12/5 We took a late morning train to Nuremburg and found our way to the hotel. Then we enjoyed a late lunch at a recommended place near the hotel that served traditional German food. This was our first chance to explore Nurnberg by daylight, so we found the little Tourist Train for the tour around the town. Although Nurnberg is a large city, the maps and the tour make it clear that the older, medieval center of the city – with large city walls and a castle still surviving – is rich in history and interest. Like Wurzburg, Nurnberg was firebombed at the end of WWII. We found that we really loved Nurnberg’s old town.
The Magical Christmas Markets: How to describe the European Christmas Markets?? These markets are all along the streets and market squares. Nuremberg has a reputation as one of the best, and we could easily see why.
The Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt. The main pedestrian routes through the old town and in the market squares were lined with decorated booths, complementing the street decorations, lights and evergreens decorating everywhere. The main square in Nurnberg also had a temporary stage in front of the cathedral that was host to singers and storytellers. An acapella men’s quintet sang beautifully, and then groups of children took the stage to sing Christmas songs and tell stories. A brass trio played elsewhere in the square. The focus is on enjoying the evening with shopping, food & drink:
Shopping: Hand-crafted Christmas gifts ornaments and decorations of all sorts, nativity scenes, tree ornaments, toys, nutcrackers, wooden carvings, little figurines unique to this area that are made from dates and walnuts, leather goods like purses, wallets, scarves, gloves, sweaters, hats, handbags and rucksacks.
Food: Nuremberg bratwurst, the “Nürnberger Rostbratwürstchen,” of course, but also potato pancakes & potato soup; brown bread, fruit bread, Christmas bread, and all sorts of bakery items; gingerbread, or “Lebkuchen,” is big here in Nurnberg; roasted almonds, roasted chestnuts, nuts of all kinds; dumplings covered with vanilla or chocolate cream, candies of all sorts.
Drink: Wine and beer of course, but “Gluhwein” (hot mulled wine) is a most popular treat on these cold winter nights in Deutschland. Another favorite is the “Feurzangenbowle,” a hot punch that is topped with brandy and then set aflame for a bit before serving. Of course there is also the hot chocolate, coffee, tea and grog.
A Note on Waste and Re-Cycling: With hundreds of folks eating and drinking on the streets, you would expect mountains of waste built on plates and cups of paper, plastic or Styrofoam. In America that’s how it would work, but not here. They’re not allowed to serve on paper plates or cups. When you buy your Gluhwein here, you pay 6€ à 2€ for the drink and 4€ as a deposit on the decorative mug. If you like the mug, you’re free to keep it, or you can return it to reclaim your 4€ deposit. If you return for a refill, they give you a new, clean mug. Likewise, with plates. Only for sausage sandwiches served with just a napkin did we see any paper at all. And everyone was fine with the system, enjoying food and drinks and happily reclaiming their deposit.
Throughout our visits to Spain and Portugal, we noticed that “to-go cups” are rare. People don’t take their coffee to go. Rather, choosing a café instead of Starbucks, they sit down and enjoy their coffee, usually at about ¼ the cost.
12/6 Walking Tour of Nurnburg: We signed up for a major walking tour today: in the morning, two hours through the medieval area, the old center of town, then a one hour break to grab lunch in the Christmas Markets at the Main Square, and then two more hours visiting the remains of the Nazi era, the site of Hitler’s massive rallies, outside the city center.
Historic Nuremberg: This old city goes way back and was prominent during medieval times. Many parts of the medieval city walls, some three layers deep, still survive, clearly marking historic city center from the rest of a large city. Due to Nurnberg’s prominence and central location in Europe, it was frequently the site for royal meetings and courts, so it is often referred to as the “Unofficial Capital” of the Holy Roman Empire. The Protestant Reformation was accepted here but the city strove to keep peace between warring Protestants and Catholics. During the 30 Years War (1618-1648), both sides used the city for supplies. A higher percentage of Europeans died in this war than in all of WWI.
The Hanging Bridge in the town center recalls the past as well. Although executions were regular, the job of Executioner was not a highly respected position. He may have done the city’s bidding, but he was not allowed to live inside the city itself.
The main market square was in the Jewish section of town. In the 1700’s the synagogue was destroyed and over 600 Jews were massacred, as the Jews were blamed for every bad thing, including the plague. A Christian church was built on the spot of the synagogue. Today a Star of David hangs in that Christian church to recognize and remember the injustice of these events.
The old town center is beautiful with so many reminders of the city’s medieval past, beautiful churches, half-timbered architecture, and of course, the Castle itself. During the 1945 bombing at the end of the war, 90-95% of old town was destroyed. Thankfully most of the churches were not destroyed because they were not targeted.
Remains of the Nazi Era: After our lunch enjoying the Christmas market in the town square, we bussed outside the city center to the Nazi Era parade grounds. Due to its history as the center of the Holy Roman Empire, the Nazi’s chose Nuremberg as the site for their Nazi Party Conventions, the huge “Nuremberg Rallies.” In 1934 Leni Riefenstahl filmed one such rally there for her famous propaganda film, “Triumph of the Will.” We visited these huge parade grounds, now turned into a lovely park, but we could still imagine the huge marching battalions of Nazi soldiers in uniform. We visited the remains of a huge Coliseum left unfinished as it was when Nazi Germany fell.
Our Tour Guide, Chris was both informative and entertaining. He explained how the Germans are now very good about accepting their own history. They don’t hide or make excuses for their dark past. They seek to remember it properly as a warning of what can happen. They have destroyed Hitler’s home and some other sites so that no one can make them into martyr’s shrine of any kind. Chris showed us a small swastika coat pin – he had it wrapped up in his pocket – and explained that in Germany, the Swastika is now considered to be “hate speech”: it would be illegal for anyone to wear it. For Germany, there is a distinction between “free speech” and “hate speech.” You cannot wear the swastika symbol, sing certain songs, or praise the Nazi regime.
After we thanked Chris and left the tour at the train station, we walked back up through the old town center to get some more pictures around the castle and to enjoy dinner at the Augustiner Hofbrau that Chris had recommended. Good meal, great beer, and then an evening walk back through the town to our hotel.
