Nürnberg (12/10-12/1982

Friday, December 10, 1982

Train ticket cover

Biel to Nürnberg train ticket

Finished work at 11:30 and Marsha C and I went to catch the 12:23 train to Zürich, arriving at 13:50 and changed to the 14:10 train to Stuttgart, W Germany. We were headed to Nürnberg/Nuremberg for the weekend. We shared a compartment with a single middle-aged lady who seemed to suffer a cold. It was pouring rain outside as we ate salami and cheese sandwiches. Passed through customs about 15:00. Arrived in Stuttgart about 17:45, and waited for the 18:18 train to Nürnberg. It was already crowded and we had the fold-down seats in the vestibule. But after the first stop, seats were freed up. Arrived in Nürnberg about 20:35. We walked out the front of the station to Bahnhofplatz/Station Square, but saw no way to cross the square. Back in the station we followed signs to Sterntor/gate, having to go down a level, crossing a bridge over a grassy moat, and through the Handwerkhof, a medieval village of craft shops in old and tiny half-timbered buildings. Pretty neat! Went through Sterntor to Königstrasse inside the walled town. The medieval buildings were decorated with Christmas lights. A block past the McDonald’s was Peuntgasse where we found the Keim Gasthof/inn at #10. I rang the bell and when the man opened the door, I explained in German that we had a room reservation and I gave him my name. The man laughed, went and got a key and told us in English, that room #3 was on the first floor. We walked up one flight being followed by another couple. They went into #1 saying “Good night!” We were still stuck in German and said “Gute Nacht!” We first found the bathroom (locked) across the hall and the lavatory before going into our room with two adjoining single beds, a tiny table and two folding chairs, a locked wardrobe, and a sink. We had our dinner of Southern fried chicken. We took a walk around the old town, seeing it lighted up at night. Everything was modernized, but they kept the Renaissance flavor. The Lorenzkirche/Church of St Lawrence (13-15C), with its intricately carved façade, was lighted. We passed many shops with a wide array of souvenirs. As we passed a jewelry store, I heard a hum, as the slatted metal security shutter descended. We arrived at the Hauptmarkt/Main Market square, which was filled with canvas covered stalls, but empty of people. The Christkindlesmarkt/Christmas Market. The area was roped off and we saw a guard patrolling with a German shepherd dog. We walked around past the Frauenkirche/Our Lady’s Church (1352-61) and the 14C Gothic Schöner Brunnen/Beautiful Fountain and back across the Pegnitz River. Tried to go back to the Handwerkhof, but it was closed. We went underground to the shopping mall at the train station, seeing a few loiterers, people bopping to their own drummers, a guy with a “box radio,” and a group of drinkers at the top of the escalator. At the train station, we looked for posters or any information as to when the Christkindlesmarkt/Christmas Market would open, but found nothing. Saw some guys with military haircuts meeting the new guy with a cartful of luggage. The drinkers were now gathered at the bottom of the escalator. We returned to the hotel where our key opened the front door as well as our room door. But it did not open the wardrobe. Oh, well, we managed.

Saturday, December 11, 1982

The included breakfast was rolls and butter, jam, liverwurst, and cream cheese with mushrooms. Marsha had coffee and I had hot chocolate. We went to make sure we could stay a second night, but uh oh, they were full. The lady told us to come back at 11:30 to check with the “chef”. We paid for the one night at 70 DM/$28.70, and left the key, even though we were told we could leave our things in the room. We walked straight to the Christkindlesmarkt/Christmas Market by 9:00, and it was open. We started browsing the stalls one by one. There were already lots of people, but we were able to move to the front of each stall to examine the wares and prices. There were bakery stalls selling the famous Elisen Lebkuchen (like gingerbread made with made with sugar, eggs, almonds, and only 10 percent flour) among other things like chocolate hearts, sweets/candies, sugared almonds, pretzels, bratwurst in rolls with a dab of mustard, etc. Plus the stalls selling Glühwein/hot or mulled wine with spices. Some stalls sold cheap plastic toys, knitted items, clothing, or pottery. But the great majority of stalls offered Christmas ornaments and decorations, mostly made with wood, but also wax, metal, clay, and straw.

Marsha at the Christkindlesmarkt

The variety seemed endless and we knew we would have difficulty choosing among the nutcrackers, candle carousels, and smokers/wooden figures in which you put a smoldering incense cone and the smoke comes out of a rounded mouth. There were gold foil angels dolls and a specialty was the prune people, figures made with prunes wired together, sometimes with a fig body and walnut head, all dressed in costume. Most were figures of farmers and farmers’ wives, and chimney sweeps. We shopped around comparing prices and Marsha got a few cups of Glühwein along the way.

We stopped in the Frauenkirche/Our Lady’s Church that had a bazaar set up, and entered the cathedral. There were many carved statues along the aisles.

Halfway around the market we came to the Red Cross tombola (a type of raffle) booth and Marsha bought four chances. She had me pick out two tickets, and she picked two. Hers said “Wir danken/we thank you” and mine said “München” and “Karlsruhe.” The first entitled us to choose from a table of the biggest prizes and the latter from a table of the smallest prizes. From the Karlsruhe table Marsha picked out a salt shaker from among the sponges and model airplanes. Now the table of the biggest prizes with a barometer, teapot, bedspread, bar glasses, board games, AM radio, watch and pen set. Finally the man pulled out a toaster from under the table and we took that. We had to laugh at our luck! At 11:30 we had made it to the next to last row, and the crowd was getting thicker so that we had to partially push our way through and partially flow with the tide. We left the market, crossed the bridge to pass the produce market, and walked up the main pedestrian street. There was a real-bearded Santa playing a hurdy-gurdy, and he shook the hands of the kids who dropped coins in his cup. We returned to the Gasthof/inn to talk to the manager who said he had a group coming from some American hospital in Germany and they had made reservations well ahead; however, he could put us in a single room with a cot. We immediately agreed, and moved our things to room #2. They had already put a cot in room #3. We wondered how they were going to get a cot into room #2 with its single bed, wardrobe, table and chair. We used the restroom, then headed to the Handwerkhof of old craft shops.

Handwerkhof/Handicraft Court

Handwerkhof

There was a bank and we found a bakery selling the cutest prune ladies. We bought one for Jan & Kirby for 5.95 DM/$2.50. There was a glass shop and a pottery shop where I bought a clay Christmas ornament for Terry at 15 DM/$6. We passed a Christmas shop, but there was a line of people waiting to enter. We climbed to the first floor to see the Handwerkhof exhibit, a PR display of cardboard showing sausages and cheeses, etc. Passed a restaurant and a bar, went into a marionette shop, and at another bakery we found bottles of the Nürnberger Glühwein for only 3.70 DM/$1.50 instead of 5 DM/$2 that we usually see. Marsha bought three bottles. Passed another restaurant, a basket weaver, a glass etcher, and a toy shop before leaving the Handwerkhof. We returned to the hotel to unload our purchases, and then went to the city’s largest church, Lorenzkirche/Church of St Lawrence to see a dark and old, but well-decorated, church with stained-glass windows. The unusual rose window (c. 1355) was difficult to see behind the massive organ, where someone was practicing for the evening concert. We couldn’t see the altar because an orchestra “pit” was set up in front of it. We didn’t want to pay 18 DM/$7.40 each to hear an organ concert that night. We stopped in a souvenir shop to see more candle carousels, nutcrackers, and music boxes, but we had seen better prices at the market. We also checked out a very crowded shop on the other side of the market, to compare prices, and finally wriggled out to get lunch, buying a bratwurst. We finished our tour of the market, scouting out the last row of stalls.

Christkindlesmarkt

Christkindlesmarkt

By then we were overwhelmed by the variety of ornaments. But now we started shopping in earnest, and Marsha was good about remembering where we had seen what. There were probably ten rows with at least 10 stalls in each row! Marsha had already bought a few ornaments, but then bought a few more. I finally chose a small wooden ornament of a sled piled with gifts, and a wooden mountain climber who could be made to climb a string, a train, and a Nativity scene in a ring. Initially I found the scene with no ring, and then a ring with no scene. I asked the vendor if I could have the two pieces, and he came out to check that there were no others. No, so he quickly glued the scene into the ring, and charged me only 2 DM/80 cents instead of 3 DM/$1.25! I also bought 6 wooden sleds, a wooden flower pin, and a wooden owl ornament to give to Roselyne J, whose name I had drawn in the hospital gift exchange. Also two smokers (a night watchman and a town crier) for 29.90 DM/$12.25 each, and a small Nativity candle carousel for 42.50 DM/$17.50. Marsha bought two small smokers and a similar carousel. Marsha later got a really nice woodchopper smoker, and we both bought incense cones. I bought a nutcracker soldier, and the first one the vendor showed me was missing an eye! Marsha also bought Lebkuchen, and I got a tin of them. I also found a hobo prune person for 6 DM/$2.50 for Jan & Kirby and we unsuccessfully looked for a Punch & Judy theater for them. We went to the post office to buy stamps, and found another gift shop with good prices. There I got a nutcracker chimney sweep for 28.50 DM/$11.70 and a music box with three boys and a couple of trees that turn as it plays the “Tiroler Holzhackenbuebli/Tirolean woodchopper boys.” By now the crowds were jam-packed in the market, and we had packages galore. We returned to the hotel at 16:00 for a nap and postcard-writing break. I decided I wanted another candle carousel, so we set out again at 17:00. I bought a straw ornament and at the booth where we had bought our other candle carousels, I bought their last (display) Nativity carousel. The vendors recognized us! We tried the tombola again, but didn’t win anything more. Yet the toaster cost us less than $2! We decided to go to dinner at the Gaststätte/restaurant at the Mauthalle, an old corn and salt warehouse (1498-1512). We went down a flight of stairs to find ourselves in a large room with plain wooden tables and chairs. We walked through to a bar-like area. We weren’t sure where we should eat, or should we just have a drink, or what? Back at the tables, we found menus, but they didn’t match the ones outside. We took a table and waited along time. Finally an old man waiter came and peered at us, and took our order. After a long wait, my apple juice arrived, but no beer for Marsha. After another long wait, a couple beers went to the next table and we had to remind the waiter that we were still waiting on a beer. My meal of pork schnitzel and potato salad came.  Eventually Marsha’s Sauerbraten/braised beef with a Kartoffelkloss/giant potato dumpling arrived. But still no beer! Finally the beer arrived and we polished off our plates. Marsha got another beer and paid for the meal (about 40 DM/$16). We sat for a while in the half empty place; a dull beer hall! We took our packages back to the hotel room, then headed out again for a walk before the town locked up for the night. We headed back to the market on side streets past sex shops and theaters. We passed the Lorenzkirche, but didn’t hear any organ music. The market was all closed up even before 21:00. We stopped at McDonald’s where I had a shake and Marsha had beer! We people-watched. There were ladies in fur coats, U.S. GIs, punk kids, old hippies, businessmen, Turks, chic guys, and some people we had seen either at dinner or at the market. The clean-up boy had no front teeth. Marsha was establishing eye contact with everyone. She nearly got in a conversation with some man who tried talking to her in Italian, then in his own language that we couldn’t identify. I was a party-pooper and insisted we leave at 23:00.

Sunday, December 12, 1982

We packed up and went to breakfast. Without being asked, we were given one coffee and one tea. Marsha let me have the tea, and we had the usual rolls with condiments. The manager came to ask if we had the key to the wardrobe in room #3, but it was locked when we arrived and we could never open it. I guess we should have reported it. When I went to pay the bill, it was for two nights and I had to explain we already paid for the one night in room #3. “Oh!” So I paid 60 DM/$24.50 for the single room.

Gasthof Keim invoice

We walked to the train station to put our baggage in a locker. We had a duffel bag, a backpack, a plastic bag, and a smaller plastic bag to carry the things we would need during the day. We put in 2 DM/80 cents and tried to turn the key, but it wouldn’t turn all the way. We fiddled with it and I ended up turning it back which meant we would have to pay again. We decided to use another locker so we wouldn’t be cheated again, but I had to get change. We needed 2 single DM coins, and when I put in a 2 DM coin, it gave me 1 DM and 2 50-pfennig coins! So I had to put in another 2 DM coin to get the necessary change. After locking up our things, we began our tour of Nürnberg. We first went to the Handwerkhof, taking a picture from the moat.

Town wall and gate from moat

We exited out the other side to see the church converted into a youth center, and Klaraskirche/Church of St Clara. We turned left on Klaragasse to go to the very modern Germanisches Nationalmuseum/German National Museum which was free on Sunday, but we decided to come back only if we had time. We continued past the Gothic Jakobkirche/Church of St Jacob (13C), towards the city wall. We passed through a rougher area and saw a woman with lots of make up and her hair done up, leaning out of a window while several men loitered across the street (early Sunday morning!). Turned out to be the red light district! We walked through a gate in the wall, along the outside, and re-entered by Spittlertorturm/tower.

City wall and towers

Walked back to Jakobkirche and saw the domed church of Elizabeth/Elisabethkirche (completed 1803). Here in Jakobsplatz there were a few market stall, one selling little sleds. We found ourselves in the shopping district with pedestrian-only areas. In the middle of a modern area was an old tower, Weisserturm (1250), which had an entrance to the subway!

Weisserturm/White Tower

We followed a curved cobblestoned alley that went downhill, leading past half-timbered houses.

Alley to Unschlitthaus/Granary

We passed the Unschlitthaus, an old granary, to get to the Pegnitz River and see Henkersteg/Hangman’s Footbridge, an old wooden covered bridge leading to Henkerturm/tower, and a timbered Weinstadel/building once used for wine commerce.

Weinstadel/Wine Warehouse

Weinstadel

We crossed the more modern Maxbrücke/bridge (1457) with wrought-ironwork. Looking back across the river, we saw half-timbered buildings reflected in the river.

Building on the Pegnitz River

We found our way to the Spielzeug/Toy Museum, and after peeking in the windows, decided to go in despite the 2 DM/80 cent fee.

Spielzeug Museum ticket

The three floors were packed with a wide variety of toys and with people. On the first floor were dolls, wooden toys, and a beautiful Christmas tree with dough ornaments. Upstairs were amazing dollhouses; one large one had the most impressive woodwork. We looked out a window to see it was beginning to snow. The next floor had trains, mechanical toys, and puppets. There was a huge train display containing a model of the Omaha, Nebraska train station! We went out to take a picture of the guild house in which the Spielzeug/Toy Museum was located, with a snowy foreground.

Hallersches Haus housing the  Toy Museum

We then climbed the hill to Albrecht Dürer’s house.

Albrecht Dürer Haus

We paid the 2 DM/80 cents to enter the half-timbered house where the artist once lived.

Albrecht Dürer Haus ticket

There wasn’t much furniture, but there were a few of his paintings, and paintings of him. It was mostly a graphic display of his many talents, and of artists he influenced and was influenced by. In the snow we continued uphill to Kaiserburg/Imperial Castle.

Below Kaiserburg/Imperial Castle

The snow was beginning to stick and Marsha packed up a snowball to throw at me!

Kaiserburg ticket

We purchased a tour ticket for 3 DM/$1.25 and the tour was to begin at 11:30. Fifteen minutes late, we were ushered into Knights Hall with a hundred other people! The tour was in German and I tried to translate the bits that Marsha wasn’t catching. Half the place was bombed out in World War II, but it has been restored. We were taken to the Romanesque double chapel (two stories, c.1200), and up the narrow stairs in the church to the imperial balcony. We saw several full length portraits in the Imperial Hall, notably one of Leopold, who, as you passed, seemed to rotate his foot and keep his eye on you. Next door were two reception rooms. A double-headed eagle was painted on one ceiling and we were asked what was wrong with the painting (besides the double head!). The problem was that the eagle should have been black and the background gold; it was reversed here. The eagle was the symbol of the Holy Roman Empire, and the emperors or Kaisers lived here 1105-1571. After the Prince’s Chamber, we went to the service hall, where there were drawing of the imperial treasures, which are now in Vienna, thanks to Hitler. The tour ended about 12:30 although it was to have lasted only 30 minutes. We skipped climbing Sinwellturm/tower (13C, which with the double chapel, was the only section left intact after the war) and the Tiefer Brunnen/Deep Well (rebuilt 1951).

View from Kaiserburg

We walked down into the city, passing the city museum in Fembohaus (1591-1596), another guild house with a stepped façade that survived WWII. We found ourselves at the Christkindlesmarkt/Christmas Market, and took a picture of the Gothic Schöner Brunnen/Beautiful Fountain.

Schöner Brunnen/Beautiful Fountain

Prune people

Frauenkirche Glockenspiel

Heilig Geist Spital/Holy Spirit Hospital

We went to the food stands where I got a bratwurst, and Marsha tried a Weisswurst/white sausage and Leberkäse sandwich.

Marsha at the Glühwein stand

Pedestrian street (and a peek at Santa Claus)

Nassauer Haus and view towards Kaiserburg

Mauthalle/old corn and salt warehouse,
now a beer hall/restaurant

Tram in front of Dicker Turm/Fat Tower

We walked to the train station to retrieve our bags and catch the 13:58 train to Stuttgart.

Nürnberg to Biel train ticket

There was a patchwork of snow in the fields in the countryside. Arrived in Stuttgart at 16:00 and got ourselves a luggage cart.

Marsha with all our luggage

We paid 30 Pfennig/12 cents to use the restroom and got Pepsis and pretzels to use up our German currency. Took the 17:13 train to Zürich. Three seats in the compartment were reserved and Marsha and I, and a young man took the unreserved seats. After we left the station, two young girls joined us, then they got off at Singen, Germany. At the border, a man came by to nod at our passports, then another man came to ask if we had anything to declare. He wanted to know what kinds of gifts I had and I stumbled badly with my German. He then asked if I had a camera, which I did, but what he really wanted to know was if I bought it in Germany. No. So I was let go!

We arrived in Zürich at 20:45 and hurried to catch the 21:04 train to Biel. We managed to get seats in the first 2nd class car we came to. Arrived at 22:30 and since Marsha wasn’t feeling too well, we went to Mühlebrücke to catch the bus. We had a half hour wait for the bus, but then Barbara S happened by and gave us a ride to the Personalhaus/staff residence!