The Story of the Pied Piper - Hameln, Germany

Our friends, Aaron and Kerstin, were with Kerstin's family in a small village near Hameln. As this was only a short distance from Lubbecke, we had to swing by for a visit. I had forgotten the fairytale, "The Legend of the Pied Piper" until I started reading an Encarta article on the city (something I've started doing more regularly as we are visiting so many cities without appropriate context).

Anyway, Kerstin's parents would hear nothing of our staying at one of the two Stellplatze's in Hameln and after much research, found out it would be OK for us to park for a day or two in front of their house. They measured off and blocked off an appropriate space for us; the only worry being that the garbage truck might not be able to squeeze by us the next day. No worry at all - the truck fit just fine.

The morning after our arrival, Kerstin's family arrived to meet us and tour the RV. It was fun to meet everyone and funny to hear the remarks about our living quarters. Most folks are surprised at the room inside (once you open the slides). Everyone seems to love the bunk beds for the kids and the ability for us to have private space after the kids go to bed. I think people must believe we are clinically insane, but are just too polite to admit so when they meet us.

After much discussion as to transportation options, we finally pulled out the strollers and boarded the bus for Hameln. My "gingerbread" remark about Minden buildings doesn't hold a candle to the buildings in Hameln. Very ornate buildings greeted us with more detail than I could possibly take in in just one day. Traces of the Pied Piper are everywhere! There's a giant rat on the top of the bridge leading in to town; imprints of rats leading through the town, several statues, even placards on the sides of buildins and houses, all reminders of the 13th century legend detailed by Brothers Grimm.

We enjoyed a stroll through the city, capping it off with coffee and cake at the Museum Cafe. The hot chocolate served to the girls was the richest we've seen. Literally, the chocolate coated the spoons when you removed the spoon from the cups. Very rich and flavorful - a nice balance of flavor and texture (not that they were too keen to share).

Pictures from the experience:

Us in front of the Pied Piper statue (well, one of the statues, anyway):

Is that a gold rat I see on the bridge?:

Gingerbread detail at it's finest - I believe this is the Rathaus:

Cool view of Hameln:

Church we visited - it has a book detailing deaths of town members in WWI and WWII in which I found a reference to an Ernst Scherer. Maybe some day we'll take the time to start that family tree research...