Over the river and through the woods, to Rothenburg ob der Tauber we go! A Christmas Village...


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Europe » Germany » Bavaria » Rothenburg ob der Tauber
November 27th 2008
Published: December 4th 2008
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Our Thanksgiving holidays were spent in Germany, totally immersed in the advent of Christmas! The three of us, Kate, (colleague, not daughter) Keith and myself, headed out of Poland to see what the Christkindlsmarkt was all about.
Kate and I have been looking forward to shopping the traditional markets, tasting the "gluhwein", and eating hearty German food! And I think Keith was ready to get on the autobahn. I can hear some of you snickering! Yep, he was speeding down the highway! Well, speeding for him, we were getting passed left and right! The recommended speed limit is 130 km/h (81 mph), and true to his nature he barely exceeded that! Although he did over-take some of the trucks, and as Kate said, drivers that looked to be a hundred and one years old!
Oh, and we have a new travel friend, "Inga". More about her later...

This route that we are taking is called the Romantic Road. It essentially represents German culture and scenery. With our long weekend constraints, we won't be traveling the entire route. But we will see Bavaria's little picturesque towns of Rothenburg, to Neuschwanstein's castle, and then we will end up in Munich.

walls of Rothenburgwalls of Rothenburgwalls of Rothenburg

medieval defense

As soon as we drove into Rothenburg ob der Tauber, we could see that it may well be the best little place for getting in the mood for Christmas. The name translates "Rothenburg above the Tauber" (the Tauber river). A well preserved fortified medieval town, complete with walls and towers. The Christmas market dates from the 15th century- and we thought our modern society had been the one to commercialize Christmas! Here they call their market Reiterlesmarkt. The name originates with a legend from the middle ages, in which a rider, is transformed from a care taker of dead souls, into a messenger that brings gifts. Everyone loves a happy ending.


We pulled in right after dark, and the night before the market opened. So the old town was relatively uncrowded. Our first order of tourist business was to get a beer and bite to eat. Actually our Thanksgiving supper! Then we joined others in the town square for the Night Watchman tour. A night watchman in the middle ages would alert the citizens to fire by blowing the horn, he was also a lamplighter and town guard. This was a position held by several men, until 1920.
This modern watchman has a most theatrical accent, and kept us entertained with his tales of life in the middle ages. For instance, the plague was rampant and there was no cure. Until one intoxicated man woke up surrounded by corpses. In his drunken stupor, he had been thrown out of the tavern, into the streets, and mistaken for a poor dead victim of the dreaded "Black Plague". Towns people were dying at such a rate that they were just tossed in the streets into piles. His remedy of drinking to the point of unconciousness wasn't really a cure, but the town folk were desperate and gave it a try!
Along our walk through town the Night Watchman pointed out an old tavern with a catchy name, which translated means "Hell". So we took his recommendation and went to Hell. We sat at a table, that was in a former life an enormous bellows. It made for nice medieval ambiance, but as a comfortable place to sit and have a drink, it was a bit lacking. Keith, with his long legs, tried out different seats along the "table", when Kate asked him if he was finally comfortable, he said "of course I am, I'm in hell!" We thought it was funny!

After spending time in Trinkstube zur Holle, "Hell", we thought a trip to the church was appropriate. In each European city, we have sought out the churches, and the church of St. Jakob is another one of the gems. Here, there are two magnificient altars. The most famous one was carved 500 years ago. It is a scene of the Last Supper, but not the typical straight-across view of the supper table. It has Jesus handing Judas his morsel of bread, thus making him, not Christ the focus of the piece. While we were here admiring the altar, a little lady began talking to us and soon realized we didn't understand her. She kept talking, but occasionally added "I'm sorry" in her conversation!

Near the end of the second world war, this charming city was spared. Because of his actions, Deputy Secretary of State General John McCloy was awarded the "Honorable Protectorate of Rothenburg" in November 1948. He was familiar with the historical importance of the city. Once the citizens guaranteed that it would not be used a base for resistance, his orders stopped the bombing that occured at the end of March 1945. But not before, 39 people were killed, hundreds of homes and a portion of the wall, were destroyed.





One day was not enough in this Christmas fairy tale village. But we had castles, and more Christmas markets to visit. I have loaded this entry with pictures, see them all the way through, if you have time. It's a little bit of the European Holiday spirit! I have asked Kate to give us her memories of the trip, we might be updating the entries as we go along...
(This is the first of four)


Additional photos below
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interior of St. Jakobinterior of St. Jakob
interior of St. Jakob

with the incredible advent wreath
Herrngasse Street Herrngasse Street
Herrngasse Street

leading from the hotel to the market square. The old mansions are along this street.
Night WatchmanNight Watchman
Night Watchman

he has a entertaining view of medieval Rothenburg
store fronts, calm before the storm.   store fronts, calm before the storm.
store fronts, calm before the storm.

We arrived the day before the market opened
White Tower White Tower
White Tower

Rothenburg ob der Tauber
looking out of the window of the churchlooking out of the window of the church
looking out of the window of the church

to the street below the passage
window lacewindow lace
window lace

on a cold morning


12th December 2008

i like your writing style!
been enjoying your blogs, and your 'take' on some of the places i have been to. I missed Rothenburg in previous travels, but after reading this blog, I promise to save up for another trip to Europe and visit Rothenburg. However, I can't promise to do it in winter!

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