When people refer to Baden-Wüttenburg, they may mention Stuttgart, the state capital, car capital of Germany, and sixth largest city in the country overall. Stuttgart is home to Mercedes-Benz and Porsche, and their museums attract car aficionado visitors from around the world. A love of automobiles is not the only reason to visit Stuttgart, though; in addition to these car manufacturer museums, visitors enjoy Stuttgart’s parks, the main public library, the Markethalle, and climbing up the TV tower to catch the city (and surrounding greenery) views.
You want to know how much we saw of Stuttgart? The train station.
Our destination within Baden-Württemberg was Karlsruhe (about an hour west of Stuttgart), where we would be picked up by a former classmate of Cameron’s, who graciously hosted us for a variety of activities that showed us what seems to be a side of Germany that may not be visible in the major tourist destinations. It definitely felt like we were in the more traditional, slower, historic Germany. Baden-Wurttemberg also has the advantage of outstanding greenery, thanks to its location in the Black Forest, so we felt very close to nature during these few days.
Here are some of the unique things we did. Take note and try one of these in your next Germany adventure.
Go to a vineyard restaurant. Find the brooms
The distinctive quirk of these restaurants is the broom sign outside. It’s a sign that the vineyard owners serve food and beverages. Some are only open during the summer, but basically, if the broom is up, the restaurant is open. Food was decidedly German. Lots of sausages, piled sauerkraut, and a whole bunch of different types of pork. I couldn’t tell you the names of the vast majority of the things we ate, but it was all good. We have yet to run into a German food item that we dislike.
There will be moments when you travel when you’re not sure if you will like what you’re getting to eat. That’s okay. Unless you have a dietary restriction you cannot ignore, or you suspect an allergen in your food, at least take a bite and try it. Most of the time, it’ll taste good, and at the very worst, it will be a funny story.
The Peter and Paul Festival in Bretten
This is a 3-day festival on the first weekend in July, celebrating the besieging of the city in the early 1500s. And by celebrating, we mean the entire town basically LARPs for three days. The festival includes a reenactment of the events of 1504 day by day, starting with the city arming itself during Friday’s events, culminating on Sunday with a procession celebrating the town’s win with parades from the different town groups, each culminating with the joyous screams of “jubel”, which is just a German expression of joy or victory.
People do not just dress up. As we walked around town during the festival, we noticed that there were even people dressed up as the wounded, being “tended to” in “triage stations”. You do get the medieval feel of things and it was a very different experience. Sure, going to a fair is cool, but an entire town turning the clocks back to 1504 and going full medieval to celebrate an old victory? An experience like no other.
Pforzheim: A city built from the ashes
Our friend called it “the ugliest city in Germany”, due to the majority of buildings having that rather austere 50s style that didn’t exactly prioritize aesthetics. The reason for this is that the city was heavily bombed during World War II and for all intents and purposes, had to be rebuilt from scratch.
You can see more about the bombings and what happened to the historic buildings that were damaged or destroyed at Wallberg, a hill offering a bird’s eye view of the city and the “entrance” to the Black Forest.
We also took the opportunity to go to an ice cream parlor to try the traditional German dessert spaghettieis, or ice cream shaped and made to look like a plate of spaghetti with sauce thanks to strawberry jam for the sauce, and the ice cream pressed to create “spaghetti strings”. It’s a very fun dessert for kids or those who want to feel like kids for a little while. Or really, anyone that likes ice cream.
The Maulbronn Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Located in the city of the same name, the Maulbronn Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is considered one of the better-preserved monasteries in Germany. Over the years, this compound has included a church, a school, and a monastery.
The oldest parts of this monastery date back to the 12th century, with updates made in the 14th and 15th centuries. Monasteries were built to be somewhat self-sufficient, so when you explore the grounds, you realize that Maulbronn is more of a small city.
The church grounds are great examples of Gothic architecture and provide wonderful opportunities for slow strolls and contemplation.
One of the most famous features of the monastery is the three-bowl fountain in the fountain house. It was an attempt at “refreshing” the architectural style of the monastery without doing major changes, along with other features and extensions to the original wings that are more modern in style. Even then, the whole compound still retains cohesiveness in style and the grounds are lovely to explore.
To close on the monastery, a fun fact about Maulbronn: among the buildings in the monastery, there is also a school (still in operation today). One of the most notable alumni of this school is astronomer Johannes Kepler, renowned for his findings on the position and movement of planets.
Tip: Get the self-paced audio guide. It really does help explain a lot of historical context around what you see.
Final thoughts
Southern Germany is a lot greener than we thought it was. The parts of Baden-Wurttemberg where we spent most of our time felt slower-paced and were definitely greener.
We got to see different parts of Germany’s past and appreciate the country to a level I’m not sure would have been possible by just going to the cities. In the future, we want to visit other smaller cities and towns in Germany in other regions (as well as return to B-W).
We expect to return to Germany many more times since it’s a pretty logical stop for us. Where should we go next?
I would love the slow pace of life combined with its green nature. Both sit right up my alley. Excellent post.
Ryan
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