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Published: February 12th 2007
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Nurnberg Train Station
Well, we stopped the train at Nurnberg... I rose early to catch at 6 am train to Bamberg. So far, the weather had been great for sightseeing. Cold, but sunny, with a few days of partial overcast. This morning as I left the Hotel, it was pouring the rain. Not cold enough for snow, dang, but cold nevertheless. I would say it was probably in the upper 30's or low 40's. But, that's what they make a hood on a coat for.
I had decided no more than a couple of weeks before leaving, to make a stop in Bamburg. I had originally planned to see Nurnberg, but I had read that Bamberg was really a great city to explore and their Christmas market was much smaller but less commercial than Nurnberg. Also, Bamberg had restored after WWII vs. flattened and built new, as Nurnberg did. I was after the "Germany" of old, not the post war modern Germany - so I settled on Bamberg. I also wanted an area at the midway point between Salzburg and Dresden, and this was a good stop. Bamberg also carries the distinction of being a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site because of its historical preservation.
No breakfast at the
Hotel Weierich Lobby
The desk, the "antler" chandeliers, the charm inn before I left, so I was counting on the train's dining car for my 2 hour ride to Munich where I would change trains. No luck. It is a commuter train, so all 2nd class seating and no food. By the time I got to Munich I was starving - my stomach was on a regular schedule to be fed by this time. So I grabbed a danish and coffee from a cart in the Munich train station, as I only had about 20 minutes. That would hold me until Bamberg. My connecting train did go through Nurnberg, so I was hoping for some little glimpse of interesting anything as we went through Nurnberg. No luck - so I took a picture of the train stop.
Once arriving at the train station, I was only about a 5 minute taxi ride to Hotel Weierich. I was a little anxious about this hotel. I found it online (as I did all of my hotels), and when I saw a price of $50 Euro, I ventured to the reviews - which were all quite positive.
The hotel was originally a very large and very old house - like over
Chandelier Closeup
Fortunately, the lights were off on this chandelier, and I could get a good shot of the detail 600 years old. There was no one at the desk (which was really a desk) when I walked in, but a woman did pop her head through a door and said "ein moment" and disappeared again. That's OK - I was busy checking out this building. The most interesting thing I saw were 2 chandeliers like nothing I've ever seen. Carved wooden people hung with deer antlers with lights. Sounds crazy - I've posted a picture of one of them, because it again shows how creative this culture is, and why I am completely amazed everyday that I am here. I finally checked in, and the owner (I found this out later that she was the owner), accompanied me to my room to make sure I was satisfied. I had a double bed (which was great - unusual unless you reserve a double room with 2 people), which was a large room with a shower vs. a tub, and a window that overlooked the street. This didn't bother me - this part of town does not have heavy traffic. It is the old part of town where streets are navigated by foot rather than car, and from the looks of
A Room with a View
This was the view from my room - just a charming little section of the town of Bamberg things, there's no where to park if you did have one. Across the street is a bakery, and to the left I the road twisted and went up. I could see a spire of a church over the rooftops, one of many I would learn.
So - out in search of the Bamberg Christmas markets. I didn't have to look far. About a block and a half from the hotel were a series of stalls, and since I hadn't done lunch yet (or a proper breakfast for that matter) I bought a sausage and hot spiced tea. More of what I had seen in Salzburg, but rather than having everything all bunched together, their market seemed to be clustered over about a 10 block area - so I decided just to follow the garland. I rounded a corner and I know my jaw dropped. In front of me was the Rathaus (town hall), with decoratively painted frescoes covering the buiding, and the road going through the midst of it. It sat on a small island that connected the 2 sides of the river. I was amazed and once I regained my senses, grabbed the camera and started taking pictures.
Rathaus in Bamberg
The picture says it all So, after getting over my photo session while crossing the bridge at the Rathaus, I continued on my journey to find the main Christmas market, located a few more blocks at Maximillian Platz. More market stalls at St. Martins Church Platz, and something I found to be quite odd....a statue of King Neptune, complete with his pitchfork. I have no idea why a statue of King Neptune is in the middle of the old part of Bamberg. Beside this statue (and I think it is also a fountain in the summer months), there were more Christmas market stalls - one with a huge Santa and Rudolph adorning the top.
So, another block and I hear an "oompah" band, but playing Christmas music rather than beer garden music. By this time I am in Maximillian Platz (named for King Maximillian), and am ignoring the wonderful smells and market stalls and heading straight for the music. This is great! Tubas and trumpets, and trombones and clarinets - 9 or 10 in all. I got a short video clip to share with those at home, and continued to listen for a while. Now - while I know it wasn't near as
Little Venice
This section is referred to as "Little Venice", because of the waterfront and boats that dock and serve passengers from here. This was taken from the bridge that goes through the Rathaus, which is the building to the lest. The Rathaus is on an island, separating the 2 sides of the river. good as the Sandalwood High School Band Holiday Concert that I missed - it did give me a bit of peace to just be still and listen to the music for a while. The icon for the video clip is in the top left corner of this page.
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The fountain with Neptune's statue (also called "Gabelmann" which means "Fork Man") was build in 1566. It was the last wish of a former member of the city council.