Today we saw Nuremberg. Every place we go to has so much history! Nuremberg is a city, so fair enough, you can see the modern Euro-style buildings as you drive around. But in the middle of the city is another city, the old city. It’s comes complete with castle, gothic churches and a few other landmarks of note. What isn’t immediately apparent is that all the houses of the old city are build in the medieval fashion. Some of them are genuinely hundreds of years old, but when it came time to rebuild the city after 90% (literally - you should see the photos!) of it was destroyed in the war, the authorities decided that buildings should be within a certain height range, have the roofs slope at a certain angle, have the long side facing the street, etc etc. So now this inner city is styled from the middle ages.
A third (or something) cousin drove us to Nuremberg and we wandered with her for a bit before we all took a guided tour. This was great, well worth the 10 Euro or so (including castle tour) each. The churches are just amazingly ornate inside, and there’s a story behind each and every part of it, these stories are just great to hear.

It’s really novel for Lara and I as young city Australians to come to a part of Southern Germany and visit villages and cities that have such a rich (known) history that goes back so far. Nuremberg is very close to if not 1000 years old - even the castle there. Just imagining the life there when these towers were new as well as impressive is pretty cool, and the legends and facts that come with it are fantastic. I didn’t even know that the kingdoms of Europe were once (and for centuries) under the rule of emperors. At one stage the empire included as far afield as Mexico - the saying was that the sun never went down on this empire. The empirical palace in Nuremberg (there’s one in every major city of the empire) is not so much exquisitely designed as it is deeply awe inspiring to see and stand where these Kings above Kings once danced or prayed.

Nuremberg also captured me in the form of a frauline (yes a German on an English speaking tour) who was also part of our group. I noticed first that she holds a regal posture, was tightly figured, and had a classic demeanour. And never before have I gained so much from offering "Gesundheit". We shared a charming short while discussing Franconia and beers, comparing our Mandarin abilities (I was hopelessly outgunned after one sentence of course) and generally making playful small talk. When we parted she instructed me to try the beer from her home town, and I promised to think of her when I did. And I will, if I can somehow remember its name.

Residence of our family friends,
Heilsbronn, Germany