Article I All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
–Universal Declaration of Human Rights, whose 30 articles are engraved on the 30 pillars at the Way of Human Rights
Nuremberg was the first stop in my grand tour of Germany, and I spent the last half of December there eating my weight in gingerbread at the Christmas market and seeing the city’s top sights. This city of more than 500,000 residents was founded in the Middle Ages (aka 1050) and is home to many well-known German companies such as Adidas, Diehl, Faber-Castell, Playmobil, Puma and Siemens. To many, though, Nuremberg is synonymous with the Nazi party because of the Nuremberg Rallies and Nuremberg Trials. In the 1940s, the city was badly damaged by Allied bombings: “The medieval city centre was systematically bombed by the Royal Air Force and the U.S. Army Air Forces and about ninety percent of it was destroyed in only one hour, with 1,800 residents killed and roughly 100,000 displaced.” (Wikipedia) In total, about 6,000 Nuremberg residents were killed in air raids. Since those dark days, fortunately much of the city center has been rebuilt and there is lots to explore and celebrate. One thing not to miss is a meander around the walled city core, referred to as the old town. I’ll detail some of the specific sights in my next post, but in the meantime here are some images of the picturesque downtown and a few fun urban details.