Cellar labyrhint and Italian flair
Not far from Mainz in the Rhine Hessian region just a little bit north of Germany’s biggest river is the city of Oppenheim, situated on top of a hill right next to one of Germany’s most beautiful churches. In midst of sunny vineyards and gentle hills you will find a wonderful Italian atmosphere.
A quite picturesque feature of the well preserved Old Town are the amazingly and affectionately cultivated many gardens. These are mostly small terraces behind houses and full of flowers and useful plants.
This preference for gardens may be triggered by the sunny and warm climate prevailing in Oppenheim. It’s not only gardens that testify to the climate, but also numerous vineyards and astonishingly many fig trees on which in summer grow very delightful fruits.
When visiting Oppenheim you should not miss visiting church St. Katharina which is as wonderful as a cathedral. Of wonderful work are the church glasses that display beautiful motives and make this outstanding Gothic construction one of the most important representatives of its kind in the area between Cologne and Strasbourg. Interesting as well is the charnel-house behind the church. In this vault hundreds of skulls are lined up.
Worth visiting is also the ruin of former fortress Landskron in which today festivals and similar events are staged. From there the view of the Rhine level is magnificent.
Cellar labyrinth
Hidden under the ground of the well-preserved buildings around Oppenheim‘s city hall is the city’s most exciting attraction: the cellar labyrinth. It runs underground for some kilometres. Estimated a total of 40 km, currently open to tourists are only 650 metres. A tour with guide and protective helmet is very impressive and interesting. Everyone suffering from claustrophobia can alternatively enjoy guided tours through the wine museum and town or participate in one of the night watchman's guided tours.
We recommend doing a tour on your own: to the west of church Katharina leads a broad path along the old town walls to the lower part of the town while offering wonderful insights into those earlier mentioned gardens.
Swimming and gold panning at river Rhine
When you visit Oppenheim on a warm summer day, you’ll have the chance to swim at the Rhine shores on a wonderful beach. If you bring a gold panner pan or kit along you even can pan gold. Well, you won’t find the gold of the Nibelungen, but with some luck you’ll get some spangles of this shining metal. Actually that’s the reason why quite often amateur gold panners can be seen at the shore of river Rhine.
More information (in German): http://www.stadt-oppenheim.de/
Photo: Christopher Kubaseck
