Have you ever been somewhere where you’ve wished you had a shovel and metal detector? That is how I felt when I visited the castle ruins at Waldeck.OK, now I’ll admit that I love archeology. You’ll find me glued to the TV set watching a program called “Time Team” on BBC…where they go around to farmers’ fields in Britain and dig up old Roman ruins, or traces of Anglo-Saxon settlements…or whatever they can dig up, literally.
When I poke around old castle ruins around Germany, I usually want to know a little more about the site…but the urge to start digging doesn’t normally hit me as hard as it did here. The only other time I can remember wanting to dig so badly was when I visited the Incan ruins at Ollantaytambo in Peru. I just “knew” there was something important buried there.
As it turns out, there was a folk music festival on the castle grounds. But, you couldn’t see the castle from the grounds. I was told that the castle was run by a youth organization and that the general public couldn’t go in. Bummer. So, I decided to enjoy the folk music instead.
Ahhh, but I talked to one of the local ladies, and she told me about other castles in the area. Then she asked me if I had seen the ruins of the “old castle”. What? Yes, there are two castles “Waldeck” there – the newer one, run by the youth organization – and the older one, that anyone can go see. So, she led me on a 15 minute tromp through the woods to the “old castle”. Perfect – just what I wanted! As we came upon the castle ruins, it was almost like a scene from ‘Tomb-Raider’, where the overgrown ruins seemed like they had been untouched for decades (well, except for the graffiti on the old castle walls). That’s when I wanted to start digging!
Most of the castle ruins in Germany are cared for by some organization –it may be the local town, or the State, or an interested organization. Even though they are ruins, they usually have evidence of the care – a bench, or signs, or railings for the stone steps. But, Waldeck seemed uncared for – untouched…and a perfect place for an amateur archeologist.
Beautiful place! Thank you for sharing your pics and experience.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Eliza! I appreciate you stopping by and commenting... :)
DeleteYour pictures are stunning!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Anna. Coming from a talented artist like yourself, it means a lot. :) I appreciate you stopping by!
DeleteI wish I could be there right now! Great pictures, Lacey!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Gerri! Wish I had more time to do more jaunts like that one... Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteThe picture are beautiful - I wish that I was young enough to take courses and then take those shovels & shifters to some of the old sites -- but I have to settle for pitures & any Television program that I can find on the History channel
ReplyDeleteThanks, Misty! I enjoy the History channel as well... Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteThat would have been neat to see. Jim loved to see the old castles as they were not the restored ones. I was fascinated by the history in Germany. We used to drive through a town wall where the road was so narrow they had a stop light to allow traffic to flow from both sides. When we went to Frankfurt from the Hanau area we passed through this town every time. We lived in a house that was 150 years old. I always thought imagine the things this house has seen and heard over the years.
ReplyDeleteKathy - living in Germany is so wonderful. There are so many great places to see. And, you can't go anywhere without tripping over a castle. I'm glad that you and Jim took advantage when you were here... Thanks for stopping by and commenting. :)
DeleteWonderful! I want to go and dig with you.
ReplyDeleteCome on over!! :) I have space for guests! Great to meet you at RWA... Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
DeleteLovely. Looks like a perfect place to walk around--looks a great spot to sit, have a picnic and take in the atmosphere.
ReplyDeleteIt was a truly wonderful spot...of course, any picnic should involve some wonderful German wine, as well. :) Thank you for stopping by and commenting!
DeleteLacey, you have a gorgeous blog! Oh, to have an afternoon to wander around that place! A perfect place to write, huh? :)
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Lana! There are so many castle ruins here in Germany, I could literally spend all my free time poking around all of them...and let my imagination run wild. They are great places to write... :) Thank you for stopping by!
DeleteGreat pictures, Lacey.
ReplyDeleteI live in Homburg, not far from Kaeshofen. As a German I've travelled to various regions here in my country, but I always found the Wasgau (Vosges; Pfaelzer Wald) to be one of the most interesting and beautiful places in Germany. I am currently thinking about buying property in that area (especially Schoenau).
There are places here where you can find Roman, Celtic and Germanic artefacts at the same spot. I share your passion for archaelogy. There are fields in Palatinate where you can find Roman and Germanic artefacts directly lying on the surface.
I've found several Roman artefacts here in my region (Saarland) myself. Simple jewellery, broken tiles (and pieces of Terra Sigillata) some Roman coins (depicting Lucius Verus; around 160s AD), a Germanic bronze fibula and a few minor Celtic artefacts. Would love to find something like the Nebra Sky disc ;-).
But German Law is very strict about it. You can get a license, but very often it is not that easy to obtain one. It depends on your state. I had to wait a few months until I finally could obtain one.
Unfortunately the last war has left also some modern relicts in the ground. A few years ago I found a SMi-35 near Niederschlettenbach. I reported it to the German Kampfmittelräumdienst and they safely detonated it. It came as a fierce reminder of what also is buried in the ground here. In Alsace I found several deadly, rusty traps (also WWII relicts) still on the surface level when I hiked around there. More than I had expected, to be honest.
I've hiked a lot in this region (Saarland, Rhineland-Palatinate, Alsace and Lorraine). My favourite spot to write is at Woerschweiler. There are ruins of an old monastery at the hilltop. Such a lovely view from there.
Wow - you do live right down the hill from me!! I don't know how you found my blog, but I really appreciate your comments and your stopping by (and responding in English). Ich lerne Deutsch jetze, aber ist nicht sehr gut.
DeleteI think the Pfälzer Wald is just beautiful...whenever I drive toward Bavaria or the Baden-Würtemburg area, I try to drive out through the Wald and then pick up the Autobahn at Karlsruhe.
You know, Käshofen was once on a different hill in the area, but they moved the town during the plague. I'm not sure which hill it was on, but I'd love to go find it and poke around.
It sounds like you've found some really interesting things in the area. I was wondering about the German Law regarding finds...I figured it was probably pretty strict. I've been out to Trier, which has some very interesting Roman ruins and museums, but I need to do some exploring a little closer to home.
I have not been to Wörschweiler...now, I'm going to have to go find it! (Although, I don't want to spoil your special place) Sounds wonderful. Are you a writer as well? What do you write?
I've really enjoyed your post - thank you for commenting!