If you’ll indulge me, dear reader, there are a few photos of Freiburg and a couple of tales I would like to add to this blog. I have to admit to rather liking Freiburg, as you might have gathered from my earlier notes on a short tour on the mainland of Europe, so I thought I would revisit it again in this post. If you venture into the old part of the city you will come across the Freiburger Münster, after all a church with a 116-meter tower is pretty hard to miss (well fortunately the RAF did miss it in 1944, but that is another story). This building is worth a visit just to look at the carvings, those in the entrance way are amazing, although difficult to photograph due to the pigeon netting.
On the outside of the Münster the carvings are also impressive, one of the most notable is a waterspout …
… there is a story that the bishop was a mean and unpleasant man, who upset the masons building the Münster. To show how they felt about him they added this waterspout, which points across the square towards his residence. I don’t know how true this is, but it makes a good story.
The other thing to watch out for (literally) are the Bächle. Freiburg has an unusual system of gutters, called Bächle, which run through the medieval centre of the city. The original function of these Bächle was to supply water to the citizens and for fighting fires. They were not used as sewers, indeed in the Middle Ages there were harsh penalties for anyone caught doing so.
There is a local legend that should you accidentally step in a Bächle you will marry a Freiburger, or ‘Bobbele’. These days the Bächle are a popular places for children to play and sail wee boats.
I am sure that Freiburg is a place I will visit again, but I won’t be falling into a Bächle…
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