In the Ampertal (Amper Valley) area of Upper Bavaria, in the Dachau District, are the eight districts of Haimhausen, making it quite close to Munich — making a quick trip over easy enough.

Or, you could just stay here for a few days, then make your way around to many of the local sights in the region while staying in this quiet town.

As I mentioned, Haimhausen lies in the Dachau District, making it convenient enough to visit the Dachau Concentration Camp. The camp, originally opened to house political prisoners in 1933, is now a memorial site and museum of sorts.

It’s never easy to transition from something so somber, so will you settle on solemn? There are a number of old churches here in Haimhausen, like the Church of Sankt Martin, a grand Romanesque church from the 13th century in the village of Amperpettenbach. I really like the Chapel of St. Andrew, a tiny white 19th century building.

There’s also the Church of Sts. Jacob & Stephan, originally built in the last years of the 15th century in the village of Ottershausen — the same village that houses a mausoleum of the Hainel Family, a local ruling family from long ago. And in Westerndorf, it’s a blend of late-Gothic and 18th century architecture at the Church of Sts. Peter & Paul.

It is, however, the Parish Church of St. Nicholas that everyone seems to notice. Why not, it’s a wonderful Gothic church that deserves lots of attention. There’s a whole nature conservation area, so please be kind to the environment while you’re out and about here.

The gorgeous Upper Bavarian countryside also deserves some attention. The Amper-Auenlandschaft is a flood plain where you’ll find rare plants and animals, pretty ponds, and beautiful bogs.

I could tell you to come to Haimhausen’s Heimatmuseum (Local History Museum), with exhibits on everything from household goods to furniture. I can’t, however, tell you to go see Schloss Haimhausen. The old Rococo castle isn’t open to the public anymore, it’s now a Business School.

Oh well, I guess it’s off to the nearby Beer Garden in Mariabrunn instead. It’s been called one of the most beautiful beer gardens, so why ever not? Is there any better place to end a grand day sightseeing around Haimhausen and its environs? ;-)

There’s a T-shirt out there on the Internet saying, I (love) Heringen — with pictures of a pretzel, a flag, a beer, and a dirndl and lederhosen.

Yes, that’s stereotypical German stuff, but for the most part it does express the truth. I do love the Thuringian town of Heringen (Helme) (so named because of the Helme River). Which isn’t to be confused with the Hessian town of Heringen (Werra), by the way.

This Heringen was the hometown of Hermann Hendrich, a late 19th/early 20th century painter, who was famous for his twelve paintings of Der Ring des Nibelungen. Maybe his artistic genius was inspired by the natural beauty of the area — the Bronze Age grave hills, the gentle hills of the Goldene Aue (which stretch over to Saxony-Anhalt), and the nearby Kyffhäusergebirge.

Who’s to say, but I know I’m inspired to tell you about Schloss Heringen, a pretty white castle with round towers — which is quite the contrast to what it looked like at the turn of the new millennium. The former owner, Countess Clara von Schwarzburg, would certainly approve of it these days. And you’re more than welcome to visit, since the Countess’ former abode is now a museum.

The castle isn’t the only thing worth seeing in Heringen, the old church in Hamma is quite lovely — surrounded by open fields and tall trees. And in Uthleben, you should see its 16th century frescoes at the village church of St. Peter. It is, however, the 700 year old Pieta at the Church of St. Giles in Windehausen that does it for me. The church might look rundown, but that’s only part of its charm, ya know.

Something else that’s part of Heringen’s charm are its festivals. There aren’t many of them, but I really think you’d enjoy yourself at the Sport- und Heimatfest in July, which just so happens to be the same month of the Church Festival. Great, wonderful summertime opportunities for dancing and making new friends.

I’m down for that — and why I’m glad to sport my I (love) Heringen T-shirt any chance I get. ;-)

Up near the shores of the Baltic Sea lies the town of Lensahn — which was also the name of a World War I Imperial Navy ship, by the way.

But, I’m not here to tell the tale of the boat’s tragic end off the coast of Tampa, Florida — I’m here to tell you about all the grand things you’ll find just nine kilometers from Lübeck.

Some of the grandest things to do in Lensahn isn’t anything to see, but to experience. This is a place that truly knows how to show somebody a good time, that’s for sure.

There are two Summer Festivals (one mid-July, the other in August), a Kartoffelfest (Potato Festival) in August, followed by an Herbstfest (Autumn Festival) in September. October is my favorite month of the year — and not just because that’s when Lensahn hosts an Erntedankfest, an Oktoberfest, and an Apfelfest (Apple Festival).

There’s more to Lensahn than just its festivals, mind you. It’s a great place to experience nature, so consider taking a carriage ride past wide open fields, or a horseback ride. Of course, there are regular bike trails and hiking paths, too.

All this activity can make you tired, so after a night resting at a local farmhouse, you’ll be all refreshed to do it all over again.

If you want to do something not all that taxing, come by the Museumshof, a hands-on experience that’ll teach you about all things farming. You could also learn a few things about farming from the Schinkenräucherei, a farm that’s been operating for more than 350 years.

Another must-see place here in Lensahn is Gut Güldenstein, a beautiful Baroque manor house, that now hosts horse shows. It’s a far cry from its medieval beginnings — and once had its very own moat.

And I really loved the Church of St. Catherine, a pretty brick church that’s quite lovely in the fading autumn light.

The autumn weather is great for hiking along the Waldlehrpfad, a short 1km hiking trail with information board detailing much of the region’s natural history. Too short? Venture a bit further on the 2.4km Nature Trail, passing along ponds and fruit trees.

Then again, you could always try to find some more Bronze and Iron Age burial mounds — it beats trying to find the shipwreck of the other Lehnsahn, doesn’t it? ;-)

Look, I’m all for sightseeing around museums, old churches, and drafty castles as much as the next person — but then, once in a while, the thought of spending anytime indoors should be shoved right out of your mind. Such as it should when you’re talking about the town of Wackersdorf in the Upper Palatinate.

Read my lips (words?), not one minute of your time be spend unnecessarily indoors. Well, Wackersdorf doesn’t leave you much time for that anyway, because of all its outdoor recreational fun, its too many to list cultural events, and its outstanding lakes.

Oh, and it isn’t just that simple to say it like that either.

Let’s talk about the outdoor recreation fun, shall we? This isn’t just your simple “run of the mill” hiking and cycling routes through the Upper Palatinate Forest (although there are quite a number of them). No, it’s here where you can kick off your shoes to walk the Barfußpfad (Barefoot Path) along Murner See; then again, you can also find your little slice of Caribbean heaven right here on the shores of the Murner Lake with its white sandy beach.

The Steinberger See, said to be one of the largest lakes in all of Bavaria, is perfect for sun filled days of swimming, cycling, surfing, eating, and water-skiing. The Brückelsee, which also has a playground for the kids, is another boating fun lake — and there’s even a nearby campground.

As if life couldn’t get any better, Wackersdorf is a town (and a Collective Municipality) that can show a fine lady or gentleman a very good time. The fun starts with the Starkbierfest (Strong Beer Festival) celebrations in March, followed by the Maibaum festivities. The Fischerfest in June is next, with the month ending with the annual Wine Festival — which coincides with the Dorffest (Village Festival).

July is a whole lot of fun, as that’s the month for both the Summer Festival and the Mittelalterfest (Medieval Festival), the latter being a 3-day affair of jousting, knights, and all around medieval merriment.

The cooler weather of Autumn and early Winter doesn’t stop the fun either, by the way. There’s yet another Wine Festival in October, a Christkindlmarkt at the end of November, and a Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market) in December.

Told you there was plenty of opportunities to spend almost every waking moment basking in the glorious sunshine, but Wackersdorf does have a Heimat und Industrie (Local History & Industry) Museum, which you really should have a look.

Got that outta the way? Good, now get back outside — Wackersdorf awaits. ;-)

Lucky me, it’s my second town here in Hesse this week — and thankfully my trip ends here in Wildeck, located in the Werra Valley, close to Bad Hersfeld. It isn’t its topography and geography alone that makes me grateful, but rather its history and architecture, too.

Speaking of history, if you had come to Wildeck before the early 1990s, things would have looked a wee bit different. You see, Wildeck borders Thuringia, which was once part of East Germany — so that kind of explains the East German watchtower; and it kind of seems like the right place to put a Border Museum (free admission on Sundays) and the Grenzlehrpfad (Border Trail), doesn’t it?

Twentieth century history isn’t old enough, so for those who love all thing medieval, I say come see Burg Wildeck. The castle itself was built in the mid-13th century, only to be destroyed about 200 years later. Some aristocrat had the idea to build the Jadgschloss Blumenstein a couple hundred years after that, but sadly that’s gone, too.

Oh well, at least a number of Wildeck’s churches still stand. The one in Richelsdorf might look Baroque, but it’s totally a Gothic church at heart; and the church in Obersuhl is some 500 years old.

It’s easy to get excited about these old grand dames, but you can also get excited about all the wonderful festivities taking place in town. There’s a 4-day Kirmes celebration in the village of Hönebach, as well as an Oktoberfest, and Summer Festival. Richelsdorf hosts its own Summer Festival, while Raßdorf hosts a Kirmes of its own over the course of 2-days every November. Come to think of it, Bosserode has a Kirmes celebration on the second weekend of October, too.

Who doesn’t love a good party? I know I do, but I also love the quietness of the bird conservation area, a wonderful place to commune with nature. Of course you could also just follow one of the marked hiking trails — do you mind if I come along with you?

While I might sound like a broken record, you’ll really enjoy yourself here in the town of Driedorf the most by spending just about all your time in the great outdoors. How do I know? Hello, the town lies within the Westerwald.

So, really, if you’re all into the whole hiking and cycling thing — there couldn’t be any better a place to be than right here. So, when you’re done walking along the Westerwaldsteig, you can change it up a bit by trekking along the Rothaarsteig.

For something educational while you’re hiking, come check out the Energie-Lehrpfad, or Energy Trail. I also love the nighttime hikes around the Krombachtalsperre, and I think you will too.

And let’s say you biked a little too far, you can always take Die Blaue Linie, a bus service that’s considerate enough to have a bike trailer to bring you on back. The 32km Knoten-Rundkurs isn’t too bad to handle, no bus is needed to tackle this one.

Of course you’re not just limited to trekking about marked trails. You’re more than welcome to just meander along the quiet lanes of Driedorf’s villages, taking lots of photos of its village churches — like the one in Mademühlen. There’s something beautiful in its squat tower and dark grey stone. I love the half-timbered chapel in Roth, too.

If you’re wanting more of those fairy tale half-timbered houses, look no further than the village of Seilhofen, many of them come from the 17th and 18th centuries.

Don’t tucker yourself out too much, it’s best to save some energy for Driedorf’s many festivals though. July is probably the busiest month, with the Dorffest; Mittelaltermarkt; Summer Festival; and Kirmes within the 31 days of the month. September’s a good one, too, with both the Kartoffelfest (Potato Festival) and Oktoberfest. Of course, that’s not to take anything away from the town’s Christmas Market.

Speaking of Christmas, that reminds me of winter — and when the cold weather grasps the region, it’s time to break out the coats and skis. Driedorf is great for all kinds of winter sports, so don’t let a drop in the mercury stop you from coming. Although, it’s probably best to save the swimming and boating in the Krombachtalsperre for the warmer days of summer.

So you see, Driedorf truly is a town that’s best experienced outside — trust me, I’m a professional, I know these things. ;-)

Hofheim’s official name might look odd to those who don’t know, but I’m kinda used to it at this point — so there’s nothing strange when reading the name Hofheim i. UFr. Looks like a typo, doesn’t it? Well, its weird initials give the reader an idea of where to find this slice of heaven — right in Unterfranken, or Lower Franconia.

Honestly, you could call this place “X-Y-Z” and it wouldn’t change the fact that Hofheim is a pretty town with a picturesque Alstadt (Old Town) of half-timbered houses.

Be on the lookout for Hofheim’s preserved gates, once part of its medieval defense walls. They are called the Kapellentor (Band Gate), the Unteres Tor (Lower Gate), and the Oberes Tor (Upper Gate), the latter two of which look like twins.

Another medieval structure around Hofheim would be its very own castle, the Bettenburg, whose Renaissance design of today belies its 13th century origins.

And if you’re truly a history buff, you could be walking along the Rennweg, which was an old trade/military route from as far back as Charlemagne’s time. Perhaps these medieval travelers stopped at the Karstquelle Hofheim, a pool of ice blue water caused by the calcium sulphate. I’m not sure what that is, so I’ll trust the scientists on this one.

History lovers aren’t the only ones with something to do here, a Party Animal will delight in the town’s many festivals and cultural events. The Christmas Market is always a good bet, while the Hoffest, Summer Festival, Seefest, and Dorffest (Village Festival) are summertime treats in the fresh Franconian air.

And let’s not leave out the Tauben und Kleintiermarkt, the Heimatfest, and the numerous Kirchweih celebrations throughout Hofheim’s twenty-one villages.

In between parties you can visit the Rotkreuzmuseum, or Red Cross Museum, whose exhibits highlight this charitable organization. And you can always visit the Kreuzkapelle, a Rococo chapel from the 17th century, and then there’s the Kloster Eichelsdorf — a monastery from the same century.

Of all Hofheim’s churches, the Church of St. Anne is the one I loved the most — probably because of how the Lutheran church looked in the fading summer light. That’s not to say the Church of St. Margaret in Goßmannsdorf doesn’t deserve an honorable mention — and the village itself for that matter — just charming with its half-timbered houses and tidy farms.

Now it’s off to tackle the Mt. of Olives Nature Trail, a 4km route highlighting both the geology and vineyards of the surrounding countryside.

Vineyards? Wine? Great, a few glasses of those and I definitely won’t be calling Hofheim i. UFr. by its real name. ;-)

While many things have remained the same over the centuries here in Germany, change has come in the recent past to the town of Willingshausen. For starters, the current town you see in front of your eyes didn’t even exist prior to 1974.

However, and that’s a might big H-O-W-E-V-E-R, the one thing that hasn’t changed is its Artists’ Colony, which dates all the way back to the early 19th century. Now we know two of the Brothers Grimm were quite creative, but there was a third (Ludwig Grimm) who was also creatively gifted — and he lived here for quite some time.

You can lean a lot more about the Colony’s inner-workings at the local museum. And on Whit Mondays there’s a fantastic Regional Market selling all kinds of artwork and farm-fresh products. If you’re truly talented you can even earn a scholarship to live right in the Artist Colony for three months.

Too bad I can’t paint a straight line with a ruler. ;-)

I don’t know what they put in the water around here to inspire the ingenious designs, perhaps it’s all the half-timbered houses? Maybe it’s the quaint countryside that’s best seen by hiking or e-biking? Don’t worry too much about getting lost, the well-marked Radfernweg R7 and Efzetalweg R17 come right on through in what’s known as Rotkäppchenland, or Little Red Riding Hood Country.

The real question is, how does anyone manage to get any work done with all the festivals taking place? Probably the most famous is the World Music Festival, held in the village of Loshausen (one of Willingshausen’s nine) at the end of July/early August.

You’ll find yet another one, a Kirmes, in the village of Steina (population only 293) at the end of April, another in Wasenberg at the end of June, and one more in the hamlet of Zella every July.

There’s not much more you could ask of any one place than what you’ll find in Willingshausen — legends, artists, festivals, and even a Castle Park where a medieval one once stood.

Yeah, now I understand what inspires the creative soul.

Sure it’s easy to confuse the town of Freren with the Samtgemeinde Freren, the latter of which is the Collective Municipality. Confusion aside, both offer a great opportunity to enjoy the Emsland countryside.

And while the town wasn’t actually granted “city rights” until 1723, the history of Freren goes back much further than just 300 years ago.

Think thousands of years ago, which is why Freren lies along the Straße der Megalithkultur, or Route of Megalithic Culture in English. Freren is found on the #11 stop, a big mass of gigantic stones from around 3000 B.C. You know what, don’t look at it like just a pile of rocks — this is a wonderful way to educate yourself on the funerary practices of a long-gone culture.

What else can you do in the town of Freren? I’d say go visit one of its many old churches — like the Church of St. Anthony in Messingen. I know it doesn’t look that old, the present day structure is only from the 1860s. You want older? That would be the Church of St. George in the town of Thuine, whose oldest part of the building is from the 12th century.

My personal favorite is the simple Church of St. Servatius, which started out as a tiny Romanesque chapel — maybe because of its delicate gold & marble high altar. Who knows?

It’s all right if don’t agree — but I know we can all agree to have a good time. Freren certainly makes it easy to do — they’ve got everything from two 2-day Kirmes celebrations, to an Erntedanfest (Thanksgiving Festival), an Oktoberfest, a Winter Festival, and a Christmas Market to name just a few.

That being said, sitting around eating and drinking isn’t the only way to have fun in and around town. Heck no, you’ve got plenty of choices of outdoorsy stuff — and totally your choice if you want to swim, kayak, take a hot air balloon or covered wagon ride.

I wonder what the folks from all those centuries ago would think of the modern day Freren today… probably the same as I do — it’s great. ;-)

Oh yeah, it’s so good to be Bad. Well, that is if you’re in a place like Bad Schlema, a wonderful spa town on the Silberstraße, or Silver Route — a scenic route highlighting 140km of mining throughout the region.

Great, spa stuff for when you’re all done doing historical things; and is there ever quite a bit of history to learn about around here.

While I’m one to totally advocate seeing places on terra firma, this has got to be one of the best towns to see from the air. Go on, take a hot air balloon ride over the Ore Mountains, you’ll love it.

And it’s here that you’ll go from the friendly skies, to what lies beneath. Mining was huge here, thus the whole Silberstraße, where everything from copper to iron to uranium was mined. It is these miners that Bad Schlema honors at the Bergmannstag every July, starting with a commemoration to the miners who died during an accident in 1955.

Just so you know, there are more festive events in Bad Schlema. Oh yeah, this is one fun-loving town. The Dorffest is a goodie, held every June; as is the Kurpark Run — a “marathon” of 6 or 10km. Umm, not me, I’ll take the Quell- und Weinfest in September, the Walpurgis fireworks in April, and most definitely the Europäisches Blasmusikfestival — a 3-day event with dozens of concerts of brass instruments.

I’ll also take a visit to the ruins of Isenburg Castle. Sorry, but I truly think there’s something magical and romantic about its crumbly grey stones — maybe ’cause I can vision what it looked like when it was built over 700 years ago.

Not your thing? No problem, there are plenty of Nordic Walking trails, e-biking opportunities, summer concerts to attend, and plenty of shopping at Bad Schlema’s Easter Market.

Plus, as its name implies, this is a spa town — so off to the spa facilities for a massage, a swim, or just relax in the Salt Cave. The salt grotto, by the way, helps with breathing.

Great, because I’m out of breath doing all of Bad Schlema’s stuff. ;-)