the University
by pepples46
the major economic factor for Marburg, the latest Statistic says..6500 Students from 138 Countries worldwide live and study here.
19000 Students altogether make the place a hustling and bustling Town. the Pub very croweded in the evenings:-)
have a look at Uni-Marburg webpage
UNI- MARBURG the 85000 wo live here are all very friendly, through the influence from Students and the academics,the Town presents itself open and modern.... the Charm of the Castle, looking down on Marburg, the winding streets....the Brothers Grimm studied here too, neat and everything in walking distance.
Evening walks along the River Lahn with Friends and a Beer or two in the Pub....Life was good
Heilige Elisabeth von Thüringen - Saint Elizabeth
by Kathrin_E
Elizabeth (1207-1231) was the daughter of the Hungarian king. At the age of four she was sent to Wartburg castle above Eisenach and betrothed to Landgrave Ludwig IV of Thuringia, whom she married in 1221. They had three children. The marriage did not last long, though. Her husband participated in the crusade and died.
Elisabeth's ideal was Francis of Assisi. Already as a countess she helped the poor, the sick and the needy whereever she could - to great dislike of her husband. The legend tells that Ludwig caught her on the way to the hospital with a covered basket full of bread and confronted her, but when he looked into the basket it was filled with nothing but roses.
After Ludwig's death Elizabeth had to leave the Wartburg. She took up residence in the castle of Marburg and joined the Franciscan Third Order. Outside the town she built a hospital and served the sick and needy with her own hands. Unfortunately she overstrained her forces. She died at the age of only 27 in 1231 and canaonized four years later. Her grave soon became one of the most visited pilgrimages in Western Europe.
Although Marburg has been protestant for almost 500 years and thus has long abandoned the worshipping of saints, Elizabeth's memory is still honoured and her holiday on November 19 commemorated even in the protestant Elisabethkirche. On the weekend after November 19 there is an open-air market (Elisabethmarkt) in the streets of the town.
Statues and reliefs depicting Elizabeth can be found in many places all over town.
Elisabeth, Marburg's patron saint
by Trekki
You might have realised that St. Elisabeth is being considered to be one of Marburg's most prominent citizen. That is why 800 years after her birth, year 2007 was celebrated as "Elisabeth year". A lot of festivals were held throughout the year and a special exhibition about her life was in display in the castle. Parts of the exhibits have been moved to the regular museum, parts are back in their original towns.
Elisabeth was a famous and fascinating woman. She was born in Hungary in 1207, was married to a landgrave of Thuringia at the age of fourteen. When her husband died during one of the crusades, she left Wartburg (Thuringia) and went to Marburg. Here she founded the hospital (based on Franciscan order) and took care of the poor and homeless. She died very young, at the age of 24 and was canonised 4 years later.
There is much more to her story than my few words. Read here and further down for more information and links.
Throughout all Marburg you will find tributes to her, little reliefs here and there, chocolate, sweets and cakes named after her and of course, the famous Elisabethkirche, where her bones are buried (most of them).
I wrote this tip in September 2006, but have exchanged photos and revamped the text (April 2009).
Fleckenbühl
by Kathrin_E
Fleckenbühl, a farm in the countryside of Cölbe near Marburg, is a project for drug addicts who want to quit and find the way back to a sober, clean, drug-free life. Anyone who seriously wants to can come and stay and will find help. People are not sent or brought there by any authorities and they are not picked up - they have to reach the place on their own and out of their free will. The project offers help with detoxification and legal problems. The ex-addicts live together in the community on the farm and learn to deal with their problems. Everyone gets as much time as he or she needs. The project is successful. Many have been able to leave after a while and start a new life.
The project is happy about donations but their financial base are their own businesses. They operate an organic farm, a wholemeal bakery, organic grocery stores, a pottery, a painter workshop and a relocation service. The idea is giving people the option to work according to their wishes and talents, even do a regular apprenticeship to learn a profession, as soon as they are ready. They compete on the regional market with their products and services and work for clients 'outside' like any other business would. I have used their relocation service when I moved to Karlsruhe, for example.
Fleckenbühl website (in German) Fleckenbühl operates an organic food store in Weidenhausen, next to the bridge. They offer small warm dishes at lunchtime. Their wholemeal bread and cakes are yummy!!!!
Marburg and Grimm Brothers 2009
by Trekki
Did I mention this the eternal mystery proper English guidance on Marburg’s website already? Yes, I did. I might come to a point to understand that the mayor and his staff think that foreign guide books are full with descriptions which makes it not necessary to expand explanations on the site. But I will ever fail to understand why they won’t even mention the fascinating events in and around Marburg during the project “Literate Hesse 2009”. One of Marburgs famous inhabitants some centuries ago were the Grimm Brothers who wrote the famous fairy-tale collections. Marburg’s special events in this literature year 2009 are focussing on many of these tales, there is even a path leading through town which is called “Grimm-Dich-Pfad” (a pun related to “keep-fit path”; fit means trimm in German). This path is lined with eleven cute figures of the fairy tales and leads zigzagging through the old town. In addition, each month of the year has a special literate theme with many special events like theatres, movies and readings:
· May: love and the Hesse Literature Day (May 10),
· June: Hesse Theatre Days and dramatic literature,
· July: literature inside and outside on special locations throughout the town,
· August: historical novels, Medieval market and printing machines a la Gutenberg (oh, mental note to self: I must go then!),
· September: whatever “Poetry Slam” means,
· October: Marburg crime story festival,
· November: lyrics with funny competitions and actions,
· December: of course, perfect for the season, fairy tales of Grimm Brothers and the famous Christmas Market.
Links:
Marburg website, Grimm Year 2009
brochure of Marburg’s Grimm year 2009 (in German, 29 pages as pdf),
Grimm path map (in German)
If anyone is interested in more information, please send me VT mail and I can translate parts of brochure and map.
It is so $%&//( sad that this all isn’t available in English…. It would attract so many more foreign visitors!!!
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market square
Rudolphsplatz, pedestrian area
The excavated medieval synagogue
Marburger Töpferhaus
