The hard to pronounce town of Georgensgmünd lies within the Nuremberg Metropolitan Region in Middle Franconia. The funny part? You won’t be thinking of any place other than Georgensgmünd once you’re here.
Actually, I can’t think of anything other than Georgensgmünd’s massive statue of St. George and the Dragon that greeted me right when I entered this town.
St. George’s influence doesn’t end here as the church of St. George is Georgensgmünd’s landmark. It’s a Baroque styled church from the 1750s that was built over its medieval original. You can’t miss it, it has a green-tiled roof.
Another landmark of the town is its ancient looking Wasserrad, a six meter tall Water Wheel that was built in 1983 in honor of the town’s prehistoric industrial era. You find it at the former Paper Mill (called Papiermühle).
You can’t miss the Church of St. Wunibald, either. It’s got this incredibly steep triangular tower.
Georgensgmünd’s three other churches all come from the 15th century: St. Peter with its pink coloring and clock tower; St. Oswald a bit lonely out in the countryside that holds services on the 2nd Sunday of the month; and St. Mary’s, built in 1441, that’s got this ornately painted tower.
As if walking from church to church isn’t enough, it ain’t over yet. The Skulpturenweg is 2.4 kilometers of 15 sculptures, and hiking out to the Druidenstein is a must. It’s believed that ancient Celts used the stone for both animal and human sacrifices.
At least the Planetenweg (Planet Trail) is meant to be biked, not walked. It goes on for 7km taking you from the sun to Pluto — that’s not really a planet anymore, but I ain’t splittin’ hairs here.
Georgensgmünd also had a large Jewish population for just about four centuries. There’s an old Jewish cemetery (the last funeral took place in 1946), and an 18th century Wash House (called the Taharahaus) that’s now a Jewish Museum of sorts.
And, from the name of it, the town even seem to have a castle. The Markgrafenschlößlein is a manor house of sorts, a half-timbered house (& a cultural monument) in dark yellow & white that was built in 1666.
This is a town of cultural events, as well as history. Every year on the second Advent weekend is the town’s Christmas Market, one Sunday in June is the Wasserradfest, and on the 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month is Georgensgmünd’s Farmers Market — where you can buy everything from sausage to pottery.
See why I said you wouldn’t be thinkin’ of anywhere else other than Georgensgmünd, even if it is a challenge to get out of an English speaking mouth? ;-)
