Holy Mary Sunshine, as if German isn’t a language hard enough to spit out, where sweet-nothings sound like barking orders — let’s throw some Sorbian in for good measure. Such is the case in of the Saxon town of Bernsdorf, also known as Njedźichow, located with Upper Lusatia, also known as Oberlausitz.
Yeah, you see my point? ;-)
For what it’s worth, it doesn’t matter all that much of what you call Bernsdorf. This is a town in the Bautzen area, situated in some primo forest real estate.
All the better to just wander around aimlessly, right? Uhh, no — that would never do for us Germans. Plan, plan, plan, and plan some more. So, to settle my planning German soul — let’s find out what there is to see here in Njedźichow.
The town itself is divided into districts, with names as crazy (I mean, Sorbian) as Bernsdorf itself. ;-)
In Bernsdorf proper, the St. John Lutheran Church (built 1905) should be on everyone’s sightseeing list. And in Zeißholz (or, should I say Ćisow), a village of less than 200 people, there really isn’t much to see at all — except a small village that’s not even 10 square kilometers.
Whoops, wait… there’s the Zeißholz Village Museum. You can’t miss it, it’s housed in a very old Sorbian farm known as a Dreiseithöfe.
See, this is where I learn something new everyday. A Dreiseithöfe is a 3-sided farm centered around a central courtyard.
From here we’re off towards Großgrabe, or Hrabowa. In English it’s Large Grave — but this isn’t one big dead town. Its forests and big pond are teeming with wildlife. A stop by its local village church completes the visit.
Our last stop is Straßgräbchen, or as its known in Sorbian, Nadrózna Hrabowka. It sits within some serious forest, around the areas of the Königsbrück-Ruhlander Heiden and Oberlausitzer Heide- und Teichgebiet.
Please, I can’t even pronounce all that without taking two breaths. For the most part, you can simply say it’s a nice place to be outdoors if you’re into that whole flora & fauna thing.
Drats… almost forgot about Wiednitz, or Wětnica if you’re speaking Sorbian. And only because it’s relatively new belonging to Bernsdorf.
This village isn’t new altogether, it’s been around for about 800 years — and was all business back in the 19th and 20th centuries in the brown coal and glass making industries.
There might be a whole bunch of hard to pronounce names in Bernsdorf in Upper Lusatia, but enjoying yourself here is simple to do at least.