One of the most noticeable oddities of Germany’s Middle Franconia (German: Mittelfranken) is its name. Middle Franconia, as many would not expect, is located below Lower Franconia!
Develop a clearer sense of the relationships of the three Franconias by heading for Middle Franconia’s section of the Steigerwald Nature Reserve, where you’ll find the Three Franconian Stone. Erected in 1895, this stone sits at the exact spot where the three administrative districts of Upper, Middle, and Lower Franconia meet, and is encircled by a path connecting towns in each.
Both the Steigerwald and Altmühl Valley Nature Reserves reach into Middle Franconia, a land of rolling hills and mist-enshrouded valleys. A hikers’ and rock climbers’ paradise, with plenty of caves to please those who prefer to test their courage underground, Middle Franconia has everything for the outdoor enthusiast. (The name Franconia, by the way, is based on an ancient word for “wild,” or “courageous.”)
Even the great (if slightly tarnished) Nuremberg, where the brilliant works of Albrecht Dürer still shine long after the flames of the Third Reich have been forever extinguished, gets in on the act with its High Rope Gardens. Here anyone with the fortitude can master the art of climbing without leaving the city.
While the architectural glories of Nuremberg are well-known, this spectacular city has plenty of less-discovered but equally interesting attractions. Just to the city’s west is the city of Fürth, now into its second millennium. Fürth enlightens visitors with its Nature Trail for Urban Ecology, beginning in, of all places, an underground railway station!
The agricultural region to the north of Nuremberg, Knoblauchsland, is affectionately called “Garlic Land.” It’s far better known, however, for the highly-prized white asparagus which makes its way to Nuremberg’s Hauptmarkt.
Just beyond the vegetable fields of Knoblauchsland’s village of Kraftshof is the Irrhain. In this 17th century maze, the Pegnesian Order of Flowers, a poetic society, held their meetings.
The Upper Franconian town of Coburg may be justified in boasting of its sausages, but they have nothing on Nuremberg’s Drei im Weggla, or three sausages in a roll. This city is so protective of its sausage reputation, in fact, that thanks to a European Union regulation, the name “Nürnberg Roast Sausage” can’t be used outside of the city! ;-)
Another Middle Franconian specialty is the Aischgrunder Spiegelkarpfen (a carp found in the Erlangen-Höchstadt county along the River Aisch). Franconian blue carp with dill sauce is a classic! Where but in Middle Franconia will you find a cycling route dedicated to carp?
The Feuchtwangen Carp Cycle Route runs through the lovely Sulzach Valley, along a tributary of the River Wörnitz. It’s one of a half-dozen Middle Franconian cycling routes along carp ponds. Charlemagne visited Feuchtwangen in around 800 A.D., and he might have indulged in some carp himself. ;-)
Middle Franconia is where you’ll find the most famous small town in Germany, Rothenburg ob der Tauber. Pass through the ramparts of Rothenburg, on a headland overlooking the River Tauber, and you’ll feel as if you just missed the legendary drinking feat of Bürgermeister Nusch.
Don’t worry, because that feat is reenacted every day by copper-plated figures adorning the clocks of the tavern in which it occurred. Climb to the viewing platform in the Town Hall tower for a great view across the red tile roofs of the town to the meadows and woods beyond.
Just to the south of Rothenburg is Ansbach, the glorious royal seat of the Hohenzollerns, where the Baroque era is restored to vibrant life each year with the Ansbach Bach Festival. One of the treats of exploring this city is in finding its concealed Renaissance courtyards.
Bottom line? The only thing you can expect from your visit to Middle Franconia, it seems, is the unexpected!
Moja ya oddities zaidi ya kuonekana ya Ujerumani ya Kati Franconia (Kijerumani: Mittelfranken) ni jina lake. Franconia ya Kati, kama wengi wasingetarajia, iko chini ya Franconia ya Chini! Kuendeleza hisia wazi ya mahusiano ya Franconias tatu kwa kichwa kwa sehemu ya Franconia ya Kati ya Steigerwald Nature Reserve, ambapo utapata Three Franconian Stone. Jengo hilo lilijengwa mwaka 1895 na liko mahali ambapo wilaya tatu za utawala za Upper, Middle na Lower Franconia zinakutana, na limezungukwa na njia inayounganisha miji katika kila moja. Hifadhi za Asili za Steigerwald na Altmühl Valley zinaenea hadi Franconia ya Kati, nchi yenye milima na mabonde yaliyofunikwa na ukungu. A hikers <unk> na rock climbers <unk> paradiso, na mengi ya mapango kwa tafadhali wale ambao wanapendelea mtihani ujasiri wao chini ya ardhi, Kati Franconia ina kila kitu kwa ajili ya enthusiast nje. "Jina ""Franconia"" linatokana na neno la kale linalomaanisha ""mwitu"" au ""mjasiri"" na hata mji mkuu wa Nuremberg, ambako kazi za Albrecht Dürer bado zinaangaza baada ya moto wa Reich ya Tatu kuzimwa milele, unaonyesha waziwazi kwamba mji huo ni wenye nguvu." Hapa mtu yeyote mwenye ujasiri aweza kujifunza sanaa ya kupanda bila kuondoka jijini. Ingawa majengo ya Nuremberg yanajulikana sana, jiji hilo lenye kuvutia lina vivutio vingi visivyojulikana lakini vyenye kupendeza. Magharibi tu ya jiji hilo kuna jiji la Fürth, ambalo sasa linaishi katika milenia yake ya pili. Fürth huwavutia wageni kwa njia yake ya asili ya ikolojia ya mijini, inayoanza, katika mahali pote, kituo cha reli cha chini ya ardhi! Eneo la kilimo kaskazini mwa Nuremberg, Knoblauchsland, huitwa kwa upendo "Nchi ya Garlic". Hata hivyo, inajulikana zaidi kwa asparagus nyeupe yenye thamani kubwa ambayo inafanya njia yake hadi Nuremberg's Hauptmarkt. Karibu na mashamba ya mboga ya kijiji cha Knoblauchsland cha Kraftshof kuna Irrhain. Katika karne ya 17 na zaidi, Pagan Order of Flowers ilianzisha jamii ya washairi. Mji wa Coburg huko Upper Franconia unaweza kujivunia soseji zake, lakini hazina kitu kama Drei im Weggla ya Nuremberg, au soseji tatu katika roll. Jiji hili ni hivyo kinga ya sifa yake soseji, kwa kweli, kwamba shukrani kwa kanuni ya Umoja wa Ulaya, jina <unk>Nürnberg Roast Soseji<unk> haiwezi kutumika nje ya mji! ;-) Mazoezi mengine ya Franconia ya Kati ni Aischgrunder Spiegelkarpfen (karp inayopatikana katika kaunti ya Erlangen-Höchstadt kando ya Mto Aisch). Karp ya rangi ya bluu ya Franconia yenye mchuzi wa dill ni ya kawaida! Ni wapi pengine katika Franconia ya Kati ambapo utapata njia ya baiskeli iliyojitolea kwa carp? Njia ya baiskeli ya Feuchtwangen Carp hupita katika Bonde la Sulzach lenye kupendeza, kando ya kijito cha Mto Wörnitz. Ni moja ya nusu-dozeni ya Kati Franconian baiskeli njia kando carp vidimbwi. Charlemagne alitembelea Feuchtwangen karibu 800 AD, na huenda yeye mwenyewe alikuwa na karp. ;-) Kati Franconia ni ambapo utapata mji mdogo maarufu zaidi katika Ujerumani, Rothenburg ob der Tauber. Kupitia kuta za Rothenburg, juu ya kilele kuangalia Mto Tauber, na wewe itabidi kujisikia kama wewe tu amekosa hadithi ya kunywa feat ya Bürgermeister Nusch. Usiwe na wasiwasi, kwa sababu tendo hilo huchezwa tena kila siku na sanamu zilizopakwa shaba zinazopamba saa za mkahawa ambamo lilitukia. Panda kwenye jukwaa la kutazama katika mnara wa City Hall kwa mtazamo mzuri juu ya paa nyekundu za matofali ya mji hadi kwenye nyasi na misitu zaidi. Huko kusini mwa Rothenburg kuna Ansbach, makao makuu ya kifalme ya Hohenzollern, ambapo enzi ya Baroque inarudishwa kwa maisha yenye msisimko kila mwaka na Tamasha la Ansbach Bach. Mojawapo ya mambo yenye kupendeza kuhusu kuchunguza jiji hili ni kupata nyua zake zilizofichwa za Enzi ya Renaissance. Sura ya mwisho? Inaonekana kwamba jambo pekee unaloweza kutarajia kutoka kwa ziara yako ya Franconia ya Kati ni jambo lisilotazamiwa!