The Bergs

Last weekend we were scheduled to take a train from Frankfurt to Berlin for the Pentecost holiday.  Because of a rail strike (which have been happening far more frequently than they should), our train was cancelled.  So, instead we decided to use the long weekend to visit someplace within a civilized driving distance.  We opted for Nuremberg and Bamberg.  It ended up being a good Plan B.

Nuremberg is known for being the sight of all the Nazi party rallies and, of course, being where the war crimes trials were held in 1945 when the war ended in Europe.

One of the former Nazi buildings lurks in the background of this shot.
Congress Hall is HUGE and pretty ugly.  Today it is barely maintained, but houses the symphony
and the Documentation Center, an excellent museum which shows how the Nazis came to power,
how they held it, and what they did in their attempt to destroy Germany and Europe.

What is left of the Zeppelin Field grandstand.  If it looks familiar, that is because this
spot is featured frequently in the nazi propaganda films. 

Today the grandstand is falling apart.  It's a place to throw garbage, scrawl graffiti
(though that happens to almost every large surface in Europe), and look out over
what used to be Zeppelin Field- a football field and porto-johns.  How to
handle these sites is very controversial.  Do they deserve to be preserved or should
they be left to rot? 

The Nazi sites are outside of the city center and they're probably the only thing Nuremberg has that is definitely worth visiting.  Today, the city hosts the largest Christmas market in Germany.  It also has some rather impressive medieval history, most of which was bombed into oblivion during the war.  Things to see in Nuremberg include the deteriorating super structures of Hitler's regime, a large castle, and a bunch of reconstructed old buildings surrounded by ugly post-war architecture.  Other than that, it's pretty much like any other city in Germany- clothing stores, wurst restaurants, ice cream shops, Italian restaurants, street performers, and movie theaters that only show movies dubbed in German.  But, it is home to some really bizarre fountains.  They aren't worth planning a trip to see, but when you come upon them unexpectedly it's rather entertaining.  The famous one was completely enscaffolded so no opinions there.  But, the Fountain of Virtues seems to be more of a study on chronic lactation and the one on marriage is a sculpture and a nightmare.

The Castle is worthy of a look if you're already in town.  It was the residence of the
Holy Roman Emperor when he was in town.

The old hospital is a nice sight.  Today it is an old folk's home and, weirdly, a restaurant.

One of Nuremberg's churches

Another church and a fountain with a lot of lactating women.

 The next day we headed directly north for 45 minutes to Bamberg.  Bamberg is a unique city in Germany.  It's not a large city.  It's importance faded sometime in the early 19th century, so it's a bit of a time capsule.  There wasn't anything of significance going on here during the war so it wasn't bombed and the entire center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  There's a pope and a Holy Roman Emperor buried in the cathedral.  Actually, there's are a couple of cathedrals, and a castle, a monastery, and this wonderful construction.

So, unlike all the other cities in Germany with the usual cathedrals and castles and wurst shops, this one also has a beautiful building on a bridge.  The Old City Hall was built in 1386 and has been well cared for.  The outside is covered in some festive frescoes (there's a couple creepy cherubs sculpted to crawl out of the walls).  I shot this thing in the afternoon, early evening, night, and right after sunrise.  I could probably go back and shoot it again.  After a month of some frustrating travel experiences, uncooperative weather, and hordes of tourists it was refreshing to find a subject that was great in any light and pretty easy to access.  The only minor problem was the wobbly wooden footbridge that was the only place to shoot it from head-on.  But, we powered through and got quite a few shots I'm happy with.

This one taken just as the lights were coming on is my favorite.  The rest are up
up on the website.

Another of Bamberg's charms is its beer.  Now, I know German beer is considered by many to be the best in the world, but, guys, I've done lots of research on the subject and German beer is typically kinda "meh."  Don't get me wrong, they've definitely mastered the pilsner.  But, creative German beer is not.  Except in Bamberg.  Here they make Rauchbier and Rauchbier is like the weird relative we all have that runs off to join the circus or become a lumberjack in Oregon or be an interpretive dancer in Paraguay or something.  Rauchbier is so totally off the wall for German beer it hits you like brick to the face.  Rauchbier is smoked beer.  I've had smoked beer before.  It's one of those things that's popular in trendy American craft beers.  This is SMOKED beer.  Like it's smoke with beer in it.  It tastes like a glass of bacon.  Mmmm, right?  Well, it seems it's a pretty polarizing beverage.  You're either a Rauchbier person or you're not.  If you're not, that's ok because Bamberg's NINE breweries also make the usual stuff too.  There's a beer trail tour that you can sign up for in the tourist office which shows you where to satiate your thirst.  The tour gives you some fun perks like a backpack, a stein, and drink vouchers.  Bamberg is totally strollable and a beer trail is the perfect route to stroll.

Bamberg is a lovely little city that, in my opinion, should be on more people's sightseeing lists.    There aren't any street performers (which is refreshing), weird fountains, or nazi stuff.  It does have lots of wurst places, a couple ice cream shops, really photogenic spots, a building in a river, and a beer trail.  Recommended weekend getaway spot?  Definitely.

Old fisherman's houses on the river

Water flow control system in the center of town

Head on over to the German Cities Gallery to pick up a print from the two Bergs!