Day 3: Medieval Meanderings ( or No internet in Medieval Towns)

Our "tour" to Munich via Rothenberg and Oberammergau is really independent travel on the daily intercity shuttle via the Romantic Road. We boarded the bus outside the railway station in Frankfurt ready for a 3 hour bus trip. It was a bleak damp day. We headed off onto our first experience of the autobahn, where trucks can travel at 80, buses at 100 but cars are unlimited. Although there were several sections where due to poor weather the speed limit was fixed at 120!

Our first pick up stop was Wurzburg. Didn't see much of the place as we were running late by this stage and that is something unheard of in Germany. The town boasts a beautiful medieval bridge with statues of the saints along each side.

Enroute we stopped for bus pickups in several other towns before arriving for our first break. We had a whole 15 minutes to tour Schloss Weikersheim castle and gardens .This takes the meaning of blitzkrieg to a whole new level. For the princely sum of 60 eurocents we were greeted by a costumed guide who raced us through the castle. We saw ornate paintwork, mouldings, massive moose and bear heads mounted to the walls. The most quirky thing was a huge fresco of an elephant painted high on the wall which of course had a REAL elephant head attached to it! There was an amazing stone spiral staircase and beautiful baroque gardens. All that in 15 minutes before diving back on the bus, destination Rothenberg.

We paused just outside Rothenberg for a photo of town. Breathtaking. We both thought....This is going to be amazing and it did not disappoint.

We were picked up from bus by a guitar composing cabbie and taken to Hotel Spitzweg aka Heidi's house. Our hotel is a tiny quaint building dating back to 1535. We have a first floor room, just as well as the staircase to lug the bags up is narrow and winding. The room has a low stucco ceiling; illuminated manuscripts hang on wall behind the bed. There is Folk art painted furniture, a tapestry on the far wall and all this is juxtaposed against huge modern bathroom.

No time to waste so we went off exploring. In the town square or marktplatz we found the Rathaus and a clock that animates to tell the story of saving of Rothenberg when the mayor drank several litres of wine in one go. Scull!!!. Amazing sights in every direction. We are experiencing visual overload in every way. This place is so steeped in history. We visited the Franciscan church, oldest church in Rothenberg. Then took a stroll beyond the walls of the remains of the old castle to the gardens and a view across a valley over to the south east of town. Later in the afternoon we went into St Jacobs Church. Built in the early 1300’s and Lutheran since Reformation, when the city became Lutheran in 1544, it has amazing relief work on altar, and stained glass windows dating from 1350. Overwhelming and an amazing sense of the sacred.

Being a walled medieval city we could walk the wall of the city, which afforded great views everywhere, but whose old stone steep stairs did NOTHING for my aching knees!!!! Afternoon tea saw us sample the local delicacy Schneeballen, ribbons of pastry wrapped into a ball the size of a softball and then baked and dipped in something luscious. We shared the hazelnut praline!! Yum. Leaving the café we found the famous Rothenberg view incorporating two of the city gates. Chris is still laughing at the fact that the guide map calls this the triangular square.

We dined in a restaurant in Marktplatz, where Chris was brave and ordered pickled cabbage before joining the Night Watchman’s tour. This is something of a local legend. A fellow dresses up as the character the night watchman and tells stories of the history of Rothenberg while walking to several sites around the city. It was very entertaining and most informative and perhaps year 10 had best believe their RE teachers when they tell them about all the priests dying out during the plague that preceeded the Reformation. It must be true. The night watchman told us!!!

Another long and tiring day drew to an end and we fell into bed at Heidi’s house, looking forward to a good night’s sleep..