1. travel17 September 2010 NEXT234NEXT.com
town is part of the university.
Many of its structures that
house different faculties and
classrooms are to be found all
over the town. Then there’s
Heidelberg’s library, founded
in 1421; it is the oldest public
library in Germany and still
very much intact. Martin
Luther King defended the 95
theses in Heidelberg a few
months after its proclamation
in April 1518.
Heidelberg Castle
We also had a good view
of the ruins of Heidelberg’s
famous castle. Although
somepartofthecastleisbeing
renovated in a preservation
effort, there is no major
work been done on it. The
ruins are being left largely
the way they are because of
their historical appeal. In
any case, any attempt to do
any major work would lead to
the structure’s total collapse,
due to the wearing away of the
sand-like soil that was used in
theoriginalconstruction. The
castle is a mix of styles, from
theGothictotheRenaissance.
Prince Elector Ruprecht
III (1398–1410) erected the
first building in the castle’s
inner courtyard as a royal
residence.
The castle and its garden
were destroyed several times
and the first preservation
effort was started by Count
Charles de Graimberg in
1800. Although the interior is
in the Gothic style, the King’s
Hall was actually not built
until 1934. Today, the hall is
used for festivities, including
banquets, balls, and theatre
performances.
During the Heidelberg
Castle Festival in every
summer, the courtyard is
turned into the site of open
air musicals, operas, theatre
performances, and classical
concerts performed by the
Heidelberg Philharmonic
Orchestra.
The famous poet, Goethe,
once walked in the park
surrounding the castle. The
poet had a strong association
with Heidelberg; and one of
his women came from there.
It is possible to walk from
the town to the castle, but this
is not encouraged. There is
a cable car service that runs
from an underground station
to the top of the castle. We
weretoldaboutsomestudents
who walked all the way up the
castle and on getting to the
top, were still made to pay the
cable car fee.
Heidelberg’s churches
The Church of the Holy
Spirit, located in the town,
has a real history to it. It
was desired by both the
Protestants and the Catholics
faiths at the same time; and
both denominations have
made used of the church at
some point or other. By way
of resolution, four doors
were built for the church, at
the front end and at the back
side; and a dividing wall was
erected in the middle. Two
denominations worshipping
in the church; this was a real
challenge to me. If only all
conflicts were resolved like
this.
The first Jesuit movement
started in Heidelberg, and the
magnificent Jesuit Catholic
Church still stands in the city.
However, the oldest church in
Heidelberg is the St. Peter’s
Church, now Lutheran, built
sometime in the early 12th
century by early Catholic
missions.
Hotel Ritter
Later on our tour, we were
shownthefamousHotelRitter.
Built in 1592, it is now 418
yearsold,totheamazementof
ourgroup. Aswewalkeddown
the cobblestone streets of
Heidelberg,therearebeautiful
sights to behold on either
side. Almost every turning
has a building of historical
significance. Friedrich Ebert,
thefirstpresidentofGermany,
was born in Heidelberg, and
we were shown the house
where he grew up.
We ended the tour at the
bridge crossing the Neckar
River and it was a beautiful
scene. The ‘Bridge Monkey’
next to the gate catches the
eye. Heidelberg is a merging
of the old and the new. Its
distinct uniqueness can be
sensed from the sleek fast
cars passing by, to the array of
shops that line the streets.
The older generation is not
affecting the growth of the
younger generation; instead,
its builds on the fusion of the
two, telling different stories
but each great in their own
rights.
H
eidelberg is a city in
the state of Baden-
Wurttemberg in
Germany. It is located in the
Neckar River Valley where
the Odenwald forest opens
up towards the plains of the
Rhine valley. The city is part
of a densely populated region
known as the Rhine-Neckar
Metropolitan Region. It is
famous for its many-faceted
historical heritage, from the
famouscastletotheuniversity,
its library, and many more.
Oldest educational institution
Heidelberg is home to
the oldest university in
Germany. The Ruprecht
Karls University, commonly
known as the University
of Heidelberg, is one of
Europe’s oldest educational
institutions. Founded in 1386
by Rupert I, Elector Palatine
oftheRhine,theuniversityhas
beenhometomanyprominent
thinkers and inventions for
centuries.
Karl Drais, who invented
the bicycle in 1817, was a
student;nicotine,astheactive
component of tobacco, was
discovered there by chemists,
Posselt and Reimann; and
the most famous inventor
associated with the university
is Robert Bunsen of the
renowned Bunsen Burner.
Bunsen was a professor of
Chemistry at the University
of Heidelberg and he became
known for his inclusion of
used match sticks for his
experiment that led to the
invention of the Bunsen
burner.
The city’s residents like to
tell the story of a cleaner who
was found striking packets
of matches and keeping the
sticks; when asked, she said
‘theprofessorlikesusingthem
like that’ – or words to that
effect.Bunsenwasalsoknown
for his vast knowledge, as one
of those individuals that put
Heidelberg on the world’s
map.
Heidelberg is known as a
university town because of
the institution’s educational
facilities scattered around the
historic town. The university
is famous for its research in
thefieldsofscience,medicine,
theology, and philosophy. Our
guide, Charlotte, explained
that, unlike other parts of
the world where you find
universities fenced into a
structured environment,
Heidelberg is not like that.
Everywhere you go in the
By OlufunmilayO ajala
Heidelberg is a
merging of tHe old
and tHe new. its
distinct uniqueness
can be sensed from
tHe sleek fast cars
passing by, to tHe
array of sHops tHat
line tHe streets.
OldandnewinHeidelberg
FUSION
This German city on
the River Nektar is
famous for its many-
faceted historical
heritage
The streets of Heidelberg PHOTOs by OlufunmilayO ajala
a study in religious tolerance: The
Church of the Holy spirit