© Lonely Planet 216 Nuremberg & Franconia ‘I’m Franconian, not Bavarian!’ you’ll hear while travelling through this glorious sprawl of fairy-tale forests, farmland, and valleys meandering past limestone cliffs and caves. Sure enough, Franconia has distinct traditions, dialect and dress. Franconia only became part of Bavaria in 1806, and the conservatism prevalent further south is tempered here by liberal, very laid-back tendencies. (When a Franconian casually says ‘basstscho’ – ‘it fits’ – they’re over the moon; conversely, devastation merely elicits a shrug and a nonchalant ‘werd scho wida’ – ‘it’ll get better again’.) While the people are uniquely Franconian, they share with the rest of Bavaria breathtaking countryside teeming with outdoor pursuits and countless romantic villages and castles. Fit- tingly, the northern half of the Romantic Road – from Würzburg to Dinkelsbühl – runs through this enchanted landscape; it’s covered separately in the Romantic Road chapter ( p252 ). Franconia’s cache of historic cities and towns includes baroque Bamberg, opera-going Bayreuth and its tour de force, Nuremberg. This former Free Imperial City has seen some of history’s giddiest heights and grimmest depths: artisan Albrecht Dürer hailed from Nurem- berg, but so did Hitler’s Nazi rallies. Yet Nuremberg’s darkest hours heralded the dawn of its current role as one of the world’s leading proponents of human rights, and it remains a dynamic interchange for traditional and contemporary creativity. Chances are you’ll hear Franconians mention that their beer is the best in Bavaria or beyond. And after visiting some of Franconia’s hundreds (yes, hundreds) of breweries, who couldn’t agree? HIGHLIGHTS Devouring Nuremberg’s famous finger-sized sausages at its best sausage kitchen, Brat- wursthäusle (boxed text, p225 ) Draining your camera batteries as you try to capture the sheer magnificence of World Heritage–listed Bamberg ( p230 ) Bamberg Hiking between small, family-run breweries Aufsess surrounding the ‘Swiss Franconian’ village of Aufsess ( p236 ) Pulling up at a pebbled beach for a picnic Nuremberg after paddling past craggy rock formations in a canoe through the Naturpark Naturpark Altmühltal ( p245 ) Altmühltal Scaring yourself stupid in the birth chamber Ingolstadt of Frankenstein’s monster, Ingolstadt’s Deutsches Medizinhistorisches Museum (boxed text, p248 ) NUREMBERG & FRANCONIA NUREMBERG & FRANCONIA lonelyplanet.com NUREMBERG & FRANCONIA •• Nuremberg 217 0 50 km FRANCONIA 0 30 miles Plauen T H U R I N G I A S A X O N Y Mödlareuth A72 H E S S E Bad Neustadt Rödental Naturpark Hof A66 Frankenwald Coburg Kronach Rehau A45 Bad Kissingen Münchberg Lichtenfels Basilika Vierzehnheiligen Kloster Banz Selb A7 Schweinfurt Staffelstein Kulmbach B27 Hassfurt B4 Marktredwitz Aschaffenburg A70 B85 Lohr Karlstadt A70 Main River Bayreuth Kloster Ebrach Bamberg Aufsess Plankenfels Ebrach Nankendorf A3 Prichsenstadt Buttenheim Breitenlesau Muggendorf Gössweinstein Würzburg A3 B505 Pottenstein A93 Ebermannstadt Pegnitz Sulzfeld Kitzingen Forchheim B470 Sommerhausen Iphofen Pommersfelden Weiden S t e i g e r w a l d A73 Ochsenfurt E A S T E R N Neustadt A9 A7 Erlangen B A V A R I A B470 Schnaittach Weikersheim Sulzbach- Rosenberg Bad Bad Windsheim Mergentheim Creglingen Fürth Nuremberg Amberg Neckar River B13 A46 Feucht Rothenburg ob der Tauber B14 Liebliches Ansbach Schwandorf A81 Taubertal Neumarkt Roth A6 A3 Burglengenfeld A6 Feuchtwangen Heilbronn ὈὈὈGunzenhausen A9 Dinkelsbühl Titting Beilngries Dietfurt B A D E N - W Ü R T T E M B E R G Weissenburg Kinding Regensburg Kipfenberg Burg Prunn B446 Treuchtlingen Naturpark Pappenheim Altmühltal Riedenburg Kelheim Eichstätt Solnhofen A93 Nördlingen Monheim STUTTGART Dollnstein Bad Gögging B25 B2 Ingolstadt Harburg Neuburg an A7 der Donau ὈὈὈDonauwörth A8 B16 Mainburg RiverB2 U P P E R B A V A R I A Landshut Danube Schrobenheisen Pfaffenhofen A L L G Ä U - A92 A9 The Romantic Road B A V A R I A N Aichach Moosburg A8 Günzburg S W A B I A Gersthofen NUREMBERG industries, including printing, plastics and %0911 / pop 500,000 / elev 289m toys, and it’s home to hip clubs and a flurry Bavaria’s second-largest city, Nuremberg of festivals. (Nürnberg), woos visitors with its wonderfully restored medieval Altstadt (old town), its grand History castle and its magical Christkindlesmarkt For centuries Nuremberg was the unofficial (Christmas market). Thriving traditions also capital of the Holy Roman Empire and the include sizzling Nürnberger Bratwürste (fin- preferred residence of German kings. Thanks NUREMBERG & FRANCONIA ger-sized sausages) and Lebkuchen – large, to the ‘Golden Bull’, a law passed in 1356 by soft gingerbread cookies, traditionally eaten at Emperor Karl IV, every newly elected king or Christmas time but available here year-round. emperor was required to hold his first gather- Both within and beyond the high stone wall ing of parliament in Nuremberg. From 1424 encircling the Altstadt is a wealth of major to 1800, the city was also the empire’s ‘treasure museums that shed light on Nuremberg’s chest’, guarding the crown jewels and many significant history. of today’s priceless artworks. Especially in Nuremberg’s traditions are only part of the 15th century, numerous artistic masters, its story: it’s the powerhouse of numerous Nuremberg local Albrecht Dürer foremost .