"In Rothenburg, medieval life comes alive in its cobbled alleys”
- Rick Steves
Visit to Rothenburg Ob Der Tauber
This morning, we checked out of our hotel and headed to the Munich train station, where we stored our luggage except for one backpack each.
We bought the Bayern Ticket, covering regional train travel, that we will also be able to use to get to Salzburg tomorrow! Excellent value.
We transferred through Nurenburg and got assistance from the train kiosk for route to Rothenburg. Ashli is still a little stuck in the past trying to travel around without thinking about the helpful phone apps; Lesson learned for the future is to utilize the local train phone app for concise routes to your destination! Though, the woman at the kiosk was very friendly, there was no line, and she even printed out information for our needs. The lines for a similar kiosk in Munich were jam-packed.
We bought the Bayern Ticket, covering regional train travel, that we will also be able to use to get to Salzburg tomorrow! Excellent value.
We transferred through Nurenburg and got assistance from the train kiosk for route to Rothenburg. Ashli is still a little stuck in the past trying to travel around without thinking about the helpful phone apps; Lesson learned for the future is to utilize the local train phone app for concise routes to your destination! Though, the woman at the kiosk was very friendly, there was no line, and she even printed out information for our needs. The lines for a similar kiosk in Munich were jam-packed.
Taking a step back into time
It was Monday and rather quiet as we walked through the gates below to step back into time into Germany's "best-preserved medieval walled town". We already realized what a gem Rothenburg was going to be to explore.
The Market Square -"Marktplatz"
As any city square, The Market Square is where you will currently find people gathering and usually the busiest spot. In the medieval times, much hasn't changed as this was the location for events, meeting, markets, though they also held executions here. The Councilor’s Tavern or "Ratstrinkstube" Clock Tower chimes every hour on the hour between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m.; at that time, two doors open on either side of the clock face to reenact the legendary story of the brave mayor, who drank nearly a gallon of wine in order to save his city.
Our hotel for the one-night
Trying to divulge into the history of this city as much as we could on a 24-hour adventure, we stayed at the Historik Hotel Gotisches Haus Garni, a 13th-century stone and timber-framed building that used to be a patrician's (aristocrat or nobleman) house. It was a gem of a place to stay!
Tour with the Night Watchman of Rothenburg - "der Nachtwächter von Rothenburg"
As aforementioned, Ashli took German class in high school and had an amazing teacher, Frau Moore, in which a lot of information has stuck with her.
This tour with the Nightwatchman is one of those pieces of information; the Nightwatchman himself is named Hans-George, and is the same person she learned about in her textbooks almost 20 years ago.
No need to book in advance; just show up at the Market Square at 8 PM and have Euro cash with you to cover the fee, collected at the end. The Nightwatchman has his own website for up to date information as well as a well-written history on Rothenburg.
This tour with the Nightwatchman is one of those pieces of information; the Nightwatchman himself is named Hans-George, and is the same person she learned about in her textbooks almost 20 years ago.
No need to book in advance; just show up at the Market Square at 8 PM and have Euro cash with you to cover the fee, collected at the end. The Nightwatchman has his own website for up to date information as well as a well-written history on Rothenburg.
Daily Dose of Beer and Snacks
We found ourselves at Hotel & Restaurant Reichsküchenmeister as its outdoor patio over looking Church of St. James lured us in. We enjoyed cool beers while snacking on a variety of cheeses from a regional cheese dairy called Wohlfahrt, accompanied by chutney and a selection of artisan bread. Prost!
Night Views
A warm summer evening paired up with a sleepy medieval town? A perfect recipe for a nightly stroll and some window-shopping of local art, wooden crafts, and more.
A little local snackRothenburg's historic pastry is the "Snow Ball" or "Schneeballen", a doughy ball that can come with a variety of other flavors; this one had a white chocolate with a splatter of dark chocolate. Some may say its touristy, but for a small price, and perhaps to share with a fellow travelers who just wants to taste, it's worth trying at least one!
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A Morning in Rothenburg
Looking out the hotel window, we found yet another gorgeous sunny day, waiting for us to enjoy it.
The hotel provided an included breakfast with fresh fruits, scrambled eggs, dense yet soft bread, sliced meats and savory cheese, and a nice hot cup of coffee. After checking out, we had a few things left to do before going back to modern time. |
Medieval Crime Museum
What's a medieval village without a crime museum? The Medieval Crime Museum -"Mittelalterliches Kriminalmuseum" offers a thorough exhibit of all the information you could imagine and mostly stuff you have never thought of! While wandering through, it will be impossible not to shudder at least once....
St. Wolfgang's Church -"St. Wolfgangskirche"
This church, St. Wolfgang's, dates back to 1475 and includes a Shepherd Dance Museum within in the church gatehouse where you will find various exhibits relating to the sheep farm and the shepherd's dance which occurs throughout the year in Rothenburg's market square.
Walking the Ramparts (City Wall)
The other must-do activity when in Rothenburg is to walk to ramparts or city wall. You can walk as little or as much of this as you want. We feel we could spend another day/night here just to simply explore the full city wall and little areas from each gate.
Access is free to walk the walls; tower climb has a small fee!
Access is free to walk the walls; tower climb has a small fee!
Christmas Store - "Käthe Wohlfahrt"
We made a quick stop in Käthe Wohlfahrt to indulge in Christmas in the summertime, as it is Christmas here all year round! They also have a small museum but we only had time to look around the shop. There were many tempting crafts, see below, but settled on just a couple of ornaments, including the little Santa with bell. We had fun!