Tom`s travels: Worms, Lorsch, Speyer (16/04/2017)

After my parents, brother, aunt, uncle and cousin had come to visit me in Strasbourg, I decided to "use" the fact they had come by car to visit some places I had planned to visit but had found they were hard to get to by public transport. So after a hearty breakfast at the hotel they were staying in we left the city headed for our fist stop of the day; the german city of Worms. After reaching the center we parked our car and headed to the city's main monument: the Dom or Cathedral. Built from the 12th to the 13th century in Romanesque style, the church is a Unesco World Heritage Site, and has been an important religious building in local and international history. It was the site of the nomination of Pope Leo IX, the marriage between Emperor Frederick II and Isabella of England, and the famous Diet of Worms of 1521 which condemned Luther as a heretic. As we went inside, there was a mass going on being it a Catholic church and Easter Sunday there were quite a few people so we waited for it to end and participated in the mass itself, before visiting the interior. Once the mass was over, we admired the great vaulting arches and the two choirs at each end of the church. Below the ground was also a crypt holding the burilas of some of the Salian princes, belonging to a Frankish dynasty. After exiting the Cathedral, we strolled a bit around the city and then back into the car to head to our next destination. Exiting the city, we passed right by the Nibelungen tower and bridge, a end of 19th century tower bridge built in a neo-romanesque style. We reached the small town of Lorsch just twenty minutes later and parked out car close to the center. Walking away from our car we explored the tiny town center which features some nice timber-framed houses including the 18th century town hall. Right across from it, we reached the main attraction of the town: the Lorsch Abbey. Also a Unesco world heritage site, the Imperial Abbey used to be one of the most renowned monasteries of the Carolingian Empire. Now mostly in ruins, there are some parts of the building remaining which are some of the best examples of pre-Romanesque Caroligian architectural style. Originally built in the 8th century, the building had maintained its style more or less unchanged until the Thirty Years War when the Abbey, together with many other towns around (see my Heidelberg post) was pillaged and left to ruins by the Spanish and then later by the French. What remains is the entrance hall called Aula Regia, built in the 9th century and the foundations of the church building itself. It was then time for our third and last stop of the trip: Speyer. After finding a parking spot we headed into the city center to visit around. We headed for the main attraction first: the Cathedral, inscribed in the Unesco world heritage list. Similarly to the one in Worms, this church was built during the 11th century in the Romanesque style. It is considered the largest church in that style and has been a symbol of imperial power as it was the burial place of Salian, Staufer and Habsburg emperors and kings. Having suffered damage during the Nine Years War at the end of the 17th century by the French, the church was later restored and still stands today. After walking the huge main nave, we went undeground to see the crypt holding the royal tombs above mentioned. After touring the imposing church, we headed out walking along the city's main street, the Maximilianstraße. Lining it were several historical buildings such as the town hall, church and the old mint. We were then very hungry as it was already 4pm so we decided to look for a place to eat. We found a place called Wirtshaus am Dom which served traditional food in traditional clothes. My brother and I tried the Pfalz dish comprising bratwurst, liver dumplings, saumagen, a type of stomach dish, and bread accompanied then by a local beer. After eating we finished our stroll of the city on the western edge of the center where the Altportel, or old gate, stands dating to the 13th century. By then a little bit of sunshine had come out after a whole day of cloudy weather. So enjoying our walk a little further we eventually got back in the car and headed back to Strasbourg.