Saxony-Anhalt is one of those places where you fall in love with it the more you get to know it. Why? It’s more than just the federal state where you’ll travel on the Lutherweg, it’s because of towns like Osterburg (Altmark).
There is a long grocery list of things to do in Osterburg. And why shouldn’t there be, the town is almost 900 years old.
You know what that means, castles. The Castle Krumke isn’t too old (built in the 1850’s) and is more reminiscent of a neo-Gothic English estate, than a medieval edifice. Who cares, its park is just lovely.
Castle Calberwisch is four decades younger, but this one has a game park (called a Tierpark) right next to it.
Before I forget, you’ll find the Biesebad near Castle Krumke. This is more than just a swimming area; there are camping facilities and biking trails where you’ll see thousands of fruit trees and more than a hundred species of birds within the Altmark region.
Not everyone likes to experience nature close up, so I’ll tell you about the Nikolai Church, a real life medieval church from the 1180s.
Another medieval site isn’t a church, or even a building at all. It’s its medieval Stadtmauer, or city wall back from the days when Osterburg was a member of the Hanseatic League.
I like the Cemetery Chapel, personally. Not because I have a morbid fascination with cemeteries, it’s because the Chapel of St. Martin has been here since the 9th or 10th century. No one is quite sure, but the current building from the 12th century replaced the original.
Osterburg’s many half-timbered buildings aren’t from the Middle Ages, but that’s all right. The town suffered a horrible fire in the 1760’s, so many of the framework structures date after that.
One particular building (built 1761) is now the Kreisheimatmuseum. It’s a museum with both permanent and special historical exhibits. It’s open Tuesday to Friday from 9am-4pm, and Sundays 2pm-5pm.
There you have it, many of the reasons you’ll love Saxony-Anhalt; better yet, why you’ll love Osterburg (Altmark). ;-)
