BAM, We are in Bamberg!
October 3rd, Friday
The four B's of Bamberg are as follows - Beer, Bishops, Baroque and Basketball. Our friend, Martin, displays the first B below!
Kirche St. Elizabeth
Look closely on the column to the left -
The Old Town streets were deserted this morning as it was a holiday, and everyone was sleeping in, except for a few tour groups and guides. Our first major destination was the Bamberg Cathedral, the centerpiece of this UNESCO World Heritage Site, which was completed in the 13th century. It is a Catholic church. And as is true of all these sights of antiquity, there is no new construction, only maintenance construction. Whole lot of preserving going on ... all the time.
Behind the church was the Imperial Courtyard of the Alte Hofhaltung. Take a look above and below, can you imagine a movie being set here?
The cathedral is located in the Domplatz or Cathedral Square. This same square is where the very Baroque and sometimes Rococo Niew Residenz is located ,and its courtyard includes an extraordinary rose garden. Its doors have some intense medieval door knockers, too!
As we continued our walk through town, we passed lots of shops selling all kinds of German things, from beer steins to cuckoo clocks to Christmas nutcrackers. Of course, much to Vialula's dismay, they were all closed due to the holiday! There are also brass markers in the cobblestone streets that memorialize Jewish citizens from the area that were murdered during WWII. These are found all over Germany. There is some controversy about the ones on the ground as some people feel it is demeaning to step on the marker. We stepped around them.
As it was a holiday, there was a marketplace that the locals visited, and we enjoyed perusing it. It is what we would call a flea market. Everyone selling their junk, while buying their neighbor's junk. Some hand-crafted items, too! It was fun to look around. We enjoyed the first of several bratwursts while watching everyone mill around.
Will, can you carve these for us, please?
box of wooden nutcrackers for sale
Farewell to beautiful Bamberg. We saw all the B's except Basketball. When we returned to the ship, it was still gorgeous out. It was a lovely afternoon for sailing, and we were able to go outside at the front of the ship. Got to float through some more locks and take in the sights from the river.
It's nice to be able to do be outside on the riverboat and is somewhat equivalent to what LeRoy and I would call a "sea day." We know how LeRoy loves those. Tomorrow is Wurzburg, and though it is called "worst"burg, it is supposed to be even more beautiful than Bamberg. Is that even a possibility?! Hope to see you there!
Today we arrived in the medieval town of Bamberg. The whole town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is a gorgeous day, and a big plus, it is a holiday for all Germans! Today is October 3rd, better known as Unification Day, the day that East Germany joined West Germany, commemorating the day that Germany once again became one country for the first time since 1945. This holiday came into being in 1990 with the teardown of the Berlin Wall (though that was Nov. 9th). Don't ask, there is a reason for the dates, but I forget.
Happy Unification Day!
Blue skies greeted us finally, along with a sweet young lady named Christine, who is our guide. Bamberg's biggest claim to fame is "Rauchbier", which is a smoky beer made with malt that has been dried over open flames. Lots of our fellow travelers were happy to try it. LeRoy had no desire for this smoky brew!
Our guide, Christine
The four B's of Bamberg are as follows - Beer, Bishops, Baroque and Basketball. Our friend, Martin, displays the first B below!
Martin, from NZ, enjoys one of the "B's"!
No doubt about it, this is simply a beautiful place, rich in history and prosperity as its place along the river has made it so. Bamberg is today the northern starting point of the Main-Danube Canal. It also helped that it was one of the few cities not destroyed by the bombing in World War II.
Regnitz River flows through Bamberg
beautiful Bamberg
This town was founded again in antiquity in 1007 by Emperor Heinrich II. He made it the center of the Holy Roman Empire and the capital of his reign. He wanted it to be like Rome and built Bamberg on seven hills, just like Rome. Bamberg has the largest number of retained medieval buildings in its Old Town and thus it was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.
quintessentially Bavarian
The starting point for the oldest complete
German Way of the Cross
see the crime deterrent? the hand with the blade over it?
Medieval "Just Say No" campaign, perhaps?
Bamberg Cathedral
on-going maintenance
LeRoy admiring the Old Court of the Alte Hofhaltung
Vialula in the very courtyard where the 1991
version of The Three Musketeers was filmed!
Anyone seen Orlando Bloom?
The cathedral is located in the Domplatz or Cathedral Square. This same square is where the very Baroque and sometimes Rococo Niew Residenz is located ,and its courtyard includes an extraordinary rose garden. Its doors have some intense medieval door knockers, too!
beautiful statue in the stone wall
no Cuckoo clock for Vi today!
Bernard is not forgotten
As it was a holiday, there was a marketplace that the locals visited, and we enjoyed perusing it. It is what we would call a flea market. Everyone selling their junk, while buying their neighbor's junk. Some hand-crafted items, too! It was fun to look around. We enjoyed the first of several bratwursts while watching everyone mill around.
flea market, German-style
Yo quiero bigger suitcase!
Gondola on river at Bamburg
Farewell to beautiful Bamberg. We saw all the B's except Basketball. When we returned to the ship, it was still gorgeous out. It was a lovely afternoon for sailing, and we were able to go outside at the front of the ship. Got to float through some more locks and take in the sights from the river.
Water was so calm, you couldn't tell the bottom from the top!
It's nice to be able to do be outside on the riverboat and is somewhat equivalent to what LeRoy and I would call a "sea day." We know how LeRoy loves those. Tomorrow is Wurzburg, and though it is called "worst"burg, it is supposed to be even more beautiful than Bamberg. Is that even a possibility?! Hope to see you there!
Vialula and LeRoy
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