Petersfriedhof and Catacombs

We like graveyards, not in strictly a Gothy sort of way, they're just interesting. All right, some of it might be a hold over from the Goth days. It's kind of which came first thing: did we like graveyards because we were sort of into Goth, or did we become Goth because we liked things like graveyards, dirgey music, vampires, monsters, etc, and overly dramatic clothes and hairstyles? In addition to this really nice graveyard, this complex houses part of the oldest continually used German speaking monastery founded by (surprise) Saint Rupert, a chapel carved into the Festungberg, and a really nice little church.

It was coming on to early evening, and we were really beginning to drag, so we didn't take full advantage of everything there was to see here. Of course, this just gives us a reason to come back.

Two war memorials above, apologies for the very blurred one on the right. I know digital cameras are supposed to prevent this sort of thing, but I was really, really tired at this point. Also apologies that you can't click on the gallery pictures and make them bigger. That would cost me money, and I'm blogging for pleasure, not social media fame and fortune.
The catacombs, though the official site of the monastery says they're not catacombs, but rather, chapels carved into the rock face, are said to date back to the days of Severinus of Noricum during the Migration Period of the Fifth Century CE, which back in my day we called the Barbarian Invasions of Rome. That aside, Severinus went to the Roman frontier along the Danube to preach, help the poor, and establish monasteries. When things went sideways with the late Roman Empire, he stayed to assist refugees, organize migration routes to areas deemed to be safer, and help with organizing the military defense. His reputation was such that along the way, he earned the esteem of one of the migrating/invading Germanic leaders, Odovacer. There are two chapels in the rock face, one dedicated to Thomas Saint Beckett of England (he who was killed by drunken knights of King Henry "who will rid me of this turbulent priest" Second).

There's another chapel, the Margarethenkappelle that features some nice stained glass windows.

By this time, I was done. I think Herr Haifisch was as well, but he was soldiering on. He even said we should take a picture of ourselves in the beautiful cemetery. We did. It was awful, like all pictures of us. That made us decide it was time to wind down, so we set off for the other side of the river, dinner, and one last quick stop.Leia mais