Revisiting a Favorite Childhood Place

 

Taken from the moving car

Münsterland - the area around the city of Münster - has an abundance of (moated) castles, and one of them was a favorite place in my childhood. Whenever we went to Münsterland, this particular castle was always top on our list: Burg Vischering.

So when we stayed with Kaefer in Münster, we of course had to take her there (and the Geek hadn't been here before either). It's not a long drive from Münster through the beautiful surrounding landscape.

You approach the castle through a couple of gates.

Then you have to cross the first body of water until you finally have a first view of the castle.

I liked all the old gates here.

The castle is surrounded by an additional, deeper body of water, the moat. Since Münsterland is very flat, in order to protect themselves, castles were surrounded by deep moats and you could only enter the castle grounds via a drawbridge and heavy gates.

Here you can see part of the chain in front of the gate that would draw up part of the bridge.

Burg Vischering was founded by the Bishop of Münster in the second half of the 13th century and became the ancestral seat of the Droste zu Vischering family who has owned the castle to the present day. In 1521 a fire caused substantial damage to the castle, but it was rebuilt and extended in the Renaissance style by 1580. In 1986 it has been declared a historic monument and today houses the Münsterlandmuseum. 

The inner courtyard:

We immediately noticed the interesting construction of mirrors and of course we all had to take pictures here.

I liked the doors, the symbols above them and the handles and locks.

We couldn't figure out this small opening - a special door for the castle cats?

Stairs and little details...

I didn't take many pictures inside the castle, but I do want to show you this old manuscript and there was an abundance of Delfter Fliesen.

You can walk on the wall that borders the courtyard.

One of the castle residents lives here.

You can also see the adjacent buildings from here. I like the clay shingles, they are typical for this region (I grew up in a house with clay shingles) and many parts of Germany.

Now let's take a walk around the moat and look at the castle from there.

Windows with tiny shutters that would only cover parts of the window.

I loved the reflections in the water. That's what I remember the most from my childhood visits.

Usually re-visiting sites that you loved as a child can be disappointing. Burg Vischering, however, was exactly how I remembered it, except that it wasn't possible to go inside back then. I'm very glad that we went here and strolled down memory lane.

Outside I noticed the paving stones and the crest of Nordrhein-Westfalen (the Bundesland - state - Münster and the Münsterland belong to) on the manhole cover.

A last view through one of the crenels, and then we were on our way back.

A few shots out of the moving car of the area. As I mentioned, Münsterland is very flat which makes it perfect for riding a bicycle. This is Kaefer's preferred way of transportation. However, as beautiful as it is, I would miss the mountains or at least some hills. I have always lived in regions with hills and mountains, so I don't know how it is to live in completely flat surroundings. It might be nice for a certain time, though. Kaefer, who likes to hike and climb, does miss the mountains a lot and I can well understand it. I would, too.

Since there are a few faces in this post, either human or 'stony', I link to Nicole's Friday Face Off.

The Kuhviertel

 

The Kuhviertel ("cow quarter") is in the old town of Münster and a very pristine place of alleys with nooks and crannies as well as little shops and many restaurants. It is also an entertainment district steeped in tradition, perfect for a Westphalian evening. Here you can find students' pubs and cozy, typically Westphalian restaurants.

seen from within "Pinkus Müller"

One of these restaurants is Pinkus Müller, an Altbier-brewery that has been brewing this dark beer since 1816 (maybe some of you read my beer post from two years ago where I mention Alt as well). I grew up in Westphalia, and whenever my parents and we kids went to Münster, we stopped at Pinkus Müller for a very late lunch. It's a very original restaurant where you sit at long wooden tables underneath ancient beams painted with aphorisms. Please note the Delfter Fliesen (Delft tiles) at the Kachelofen (cockle stove).

This is the extensive beer menu of Pinkus Müller.

And this is what we had: Altbierbowle (front left), Original Pinkus Alt (a light-colored Altbier, front right) and Hefeweizen (back).

It was delicious and we certainly enjoyed it - so much, actually, that it is my ticket for Bleubeard and Elizabeth's T Tuesday.

Westphalian food is probably not to everyone's taste, but I like it. I wouldn't eat it every day, but every now and then it's delicious - however, not necessarily super healthy. Here's what we had (top to bottom): Landbratwurst mit Bratkartoffeln und Sauerkraut (country bratwurst with home fried potatoes and sauerkraut), Würstkespfanne mit Bratkartoffeln und Sauerkraut (different sausages with home fried potatoes and sauerkraut) and Kartoffelsuppe (potato soup). All was very tasty, but also quite a lot (I couldn't finish mine).

As dessert we chose Westfälische Quarkspeise mit Schattenmorellen und in Rum getränktem Pumpernickel (Westphalian quark dish with morello cherries and pumpernickel soaked in rum), it was absolutely delicious.

And if nature calls afterwards, you go here (if you're female) - Fraulüde means "women people" in Münsterländer Platt, the dialect that is spoken in the area of Münster.

One last picture of the Kuhviertel, seen on a garage door - that cow certainly enjoys the cocktail. This is one of the works by Lackaffen, a company for building and facade design in Münster. 

Cheers!

The 366 Project: November

 

It's just two weeks ago that I posted my 366 project for October, and here we are in December and it's time for the November 366. The month began in France, took us to Belgium and the North of Germany and finally back to California.

As you can see, there's a beautiful coffee mug in these collages, and that is my first ticket for Bleubeard and Elizabeth's T Tuesday. My daughter brought this mug from South Africa where she attended a congress in her beloved Cape Town in September, and she gave it to me while we were in Münster.

Get ready for some random pictures that I took in Münster. My daughter told me that I need to go to Dille & Kamille, a Belgian shop that has a few stores in Germany as well. I was very tempted to get one these houses (you put a tealight in it) since they don't only look like buildings in Bruges or Ghent, but also like the ones in Münster. However, in the end I only bought a tiny ornament.

At the other end of Prinzipalmarkt was a cheese shop where they sold Gouda in all kinds of flavor. You can tell that the Netherlands aren't far from Münster...

My daughter's flat is above an Italian ice cream parlor (called "Eisdiele" in German), and when the weather was nice, we sat on the patio and enjoyed some wonderful Eisbecher (sundae).

Or would you prefer German cheesecake (not made with cream cheese, but with Quark) or Tiramisu?

Of course I had to visit my favorite clothing store, Gudrun Sjøden, a Swedish company. The walls are full with pictures of their patterns and even the stairs had the flower pattern on some steps.

While I was looking around, the Geek was served coffee - nice touch for the waiting husband - while he sat at the table chatting with Kaefer.

A cozy little corner to sit in one of the little alleys close to the Dom.

If nature calls in this café, you know where to go.

Especially if you had a few of these delicious cocktails, a Hugo. This is an alcoholic aperitif that originated in South Tyrol and is very popular in Northeastern Italy, Austria, Switzerland and Germany. It is based on prosecco, elderflower syrup, seltzer or sparkling water and mint leaves. My second ticket for T Tuesday.

A pillow I saw in Kaefer's neighborhood bakery - "lovely that you are here".

I wish all of you a lovely last month of the year and leave you with this shot that I took this morning in my front garden. The sun always rises.