I ended up near Marburg to visit some friends I had met while kayaking in the Mecklenburg Lake District a few years ago. Little did I know how much the area has to offer. Luckily, my incredible paddle friends, Lothar and Manuela planned an amazing weekend for me to see a bit of what is there. The premium hiking trail Schächerbachtour was just the beginning (check out the hike here) of getting to know the Volcano Region Vogelsberg.
Schloss Homberg
The next item on the list was Schloss Homberg. More of a large manor house than a palace, the Schloss sits upon the top of Homberg-Ohm and dates back to the 13th century. Its upkeep is financed solely by donations and taken care of by a group of concerned and interested villagers.
The cozy little palace feels inviting and authentic. The large garden area is filled with flowers and a human sundial. Just stand with your feet on the correct month and it will tell you the time. It really was just before two when I took the photo below.
What really piqued my interest at the Schloss was a tree – a very cool one! The Winterlinde (small-leaved lime tree) is called the Hohler Baum meaning hollow tree. It is 800 to 1000 years old and 11 meters around!! You can even go inside it using the entrance and exit. There is a main trunk of the tree in the center and then another trunk has grown completely around it, leaving space where you can fit in between. I was able to walk inside and around the center of the tree. I’d never been in a tree like that before. Magical.
Hohler Baum at Schloss Homberg
Photo Credit: Manuela
inside the Hohler Baum
Photo Credit: Manuela
Volcano Region Legacy
Our next stop was to the largest Basalt rock quarry in central Europe. Located in the village of Nieder-Ofleiden, the quarry has been a movie set twice for German films and hosts the Steinexpo (international demonstration show for the raw and building materials industry) every three years. From here it was a short drive away to hike a section of the Felsenmeer, a trail surrounded in a plethora of large volcanic rocks and various rock formations. I really liked the vegetation on this hike. The thick growth made the woods feel cozy and there was a section with enormously tall trees.
basalt quarry 
enormously tall trees in the Felsenmeer
Schloss Rauischholzhausen
The last stop of the day was Schloss Rauischholzhausen. That name is a mouthful even though I speak German. The grand palace sits majestically on top of a hill overlooking part of the large park which surrounds it and a pond below. The park contains hundreds of species of trees from all around the world. It was very impressive.
1175 Years for Erfurtshausen
And the day wasn’t even over yet. Lothar and Manuela’s village, Erfurtshausen, was celebrating turning 1175 years old that weekend. That very evening we visited the village’s first ever Dorffest (town celebration). The events all took place at the various Höfe (farms) in the village. Each farm had different live music and food. We visited several of them, chatted with some neighbors and acquaintances of L and M, and enjoyed the karaoke/sing-a-long Hof.
At another farm, I tried a famous Hessian dish: Handkäse mit Musik. A kind of cheese with “music,” meaning it comes with onions. The reason it’s with “music” is the same as for “beans, beans the musical fruit…” In the picture below are two Handkäse – small rounds of cheese covered in onions. The glass in the middle is filled with Kochkäse, which is heated-up cheese mixed with cream. On the side is a glass of Apfelwein (this time mixed with fizzy water) to wash it all down.
The final stop for the evening was the Hof hosting The Boptown Cats, which played a lot of old time rock’n’roll. It was a lot of fun boot tapping music to end the night!
Can you believe all of that was packed into a day? No wonder Lothar, Manuela, and I clicked when I met them at the Havelperle while kayaking. They know exactly how I like to travel!
Marburg
The next day was dedicated to seeing Marburg. Our first stop was to get an overview of the city by stopping at the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Turm, also called the Spiegelslustturm. Located on a hill peak in the woods, the tower is surrounded by lots of beautiful walking trails. From the top, there is a spectacular view of Marburg and the region. A neat thing about this tower is that it has a large light-up heart which can be seen throughout the city. There’s a hotline number which you can call and the heart will light up for several minutes just for you or your loved one!
Half-Timbered Houses
Then it was time to head into the city itself. We first walked to the Elisabethkirche and had a look around. Next we wandered through some of the Altstadt. Marburg lies on the Deutsche Fachwerkstrasse – Germany’s half-timbered house trail. And it does not disappoint. There are beautiful old houses everywhere! When many of the nearby cities were bombed in the Second World War, Marburg escaped nearly unscathed. So a large number of its buildings are several hundred years old.
Fairy Tale Lane
Marburg is also located on another German “street” – the Märchen Straße, or fairy tale road. Around the city there are sculptures and info points about various stories from the Grimm Brothers called the “Grimm-Dich-Pfad” or Grimm-and-You-Path. We saw artwork for Der Wolf und die Sieben Geißlein (the wolf and the seven little goats), Snow White’s mirror, Cincerella’s shoe, little red riding hood’s picnic basket, the frog prince himself, and the brave little tailor’s flies.
Markgrafenschloss
After visiting the main Marktplatz and the Rathaus, we began to walk up the hill to Marburg’s Markgrafenschloss (the margrave’s palace). On the way up, we passed the Lutheran St. Marien church with its tilted tower.
At the top of the hill is the nearly 1000 year old palace. When I began touring the castle, I heard classical music in the first room I entered. I thought it seemed to be playing a little loud for a castle visit, but when I entered the next room I discovered a symphony orchestra having a rehearsal! I sat down in one of the last rows and listened to them finish their song before going to view the rest of the castle. I’ve never had a reception like that upon visiting a castle before. I didn’t get to see much of the castle itself because the Schloss was undergoing some renovation. The visit was still worth it to see the Phillips University Museum housed within the castle. There are exhibits on furniture, dress, and household items from the 16th to 18th centuries, another floor houses swords and armor, and another displays church architecture and artwork.
Lahn River
Sadly, it was nearly time for my train back to Berlin. Lothar, Manuela, and I grabbed some lunch to go and sat at their favorite spot on the Lahntreppen. We watched a lot of excited ducks get fed by passersby and saw several paddleboats go up and down the river. Then we moved to another spot on the river for a farewell drink at Ufercafe Gischler. It would be easy to spend a whole sunny afternoon there just people watching and seeing the river go by.
Needless to say, my trip to Marburg and the Vogelsberg region was an extremely enjoyable one that I will not forget. I can highly recommend visiting the area. Since the weekend was just a taste of what is on offer there, I hope to be back again soon to see some more!