Germany Tour Day 7 - 22nd Sept

Hann Münden and Frankfurt

Hann Münden's timber framed houses

Well it was back to Frankfurt for us today as it’s the last day of the tour. It was actually a very quiet end to the tour. From Hameln we drove to Hann Münden which is another town along the Weser river. It is very much like Hameln in architecture but where Hameln was partially destroyed in the war, Hann Münden wasn’t. Apparently it is the best preserved half-timbered places in Germany. 

It is a very small town and we had a little free time to check out yet another church and some of the shops before making it back to the town square to watch another glockenspiel show. This one was about Dr. Eisenbarth who was a real German surgeon who is known for coming up with breakthrough medical cures in the 1600’s. There is a parody about him. The story portrays him as an itinerant doctor going around from town to town with jesters and musicians who attract (and distract) his patients. But his cure for a headache is a swift blow to the head with a hammer. 

In the afternoon, we were back in Frankfurt. We did a brief city tour by bus before the tour ended and then we just had free time. Cat and I explored a bit and visited another church – Frankfurt Cathedral (St. Bartholomew’s Cathedral). Frankfurt is said to be the only city with a skyline as high rise buildings aren’t seen in clusters that often in Germany. Most of the big buildings are owned by banks because Frankfurt is the seat of the European Union Central Bank. There is a big blue euro statue with stars around it representing the EU countries. 

Alighting at the Römer station, there is the Römerberg Plaza with the famous Römer building. It has been the city hall for a long time. In 1938, Hitler stood on the balcony of the building addressing people in the square below.

Römer building

Old Opera House

After having dinner at the old Opera House, I decided to do a bit of shopping. Frankfurt is a bustling city at night and I am not sure where I walked to but came across outdoor markets with live music and people eating and drinking beer. I just had to try some of the apple wine that Frankfurt is known for. The only joke our guide cracked all trip was about the apple wine. He told us it was an acquired taste as it is quite bitter. The first one is difficult to drink, the second becomes better and by the third anything tastes good anyway because you are too tipsy to notice… It certainly was bitter. 

After wandering for a bit – and I know not where… I stumbled upon Straube Zeil which is a massively long street of shops. There are big department stores as well as smaller street stores. Lots of foreign brands! Before the trip I was determined to buy a soft toy manufactured by a company named Diddl in Germany but I had looked everywhere in Germany and Nici toys were everywhere but Diddl was not commonly found! I managed to find myself a little cat in a department store.