‘Zis is MY Karte!!’ The high pitched words of the panic stricken tourist
information attendant screeched through the visitor’s centre as I circled the
points of interest he’d mentioned on a map (which I presumed was a freebie) with a pen that was conveniently located
within my reach. ‘Don’t panic I will buy the karte.’ Five euros later I noticed the information was all conveniently
in German (which I don’t speak) but he seemed so distressed I felt the need to
allay his stress before he had a heart attack.
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| a hint of witchy overload |
Our night in Quedlinburg was filled with half timbered
medieval houses, schlosses, and shops selling infinite varieties of witch
puppets. Some of the houses are carved with protection symbols like pentacles and six pointed stars, daisy wheels and other familiar symbols. We visited St Wipiti’s church this morning, more for its amusing name
than anything else, and discovered a real treasure despite the fact the 10th
century church had been restored in the 1950s. The standing stones in the
grounds suggested a much more ancient history.
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| St Wipiti |
We are in the Harz mountains, a place famed for witchy
goings on, Faust, and Walpugisnacht celebrations. A drive up to Hexentanzplatz
outside Thale proved amusing as we discovered an almost witch-theme park
location with shops selling endless witch puppets and a Hexenmuseum which was a
little bit more like a cross dressing enthusiast’s plaything. I will let the
photos speak for themselves. We wonder if some German visitors are reluctant to
enter the Boscastle Museum of Witchcraft as they may have been here and were
somewhat put off.
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| crushed velvet clad wiccan priestess in medieval wisewoman's tableau |
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| a divination scene |
The mountains themselves are rather lovely and very
atmospheric despite the tacky commercial surroundings.
Our stop tonight is Wernigerode which is a very attractive
medieval town with a very large schoss (castle) and a very small house (the
only two things the tourist office said was of interest.
We may get the steam
train up to the Brocken tomorrow.
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| a novel use for a washing line |
Promise me none of those witches will make their way back to the museum!
ReplyDeleteWe have a dozen or so ready to bring back for you :))
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