Wieskirche - A Rococo Masterpiece

Not far from Neuschwanstein Castle (or the original Disney Castle) is one of the most fantastic sites that I have ever seen. Keep in mind that I generally love rococo style and Wieskirche IS proclaimed to be the best example of rococo style in the world. Maybe I'm partial but I think it is true and here are just a few (I took a few dozen!!!!) photos so that you can decide for yourself. There is no way my little camera can showcase the beauty of this church in the meadow. Be sure to click on the photos to enjoy the magnificence.

Just one step inside and it was like walking into heaven

Every inch of the church was magnificent

Wieskirche is a must-see if you are traveling near Fussen to see the castles.

German Souvenirs at Scott Antique Market

I just had to take a break from sharing travel pictures to tell you about the terrific souvenirs I found this weekend at Scott Antique Market. In case you aren't familiar with SAM, it's a very large once-a-month antique show in Atlanta and Columbus, OH. I live a few minutes away from the Atlanta location which is so convenient for me. I try to stop in every month just to poke around and this month I struck gold!

While in Germany, I fell in love with the lovely German Roemer wine glasses, but that's not all. I especially loved the beautiful white china used in restaurants in Bavaria. I did some shopping but refrained from buying glass items, mainly because I didn't want to deal with packing fragile items.

Well Saturday was my lucky day for finding international goods! For just $20 I bought (6) etched German Roemer wine glasses, (3) porcelain-handled Sheffield serving pieces (UK), (1) Rosenthal tea cup and saucer (Bavaria) and (1) Apilco Ramekin (France). Can you believe it! Just had to share photos of a few of the items.
Be sure to check out more treasured finds at Rhoda's Thifty Treasures. It's a great way to start your Monday!

Rococo in Wurzburg

I'm a big fan of rococo style though I realize that it's not for everyone. Keeping in mind that fires during WWII destroyed Wurzburg, these wonderful structures were all rebuilt to showcase architectural artistry.

Doesn't it look like icing on a cake?

Okay, I confess. In our old house I used caulk to try to create designs on my walls. My scrolls were lovely but somehow it was odd to see scrollwork on the walls of a 70s built, split-level "working on a groovy thing" home!

Be sure to click to enlarge the photos to enjoy the details.

Just after I took these pictures a docent came after me. We missed the English tour so I didn't realize that I wasn't supposed to be taking photos in the Residenz.

But don't worry, I will be back with LOTS more pictures of the most amazing example of rococo style that you have ever seen!

Romantic Road

I have to admit that before we decided to go to Germany, I hadn't heard of the Romantic Road but discovering it made planning our trip very easy. On the RR website you will find it described as:

A trade route during the middle ages, Germany's Romantic Road still retains much of its medieval character. The road often winds through forgotten sections of countryside, connecting walled towns and picturesque villages. Travelers may enter a town through an arched gateway complete with guard towers. Inside, you will find gothic cathedrals, half-timbered fachwerk houses, beautiful historic hotels and often a medieval festival. Fairytale castles like Neuschwanstein and the Alps complete the charm.

The highway signs both on and off the Autobahn clearly mark the Romantic Strasse as you can see below.Back in the 1950s some travel agents worked to create this scenic trail to increase tourism and obviously, it worked. There are also great travel routes such as The Fairy Tale Road and the Bavarian Porcelain Route. If you are planning a trip to Germany I would recommend taking a look at some of the towns and stops included in these well-organized travel routes.We decided to begin our trip in Wurzburg. The interesting thing about this city is that during WWII, 90% of this city was completely destroyed. It was described as an inferno. Cleanup and rebuilding of the city was almost completely done by WOMEN! Most of the men were either dead or prisoners of war. With this in mind, here are some pictures of some of the sites of the city.

This must be the German equivalent of Cadbury's Creme Eggs


I loved the way every town decorated and celebrated Easter

I loved walking down the narrow streets and always discovering something at the end of the road or around the corner.

A view of the fortress from the old bridge. I won't show you the pictures my son took of me and my husband s-l-o-w-l-y walking up the path to the fortress. Let's put it this way, we need to exercise more!

Tomorrow I'd like to share some of the examples of rococo style. There were several great examples on this trip and Wurzburg was just the beginning.

To Germany (a little France) and Back

We took our grandgirls on their spring break to visit my son (their dad) who has recently been relocated to Germany. In the next few posts I'll be sharing some of our travel highlights. My son and daughter-in-law now live in a small town called Weilerbach so our first day and night was spent there just resting and enjoying the neighborhood. I enjoyed stopping in at the local Barbarossa Backerei for coffee and pastry. I think this place was an upscale version of the Atlanta Bread Company but it was a great place for coffee and people watching.Our first travel day was to Strasbourg. It is just an hour and a half away from where my son and daughter-in-law are now living. They moved from Sumter, SC to Germany and while in Sumter they enjoyed taking weekend trips to Atlanta. Based on their new location, Paris is their new Atlanta! Can you imagine? We loved Strasbourg and though I have already shared some photos but I'd like to share a few more.

I was totally taken by the details on some of the half-timbered structures.

Don't you just love the painting on this building?

And there were LOTS of half-timbered structures.

It's hard to miss the Cathedral

The stained-glass was beautiful

But it bothered me to be in church and to be reminded to beware the pickpockets!

Signs of Easter were everywhere

I just loved this window display


We stopped in to enjoy some real hot chocolate. The milk chocolate was on a stick. To make the chocolate you had to pour warm milk over your milk chocolate stick and stir. Chocolate milk was never so rich and chocolaty good.

Tomorrow I'll share the start of our trip down the Romantic Road.

Quick Trip to France

We drove down to Strasbourg yesterday and had a wonderful day trip. Today we hit the Romantic Road for a few days. Be back soon.

Signs of Spring in Germany