Nuremburg: Not Just a Place for Nazis (oh yea, I went there!)

So did you know that Nuremberg boasts having the best Christmas market not only in Bavaria but in all of Germany. And I do have to say it's pretty awesome! It is HUGE too! But we'll get to that soon....
We did very little research before hitting this city-always a mistake in my opinion. My main goal here was to see the market and do a little shopping. However, there is actually a good bit to do here. One being the Albrecht Durer House/Museum. Who is Albrecht Durer you ask? First of all, I can't believe you don't know who he is. Secondly, I'm glad you asked! He was a pretty awesome painter and print maker from Nuremberg. He's kind of a big deal-if you've studied art you know him. To view who he is and what he's done, click here: http://www.albrecht-durer.org/
So I was pretty jazzed about getting to go to the home he bought in Nuremberg where he lived (and died) and created his works. It was quite an expensive house when, and where, he bought. I didn't take too many photos because I was so enamored with the (INCLUDED!) audio guide and looking at the house. Sadly there are no original pieces in the house but we did see some in Munchen at Old Pinakothek (where one of his most famous pieces resides, the "Self Portrait" in which he looks like Jesus [so they think/say]). But we did see his studio and replica presses that would be like the ones he used. It made me miss printmaking so much! I love that medium-I'm always jealous when my sister-in-law, Sarah, sends out cards with prints she's done. One day I too will be artsy and she won't be the only one in the family, muahahaaa!
Anyway, I digress....

Here is a reproduction of a press with a print on it-I really do know how to do that!

Of course we hit some churches but I figure you're getting tired of me posting photos of those so we'll skip to the market and food! Oh how I love food!! I'm not a big foodie and you all know how Matt and I are not the most adventurous when it comes to trying new things but we ate almost anything here-most things were pretty safe (except the white brats-don't eat those!) So when we saw these babies sizzling in a cart and had to try some....

Yummy potato pancakes....sooo greasy....soo good!

Now although these are made of edible things, you're not supposed to eat them. They are nut and prune people-yea I'm not kidding. We only saw them here and in Munchen, but a lot more people had them here. Matt wouldn't let me look at them closely-he was probably afraid I'd want one.

They're PRUUUUUUUUNE PEEEEOPLE!!!

The decor and atmosphere here was pretty awesome. The market was HUGE!! It covered all sorts of parts of the inner city. They even had a creepy kids are-why must animatronics be so creepy? Seriously, they're supposed to welcome kids not lure them into the dark, pedophilic lair.

No creepy Santas here! Just lovely decorations!

O (big, outdoor, plastic) Tannenbaum, How steadfast are your branches!

And no wintery, Christmasy, wonderland is complete with out horse drawn carriages right? Of course!! The answer is no-we didn't ride one. Those things can be rather pricey and we had a train to catch.

What are those Belgian horses doing in Germany?? Silly ponies-wrong country ;)
(Those are Belgian Cream Drafts for those who don't get my joke....)

All in all it was a fun day. We got some GREAT presents and ornaments and enjoyed walking around and seeing some nice churches. We didn't get to do any of the Nazi things (I know you were wondering when I was going to tie in the Nazis!) like the rally spot (which is supposed to be really cool!) so we'll have to visit another time.
Next stop, Sleeping Beauty's Castle!

Rothenburg ob der Tauber: Torture in the Imperial City

So our next stop for Christmas Marketpaloosa 2011 was Rothenburg. We didn't go there because of their Christmas market, although it wasn't too bad (small though), but we went because it's a SAWEET example of a walled medieval town. This town went from being the peak of commerce and trade to nothing to being bombed in WWII to being rebuilt after being destroyed and to the great tourist gem that it is to. Not too bad for the few hundred years it's been around. This place is situated on the Romantic Road (which we didn't get to drive on-next time!) and is a must stop place along the way. They also have Christmas stores that are open year round which was cool since we went at Christmas time but would be kind of weird in the middle of July in the heat.

Here is Matt in front of the year-round Christmas store-can't beat cider and a giant nutcracker!

So we took this AMAZING tour called the "Night Watchmen" which is totally worth the 7 Euro a piece! It's an hour long and really informational, funny, and shows the history of the town so well!

"Night Watchmen" sounding the alarm for the town!

The next day we went around town to see the sights. First stop, town hall complete with tower. I know you're wondering if we went up into the tower and the answer is yes we did. Remember how I don't like heights. Especially cold, windy, scary ones. Case and point below.....

This is me freaking out.

I bolted rather quickly after that photo was taken. Matt stayed to take more, like this one....

Now you all know how I LOVE churches right? So of course we had to go into the main one here too. St. Jacob's has some amazing wood carvings, which is a thing in Germany in case you didn't know. The altar down stairs and the other altar piece upstairs were spectacular truly.

The Last Supper. Amazing right?!

So they had this really cool carving from Africa on display. See below for info:

Isn't it beautiful??? The funny thing is when I saw it I said to Matt "What the heck is an African piece doing in Germany?" Then I read the sign.

So I entitled this post "torture in the imperial city" because there is a wicked Medieval Crime and Torture museum in Rothenburg. I was a little worried about going, because of the whole torture aspect, but it turned out to be so cool! There was so much info on law, crime, punishment, and life in the middle ages. My favorite were the "shame masks", which were put on men and women who were gossips, acted like pigs, and who in general needed to be put to shame a little. I know a few people who could have one put on every now and then ;)

Can't you imagine it? You got caught gossiping so now you have to wear a mask in the town square for a few hours until you learn not to have big ears and a big mouth!

This was the other cool thing-a "double, neck violin." This was for squabbling women-they were put together in it until they could resolve their differences. Matt and I need that sometimes....

Next up, a walk around the town wall. The cool thing about this is that during WWII the town was bombed and parts of it were destroyed, like the wall. In order to raise funds, the city sent out a plea to the world asking for donations. In essence, you "bought" so much of the wall-you could donate so much and buy 1 meter (or more if you like). Your information (name, city, country) is then put on a block in the wall and you are immortalized forever as a helped of the city. You can still by a piece today which I think is pretty awesome.

See how close the homes are to the wall? Truly protected huh??

Hey Matt!! Having a nice stroll?

We walked as much as we could all along the wall and then went to ground level and continued out walk outside the city wall some. Here you could see the neighboring area and the pretty countryside. I think it would be so beautiful in the autumn with all the changing colors!

Aren't we so cute?? And cold!!

We finished up our day with some dinner, as usual. They had some table decorations that were too good to resist playing with.....

see.....

It was a great day! We had so much fun and learned a lot! I think if we went back to Bavaria I would like to do the Romantic Road and stay here again, just so we could stroll in some warmer weather! We did have another night here but the next day we went to Nuremberg.