We arrived back at my daughter's house outside Heidelberg on wednesday evening after a rather grueling all day trip from Brittany and a close call with being lost with an empty gas tank! It was one of those times when the universe came to our rescue, placing a gas station right around the corner (it really felt like we were in the twilight zone) as well as a W.C.! Since our arrival we have visited Ladenberg, a town about a half hour from Heidelberg, with buildings dating back to fourteen-hundred.
The buildings are beautiful and quaint, and many have small square metal plaques set into the cobbles by the front doors, in remembrance of former residents who were the victims of the Nazi's during WW2. Each 4x4 inch square holds the names and dates the individuals were taken and gives the date of their death at Auschwitz or other concentration camps. Started by Cologne artist Gunter Demnig, these stones have been placed in many cities
, beginning with Berlln in 1997.
Today we visited another town only twenty minutes from Heidelberg called Speyer where we found a delightful Italian restaurant and enjoyed cannelloni with spinach and ricotta in a tomato sauce. This town is another beautiful and historic place but instead of being interested in the history I was frantically trying to find gifts to bring home! Luckily the shops were open on a sunday, something that only happens four times a year.
The Speyer Cathedral dominates the landscape, with four towers and two domes. It was founded by Conrad II in 1030 and remodelled at the end of the 11th century. One of the most important Romanesque monuments from the Holy Roman Empire, it was the burial place of the German emperors for almost 300 years.
We also went to Bad Nauheim, a small town north of Frankfurt, where my father was stationed when I was eight years old. I remembered the beautiful stone house where we lived that sat atop the hill overlooking the town, but when I searched for it I couldn't find it. I think it has been torn down and replaced with a more modern building.
The trip was enjoyable despite my disappointment and we had fun shopping for food in the outdoor market. Named for the thermal waters originally discovered and used by the Celts and the Romans it is one of many towns in the area with Bad (bath) in its name. There is a plaque to Elvis Presley along a side street, commemorating his time spent there in the fifties while in the army.
I bet you're exhausted and starting to dream about your bed at home. At least this is what happens to me when I travel. You'll not doubt come home with "battle-travel" fatigue and after a day or two all of your fabulous adventures will come streaming back to you. Be sure you have a pen handy when this happens.
ReplyDeleteI remembered the beautiful stone house where we lived that sat atop the hill overlooking the town, but when I searched for it I couldn't find it. I think it has been torn down and replaced with a more modern building
ReplyDeleteI hate that. A school I taught in for too many years was torn down and replaced with some starter homes. Passing these houses I felt like a ghost, it's history erased.