Most of the time it is a town’s churches or its castles that tells a tale. But, once in a while you hear the tale of a resident (or two) that really makes you want to come here. Pfaffenhofen an der Roth in Bavarian Swabia is the one falling into the latter category.
Where to start? Let’s go with who came first, Elisabeth Gaßner. This resident was more infamous than famous, known as Schwarze Lies. In the 1780s she was convicted of what would be today’s grand larceny, stealing a bag of money from a local Imperial Count. She was actually given the death penalty for this act, only stayed until she gave birth to her baby.
Didn’t I tell you before Germany was chocked full of these scandalous stories? ;-)
No museum was dedicated to Elisabeth, quite a different story for another local boy, Hermann Köhl. Mister Köhl was a Blue Max (one of Prussia’s top honors) for his flying during World War I.
He was also the first pilot to fly trans-Atlantic in an east-west direction in the late 1920s, where a ticker tape parade awaited him in the United States. He went on to become a flight director for the German Airline, Lufthansa.
Mr. Köhl is buried here in Pfaffenhofen, and a museum is dedicated to him at the Town Hall.
Enough of the locals, time to move on to Pfaffenhofen’s festivals. This is Bavarian Swabia, so trust me when I say you’ll be eating great during any one of them. The end of April/first day of May kicks it with Maibaum; the Dorffest (Village Festival) falls at the end of June; and at the end of August is the annual Summer Festival.
Once the Bavarian Swabian summer is done, the Herbstmarkt (Autumn Market) comes along in the middle of September. Followed by all sorts of Advent concerts and Christmas events.
What’s the Christmas season without a church? St. Martin is the most famous, built in 1375. Because St. Martin is so old, it was here to see both of its famous residents.
Meet me out on one of the Nordic Walking trails, and we’ll talk more about it. ;-)