Easter Sunday in Eichstatt

Eichstatt is a lovely little town in Bavaria, about 90" northwest of Munich. The town is remarkable because it is one of the few towns in Germany that was not bombed during WW2. Therefore, many of the existing structures are original and date back to the 16th and 17th century. In 741, St. Willibald built a church in Eichstatt (see pictures below) on the remains of a old Roman church. He also built himself a castle/residence overlooking Eichstatt, which we also visited. In 1617, Eichstatt became Catholic and the town now houses the only Catholic university in Germany. Eichstatt has been a city for 1100+ years.

In order to get to Eichstatt, we first had to clear ~3" of snow from Eddie's car. Then, we headed out of Munich and onto the autobahn. Oh my, what I wouldn't give to have my sports car on the autobahn, where there is no speed limit and the sports car were whizzing by us at least 100 mph. 

Eddie hired a guide, Frank, to show us around Eichstatt. Frank also owns this fossil shop, and this area is well known for its fossils. 

Marktplatz in Eichstatt. The statue of St. Willibald had lots of decorations as it was Easter.  In the 1600s, the mayor of Eichstatt told the citizenry that they would pay no real estate taxes if they built a  home at least three stories high, without a wood exterior, and with a loft where artists could live and paint. This is the result. These are the original structures, not reconstructions. 

Town hall, built in the early 1700s. 

The Residenzplatz, seen here, is where the clergy and support staff lived. The church is in the center of the platz, and these buildings surrounded the church and served to protect it. 

This is part of the church; what a magnificent building. The church was still filled with incense from the Easter Sunday service. 

Even though it was 34 degrees, the cherry tree was blooming just outside the Residenzplatz.

Walking along the Altmuhl River, one of the smallest and slowest in Germany, looking back towards town. The sun finally came out and it warmed up to 38!

We drove from the town up to St. Willibald's castle, at the top of the hill. This is a view of the castle gardens (foreground) and the town. We had hot chocolate and crepes in the castle restaurant (very tasty and much needed warmth!).

A view of the castle walls. Not nearly as impressive as Heidelburg, but pretty cool nonetheless. I wonder if I will ever get tired of castles...probably not!