. There are hundreds of stores and houses, each with timbers that are straight and neat, with flowers cascading from balconies on the upper floors. Painted wood carvings decorate each floor on many buildings. The highly decorative façade of the Rathaus with dormers and oriel windows, is a different style from many of the stores, and is in contrast to the old castle nearby.
At the edge of downtown, Celle’s castle is square, with a tower at each corner — one with a ribbed tile roof, and the others with rounded helmet-like roofs. Across the front facing the town, a three-quarter round tower is in the middle, with four dormer windows with rounded pediments on each side of the tower.
A bakery in downtown Celle had prepared some very appetizing goodies. Our lunch on a bench in the park was Celle’s version of southern fried chicken and tasty curlicue pastries — delicious.
%LUNEBURG
And even more differences as we continue north. We remember Goslar with slate-siding shingles, Wolfenbüttel and Celle with beautiful timbered buildings, and now Luneburg, mainly built of brick. Many distinct designs have been created with bricks of various colors, such as twisted rows of bricks giving an appearance of a cable-like effect. Other buildings have scrolled or stepped gables and jagged roof-lines with towers and peaks.
However, there’s one brick building we couldn’t understand. Was that huge bulge on the wall created by a jokester who was a talented bricklayer; was this the best an untalented bricklayer could do; or maybe it was just a sign of the building’s age.
The Rathaus is a combination of buildings from the 1200s to the late 1700s, and the ground floor has arched arcades opening onto the marketplace. Enter through a Gothic doorway, and visit the Grosse Ratsstube (Great Council Chamber) enhanced with paneling and intricate wood sculptures and especially beautiful doorways.
%LÜBECK
March 29, 1942, the night before Palm Sunday, Lübeck became the first German city to be bombed, and about one-fifth of the old town was destroyed. We had an interesting conversation with a lady we met in a grocery store. Born and raised in Lübeck, she described the horror of that March night as her town was destroyed, and friends were killed. But to illustrate how love can conquer all, she later married a British soldier, lived in England for 35 years, and only recently returned to live in Lübeck after her husband passed away.
Anyone who would like to see what experts can do with bricks, should visit Lübeck, Germany and see its reconstruction. Brick houses, brick cathedrals, brick towers, — we never expected to see such a variety of brick designs as we found in Lübeck. The old merchant houses on Meng-Strasse, and the Shippers Society building have detailed brick façades. Churches, salt warehouses, guild houses, all are designed with detail very different from others we have seen. The most photographed sight in old Lübeck is the huge twin-towered brick Das Holstentor (Holsten Gate), which was built in the 1470s, perhaps more as a sign of prestige, than of defense.
Lübeck’s Rathaus, started in 1230, has several spires, towers, arcades, and some funny little “hats” on the roof. Seen from the Marktplatz, the imposing southern wall has three turrets and two big round holes. They call them “grossen Windlöcher” or large wind holes, but they are just round holes through a wall that divides nothing and goes no where, but does so in a charming manner. On the Breite Strasse side of the Rathaus, note the unusual covered stairway.
During our first trip the main auditorium of the Petrikirche (St. Peter’s Church) was not open to the public, but an elevator ride to the top of the tower afforded an excellent view of this old city.
Marienkirche (St. Mary’s Church) is an impressive example of medieval Brick Gothic, with flying buttresses and twin spires 410 feet high. Inside the church, the huge pillars are of brick with carved detail, similar to pillars we have seen in cathedrals in both Bologna, Italy, and in Poznan, Poland. Delicately painted designs along the Gothic vaulting of the nave are similar to that found in churches in Denmark and Sweden, north of here. The renovation and the repair of most of the WW II damage to Marienkirche had been completed, but a small portion was left so visitors can see what the damage looked like.
Lübeck is rightly proud of her skyline of seven pointy church spires — two 410 foot steeples of Marienkirche, two of the Dom (cathedral), and one each for Jackobkirche (St. James), Petrikirche (St. Peters), and one for St. Aegidien. These steeples were destroyed in WW II bombings and great effort was devoted to restoring to Lübeck, their famous skyline.
Of course if we include the towers of the Holstentor, the Rathaus, the Burgtor, and the Heiligen-Geist-Hospital, there are many more, but these are not tall enough to be seen from a great distance.
Lübeck, built on an almost circular island, is the busiest harbor on Germany’s north shore, and is a large ship building port. The old town sits on an island girdled by canals and harbors, and a canal connects Lübeck and the Baltic Sea with the Elbe River, about sixty miles to the south. A steady stream of ferryboats leave from nearby Travemünde, headed towards Denmark and other Scandinavian countries.
For forty years, East Germany shared its border with Lübeck for many miles, but we have heard no stories about the border, what kind of a dividing wall they had, or any information about attempted or successful escapes over the years.
In 1979 we rode the ferryboat from Travemünde to Gedser, Denmark. As we left the harbor, desolate East Germany was on our right, and on the left in West Germany stood the rather new forty-story Maritim Hotel along a long wide sandy beach. For reasons we never knew, an East German helicopter circled our ferry, and used a loudspeaker to shout something to the Captain on the bridge of our ship. In those years, we often said we had delusions about the Government of East Germany, but that wasn’t quite the right description. Our distrust wasn’t extreme, irrational, or paranoia, it was very real.
%HEILIGENHAFEN
For our second trip to Scandinavia, a few years later, a close look at the map indicated that Puttgarden, Germany to Rødby Havn, Denmark was not only a short boat ride, but the road to Puttgarden went through Heiligenhafen, the home some years earlier, of a friend of Emmy’s step-mother.
The previous time we were in this area we did not have her name or address, and by this time the address was many years old. An administrator in the Heiligenhafen Rathaus was kind enough to look through their microfilm records for her current address. After a few moments, he informed us the lady had died some years ago.
Heiligenhafen is an attractive little town. We parked in the town square, and visited the Lutheran Church. It was a very interesting building, both inside and out, with carpets on the floor and organ practice underway. The stepped façade and the tower nearby looked more like churches in Denmark than others in Germany.
Emmy had been looking for an amber bracelet to match her necklace, and the jewelry stores in Heiligenhafen were loaded with lovely, dark amber pins, bracelets, and necklaces. Amber is a translucent, yellow, orange, or brownish-yellow resin containing fossils of extinct insects, and is mainly found far below the shores of the Baltic Sea. Years ago, the Emperor Nero sent an expedition from Rome that returned with thousands of pounds of amber — but Emmy was satisfied with just a few ounces of amber with a few embedded bugs, this time.
FERRY BOAT TO DENMARK
When we arrived at the ferry docks in Puttgarden, we did our usual thing: Never late for our scheduled plane or ship, but always in time to almost (but not quite) miss the earlier one. That’s happened dozens of times over the years. Jim has flown probably 1200 to 1500 times on business trips, and remembers missing only two flights — but has no idea how many dozens of times he caught the earlier one. Emmy views, with alarm, that this carries over into our vacation travel. No wonder she feels rushed sometimes.
On board the ferry (in 1985) we met members of a tour group who were traveling to the Soviet Union via train. Their tour boarded the train in London, and crossed the Channel to France, with the train cars on a ferry. They rode across Belgium and Germany, to Puttgarden. One deck of this boat had real live railroad tracks, and their train cars had been wheeled onto this ferryboat, now bound for Denmark.
After the tour group spends a few days sightseeing in Denmark, the cars will be put on a ferryboat to Sweden; after a few more days, another boat to Finland. The trainload of tourists will then continue on to the Soviet Union. It did seem a bit odd to park our RV in the midst of huge railroad cars.
FERRYBOATS, GERMANY — SCANDINAVIA
In our experience the ferryboats that ply the waters between Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland are the best. They are clean, prompt, well supplied with food and snacks to buy, and the passengers and crew seem to know what to do, and when to do it.
One Sunday morning, while traveling from Norway to Denmark on a ferry similar to a first-class cruise ship, they served a delicious buffet breakfast for about $5 per person. A fifteen-piece live band entertained the passengers, and a smaller band, with a group of young singers, serenaded the passengers with beautiful, familiar gospel music. Some of the larger ships have a supermarket, complete with shopping carts, with a variety of merchandise at prices lower than they would cost in the countries at either end of the trip. They sure didn’t have this style of living on the ferryboats we’ve used in other European countries.
We have traveled to and from Germany on ferry boats similar to the one that sank in the Baltic Sea in 1994, while sailing from Estonia to Stockholm, Sweden. The door in the bow of that ferry would rotate up and let cars, trucks, and buses drive off or on, with little delay. There were several decks, with no partitions, that held nothing but vehicles. Just a huge parking lot with passenger elevators and stairs, and auto ramps from one deck to the other.
That may be an easy way to load and unload the ship, but not so good in a tremendous storm on a large body of water. In 1994 the waves were so strong they tore the huge bow door (it weighted several tons) off its hinges, and that let the water into the large areas filled with vehicles. With no walls or partitions to slow the water, the vehicle decks soon flooded, and that was the devastating end of the ferry, hundreds of vehicles and hundreds of people.
Chapter 20
Northern Germany
On the two occasions we crossed the German/Denmark border near Flensburg we were surprised to discover grocery stores on the Denmark side of the border, apparently in business for German shoppers. Prices are shown in both the German Deutsch-Mark and the Denmark Krone.
When we shop for our RV kitchen there isn’t room to store much food, so even if the prices are a lot lower, we would have to do more shopping and analysis to determine why Germans would travel here to shop, but it must have been worth their effort.
%SCHLESWIG
The view of Schleswig from the south side of the Schlei River is highlighted by the 367-foot single steeple of St. Petri Dom, an Evangelical Lutheran Cathedral, located in the Altstadt (old town). Schleswig is a sailing town and many white houses line the low banks of the Schlei. A three-story house may have a low, one-story wall, and a steep pitched roof that is itself two stories high. Many farm buildings have thatched roofs, but most are covered with red tile.
Das Nydam Boot (boat) is displayed in a building near the Schloss Gottorf. Discovered in 1863 buried in the Nydam marshes in Denmark, the oak hull of this seventy-five foot boat dates from the 300s. It was rowed by thirty-six men, and is the largest boat that remains from early German civilization.
When country borders are crossed there is often an immediate abrupt change in the look of the buildings, the care of the streets, the conditions of the towns. Here, the most noticeable change is that while Denmark is so flat, this part of Germany has low rolling hills. But for many miles on Germany’s side of the border with Denmark, the towns, the farm-buildings, and even the crops in the field, look more like those in Denmark to the north, than like the rest of Germany to the south. (Or perhaps Southern Denmark looks like Northern Germany.)
On our first visit to Schleswig, time was spent buying postcards and a tourist booklet which Emmy mailed to Mrs. Cooper, a childhood neighbor who had been born in Schleswig, Germany (Emmy thought). Some months later when we visited with Mrs. Cooper, now living in Southern California, she said she enjoyed the cards and the tourist information about Schleswig, especially since she had never had the opportunity to visit that part of Germany. Emmy now learned that Mrs. Cooper had been born near Ulm. Well, since she enjoyed the postcards and booklets, on our next visit information was mailed from Ulm.
KIEL CANAL
A look at a map will show the problem (time and distance) with ships traveling from the Atlantischer Ozean (Atlantic Ocean) and the Nordsee (North Sea) to and from the German ports, such as Flensburg, Kiel, and Lübeck on the Ostsee (Baltic Sea). In 1895 Wilhelm II opened the Nord-Ostsee-Kanal, better known as the Kiel Canal. This canal crosses the narrow portion of Germany, from the city of Kiel on the Baltic to the Elbe River, near the North Sea. More ships pass through this sixty-two mile canal than travel either the Panama or the Suez canals.
It had been necessary to sail hundreds of miles and many days to navigate the islands of Denmark, and sail the Kattegat and the Skagerrak between Denmark, Sweden and Norway, just to get from Germany’s Baltic coast to the North Sea coast. Before the Kiel Canal was built, heavy shipments, such as grain and timber, sailed around Denmark, while valuable or perishable cargoes were transported overland from Lübeck to Hamburg, then out the Elba River to the Nordsee.
%RENDSBURG
Of the several bridges that cross the Kiel Canal, one of the most interesting is at Rendsburg. The Eisenbahnhochbrücke (translated as; Eisen = steel, bahn = railroad, hoch = high, brücke = bridge) is 138 feet above the canal traffic, and we drove through the road tunnel, sixty-six feet beneath the canal. We read about, but did not see, the canal pedestrian tunnel with a three-quarter mile moving sidewalk.
Rendsburg’s city-center is quite nice, and we enjoyed browsing through the pedestrian shopping area to buy our daily bread, among other things. We remember our purchases at the Bäckerei and Metzgerei (bakery and butcher shop) as excellent, better than many others.
%HAMBURG
Sometimes it is good to have preconceived notions destroyed. Most of what we had read and heard about Hamburg, indicated it was just a large dirty city, and the only thing of interest to tourists was the famous (or infamous) nightclub and red-light district of the St. Pauli quarter. The neon-lit Reeperbahn and Grosse Freiheit are lined with hundreds of bars, dance halls, shooting galleries, and that kind of distraction, and we certainly wouldn’t spend any time in such places.
So it came as a pleasant surprise to see the beauty of the parks and canals in this large city. The second largest city in Germany after Berlin, Hamburg has the largest port in the country even though it is located on the Elbe River sixty-eight miles from the North Sea.
By the way, those signs that say “Der Hamburger Hafen” don’t give directions to the local fast-food restaurant, they refer to the twenty-three miles of docks that make up Hamburg’s very large harbor (Hafen). Thinking of hamburgers, in 1979 the downtown Burger King almost looked out of place in an impressive old building that could have been mistaken for the Supreme Court Building in Washington, D. C.
Our visits to Hamburg could not have been in better weather. The first was on a Sunday, and anyone who has driven in any large city in the US or aboard, will know that Sunday is the best day to first see a large city. Most stores will be closed, but window shopping, sightseeing, driving, and parking are easier, the police are more friendly and helpful, and it’s just simpler and easier to find the way around the city.
While driving around exploring the city, we suddenly were stopped by a large gate and a very official looking Zoll (customs) bureaucrat. It took some talking, pointing, and gesturing before we were able to assure him that we hadn’t just driven off a ship from somewhere, but had somehow wandered down the wrong street and now found ourselves on the arrival side of the customs barrier.
An elevator took us to the restaurant high on the Fernsehturm, the TV tower, located near the Planten un Blomen Park (no need to translate that). From there we could see the six famous steeples of Hamburg’s skyline, which are, from left to right: (1) St. Jakobi, 417 feet; (2) St. Katherinen, 367 feet; (3) St. Petri, 436 feet; (4) St. Nikolai, 482 feet (third highest in Germany after Ulm and Köln); (5) Rathaus campanile, 367 feet; and (6) St. Michaelis, 354 feet.
In July 1943, Allied mass-bombing (and subsequent firestorms) destroyed nearly 300,000 buildings and 30,000 citizens. St. Nikolai’s was so badly damaged in WW II, we were told the steeple and the remains of the church are planned to be made into a memorial.
A pleasant walk across the Ausstellungspark (exhibition park) brought us to the Ausstellungs und Messegelände, Hamburg’s exhibition hall, where we wandered through the many buildings filled with exhibits of what we would call a “Home Show.” Our afternoon was so delightful, we’re suckers for a “fair” anywhere, anytime. What an eye-opening way to learn how the people live, or at least how the manufacturers would like them to live.
It is always a surprise to find how much water there is in a city this far from the ocean. Hamburg is reported to have more than 2,000 bridges, more than Amsterdam, and five times as many as Venice (400 bridges). Canals flow from the harbor, right through downtown, through the Rathaus-Schleuse (the canal locks near the remarkable Rathaus), and on to the Alster River, north of the downtown area. Tourist boats, including party boats with snacks and drinks, permit an unusual view of Hamburg with tours along the canals, the harbor, and in the lake made by damming the Alster River.
Across the Alster fleet (canal) from the Stock Exchange and the Rathaus, canal-side cafes are surrounded by flower boxes. The Alster River and the canal boat traffic supply more beauty than would be seen from sidewalk cafes located next to autos and trucks on a busy street.
One time we arrived in Hamburg needing to find a travel bureau located in an office building in the downtown area. We were looking for additional information about the Polish ship, TSS Stefan Batory, which we were to use as our transportation to Canada later that year. Since we didn’t have a city map, we decided to drive around for a while, sightseeing and getting re-acquainted with the city.
Finally we found a legal parking meter, then found we were right in front of the building we would soon be looking for. Had we used a city map, we might still be looking for that office. Maps of some German cities are designed with several colors, and contain an awful lot of information. Combined with small street signs posted high on the side of a building (sometimes), and street numbers (sometimes) that seem to just start here and stop there (sometimes), we decided we would rather be lucky than smart.
%BREMEN
We’re amazed at what we learn from one trip to the next. Our first time in Bremen we found a “two-hour dry-cleaner,” and while a jacket was being cleaned we roamed around what we thought was downtown Bremen. We had no information about the city, and hadn’t found the tourist office where we could pick up brochures and maps. The city was interesting, but we thought Bremen didn’t have much to offer a tourist — perhaps there had been so much damage during WW II, that not much of interest remained.
Our next trip was far more interesting when we discovered that on our first stopover we had quit walking about two blocks too soon. Now we had a map and other information about Bremen, and knew we should visit the huge Marktplatz with the Rathaus, and the Dom St. Petri (Cathedral) across the street.
The need to read and study about a destination just can’t be stressed too much. On more than this one occasion, a subsequent trip has uncovered some very fascinating places that we didn’t know existed the first time around. As mentioned throughout this book, research continues to uncover places and things we must see during our next trip.
Bremen’s Marktplatz is lined with sidewalk cafes, and modern shopping streets extend in several directions from the city hall and the cathedral. The front of Bremen’s Gothic Rathaus is very detailed. There are a dozen or so large windows across the building above the street level arcades, then one large and two small dormers on its steep, high roof.
The Dom St. Petri (Cathedral) has four arches at ground level, a Rosette (round) window in the center, two very high steeples (one of which — the south tower — is available to climb). Gothic arches support the portals and the nave, and Golden Arches are just across the street. Inside, they have created patterns using several different colors of stone, and the fan vaulting (at the ceiling), especially in the north aisle, is highlighted with red stone. Intricate patterns are painted on the ceiling, and near the south entrance to the choir, a long forgotten stonemason carved the “Bremen Church Mouse.” (Really!)
Chapter 21
Northwest Germany
%MINDEN
From our campsite just south of Minden, near Porta Westfalica, we could see Das Kaiser-Wilhelm-Denkmal (memorial) high on the side of the hill. In the town of Minden, as we drove under what appeared to be just a bridge, we were surprised to see the tourist boats and canal-barges sailing in the Mittellandkanal above us on this canal-bridge. A canal must be level, so this portion of the canal is built on a 1200 foot bridge across a low part of the town, some streets, and across the Weser River. A very interesting engineering feat.
%PADERBORN
At the bottom of a small hill on the north side of Paderborn’s cathedral, the Paderquellen consists of 200 small springs bubbling crystal clear water from the ground. On the south side of the church, the marketplace provided a place to shop for fruit and vegetables.
The first Christian church was built here in 777 AD by Charlemagne, and after building and rebuilding several times, the current building was started in the mid 1100s. The cathedral itself is special with a huge Bishop’s Mitre roof on the steeple, and a dozen-and-a-half small windows on each side of the tower. Inside, the design is that of a “hall church,” with the nave and two side aisles of equal height.
Apparently they had recently cleaned the interior, and “grout lines” have been painted to make the pillars look as if they were built of smaller blocks of stone. The old organ, from the Baroque period, was repl
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