Postcrossing Blog

In the spirit of mail sometimes taking the scenic route to their destinations, this blog post is a little late… but as they say, better late than never! It’s been a while since the Little Mail Carriers made a visit to Patricia (Angelthecat) in Germany, which they did in time for World Postcard Day in 2021. We’ve been keeping this delightful blog post from you since then, so let’s waste no more time and let them tell you all about their adventures and the many postcrossers they met along the way…

Hello all, this time we travelled to Franconia. Patricia (aka Angelthecat) hosted us for some time and showed us some really wonderful places together with Manuela (Manu86), Antje (KiwiAngie), Verena (vvsmurfy) and Tanja (Gaiasduhter).

We started at Herzogenaurach.

The town with approximately 24,000 inhabitants is situated about 25 kilometers north-west of Nuremberg and is especially known in the world of sports. Herzogenaurach is for example the home of Adidas, one of the leading sportsware producers worldwide. The history of manufacturing sports’ shoes started in the 1920s. In 1924, the first firm was registered and named “Dassler Schuhfabrik”. When the brothers Dassler split up after WWII, Adolf Dassler established his firm today known as “Adidas AG” in 1949. The firm’s name is an acronym made of the Adolf Dassler’s nickname “Adi” and the first three letters of his last name. The Adidas soccer shoes became worldwide attention with the “wonder of Bern”, when the German national soccer team wore shoes with three stripes and innovative soccer cleats when winning the World Cup in 1954.

After a long city stroll, we were really hungry in the evening, and therefore got invited to try a typical dish of the region: The Aischkarpfen (carp from the river Aisch). Very yummy!

Of course, we also took some time to write some postcards and prepare for World Postcard Day!

The next day it continued: On October 2nd, 2021, there was a Postcrossing meet-up in Ansbach. It was wonderful again.

The name “Ansbach” has its origin probably in an inflow of the river Rezat, called “Onoldsbach”. In the year 748, a monastery was founded in its estuary, the roots of the later town Ansbach. It was mentioned on a document in 1221 for the very first time. This means we got here on time for its 800th jubilee – great!

When walking through the town, we noticed that there are also other funny statues, like this man with a suitcase:

And we took a look at the Saint Gumbertus church in Ansbach:

We also highly recommend visiting the castle garden in Ansbach. It’s beautiful!

And of course, we helped with writing postcards again afterwards…

After a long day, we needed a good rest, but the next week we went to explore Nuremberg, the home of Angelthecat and Gaiasduhter! First of all, we climbed the castle hill, and were able to enjoy the beautiful view over the city.

It’s not very clear when Nuremberg was founded. It was mentioned the first time in a document called the “Sigena Urkunde” issued by emperor Henry III in 1050. Probably there were some smaller settlements as well as a castle. This castle became an imperial seat and was soon important for the whole empire of that time. In 1219, Nuremberg was acknowledged as a free imperial city by Frederick II. Today, Nuremberg is known for toys, gingerbread and the world famous “Christkindlesmarkt” (Christchild’s Fair). Nuremberg was also the stronghold of manufacturing pencils!

We also discovered something very cool, and exactly the right size for us: a model of the Nuremberg castle and the city area of that time!

Of course, we also visited the famous Nuremberg painter, graphic artist, mathematician and art theorist Albrecht Dürer. Maybe you even already received a postcard with one of his works? World famous are the “Young Hare” or the “Praying Hands”.

We even ran into him in person (sort of)…

After that, we visited the main market square (Hauptmarkt). The “Frauenkirche” (Church of our Lady) on the main market square was built by emperor Charles in the time of 1352 to 1362. It is known internationally for its so called “Männleinlaufen” (a mechanical clock that commemorates the Golden Bull of 1356). Every day at noon, 7 electors come from the right door, go towards the emperor, and turn to him. The figure of the emperor welcomes them with his scepter—it’s a bit complicated to explain, but wonderful to see: there’s a video here on Youtube that lets you catch a glimpse!).

We also visited the Beautiful Fountain. It was built in 1396 and is situated at the main market next to the town’s hall. Its height is about 19 meters. It is known for its story of the brass ring:

“Master Kuhn, who built the lattice fence around the fountain, had a daughter named Margret, who was adored by the apprentice. As the Master did not want to give his child to a poor man, he prohibited the relationship and threw him out. It is said that Kuhn told the apprentice that he would not get his daughter the same way the young man wouldn’t be able to make rings turning around at the fountain’s lattice fence. When the Master travelled, the apprentice secretly made the rings, to prove his skills. Then he cut the rings and put them to the lattice and hammered and filed until the seams could not be seen anymore. Then he left the town and never came back. When Kuhn was back home, he recognized that he was too strict. But it was too late, and Margret was in tears. One of the rings is seen as a lucky charm. The legend tells that those who touch and turn the ring, will be blessed with children. Most of the tourists think that the ring made of brass is the lucky charm, but lot of people from Nuremberg think that the “real ring” is the one made of iron, and therefore is the lucky charm.”

Before we go on with our trip, we have to relax a bit at the “Museumsbrücke” (museum’s bridge) with view to the Heilig-Geist-Spital (Holy Spirit Hospital):

The “Heilig-Geist-Spital”, often simply called “HeiGei” by Nuremberg locals, was used to care for the sick and old of the imperial city. The hospital was donated by the richest citizen of that time, Konrad Gross. Still today it is used as a retirement home. The Heilig-Geist-Spital is also the place where the imperial insignia were kept in Nuremberg from 1424 to 1796.

Before we went back to our host’s home, we enjoyed the view over the city again, this time towards the castle:

We really enjoyed the time in Nuremberg very much and in case we will get the chance to come here again, we definitely want to eat gingerbread. They are simply a must to eat at Christmas time. Maybe together with our new friends? But for now, we’re on our way once more…

Thank you for hosting the Little Mail Carriers, Patricia, and thanks also to all the postcrossers who spent time with them for welcoming them so warmly!

Since their time in Franconia, they’ve had several other adventures—but that’s a story for another day…