Half-Timbered Houses and Signs

Weißgerbergasse is a picturesque street in Nuremberg, famous for it's half-timbered houses. I liked the painted houses of southern Bavaria, but these half timbered houses, to my uncouth and uneducated American mind, really scream "Germany" to me. Too many fairy tales and cartoons, I imagine. I'm sure this is true for other tourists, as Germany has capitalized on our embrace of stereotypes by creating a great marketing strategy, promoting various "roads": the Romantic Road, the Fairytale Road, and indeed, the Half Timbered Road (die Fackwerkstraße) which is actually a 3000 kilometer (that's close to 1900 miles) route through eight federal states including four in the former DDR.

In addition to these very aesthetically pleasing buildings, many Nuremberg businesses have amazing signs, some of which I'll put in here, some which will appear later. There is a great deal of beauty in the Altstadt: the buildings in general, the details on the buildings, the signage, gardens, statues. It's no wonder I drained all the batteries in the camera.

(Okay, I threw the '80s one in because I can't resist the '80s).Read more