Lutherland: Class Trip Part One-Erfurt, Eisenach, Wittenberg

---

For the past six days, my classmates and I have gone on a whirlwind tour of everything that is Martin Luther. It was a group trip intended to complement our theology/history class: Luther and Bach.

Our schedule looked like this:
Feb 26- Reutlingen to Erfurt
Feb 27- Erfurt to Eisenach to Wittenberg
Feb 28- Wittenberg
Feb 29- Wittenberg to Leipzig
Mar 1- Leipzig
Mar 2- Leipzig to Reutlingen

The trip went better than I had expected. The group from VU that was in Germany last semester had warned us that the trip was boring and some of them even snuck off to Prague! Between our required visits to churches and museums as well as going on runs, eat out for long meals, and shopping the time filled with no problems.
Some of the highlights of Erfurt were getting to tour with a man dressed up as Martin Luther, pretty pastel buildings, cobblestone streets next to homes that were hugged by vines and historical buildings. Some of the historical highlights were seeing a church where Luther preached often, the church where Luther was first a monk, a gorgeous Catholic cathedral and a fort atop a hill right in the city. Erfurt had a really interesting combination of modern and historical. On the way to our hostel we walked by huge industrial buildings---many with broken or boarded windows and graffiti from Germany’s separated years. Then there is a cleaner area where the buildings are old and pretty which are mixed in with modern clothing stores and also restaurants and bakeries. I liked Erfurt.
One of my most beautiful times there was going out for a morning run in which I ran to hilltop fort and looked over the city and MANY church steeples. The sun cast an orange-y glow over the angles. Also another touching sight was the bows of greenery arranged in homes’ flower boxes and small flower arrangements in pales outside of doorsteps. Someone lives in those homes and had a soft touch that reminds me of touches my mom adds to make my home homey and warm.
On the way out of Erfurt, a little less than half of the group decided to explore Eisenach, where Luther’s Wartburg Castle is located, before moving on to Wittenberg.
In Wittenberg, we met up with the rest of the group. We had a group dinner that night on VU at a Luther restaurant located right beside our hostel. Oh, was it delicious. It started with a thick German potato soup and a drink. Then the British accented German waitress (she learned her English from her British ex-husband, ha!) brought out fish, beef, pork or veggies depending on what we pre-ordered. Each main dish came with specialized delicious sides. I had onion-y pork strips rolled up and resting in an almost thousand-island type of warm sauce. To go with it I had fried mashed potato nuggets and mixed vegetables. All great! It was very satisfying and a good way to start off our time in Wittenberg.
The next day we went on a three hour tour including stops at Luther’s house, Melanchthon’s house, and the church where Luther nailed the 95 theses and was eventually buried. Our tour guide was adorable to the pleasure of a few crushing guys in group. It kept their attention through the tour at least. Unfortunately, they found out that she was married to another tour guide. She had great stories and hair. One girl in our group got her hair cut to match the next day during our free time! Ha.
Later in the afternoon, we all went out for a lengthy lunch break and then toured more extensively the sights we had brushed over during the tour. Caitlin and I sat at the table together in Melanchthon’s garden, where he translated the Bible with Luther! We rewarded ourselves for our educational efforts with some gelato to the delight of our mouths.

---