Regensburg Off The Beaten Path

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My guidebook made no mention of St Jacob's......pure chance that I came across it.

It's very old.......a monastery and church founded by Irish monks in the 1100s.

and it has the most wonderful northern doorway, with complex and detailed sculptures and carvings whose meanings are still not fully understood.

Celtic knotwork on the columns, strange figures doing strange things, the antichrist, a crocodile, a man with a fiddle, odd symbols........all (happily) protected from weather and pollution by a fully-enclosed glass porch.

And inside you can find capitals carved with more strange creatures, fierce men with the classic plaited beards of the Celts, beautiful painted stonework and lovely Medieval carvings all set in a calm, plain and gorgeously arched space.

A hidden gem indeed, and one well worth seeking out.

Schottenkirche St Jakob on Jakobstrasse.

Follow Gesandtenstrasse from the middle of the Altstadt, cross the road and Jakobstrasse is slightly to the left.

More photos in my Regensburg travelogue.

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A white marble (?) monument by an Israeli artist, Dani Karavan, is placed where the old Regegensburg synagogue once stood.

It was thought that the Neupfarrkirche had been built on the site when it was destroyed ....but it stands some metres away.

So the Ort der Begugnung covers the same area as the synagogue, its truncated white columns standing where once columns stood.

But it's easy to miss as you walk across Neupfarrplatz......and even easier to miss what it signifies.

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Unless you enter the Dom by the small door on the South side you will probably miss the sculpture on one of the arches to its right, and the information plaque near the door.

Its old, of course....no doubt from when the cathedral was built (between 1273 and 1320).

The sculpture points towards where the Medieval Jewish ghetto lay, to the south-west of the cathedral.

The sculpture shows two Jews, their heads long gone, suckling a female pig.

The plaque makes clear that the sculpture must be seen in the context of its own time, even though it is 'disconcerting' for the modern viewer.

It certainly underlines Medieval attitudes towards the local Jewish community.

This is a bit of a sad story in more than one way. I have wanted to visit this monastic beer paradise for many years but it’s not the easiest place to get to. It’s on a narrow bend of the Danube River that is most easily (and scenically) reached via a cruise from Kelheim, a city most Germans visit while biking in the Altmuhltal region. With a car it’s also not hard to get to but if you are without one you’re only option is by bus, at least from Regensburg. The boat trip is fantastic and worth the excursion in and of itself, passing through narrow gorges that in autumn were aglow with fall foliage. I must excuse my use of a scanned magazine photo but I have good reason. The week after our trip, I met Lou Bess at a Munich beer garden with camera in tow. I guess we had one too many as we left the camera (with the film from the boat trip!) there. We never got it back so not only the camera but the photos are history. I do have great memories and guess that will have to suffice as the recent floods in Bavaria have left the monastery in ruin. I’m sure they will restore it but it will take some time. It’s worth checking to see the progress and making the trip if you can. Though you can see how easily the area might flood, on a nice day, you can also understand why the monks settled there in the 7th century. It’s just a beautiful spot. There is evidence that brewing was performed here as early as 1050. Most people come to see the Baroque chapel from the Asam brothers, notorious for their outlandish and extreme décor in the 18th century. Sadly, they were finishing up restoration while I was there. I guess they will have to start all over again. For those less religiously inclined, there is a fantastic beer hall/garden that serves up Bavarian specialties and house brewed beer.

This is just of an example of one of the nice narrow streets around the old city. I was here with my little daughter which is used to walk, but not as much as I would like to, so, never mind, she is only 4 and getting bigger and stronger, we will visit here again one day.

Starting somewhere on the Danube (maybe Herzogs park in the west. walk east until you reach Villapark, then go through the park and exit at Ostentor. Now you can walk all around town in the "green" (see map).

At the end of the walk (about 2-3 hours) stop in the Stadtpark for a Bier and Obatz'da (see restaurant tip)

I am writing a Travelogue about this, should be finished this week.

It is located in the centre of the old part of the town and it is characterized by the towers of the whealthy merchants and patricians. The Goldene Turm (Golden Tower) in Wahlenstrasse is the most impressive example. It was erected in about 1260 and boasts the highest tower built on a private residence in the whole of Germany.

Just click on the picture to see the great houses and the tower!

Netta is taken a rest while we walked by the river, after all, for a 4 years old it is a bit difficult to catch up with 1000 years of history so quick.