Dave’s borderline-obsessive interest in WWII history led us to spend a few days in Nuremberg after Munich. First, he visited the Nuremberg Trials courtroom, where several high-ranking Nazi officials were convicted and sentenced to death (and others were actually acquitted), and which is still in use today. It serves as a reminder that justice can be done in some courtrooms (but not the US Supreme Court these days 😡).
Equally powerful, but also perplexing, are the former sites of the Nazi Party Rally Grounds and Congress. They each occupy massive lands but it’s as if the community is paralyzed about how to handle them, hence their neglected, haphazard state. Demolishing or turning them into ‘useful’ space feels like a slap in the face to the victims and history there. But to maintain them as they were in 1940 (with appropriate explanations, accountability, and accessibility) is a complex process. Although the “Documentation Center Nazi Party Rallying Grounds” museum documenting the Nazis’ troubling rise to power in Bavaria is very good, we left wishing the area could have been more intentionally maintained for future generations.
But Nuremberg is not only about its Nazi past. The historic core, ringed by its centuries-old wall and moat, is filled with Old World (reconstructed) charm, as 90% was destroyed during the war. We still enjoyed strolling around and happened upon a beer festival in the castle moat. Ample cold beer for Dave, white wine sangria for me, and watermelon juice for Jacob. 🍻
Jacob also found his happy place at the Nuremberg Toy Museum. We know it’s a good one when he insists on going three days in a row!
Unfortunately we also found ourselves in a heat wave; temperatures in the high 90s with no air conditioning are rough. So we did what seemingly the rest of Nuremberg did: headed to Westbad (the best public pool facility we’ve ever visited).
Perhaps the highlight of our stay had nothing to do with Nuremberg itself. We had our first ‘visitor’ on our summer travels: Alma, a former coworker and fellow USC Law grad, who took the train from Stuttgart to hang with us, including at the Westbad pool. Reconnecting with a familiar face and having Alma’s company was a real delight. ❤️
