Winter in Zeilitzheim

The hotel is closed until the end of February. It's just too cold this time of year and/or too expensive to heat. We are making good use of the time by renovating some of the rooms. And of course Christmas itself is the highlight of the season. My New Year's resolution for 2012? Feeding this blog more (not just the Blog in German).

Day-trips to the Fichtelgebirge Region

I recently went on a short vacation to the Fichtelgebirge region with my family. It is mountain range that is close enough to Zeilitzheim for day trips (about 100 miles / 160 km), which is why I want to recommend it here.

For those interested in cultural events, the Luisenburgfestspiele near Wunsiedel are an attraction during the summer months. The Luisenburg Rock Labyrinth is also located here and is a must visit with kids. Our kids, who usually tend to start whining after a couple hundred yards on walks, climbed up the jagged rocks with a frenzy.

We visited the visitor mine near Fichtelberg on a rainy day; perfect, as you spend about an hour under ground. This is a great tour for kids, too. You get to wear a miners overcoat, helmet and lamp. Every visitor (who wants it) is christened with a smear of silver dust on the cheek. Group pictures can be ordered at 3 Euros including postage within Germany (so you could have the pictures mailed to your hotel if you travel Germany for a few weeks).

The mountains aren't exactly the Rockies but still fun to climb (more likely hike up). If traveling with kids you can always take one of the two chair lifts up the Ochsenkopf mountain and hike back down. We hiked down half way and then took the Sommerrodelbahn (dry toboggan run) down the rest of the way. A blast! Not just for the kids...

Of course there are numerous restaurants in the region. Feel free to ask me for recommendations when you visit!

On the way home we stopped off at Bayreuth which is a beautiful city with grand architecture. The Hermitage (with its sprawling gardens and - of course - beer garden) is a must visit in Bayreuth.

There is so much to see and do within a 100-200 km radius of Zeilitzheim. We will continue to go on short vacations within our own region so that I can post more travel tips here on the blog.

Photos: Luisenburg Rock Labyrinth, Hermitage (Bayreuth) - more at flickr.com

Making Room for the New

Kati and I have been quite busy working in the castle garden for the past week or so. We have been having perfect weather for that, too. It is still a little cold in southern Germany but sunny. Work certainly drives the body temperature up, though!

After cutting the roses and fruit trees (with the help of a good friend) we have been busy raking up the leaves and twigs, making room for new growth in the garden. The daffodils are now in bloom. Also a few other blue flowers are popping up, like this one (is it liverwort?):

The Bells of Bavaria

Certainly one of the things about Europe and Germany most treasured by travelers from the "New World" is the heritage that is obvious at just about every turn of the road. Not only the sights of Bavaria are special: There are typical sounds, too.

One of my personal favorites is the sound of church bells. Each church has its own unique sound, each village has different times when these bells are rung. I have begun collecting the sound of church bells with an iPhone application called audioboo.fm:

The first church I am featuring in what will hopefully become a series of related articles is Zeilitzheim's own Lutheran church. Here is what its bells sound like on Friday mornings:

On Sunday morning it sounds like this:

There is one lone bell in Zeilitzheim that is only heard once a year on the 31st of December at 2 p.m.:

A must-visit church on any trip to Bavaria has to be the "Bamberger Dom", Bamberg's cathedral. This is what its bells sounded like on a Saturday morning recently:

Another Bamberg church with great sound is the Stephanskirche:

Photo: The Lutheran church in Zeilitzheim

German Whisky Made in Zeilitzheim

Germany is famous for its beer and wine. But also Spirits (Schnaps) have a great tradition here, especially here in Franken (Franconia in northern Bavaria). Especially Schnaps distilled from the abundant types of fruit that grow here is an obligatory digestif after a good German meal. But if you can make Schnaps from fruit, surely you can also makes Whisky, right? That's what our local vintner and distiller Reiner Mößlein thought, too, when he started making Whisky in the 1990s. The first batch of 5-year-old Whisky was bottled in 2003 after having enjoyed a peaceful existence within toasted oak vats that give the Whisky its unique flavor. But also the grain that goes into this local product is important: Reiner grows the wheat he uses himself. These are old types of wheat that are therefore also preserved for posterity. Next time you visit Germany, be sure to try our Franconian Whisky here in Zeilitzheim!