A Brief Encounter...As in Very Brief - an introduction to Bamberg and Franconia (Germany) for visitors

It began as a day trip, an afternoon of browsing, shopping, and just general meandering until we met up with some friends for dinner. Instead, we started late, hit bad traffic, and arrived with only an hour to explore. This was my brief encounter with Bamberg.

We arrived in town just as most of the shops closed for the day. Not knowing where to begin, we did what seemed the most logical. We took the first parking spot in the center of town near something that looked vaguely "old," and decided to poke around the area. We found ourselves in the lower section of the city center, the Maxplatz. What struck my eye immediately was the fascinating building in the center of the Regnitz, the altes rathaus (old city hall). At dinner I learned the legend. The altes rathaus came to be built in the center of the river because it could not be determined on which side of the river the city hall should be. The river served as dividing line, a symbolic boundary between the wealthier, landed families and the working laborers. The town created an artificial island in the Regnitz, and upon it built the city hall. Thus, no one side could claim the building as their own. 1387 marks the first mention of the hall, followed by the reconstruction that took place between 1461-1467. Although the building was reshaped in the 1740s, it retained a unique baroque/rococo styling.

What also caught my eye that day, however, were the vibrant frescoes decorating the building's walls. Mischievous cherubs are sprinkled across the wall in free-spirited flight. Take a closer look, and you will see the odd cherub leg or arm sticking out from the wall. Once again we must defer to legend, which states that at nightfall, the cherubs can spring from the wall and take flight over the city. However, the cherubs must return by sunrise. Those random arms and legs belong to the unlucky few who did not make it in time, and thus are forever stuck in a kind of limbo, neither fresco nor free.

With time ticking away, we only managed to window browse our way back to the car. Quick note, antique lovers beware, as the town boasts some extraordinary shops with grand selection. Guidebooks rate Bamberg as one the most beautiful small towns in all of Europe, the Franconian Rome. With a delicate blend of architectural styles from the Romanesque to the post-modern, Bamberg merits the praise it is given. All of this we discovered after we returned home and looked up what we saw and what we missed.

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