Until time travel is actually invented, German Quedlinburg is as close as it gets. Despite the fact that it's one of the best preserved medieval towns in Europe and has been on Unesco's World Heritage List for 2 decades, Quedlinburg is barely on any tourist agenda yet. Which makes it even more attractive.
Too often, quaint old towns become so popular that sight-seeing becomes something you do in queue. Not in Quedlinburg. It is charming beyond belief, tastefully and discretely modernized and totally enchanting.
At 132 miles from Berlin and about 50 miles from both Hanover and Leipzig, it's very suitable for a short trip. We took a six hour drive from Rotterdam to spend a few days. Staying overnight was part of the fun. Our 1 bedroom apartment in a 14th century building had views you'd expect on the movie set of Brigadoon. It came with private parking behind the huge old doors of the courtyard.
Roaming around town you cruise through streets with medieval and renaissance timber-framed houses, to the 'modern' part of the center with its exquisitely decorated Jugendstil buildings. Cobblestone roads connect lovely old squares. Shopping is an option if that's your thing; from quaint little antique shops to high end interior design and boutiques, it's all there.
Quedlinburg Castle has looked down on the town since the 10th century.
Technically it's not really a castle but the Palace of the Abbesses, female rulers over the area from the 10th until the mid-19th century. In the year 936 Saint Matilda founded a community for education and religious training for daughters of noble families. In 966 namesake and granddaughter Matilda became the first Abbess of Quedlinburg. An interesting fact about Quedlinburg's abbesses is that they ruled without taking the veil, which gave them the freedom to combine their jobs with a family life. Whatever I expected to find when looking into the town's history, it wasn't a millennium of feminism.
Quedlinburg may be unknown to most Americans but some of the town's more recent history reads like it was written by Dan Brown. A story about a failed attempt to establish a Nazi religion, stolen treasures and intrigues. The unlikely thief was lieutenant Joe T. Meader, member of the American troops, who arrived in the area in 1945. Assigned to guard religious artifacts hidden in a mine during the war, he instead smuggled out the most important pieces and simply mailed them home to Texas. Even though the theft was discovered instantly, the division of post-war Germany put Quedlinburg in the East, which caused the Americans to drop the investigation when they turned the area over to the Russians. At the time, the stolen items were valued at almost $124 million. Meader never tried to sell anything. After his death, when family began selling pieces from the inheritance, the interest in the case renewed. After lawsuits and extensive negotiations about payment, the treasure returned to Quedlinburg in the 1990s.
Fortunately, the inhabitants of Quedlinburg don't not seem to hold a grudge. Wherever we went, we were met by cheerful, friendly people who loved to chat with their visitors. Not a word about Meader and his loot.
In the Schlossmuseum (castle museum) over 11 centuries of history is presented, along with a multi-media display to explain how the Nazis tried to turn the town into a shrine for a new Nazi-religion. The treasures are on display in the treasure rooms in the Crypt of the Church of St Servatius, which is part of the same complex.
Across from the castle, there is another hill called Münzenberg (Coin Hill). How this hill got its name is unknown, even to the locals, for there is no evidence of any activity there that is related to coins. We took the 2 mile hike down one hill and up the other to explore and were pleasantly surprised.
The brightly colored plaster of the renaissance period houses is further decorated with an abundance of flowers. The Münzenberg has no street names. The houses are just numbered 1 to 65.
Number 16 is the privately run museum, a small but fun place for some up close and personal history lessons. A glass floor allows for a view of the graves of two medieval noblemen, discovered in the 1950s during renovations on the water pipes. A visit to the museum is free, but donations are welcomed. The place is closed on Tuesdays and Thursdays and during lunch hours. Unaware of the existence of the museum at all, we arrived at lunchtime on a Tuesday. The caretaker spotted us from his house across the road and came over with his big antique key. Yet another example of the VIP treatment that any visitor to Quedlinburg automatically seems to get.
The Quedlinburger Schwarzbier (black beer) looks like Guinness with a foamy top, but has a softer, sweeter flavor. A great companion to the famous local pork knuckles that are much tastier than they sound.
There are a lot of restaurants in town, some with a fancy international menu but most of them straightforward places that serve hearty and tasty local specialities for a reasonable price. When traveling in Europe, those are the places I prefer. Regional cuisine can vary widely from area to area, so I always opt for new experiences. On top of Castle Hill, a small restaurant offers salads and other simple dishes on a terrace with great views.
Down below in town, dinner and a pint at the Brauhaus Ludde (Ludde Brewery) is great fun.
While in Germany, don't forget to visit one of the bakeries for the typical Kaffee und Kuchen (coffee and cake). Not a desert in this country but an anytime kind of thing that easily turns into an every time kind of thing once you've tried those German cakes.
The younger generation in this town speaks English, but their elders generally don't. They still take their role as hosts very seriously. With sign language and lots of pointing they make sure you get the warmest welcome and everything you need.
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