Tom`s travels: Erfurt, Gotha & Weimar (16-17/10/2021)

On a nice October weekend, we decided to head southwest of Berlin for a couple of days and visit a few towns in the state of Thuringia. We took an early train and after just over 2 hours reached the city of Erfurt, the capital and largest city of the aforementioned state. After getting out of the station we headed on foot to the nearby city center, reaching then the large and central square, the Anger, surrounded by a mix of old and modern buildings. On its northern side was the church of St Lorenz, a small 14th-century Gothic church that was unfortunately closed. Walking further on we reached the small picturesque Wenigemarkt sided to the west by the Ägidienkirche, another nice 14th-century Gothic church, though in this case belonging to the Protestant faith instead of the Catholic one like the one of St Lorenz. Right next to it we then walked on the famous Krämerbrücke, a medieval arch bridge that is lined with half-timbered shops and houses on both sides of a cobblestone street. Unlike the Ponte Vecchio in Florence which also features buildings but only commercial ones, this one is one of the few remaining bridges in the world that actually has inhabited buildings. The stone bridge was built in 1325 to span over the Gera river, while the houses were then added during the 15th century. Walking over it was quite nice with its narrow street sided by picturesque old buildings with the shops on the ground floor and the living quarters above them. After reaching the other end of this 125m long bridge, we then walked to the side to admire it from a different perspective, seeing now the full structure with the buildings on top of it most of which featured nice timber framings. From the bridge, we continued our walk and reached then the Fischmarkt, the main square of the old town. Here was the neogothic town hall from 1882 and some other beautiful burgher houses including the Haus Zum Roten Ochsen from 1562 and the Haus Zum Breiten Herd from 1584, both of which are considered among the most beautiful Renaissance buildings in Germany. Walking along the main street, the Markstrasse, we passed by the Allerheiligenkirche, or All Saints' Church, with its tall slender gothic bell tower, and reached the large Domplatz at the western end of the old town. The square is rather spacious and a bit out of sync with the rest of the city, as I learned later in fact once on its northern end used to be a whole neighborhood that was destroyed in a French shelling in 1813 and never rebuilt. To the south of the square is the Domberg, a low hill where the Cathedral and the church of St Severus are set. As is typical with many cathedrals, the Erfurt Dom faces east and so as we approached the hill we could admire the beautiful Gothic back part of the apse, while the church of St Severus faces west and so we could admire its tall twin spires first. We headed up the monumental staircase but found out there was a mass taking place inside the cathedral so decided to come back to visit it after. From Domberg hill we then walked up the nearby higher Petersberg hill, where the large Petersberg Citadel is set. Its eastern side facing the city was well maintained with an array of flowers some of which were still visible at that time in mid-October. On a small part there were even a few rows of vineyards and the owners had even set up a little stand giving out free samples of wine and selling their bottles. As we then passed through the citadel's main gate, we reached the top where there was mostly some construction work taking place and so only part of the fortress and its buildings were visible. Built in a Baroque star-shaped style in 1665 on the site of a former monastery, it became quite known and important during the Napoleonic Wars. After Erfurt had been conquered by Napoleon, in 1813 Prussian, Austrian, and Russian forces besieged it eventually damaging both the citadel and the whole neighborhood below which resulted in the aforementioned enlargement of the Domplatz later on. Once we entered the citadel we reached the eastern terrace where we had a great view of the old town and the Domberg as well. After admiring the view and enjoying the nice sunny and rather warm weather, we headed back down to town, passing once again through the citadel's main gate, the Peterstor. We reached the old town and after walking a bit through the picturesque streets ended up at the Predigerkirche, which we then visited. Built in the 13th century it was later modified the following century in its current Gothic style, and after the reformation was turned into a protestant church, becoming the main protestant church in the city. Its interior was quite large and full of light, with a nice 15th-century stone rod screen and an altar triptych from 1492. Not far from there we then passed by another church, the Barfüßerkirche, dating from the 14th century but partly in ruins, as in 1944, the church was badly damaged by Allied bombing and since then has been preserved as a war memorial. Continuing on we passed by the 15th-century Gothic church of St Wigbert, which was closed, and then along the elongated main square, the Anger, which looked more like a main street. On either side of it were nice and elegant palaces and buildings many of which were from the Baroque, Neoclassical, and Gründerzeit periods. At its northern end, we then reached the Merchant's Church of St Gregory which featured a typical Gothic style but was also closed. Walking along the street to the north of the church we then passed by the beautiful Haus Zum Stockfisch, a renaissance townhouse from the early 17th century with a richly decorated facade; it now holds the city museum. We passed by another church, that of St Nicholas and St James with a Romanesque structure and a Baroque facade also closed, and then reached Kirchgasse street. This was a really narrow medieval street sided by picturesque timber-framed houses. Named so because right next to it was St. Augustine's Monastery, which we then visited. Dating from the 13th century, it became known for being the site where Martin Luther lived as a monk between 1505 and 1511. The interior of the church though was rather empty and unappealing, however, the complex around it which consists of a mixture of medieval and modern buildings is now used as a place of worship and as a meeting and conference center as well as providing accommodation. From there we continued on through the city center, passing once more by the beautiful Krämerbrücke, and reaching another of Erfurt's main sites: the Old Synagogue. Its oldest part is said to date to the late 11th century while the rest dates from between 1250 and 1320, making it one of the best-preserved medieval synagogues in Europe. It is even believed to be the oldest synagogue building intact to its roof still standing in Europe. A ticket was required to enter, which seemed rather expensive as well, so we decided to skip it and just admire it from the outside. Walking on we passed through some nice picturesque streets, elegant palaces, and timber-framed houses until we reached once again the Domplatz. We climbed the staircase once more and finally entered the Cathedral. Originally a church was built during the 8th century on the spot where the Cathedral now stands. A 13th-century Romanesque church was then built over it, which was then later modified and expanded in the following two centuries, the 14th and 15th, into the current Gothic building. It is now a perfect example of Gothic architecture and one of the most representative and scenic of this style in the whole country. Its tall bell tower contains the Maria Gloriosa, or Erfurt Bell, the world's largest medieval free-swinging bell; cast in 1497, it is 2 meters tall, has a diameter of 2,5 meters, and weighs nearly 13 tons. The interior was quite nice and featured some nice 14th and 15th-century stained glass windows, some splendid wooden choir stalls from 1329, and a scenic baroque high altar from 1697. Other objects and features inside the church included a small three-winged later from the early 1400s known as the Master of the Erfurt unicorn altar, the grand renaissance baptismal font from 1587 with a soaring spire canopy, and the Wolfram, a Romanesque candelabra statue from 1160. It is one of the oldest free-standing bronze sculptures in Germany and apparently the largest (nearly life-size) anthropomorphic round three-dimensional bronze from the European Middle Ages. As we exited the Cathedral we then admired the beautiful Gothic main portal, built around 1330, and rather unique as it forms a triangular portico with two faces each of which has a portal and is known as a Triangel. Right in front of the Dom we then entered the other church on the Domberg, the church of St Severus. Built between the 13th and 14th centuries over a pre-existing Romanesque building, it is also considered one of the best examples of Gothic architecture in the city and in the country. Its interior featured a nice Baroque main altar from 1670, a renaissance pulpit from 1576, a late gothic baptismal font from 1467, touching the ceiling at nearly 15m high, and the sumptuous baroque organ from 1714. The most important feature though was the beautiful sarcophagus of St Severus, realized in 1365 in sandstone and partially colored at the top. After the visit to the church, we decided to head back to town and look for a cafe. We ended up at the Eiscafe Riva, right by the Krämerbrücke, where I had a hot chocolate and Ania had tea. After that we strolled a bit around town before, heading on to a restaurant we had found a bit out of town. After a 50-minute walk, we reached the Mexican restaurant Espitas, but unfortunately, as it was Saturday night, the place was full and we hadn't thought of booking. We had to leave and decided to walk back toward town stopping at a place called Cafe del Sol on the way. Here I had a hamburger with fries and Ania had a falafel burger. The place was nice but the food so so. After dinner, we finally headed back to our accommodation where the friendly owner showed us our room.

The following morning, after an early rise, we left Erfurt and reached the nearby town of Gotha by regional train. From the train station, we then headed on foot through the Schlosspark, passing by the large structure of the neo-renaissance 19th century Herzogliches Museum. Right in front of it we then reached the Schloss Friedenstein, built in an early Baroque style and considered the largest palace building in Germany from the 17th century. It served as the main seat of the Dukes of Saxe-Gotha and later as one of the residences of the Dukes of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and now serves as the location of several museums. We walked through its main courtyard, and as it was still early the museums were still closed. From the low hill on which the palace is located, we then descended down the main street reaching the Hauptmarkt, the town's main square. Here was the Altes Rathaus, the old town hall, dating from the 16th century in a renaissance style and refurbished during the 19th century in a neo-renaìssance style. Around the square were also some other nice houses, though most of the area around the town hall was with construction work which made it less picturesque. From there we continued walking onwards and reached another square, the Neumarkt, dominated by the large building of the Margarethenkirche a late gothic 15th-century church. The church was closed so we continued on, passing through yet another small square, the Buttermarkt surrounded by nice and picturesque buildings. After walking through the rest of the old town we then reached the Schloss Friedrichsthal an 18th-century complex of baroque palaces in the southeastern part of the city. Right next to it was the Orangerie and 18th-century baroque palace once belonging to the Friedenstein Palace and now turned into a lovely public park, part of the larger Schlosspark. We were not too far from the train station, which we reached shortly after to get the next train to the city of Weimar. After reaching it we got off the train and then took a bus to reach the southern part of town where the Schloss Belvedere is located, on a hilly and forested landscape. The palace was built between 1724 and 1732 in a Baroque style as a pleasure house for Ernst August, Duke of Saxe-Weimar. It consists of a central building with a small watchtower and two lateral pavilions surmounted by domes and some other buildings including the nice Orangerie. Around the complex is a large park that was once laid out in a typical French baroque fashion, but later most of it was turned into an English landscape park. The palace now holds a museum which we decided not to visit as we still wanted to see the city center of Weimar. So after strolling around the complex and park we then decided to head back to the city on foot. The distance was about 4km but on the way there we some sights I had planned to see. We first passed through the small town of Oberweimar, with its old main church dedicated to St Peter and Paul and even a small local Bee museum. After that we entered the Park an der Ilm, a large park set between Oberweimar and Weimar encompassing a huge area. It was created in the 18th century, influenced by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, and has not been changed much since then, and now forms part of the World Heritage Site "Classical Weimar". These are 11 sites related to Weimar Classicism located in and around the city, all related to Weimar as a center of the Enlightenment during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries and its many philosophers and writers who lived here back then. As we walked through the park we passed by and visited the Roman House, built between 1791 and 1798 in a Neoclassical style as the country house of Duke Charles Augustus and inspired by ancient Roman temples. Walking further on we then reached the Goethe Garden House, a small rural building most probably dating to the 16th century which the writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe bought in 1776 and turned into his main residence and laboratory, turning also the area around it into a nice little garden. As Goethe became more famous and prolific the house became rather small and not adequate enough for him and mostly for his works so he decided to move into the city center of Weimar in a larger townhouse. We visited the interior of this country house and happily found out that the entrance was free just as we arrived because of some kind of event/festival where most of the museums in the city were free that afternoon. After touring the house we walked further through the park passing by the Tempelherrenhaus, the ruins of a neo-gothic church that was bombed during world war 2. After that, we finally reached the city center, with its typical baroque and neoclassical palaces and townhouses. Here we passed through a nice lovely square known as the Frauenplan, where the Goethe House, the city house he moved later to, is set. It was quite funny as considering the distance, the two houses, the city one and the countryside one, are actually just 10 minutes walk away from each other, but I guess that back then this still meant quite a distance. We entered the house, and like the previous one, entered for free. The house was turned into the Goethe National Museum on 8 August 1885 as a result of the will of Goethe's last living heir, his grandson Walther von Goethe, who left the Goethe House to the state. The house was built in 1709 and Goethe first rented the west wing in 1782; after a few years living in it and in other houses around town, he finally moved permanently in 1807 until his death in 1832 after Karl August, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach donated it to him, We visited the nice complex going through Goethe's study and library, the reception room, the rooms where the art collection was stored, and the nice garden in the back with some nice plants and flowers. After visiting the museum we headed back out into town and tried heading to the Duchess Anna Amalia Library nearby. Also part of the Unesco world heritage site, Classical Weimar, this library houses a major collection of German literature and historical documents totaling approximately 850,000 volumes. It is housed inside a 16th-century building that Anna Amalia, Duchess of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, decided to have it converted into a library in 1761. It was then that it received its current rococo central oval room. Unfortunately in 2004, part of the collection was burned in a fire that destroyed 50,000 volumes. As we reached the building though we discovered that we couldn't access it as it could only be visited through guided tours and the slots had been already booked well in advance. We tried asking if we could somehow join one of the slots even passing again later in the afternoon, but as is typical in Germany, we got a categorical negative answer. Leaving the library behind us we then reached the nearby Schloss Weimar, the city castle which looks more like a palace. Starting out as a medieval castle, it was later replaced by a baroque one during the 17th century, which unfortunately then suffered a fire in 1774 and had to be replaced by the current Neoclassical one. The castle had scaffolding as we passed by as it was under restoration and closed so we just enjoyed it from the exterior admiring the picturesque tower dominating the complex. After walking further we then reached the central square, the Marktplatz, surrounded by nice burgher houses and with Neptune's fountain at its center. Continuing on we then followed a small nice side street and came by the Creperie du Palais, where we stopped, and I had a tasty crepe with chocolate. After the snack, not too far from there, we then walked through another square, Herderplatz, where the church of Saint Peter and Paul is located. Known as the Herderkirche, named after the poet Johann Gottfried Herder who was its pastor from 1778 to 1803, it is a late gothic building, though it was unfortunately closed as we were there. Moving on we then reached another church, located at the northern end of town, the church of St Jacob, which was in this case open. This Baroque church from the early 17th century featured a tall spire which we surprisedly found out could be climbed to the top and from which we enjoyed a beautiful view of the old town below. As there was still some time left before sunset and dinner we decided to head to visit the main museum in town, the Museum Neues Weimar. On the way there we passed by what is known as the Gauforum, a Roman-fascist-style administrative center built by the Nazis as their governmental building in the city. To the north of it we then reached the museum, and once again, after getting in for free, visit the nice exhibitions inside. The main epoch and styles were the German Romantic period, the Weimar School of Painting, Impressionism, and the Bauhaus and arts and crafts objects and furniture. After the visit to the museum we decided to have a stroll around town before dinner; we passed through the nice city park, the Weimarhallen Park, then through another square, the Theaterplatz, where the important city theatre, Deutsches Nationaltheater und Staatskapelle, is located. We continued on passing in front of the Schillerhaus, where the German poet Schiller used to reside between 1802 and 1805, the year of his death. We then looked for a place to have dinner and ended up choosing an Indian restaurant called Restaurant India, where I had a tasty tikka masala. After the meal, it was time for us to head to the train station from where we eventually took our ride back to Berlin.