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Last Updated: 03. Mai 2000
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Germany
Romantische Strasse (The Romantic Road)
Wurzburg
Rothenburg-ob-der-Tauber
Dinkelsbuhl
Nordlingen im Reis
Augsburg
Schwangau and Oberammergau
Freiburg
Wurzburg
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We camped on the River Main near Wurzburg. While we were making and eating dinner, we watched the barges go up and down the river. It was fun to watch the different types of materials and goods that are carried on the barges.
After an leisurely breakfast while watching more barges go up and down the river, we drove into Wurzbrug for a walking tour of the city. We saw the gardens of the Residenz and even saw a barge go through the locks while we were walking across one of the Wurzburg bridges. The barge captain lives on board with his family, so on this barge, we saw some toddler toys and play things.
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Rothenburg-ob-der-Tauber
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On Tuesday, our day started with a walk into Rothenburg and then we continued walking but this time it was on the old city walls. Erika ran from one small window silt to another. (The window silts were used for weapons and lookout.) Chris and I enjoyed looking over the rooftops and inspecting the small back yards and balconies. Erika had so much fun that she wants to go back and walk along the wall again! After a picnic lunch on the Rathaus steps, we enjoyed a puppet show - of course, in German, so we understood very little but the visual puns were very funny.
Rothenburg-ob-der-Tauber was a favorite place for our family. Since it was a 3-hour drive from Kaiserslautern to Rothenburg, we visited this town a couple of times. Once in the Fall to find some German Christmas gifts for our families. In the spring on our trip to Munich and Austria, we visited Rothenburg for our last time, Once again, we walked along the medieval wall while eating chocolate balls. Schneeball or Schokoladeball pastries are only available in Rothenburg!
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Dinkelsbuhl
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Dinkelsbuhl is also an example of a historical old town with gateways, towers, walls, and moats. It was interesting to walk around both inside and outside the wall. Chris spent 2 weeks in Dinkelsbuhl during his last European trip while he was in high school, so he wanted to see the section of town that he knew over 25 years ago. Unfortunately, the only section that was familiar was the Hallenbad where he swam several times.
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Nördlingen im Reis
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Nördlingen is an ancient Imperial town. It's one of the only towns in Germany where the original town walls are complete and can be walked all the way around. This walk was also enjoyable. One of the local artist groups or schools were mounting an exhibit using the wall as a backdrop. It was interesting trying to decipher the German explanations. The artists covered the window silts with various fabric hangings. The "window treatments" ranged from comical to satirical to violent.
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Augsburg
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The only memorable thing about Augsburg was the traffic jam in the city - so we by-passed touring the city. The camping was fun and quiet but without toilet paper in the bathrooms - very odd. Erika and I used a paddle boat in the late afternoon on a small pond. It was interesting to request the rental in German. The word, langsam, was very handy because you must paddle the boat very slowly in order not to tip over. I again discovered the great usefulness of expressive sign language to tell the owner that the paddle boat was tied up to the dock.
Another pecularity about European camping is that it's possible to order brötchen (small rolls) at the check-in desk for the next morning, so you can have fresh rolls each morning. The brötchen are very tasty.
Then we headed down to the Bavarian area - much better than Leavenworth in Washington State! We did not see the German Alps because it was too cloudy - in fact it poured Sat night! We did see the Wieskirche (Wies Church, or 'Chruch in the Meadows'), it was so beautiful! So beautiful that it brought tears to my eyes - after studying art history for so many years, I'm finally able to REALLY see the art! The Wies Church's interior is decorated in the Roccoco style and is located in the midde of farmlands. It must have been an amazing experience for peasants to visit this elaborate church. They must have been amazed at God's majesty because of the beautiful interior and paintings. I question our values about giving to the church when I see how much valuable gold, paintings, and work went into creating a visually rich experience and worship of God.
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Schwangau and Oberammergau
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We saw both Neuschwanstein Castle and Linderhof Castle. Neuschwanstein Castle is the castle that Walt Disney modeled his creation of the Disneyland castle. Linderhof Castle is the only castle completed by King Ludwig (otherwise known as Mad Ludwig). After visiting Linderhof, it's easy to understand why King Ludwig was diagnosed as crazy. He was infatuated with Richard Wagner's operas and creating a more magestic kingdom than the French King Louis XIV but he bankrupted the Barvarian region in the process. The Linderhof has smaller villas such as a complete Moorish Temple and a bizarre cave/stage set to demonstrate Wagner's operas. The fascinating thing about the Linderhof Castle and Gardens are the surprise fountains. You never know when one of fountains will start sprouting water and another fountain will stop.
We also went to Franz Marc's House while we were near Oberammergau. His house is located about 30km from Oberammergau in Kochel am See or Kochelsee. There were over 100 paintings of his and also some paintings from his father. Marc's father was a follower of the Romantic style of painting. It was neat to see painting of Franz Marc when he a boy and then Marc's paintings of his father while he was dying. So moving! It was exciting to share these paintings with Erika. Franz Marc loved the countryside and loved to paint animals. His work evolved towards creating an abstract space with animal forms and movement. His later paintings were effective in describing movement. We purchased a reprint of the Vogel painting (birds in flight) for our new German apartment.
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Freiburg
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Then we drove west to Freiburg. Near Freiburg, we enjoyed the dry luge run and a fake bobsled ride. Erika loved gong really fast! I'm glad that I learned the meaning for langsam (slow) because there are notices posted on the luge track for safety. In Freiburg, we also saw the Muenster - a typical gothic church with flying buttresses. Erika met 3 Spanish children in the church's courtyard and had a water splashing contest as well as a game of tag while Chris and I inspected the flying buttresses and gargoyles. Freiburg has a unique cooling system. There is an open drainage system with cool water running through the old sections of the city. This drainage system invites children to stomp into and through the water.
Finally, before heading back to Kaiserslautern, we enjoyed a local restaurant in Freiburg, near our campsite. It was a quaint restaurant on the Waldsee where you can watch the ducks and swans from outside cafe of the restaurant. We recommend this restaurant, if you are travelling through Freiburg.
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Die Fotogalerie von die Deutschland
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See you all later.
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