ManVanNoPlan visits Bad Mergentheim, Würzburg and Bamberg
ManVanNoPlan visits Bad Mergentheim, Würzburg and Bamberg
Thursday 10th of October
Rothenburg ob der Tauber to Bad Mergentheim (49.493220, 9.793407)
We have two small Romantic Road towns to visit before arriving at the large city of Wurzburg, the official start of the Romantic Road for most people, but our last stop. Bad Mergentheim is, as the “Bad” suggests, one of the spa resorts in the southern part of Germany and is one of the largest towns in the Tauber valley. As well as the mineral waters, Bad Mergentheim has a rich history connected to the orders of medieval knights, and, surprise surprise has yet another beautiful half-timbered town centre.
At the same time as the ‘once in a hundred years’ Hurricane Milton was landing in Florida, we were being battered by a 45mph storm overnight, but thankfully a bus was parked a bay away from us protecting the van from the worst of the intense gusts of wind. It had calmed down enough by 8am for us to consider moving on as planned otherwise we would hunker down for another night here, even though it was a foggy, chilly morning.
At 9am we took the decision to move on and as we left the town the satnav told us to turn left into a smaller road and yet Bad Mergentheim was signposted straight on. As the truck in front of us turned left I decided to follow and what a good decision it was as for the next forty minutes or so we had a delightful drive through the German countryside on a really quiet road, arriving in Bad Mergentheim at 10.30am.
You can see in the next picture the effect the strong overnight gale had on the apple trees with hundreds of apples going to waste on the ground.
Although it was still breezy, at least it was dry so we decided to head into the town now as rain was forecast for later in the afternoon. The Stellplatz here was a bit confusing as it is € 6 to park and then you add on a tourist tax per person which takes the total cost to € 11.90 but try as I might the machine only charged € 6, but even at € 11.90 it would have been acceptable. The Stellplatz is separate from a large car park which had dozens of new looking caravans, nearly all with satellite dishes pointing skywards. The French ‘travelling community’ must be doing well, however they earn a living in this part of Germany!
The walk into town takes you past four apparatus for extracting spring water, all of them seeming to possess different mineral content. There is also a thermal bathing complex nearby but it is closed for two years to be upgraded. Continuing on, the walk takes you through a well laid out park with a couple of duck ponds as well as a purpose built track for the police to train youngsters how to ride their bikes safely.
The best-known sight of Bad Mergentheim is the Deutschordensschloss, the castle where the Teutonic Knights once had their home base. It is a complex of buildings built over a period of eight hundred years.
“The Teutonic Order is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society c.1190 in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem was formed to aid Christians on their pilgrimages to the Holy Land and to establish hospitals. Its members have commonly been known as the Teutonic Knights, having historically served as a crusading military order for supporting Catholic rule in the Holy Land and the Northern Crusades during the Middle Ages, as well as supplying military protection for Catholics in Eastern Europe.”
The town itself is yet another well maintained historical collection of buildings dating back to at least the 1500s, if not before. The standard German town layout of a Rathaus (town hall) and a market square with a fountain are all here, as you would expect.
We walked about for ages before deciding to eat lunch in a butchers, which you seldom do back home, if ever. As well as the standard butchers counters stocked with every cut of meat and sausage you can imagine, there is also a section serving some of those items accompanied by noodles, fries and most are smothered in some kind of sauce. I had the currywurst mit pommes and The Navigator had schnitzel, with a portion of chunky noodles called Spätzle covered with a Bratensauce and she cleaned her plate in record time.
We found a soulless modern shopping centre on the other side of railway station but it didn’t detain us too long. Having seen the best of the town, we walked through the Schloss archway and back through the extensive gardens on our way back to the van.
We called into a Lidl on the way for a few things and to check out their wine selection in preparation for buying some more to take home in the morning. The rain came on in earnest around six o’clock, but with the heating on electricity, costing € 1 (84p) for six hours, we were as snug as a bug in a rug.
Friday 11th of October
Bad Mergentheim to Tauberbischofsheim (just kidding)
You know you are in Germany when your next destination’s name has eighteen letters! As the name suggests, Tauberbischofsheim is situated on the river Tauber and is the first / last town on the Romantic Road after / before the starting / ending city of Würzburg.
Well Tauberbischofsheim was the plan but events got in the way of going there. First was a re-think on the Stellplatz we were planning to stay at as it did not have a lot of capacity for motorhomes so would have been a gamble going there. Second was the fact that the rain was absolutely hammering down, and had been all night, and finally, the electricity here is not measured in kw hours but by time so € 1 gets six hours plus of power. Because I had neglected the ManVanNo Plan website for a year it needed a fairly major overhaul so we decided to stay in Bad Mergentheim another day so that I could work on the laptop all day.
Saturday 12th of October
Bad Mergentheim to Würzburg (49.797608, 9.923483)
“Würzburg is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the third-largest city in Franconia, located on the banks of the river Main in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is situated approximately 110 km west-northwest of Nuremberg and 120 km east-southeast of Frankfurt am Main and is famous for its partly rebuilt and reconstructed old town and its Würzburger Residenz, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
On 16 March 1945, about 90% of the city was destroyed in 17 minutes by firebombing from 225 British Lancaster bombers during a World War II air raid. Würzburg became a target for its role as a traffic hub and to break the spirit of the population. All of the city’s churches, cathedrals, and other monuments were heavily damaged or destroyed. The city centre, which mostly dated from medieval times, was destroyed in a firestorm in which 5,000 people are said perished. Almost all the historic buildings were carefully reconstructed after the war. Trümmerfrauen (rubble women) did the work because most of the German men were dead or still prisoners of war.”
It was the coldest night of our trip so far and we were both awake at 5.30am, but weren’t sure what woke us. Was it was the cold, the need to go to the toilet, or that blooming caravan running a generator all night? You can see the noisy red generator in the following picture as we were servicing Otto.
We were planning to get up early anyway as we’d like to be on the popular Würzburg Stellplatz by mid morning but we need to go to the nearby Lidl first then top up the LPG tanks before setting off on the forty five minute drive.
I’ve booked our return ferry crossing for the 31st so we only have two and a bit weeks left so it is time to stock up on some of the German goodies we enjoy so we made a start in Lidl today. Thanks to the MyLPG.eu App I found a garage in the next town and the LPG was only € 0.969 a litre (81p), the cheapest we have bought so far.
I managed to get through all of September in shorts but it seems the warm and pleasant days of Autumn are fast giving way to a chilly winter quicker than we’d like. We’d driven out of Bad Mergentheim in a pea-souper but it cleared up on the way and Würzburg was bright and sunny when we arrived.
We knew what to expect of Würzburg as some people we follow on YouTube have been here due to it being the official starting point for the Romantic Road, so it was a must stop for us to sign off on the end of the ‘Romantische Straße’ which we have thoroughly enjoyed and can recommend to anyone thinking of touring Germany. Yes, it is ‘touristy’ in places, especially Rothenburg ob der Tauber and Schloss Neuschwanstein but these are incredibly beautiful places which deserve to be seen and appreciated.
The Stellplatz at Würzburg is within a short walk alongside the river Main and that is the problem as it gets incredibly busy, not just with Romantic Road travellers, but with people just coming to enjoy this beautiful town as a destination in its own right.
When we arrived at the car park barrier, The Navigator was dispatched out to get the ticket from the machine which then lifts the barrier. As it is a Saturday morning we were not sure if we’d even get a space but with amazing timing the van that was in the very first space indicated to us that he was moving off. I manoeuvred the van into the space, which came with two bonus features. First, it had a great view of the river and the passing boat traffic and secondly it was right beside an electricity bollard, and when I plugged into it we realised our departing German chum had left credit on it so we had free electricity for a few hours. Result!
We had lunch and then walked up the near side of the river and crossed over the ‘Old Main Bridge’, which is not only a crossing point on the river, but a socialising spot for locals and tourists partaking of a “Schoppen”, which is a quarter of a litre of wine that the neighbouring restaurants and the local winegrowers’ cooperative are happy to serve you.
“Würzburg’s ‘Old Main Bridge’ is reminiscent of the famous ‘Charles Bridge’ in Prague. The similarity between the two stone arch bridges is partly due to the stone figures on either side of the carriageway. The twelve bridge statues in Würzburg date from the Baroque period although the Old Main Bridge itself is much older than the figures as the first stone bridge was built in 1120, but after two hundred-year floods in 1342 and 1442, the structure was replaced by a new bridge made of natural stone in 1476.”
The bridge was mobbed and most people had a glass of wine in their hand and were chatting and passing the time in a civilised manner, which the UK’s nanny state would probably not allow on two counts. Firstly would be on public outdoor drinking and secondly on having said wine served in an actual glass as opposed to plastic. Each glass of wine costs € 6 with a € 5 deposit to make sure the glasses are returned. The queue to be served was as far back as the second statue!
From the bridge you can see the Dom (straight ahead, the cathedral of Wurzburg and that was the direction we headed in next, passing the old town hall which has been in use for over 700 years. The tree painted on the façade replaced an actual lime tree which grew in front of the building in the 16th century.
Regular readers of this blog will know we usually visit all the imposing cathedrals and churches we come across and this one was, to me at least, one of the best ever. The St Kilian Cathedral was build between 1040 and 1075 with the interior a mix of the traditional and modern and decorated to the highest standard. Apparently it is named after St Kilian, one of three Irish itinerant preachers, Kilian, Kolonat and Totnan, who were martyred at this location in 689.
One of the features of the Dom was the underground crypt which The Navigator was reluctant to explore thinking there may be preserved bodies, skeletons or something equally gruesome down there so while she contemplated in the pews my curiosity led me downstairs. Instead of a damp, dark forbidding space it turned out to be a bright, modern room more akin to a meeting room than the burial place of long departed Bishops.
When you leave the Dom you see the reverse view from earlier down past the shops to the Old Main Bridge at the bottom of the street.
We continued wandering about and stumbled upon the Marienkapelle, another large church and a smallish market in full swing which was quite busy and, as I was planning to have sausages for my weekly Sunday breakfast, The Navigator, no fan of sausages, treated herself to an avocado!
There is a small bakery built on to the side of the church and we sat outside taking in all the hubbub with the cheapest tea, coffee and apple cake of the trip so far at just over € 5 (£ 4.18) all in.
After we had exhausted the shops, and ourselves, we retraced our steps towards the Old Main Bridge, which was still as busy as earlier.
From the bridge we headed back along the opposite side of the Main to the Stellplatz and there were groups of students standing about playing music and drinking and having a good time on what was a lovely afternoon. It had been a busy, but enjoyable first day in Würzburg, so we settled down for a relaxing evening with the heating on at a peep and The Navigator watching Strictly on her tablet.
Sunday 13th of October
Würzburg
We both woke early, probably due to the cold, but once the heating was put on we fell asleep again and it was almost ten o’clock before we came to. After our respective sausage and avocado breakfasts’, we set off for a Sunday stroll into Wurzburg wrapped up as it was a sunny, but chilly morning. The Old Main Bridge was quieter than yesterday but there were still a fair amount of people quaffing the local wine well before midday on a Sunday!
There was also a large group of university students starting a task for freshers week. They split into two teams and the objective was to remove articles of clothing and spread it out along both gutters from one end of the bridge to the other. Some of the boys were topless, no doubt fortified by alcohol against the chilly morning, however no amount of persuasion for The Navigator to disrobe to help out the task worked!
The three main churches in the city centre had staggered services which meant that, between chiming to announce their respective services and the time every quarter of an hour, there was almost a constant ringing of their bells. Being a Sunday morning the shops were shut, all bar a few bakeries, and at one of these, called Cinnamood that we bought a couple of cakes, but not just any cakes. Cinnamood only sell one type of cake which is described as a gourmet cinnamon roll / bun each with a different flavour, and The Navigator chose the pistachio version and I had the apple variety. They were meant to last until the afternoon to accompany our hot beverages, but they didn’t even see the afternoon!
Yesterday we visited the Würzburg Dom, described as a Romanesque Catholic cathedral with baroque stucco interior, which I really enjoyed, so today, and only a few doors along, we went into another imposing church, the Neumünster Church, a decorative Baroque church on the site of a former abbey. Although the nearby cathedral is named after Kilian it was actually on the site of the Neumünster that the wandering Irish bishop, Kilian, together with his companions Kolonat and Totnan, died a martyr’s death. It was an equally impressive interior with the main feature being the painting on the roof of the dome.
We exited the church by a side door and proceeded on to the main focus of today’s walk, the Würzburg Residence, a magnificent 18th century palace, which, along with the Court Garden and Residence Square, was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1981.
The justification for the inclusion of the Würzburg Residence on the UNESCO list states:
“Equipped between 1740 and 1770 and provided with magnificent gardens between 1765 and 1780, the Würzburg Residence is considered the most unified and exceptional of all Baroque palaces and exemplifies one of the most brilliant royal courts in Europe. It is unique in its originality, its ambitious building program and the international composition of the construction office.”
We are fairly well travelled within Europe, and this magnificent building and gardens are right up there with the very best we have seen. Unfortunately, as you approach the front facade the view is spoiled by parked cars and red and white plastic barriers due to the digging of a trench.
However, the real beauty of the building is seen at the rear along with the magnificent formal gardens, which are manicured to perfection. We walked around for ages taking in the splendour and remarking how quiet it was considering there were five tour busses parked nearby.
“On completion of construction work on the Residence, the final development of the Würzburg Court Garden was tackled during the rule of the Prince Bishop of Würzburg, Adam Friedrich von Seinsheim (reigned 1755-1779). Seinsheim employed the Bohemian-born garden artist Johann Prokop Mayer (1735-1804) as new court gardener to help him in the realisation of the project.”
By the early afternoon the sun was high enough to make it a warm and pleasant temperature so we found a park bench on the elevated part of the garden to sit and take it all in.
In the following pictures you can see The Navigator with all her layers and gloves on contrasting with a bride with her off the shoulder wedding dress…
By the time we reached the East Garden a bit later on, more people had arrived, and as this side of the building was as equally impressive as the front and rear façades, more selfies and wedding pictures are taken here as anywhere else.
From the Residence we walked the short distance back to the square where we had our afternoon refreshments yesterday but that bakery was closed so we found another nearby and sat outside admiring the Marienkapelle on the north side of the market square, which is today a subsidiary church of the Dom and Neumünster parishes.
Apparently this was the site of the Jewish community, but In 1349, the Jews of Würzburg were brutally murdered, the remains of the Jewish quarter were demolished in the 15th century and a market square was built. As a sign of atonement and the victory of Christianity, a wooden chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary was built on the site of the synagogue. Bishop Gerhard von Schwarzburg (1372-1400) laid the foundation stone for the choir of the current stone building in 1377, which was consecrated in 1392.
From the market square we headed back to the river and walked past the Old Crane, a baroque-style harbour crane and one of Würzburg’s landmarks. It was built between 1767 and 1773 with the plan to make the water trade route more usable for the city and the building soon became the city’s landmark. The area around it served historically as a trading center, but today it is a popular meeting place for locals and tourists, especially in summer.
Being a Sunday afternoon a lot of the vans that were here for the weekend had moved on.
Monday 14th of October
Würzburg
The Stellplatz at Bad Mergentheim had a very unusual water tap as it was much smaller than usual and did not have a screw fitting to attach our hose. No problem we thought, we are going to a much bigger Stellplatz in Würzburg and we’ll fill up there.
As we drove on to the best space on entry and didn’t want to move to fill up with water, we duly ran out and had to resort to filling a 5ltr plastic bottle we had, as well as the kettle and our biggest pan. Two days on and The Navigator needed to wash her hair so we did a number of trips to the tap with the 5ltr bottle and filled up half the tank. Oh, and I forgot to mention that the tap here was the wrong type for our hose so we couldn’t have filled our tank even if we had moved the van.
With the morning’s water based drama over, it was time to head into town for the last time before we moved on tomorrow. It was another chilly, overcast day but at least it was dry when we set off. A few things has caught The Navigator’s eye on Saturday for family Christmas presents so we retraced Saturday’s steps to find them again.
We had lunch sitting on a bench in the market square, which was considerably quieter than Saturday, but the whole town was as expected. We had one last walk over the Old Town Bridge where people were still standing drinking white wine although there was no queue today.
The sky was turning an ominous dark blue in the distance so we headed back to the van as it had started to rain, but without much success.
Tuesday 15th of October
Würzburg to Bamburg (49.886532, 10.902811)
Before I start to describe today’s activity I’ll take a few words to summarise our time on Germany’s Romantic Road for those who, after reading these blogs to date, may want to drive it as well. Würzburg was the end of the Romantic Road for us, although I would say that 99% of people will drive, cycle or walk the route from north to south starting in Würzburg, but because of our aborted trip to the Czech Republic and Austria, we found ourselves driving it in ‘reverse’ as it were.
The German Romantic Road is based (very) loosely on the old Roman route between the participating towns and adding in some stunning mediaeval locations in the north, the concept of the Romantic Road is a little bit like Scotland’s North Coast 500, a marketing idea which appears to be based on history and tradition, however it is actually a much more modern concept.
In the case of the Romantic Road, Germany was desperate to rebuild a tourism industry in the post-war times and the idea of the formal “route” was created in 1950 (not long after the creation of the Federal Republic of Germany and the end of the post war military-administered occupation).
The first visitors were friends and families of the American soldiers stationed in the large bases in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg but the idea of the trail from Würzburg to Füssen soon became wildly popular and it’s not too hard to see the reason for the popularity. Despite the modern roots of the idea, the tour combines the historic cities of Würzburg and Augsburg with the three mediaeval walled towns of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Dinkelsbühl and Nördlingen, and then finishes off with the tourist highlights of Neuschwanstein Castle and the stunning Alps.
These days, tour buses with parties from all over the world can be seen at the most popular stops along the way, the route signs are obviously in German and some are even in Japanese! In terms of driving a motorhome along the route, it is so easy and we are so well catered for in terms of there being an inexpensive Stellplatz in virtually every town and village, something the North Coast 500 miserably fails to do.
My top 5 Romantic Road locations.
1. Wurzburg – Although a city, Wurzburg is very pretty and functional at the same time and has something for everyone to enjoy.
2. Rothenburg ob der Tauber – the throng of tourists do not detract from the fact that Rothenburg is stunning and so well preserved.
3. Landsberg am Lech – Another well preserved and beautiful riverside town with a Stellplatz that could hardly be nearer the town centre.
4. Drinkelsbühl – This small town exudes a great sense of how things once were in this part of Germany in times gone by.
5. Fussen – In its own right Fussen is well worth a visit, but its trump card as a base to visit the nearby Castle Neuschwanstein makes it on this list.
The Navigator’s Top 5 Romantic Road locations.
1. Castle Neuschwanstein – The sheer spectacle of how it was built so high up when construction first began in 1832 with limited tools and equipment. The surrounding walks to viewpoints to see the castle from above and the surrounding countryside were magnificent.
2. Rothenburg ob der Tauber – A picture postcard town built within, a still standing city wall. Each corner you turn brought a stunning scene of half timbered houses and picturesque squares. A walk round the city walls is a must to fully see the setting both in and out of the walls.
3. Dinkelsbühl – All the towns/cities on the Romantic Road were constructed of half timbered medieval buildings but this one on particular kept its character by the shops not bring allowed to have garish signs above them advertising what they were. By implementing this it kept the character of the time, and you felt you had been transported to a time gone by.
4.Nordlingen – Another walled town where we walked round the ramparts and it was very interesting to see all the different roof tops and quirky little streets from above. Some houses in different stages of renovation but keeping the traditional structure and integrity of the original building. It was interesting to see little houses built into the city walls and old gas street lamps now modernised to electricity. The church dominated the town centre and cobbled streets led away to the outskirts of the town.
5. Wurzburg – This was the last stop on the RR and although it was picture postcard pretty. It had its own characteristics. Dominated by the Dom and other huge churches and beautiful gardens behind the Residence where in time gone by the Prince Bishops ran the city from. There was a vibe about the place as it was a university town and the students were having their form of Freshers Week. The motorhome park was by the riverside and as we walked towards the town the view of Old Town Bridge with the castle up on the hillside to the left was quite breathtaking and watching people indulging in the tradition of drinking a glass of white wine while standing chatting on the bridge.
Back to today’s description…
Tuesday 15th of October
Würzburg to Bamberg (49.886532, 10.902811)
When we arrived in Würzburg on Saturday there was an older van opposite us and the man in it did not seem to get out of the van for three days, instead preferring to sit in the passenger seat looking out onto the river while smoking and drinking beer most of the time. This morning, he decided to rev up and leave before 5.30am. The joys of the ‘open 24 hour’ Stellplatz system.
We were planning to leave early as well but early for us is at least 9am, but usually its nearer 10am. Today we are heading to Bamberg, reputed to be Germany’s prettiest town, along with at least a dozen other pretty towns making that claim. As it is a desirable place to visit this means that the Stellplatz there is very busy and the reviews say that if you arrive after 11am there is little chance of getting a place, hence the reason for us leaving Würzburg at the ungodly hour of 9am.
We arrived about 10.30am and found only a few empty spaces so we set up, put the van on chocks and felt satisfied that we were in the Stellplatz for the next couple of days. Then it dawned on us that we still had a water issue and really should have filled our tank before we parked up. So, to remedy that, I drove the van along to the filling point leaving The Navigator guarding the pitch. I connected the hose, put a euro in the slot and immediately the water came out with immense pressure so by the time I had put the hose in the van, I was soaked. This van is a very slow filler at the best of times, and with the strongest pressure we’ve encountered yet it was bound to be carnage, and it was.
Once the hundred litres were in and I disconnected the hose, with word and gesture, I warned the German couple who were waiting behind me about the pressure, which was not necessary in the least as they could see how soaked I was. Back on the pitch, we had lunch then set off to walk into Bamberg and see the sights.
“Bamberg is a town in the Upper Franconia district of Bavaria, situated on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby Babenberch Castle. Cited as one of Germany’s most beautiful towns, with mediaeval streets and buildings, the old town of Bamberg with around 2,400 timber houses has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993.”
After a slight navigational error we made it to the centre to find yet another beautiful street in immaculate condition with random market stalls scattered about willy nilly.
As you walk down the main street the river comes into view, and it’s where you can get a boat tour out into the surrounding countryside. You can also see an ancient crane where once cargo was loaded and unloaded. The trees on the left in this picture are the start of a small island in the middle of the river and the main reason why people come here from all over the world to see the building on this island.
According to legend the bishop of Bamberg did not grant the citizens any land for the construction of a new town hall. This prompted the townsfolk to ram stakes into the river Regnitz to create an artificial island, on which they built the town hall they so badly wanted. The Old Town Hall’s frescoes never fail to impress as they lend the facades a three-dimensional quality achieved with trompe d’oeil architecture.
This is one of the most photographed buildings in all of Germany, and like Castle Neuschwanstein, we were lucky to see it on a bright and sunny day.
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After the inevitable pictures were taken to show anyone reading this blog and to remind us where we’ve been, which is becoming an ever increasing problem on this trip as one beautiful half-timbered mediaeval town merges into another, we continued wandering about, soaking in the atmosphere and admiring the architecture. Three o’clock came around and we headed for a traditional bakery we had passed earlier for our usual mid-afternoon refreshments and can report that this apple cake was the third best of the whole trip! The bakery seemed to be popular with Bamberg’s oldies as, even at seventy, we looked to be the youngest customers in the place. More on this bakery in tomorrow’s post.
We eventually walked back to the van along the riverside path, although you can’t see the river because of trees and thick bushes and settled down for a warm and comfortable evening.
Wednesday 16th of October
Bamberg
Today we had two objectives, to see more of the town than yesterday, and, for The Navigator to have a slap-up lunch. Throughout this trip The Navigator has never really known where she was going next and that was because I needed to determine if the town or city was worth a visit and more importantly if there was a Stellplatz within walking distance of that town centre. So, the night before we move on I pick a YouTube video to watch and this shows off the next destination in all its glory.
In the case of Bamberg, I mistakenly picked a video which, not only showed the town in all its glory, but the guy described it as one of the very best culinary centres in all of Germany. He highlighted some of the dishes that the Franken region was famous for, and one in particular caught our eye, a meat filled stuffed onion which is offered as a hearty lunch in many micro brewery restaurants in the Bamberg region, which are not only popular with locals, but the many tourists attracted to this beautiful town.
No wonder, as the dish combines two culinary specialties of the region to create a special taste experience, the Bamberg pear-shaped onion, an ancient cultivated variety grown only here, and the spicy smoked or cellar beer used as a sauce base and it’s served with mashed potatoes and sauerkraut. Unfortunately we could not find it on any menu, and coincidentally we never saw the onions on the many market stalls so maybe it was out of season.
Before lunch we explored a riverside area known as Little Venice which was particularly picturesque and where the river tour boats depart from, including, believe it or not, a gondolier in full costume offering river trips.
“The former fishermen’s district in Bamberg’s Island City is endearingly known as Little Venice. This district is characterised by half-timbered buildings that prop each other up and by tiny, pretty gardens. The half-timbered buildings were mainly built in the Middle Ages. They are squashed together along the riverbank, creating a quaint and picturesque scene, with boats floating in the moorings by the front gardens. The river cruise takes you directly past this unique line of houses.”
The circular route we took passed Scheiners, the restaurant I had seen online as it specialises in dishes from this region. Surprisingly, when we arrived, every outside table was taken but we lingered a bit and managed to share a table with a lovely couple from New Zealand, Helena and Su.
We had a wonderful lunch in their company and compared travel notes of places visited and bucket list destinations for the future. Su had Trout “Franconian style” in beer batter, Helena and I had “Jägerschnitzel Natur,” which was a schnitzel smothered in a creamy mushroom sauce and The Navigator had “Sauerbraten,” a traditional German dish consisting of meat marinated for days with vinegar, red wine, spices and flavourings and served with potato dumplings and red cabbage.
Like a magnet, the ‘Old Town Hall’ drew us back to admire it again and we continued walking about the town centre, before taking a seat to people watch for a while. On the hill above the town is Bamberg Castle which was first mentioned in 1109 and was used at this time as a refuge. In the 14th and 15th centuries it served as a richly furnished residence for Bamberg’s bishops, but was almost completely destroyed in 1553 and later rebuilt in the early 1800s. After a hearty lunch we decided not to attempt the climb up to the castle and the fact it was covered in scaffolding also made that decision an easy one.
At three o’clock we returned to the bakery we were at yesterday but it was just for liquid refreshments this time, as having a good lunch ruled out having any apple cake today. It was like Groundhog Day as most of the oldies we had seen yesterday were there again today, with some more of their chums. One table in particular caught our eye. An elderly well dressed couple were at the same place as yesterday with a new addition, a man who was drinking beer, yes in a bakery! The original man was studiously reading a newspaper while his well coiffured wife surreptitiously handed out biscuits from her bag to anyone in her vicinity. They were then joined by two men of their acquaintance who were also handed biscuits under the table to accompany their drinks. Next to them sat another elderly woman who was not part of the gang but who tried to join in their conversation with no success and no biscuit was offered to her. At another table sat a man with a laptop drinking a glass of coke and a coffee in alternate sips.
To finish off our day we had a leisurely walk back to the van along the riverside, only stopping to watch people playing Kubb, which is a fairly simple game involving two teams, 10 wooden pegs, 6 throwing sticks, and a block known as the king. Members of each team take turns throwing wood sticks at the other team’s pegs in the hope of knocking them all down before claiming victory by hitting and tumbling over the King.
COMING SOON ON THE NEXT BLOG…
The next blog will see us driving on from Bamberg to equally as impressive towns and cities as we near the end of this road trip, one of the best we have ever had.
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This is the sixth blog in this series
