Greetings everyone!

Due to our friends’ trip to Norway, we had the opportunity to explore a bit for a day with their car. We went to visit some castles in the area, and as you’ll see from the pictures I’ll be posting, they are scenes from a movie. I mentioned earlier that our area of Germany is quite flat – we are very near the Dutch border, and thus have a low sea-level and very few hills. In the medieval times, the nobles couldn’t build their castles on an easily defendable hilltop, so they built moated ones instead. I have always understood that a moat was one method of defense, but never realized that they are generally used in the absence of hills.

The first one we visited is called Vischering Castle – and looks as you can see, directly out of fairy tale! There was a museum there especially for kids, and although we couldn’t understand all of it, the kids really enjoyed trying on medieval armor and learning that the knights’ primary danger was not their enemies, but the heat! The castle dates from the 13^th century, includes a drawbridge and outer bailey (where most of the activity took place) and its foundations rest on wooden piles. You might ask, why wooden piles that would decay in water? Well, as long as the wood was not exposed to oxygen that would cause it to decay, the pilings were quite stable. Thus, it was very important to keep the water level constant. (Accomplished through a system of “weirs” – don’t ask me how they work.) I guess now a ring of concrete has been laid around the castle to provide a more manageable brace to prevent collapse.

The second castle is called Nordkirche Castle – and is nicknamed “the Versailles of Germany” because of its beauty. As you view the picture above, you can understand why. Built in the 1700’s, I found it just as romantic but in an entirely different way. No knights in shining armor here, but gorgeous grounds and gardens, towering tree lined paths, and, of course, a moat. The kids enjoyed the ducks. Evanleigh in particular was lost in her imaginings this day.