Here’s something you might not have known, the town of Büchenbach is known as the Gateway to the Sagenwanderweg in an area known as the Heideberg.
Whoo-hoo, the Heideberg, what’s the big deal — isn’t just some forested area in the Middle Franconian countryside of typical hiking trails and bike paths? How’s that different from other parts of Germany with kinda the same thing?
Well, legend says none other than the infamous Attila the Hun is buried here. Ha, didn’t see that coming, did you? ;-)
Whether that’s true, or not, doesn’t really matter — it makes for good story telling. Besides, it could very well be the truth since no one knows exactly where this 5th century warrior died, or was born for that matter. Doesn’t change the fact his “empire” stretched across Europe and parts of Asia.
As for that Sagenwanderweg, or Legend Trail, the route through the Heideberg follows along some 14 km with over 20 “stations” chocked full of information about the area.
I don’t pretend to be an expert about the region, but I do know quite a few of Büchenbach’s villages have Carolingian beginnings. In more simple terms, that’s around the 8th century. Life in Büchenbach during the Middle Ages revolved around agriculture, and not too much has changed over the centuries. Villages like Breitenlohe are still farming tobacco, and with the dense forest surrounding the place, there hasn’t been too much urban expansion.
Be sure you’ve got your cameras ready at a moment’s notice, you’ll find yourself taking lots of snapshots as you pass one pretty farmstead after another while you’re meandering around. Don’t forget to visit the medieval cemetery chapel in Kühedorf while you’re out there, OK?
Inasmuch as Büchenbach is steeped in legend, and a picturesque landscape, it’s also a place full of terrific cultural events throughout the year. It seems the entire month of July just has one religious em>Kirchweih event after another (in the villages of Breitenlohe, Aurau, and Büchenbach proper), and that’s in addition to the annual Summer Festival.
Can’t make that one? No biggie, there’s yet another Summer Festival in August, followed by the Kürbismarkt (Pumpkin Market but selling all kinds of other goodies like honey and potatoes) in September, and a Christmas Market on the first weekend of Advent.
Things might be a tad different in Büchenbach from when Attila was running things, but I think he’d have enjoyed everything there is to see and do. Don’t you?
