Marbach to Maulbronn, Germany

For my last day exploring Baden-Württemberg on this trip, I drove about 60 miles from Mössingen to the Neckar River valley north of Stuttgart.

I visited a series of old towns along the river, beginning with Marbach am Neckar (remember, Germans tend to include the river the town is on in its name for clarification).

There were hit-and-miss showers all day but I didn’t mind. At times, the sun would break through the big clouds. It made for dramatic lighting and vibrant photos. The air was much cooler, in the low 50s maybe. On the drive back this afternoon I could see sleet mixed in with the raindrops on my windshield.

I had all of Marbach to myself this morning. There were a few old buildings being renovated so I examined the stone and timber construction. It was fascinating to see walls built hundreds of years ago once again exposed.

I studied an interesting war memorial at the base of the tower gate. The accompanying plaque made clear that the monument to the dead from the First World War was erected by the National Socialists in 1934.

It struck me as a bit odd. Similar to the memorial I saw yesterday in Sigmaringen, the plaques referred to the Nazis almost like a foreign entity.

In the last totally free elections in Germany in 1932, the Nazi party beat out every other party, winning 33% of the vote. Many of Marbach’s citizens in 1934 were undoubtedly supporters (if not outright members) of the party. Some probably took part in creating the memorial. Again, just seemed odd.

I continued my trek north along the Neckar and hiked through the town of Bietigheim. Most of the oldest sections of these towns along the river are on high ground (makes sense). That meant there was a lot of climbing today.

But it was worth it. As I’ve mentioned before, every little German town usually has a Rathaus (town hall), a Markplatz (square) and a Brunnen (fountain). The fountains, you can see, are still decorated for Easter with greenery, flowers and colorful eggs.

My favorite town I visited was Besigheim. The Germans themselves voted it one their most beautiful wine towns. I found a parking spot and crossed the Neckar on foot using a bridge that provided a spectacular, welcoming view.

You could tell the townspeople took pride in Besigheim. It was noticeably tidy (even by German standards) with potted flowers and decorations in front of nearly every house.

In Germany, the homeowner is responsible for cleaning and maintaining the sidewalks and gutters around their house. I’ve often seen elderly men and women down on their hands and knees picking cigarette butts out from between cobblestones. It’s simply a way of life here.

After a disappointing lunch (my Flammenkuchen needed more flammen), I drove west for the town of Maulbronn. The United Nations maintains a list of world heritage sites that are to be protected at all costs from war and development. The Kloster (abbey) at Maulbronn is one of these UNESCO sites.

This was Europe’s best-preserved monastery complex north of the Alps. It was full of Romanesque architecture and even the first use of Gothic architecture in Germany. The weather had cleared this afternoon so I enjoyed walking slowly through the complex brightened by the sun. It was a marvel.

After a while, all the religious artifacts and monuments start to get a bit heavy. I found a little person carved into the stone who was merrily hoisting some sort of tool. He reminded me of Cade or Mason being put to work up at Mimi and Papa’s house ha.

There was a group of Germans ahead with a tour guide but I kept to the opposite side of the cloister. It was quiet and I could investigate each tunnel and room on my own. Sometimes you need to feel a bit like Indiana Jones.

I closely studied a drawing of the complex from the 1500s. Amazingly, not much had changed except more of the town of Maulbronn had grown up outside the protective abbey walls.

This being Germany, of course there was a cafe serving desserts and coffee. I selected a slice of blueberry pie and ate it sitting in the sun in the middle of the chattering German tour group.

Kids these days… It was interesting to see graffiti carved into the sandstone walls of the abbey from hundreds of years ago. I even saw one set of carved initials with a date from the late 1600s.

These carvings may be the only tangible signs remaining on earth that many of these people even existed. I ran my hand over a few of the initials and wondered who they were and what happened to them. We’ll never know.

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Thanks for coming along on the trip. If you have questions or suggestions, tweet @JasonRMatheson. Missed an entry? Click here.