Day 8 - Walking on the Road Most Traveled

This morning our boat stopped at Schweinfurt, a small town north of Bamberg. Because we didn't have an excursion until later that afternoon, Grandpa and I decided to take a walk and explore. This time we made sure we knew what time we were to be back.

Schweinfurt is a cute town, apparently they are into pigs (schwein means pig in german), so around the town we noticed pig statues. At 9.30 am it seemed like only the older ladies and gentlemen were around the town. The ladies had their baskets so they could do their shopping, sitting at the cafes drinking their tea or coffee and having a good gossip. The men just wandered around the town, didn't look like they had anywhere particular to go. Some were at the cafes drinking coffee or wine while reading their paper. Eventually Grandpa and I made our way to the boat and joined the group for an early lunch.

One of the Schweinfurt pigs around the town

Grandpa had Rouladen and Spaetzle which he was really happy to see. I had a beer soup, but it didn't taste like beer and really wasn't that great. The cool thing about lunch was that Grandpa had a chance to do a little missionary work. One of the couples asked Grandpa how he knew german so well, he explained how he had served 2.5 years on a mission for our church. They were curious and he continued to explain it a little more. Turns out that they go on missions for their church as well, but it's a week at a time and every few months. I think they are methodist. They said it's a part of their church to do so. Kind of a cool idea to go on a mission for a week every few months. We are definitely meeting all kinds of interesting people.

After lunch we bordered the buses and head for Bamberg. Bamberg was one of the largest cities in Germany not bombed by the allies. There is legend as to why it was saved, apparently not from a lack of trying, but cloud cover overcame the town when the allies were about to drop bombs but couldn't see and so they didn't. The people think it was their patron saint Cunigunde (former empress and saint) who saved them by providing a cloud cover.

Bamberg has 3 areas to the city, there's an island separated by the Regnitz river that became the rich part of town, then there are little islands around broken up by canals that the local people lived in and then the 7 hills. On each hill is a church and atop one of them is the Dom or St. Michael's church, the old palace and the old abbey.

View of Bamberg from the Dom Rose Garden

The Alte Rathaus, the bishop of Bamberg wouldn't let the people of the town have land to build a townhall, so the people put large poles in the middle of the river and built the town hall on top of the poles. This is the mural painted on the side of the town hall.

Another part of the Alte Rathaus

Bamberg is considered the German Venice. There are several canals that run through the city to create little islands. The picture above is where the fisherman lived.

Towns didn't have numbers on the sides of them to indicate an address. So people would put animals, or something on their house as an address. This house put a unicorn on it, now it's a store, so if you wanted to find someones house they would simply say the house with the unicorn next to the Gabelmoo (neptune fountain, gabel means fork and moo is guy) fountain.

I've been asked to provide more stories in my blog about where and what we see. Today's story is about Cunigunde. Cunigunde was born to a prestigious family in the late 900's. She married the King of Germany Henry II. Both of them were very religious and tied to the catholic church. Some people told the King that the Queen had been unfaithful to him, hanging around with other men. They punished her by making her walk in her bare feet across red hot metal. But when she crossed her feet weren't burned at all. So her husband knew that she hadn't lied and they considered that a miracle, that she wasn't burned. Because of this miracle she was made a saint in the catholic church. Her husband was made a saint as well, he had an operation for something and survived it. Which is a miracle because back in 1000 there were no real doctors and most people died if they had an operation. Cunigunde and her husband, the king, weren't able to have kids, so they built a monastery and church. They thought if people would come and say prayers in the church that they would be blessed to have children. They never did, but alot of people prayed for them. When they died their bodies were put in tombs within the church. There is also a pope laid to rest in a tomb as well in the church. Lots of famous dead people inside the church. No you can't see their bodies, they are in stone boxes. When Henry II died, Cunigunde's husband, the crown went to a cousin of some sort. What was interesting is that Cunigunde was poor when she was no longer queen. She and the king had used up most of their money to help the poor and the church. She became a nun at an Abbey she helped pay for. Did I mention that the cobblestones surrounding the church are original from 1000 AD, cool to think I am walking on something so old. But not as cool as in Jerusalem.

Image from wikipedia, but it shows Cunigunde and her husband King Henry II

The old palace/abbey next to the Dom

St. Michael's church/the Dom

Inside the church

View of the Dom/Abbey from the city below

After our tour, Grandpa and I decided to try out an ice cream place the tour guide said was really good. It was, except Grandpa didn't read the menu very well and ended up getting an ice cream with liquor in it. He wondered what that sour taste was, oops. First time I've seen Grandpa NOT finish his ice cream.

My joghurt mit erdbereen

Magic flute, and the magic is the orange sorbet laced with liquor at the bottom

We returned to the buses and rode it back to our boat. We are moving from the Main river to the Danube in the next few days. We are on a canal that connects the two right now.

Bamberg does the locks on the bridge thing too, must be a German fad. Check the age of this lock.

Tomorrow we will be in Nuremberg.