A Day in Durlach

On Sunday, we took the tram out to Durlach, which is a suburb of Karlsruhe. Durlach is the forerunner of Karlsruhe, and became a city in 1196. Here, the Margrave of Durlach decided he did not want to live with his wife on a daily basis, so he built himself a new residence in Karlsruhe. What is left in Durlach is the remains of the Margrave's original residence, which was essentially abandoned after his wife died. We spent a lovely spring afternoon exploring Durlach, as you will see in the photos here.

We got to the top of the Durlach mountain via this cool funicular railway, which is the oldest railway of its kind still in operation in Germany.

When we reached to top of the mountain, we climbed up this tower, which is all that is left of the medieval castle that used to occupy this site.

The view from the tower was spectacular. Here you can see Durlach below us, and off in the distance is Karlsruhe.

Next to the tower is a lovely restaurant, where we enjoyed the view, lunch, and a few glasses of the local wine, which is grown on the hillsides below us. 

Here is what is left of the original castle of the Margrave. It now houses a museum and relics dating back 700 years. 

Spring has arrived in the castle gardens, one of the oldest in Germany.

This is the Marktplatz, and these building have been converted into apartments. Lots of folks were playing bocci ball in the platz. 

On our way home from Durlach, we strolled in the area around where we live and found the Hoepfner Burghof, one of Karlsruhe's most important breweries.  It was built in 1896 and has a beer garden on the grounds that seats over 1000 people. We can't wait until the garden opens!! However, we should tell you that we have had a few Hoepfers Pils beers in the local bars, which are really good (and not warm, either!) 

The brewery also has an associated hotel, so you don't have have far to walk in case you drink too many Hoepfners.