Jernie's Hub

Apart from being one of the oldest city in Germany, Worms is famous for the Diet of Worms, to which Martin Luther was summoned in 1521 to Emperor Charles V. He refused to recant his beliefs, saying the famous words "Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me. Amen." As a result, he was banned to the outer reaches of the empire and he was declared as an outlaw.

Worm's Roman Catholic bishopric was dated back to the 4th century. One Pope has been elected in this city. The Cathedrals of St. Peter and St Paul were completed in 1325 and survived the destruction of World War II. The St. Peter Cathedral is one of the finest Romanesque architecture in Germany along side the nearby cathedrals in Speyer and Mainz. They are called the Imperial Cathedrals.

As we entered the city of Worms, we were greeted by the tower of Nibelungen. It is featured in the German epic poem 'Nibelungenlied' (The Song of the Nibelungs), it tells the story of Segfried, the dragon-slayer at the court of the Burgundians, his murder, and of his wife Kriemhild's revenge.

We visited the St. Peter's Cathedral. It is quite amazing to see this icon of the 13th century. Its external walls are decorated with sculptures. One of the four towers was under renovation and some art works at the altar were currently refurbished. In one sides of the cathedral is a monument of the 4th century bishop, Burchard of Worms.

Inside the cathedral is a little bit dark, I felt somehow that we stepped into a different era. Similar to the cathedral in Speyer; the pillar and columns are very high, there are different chapels around and right below the altar is a crypt of bishops and royalties at that time.

We had been to the Mannheim Palace (home to the Elector Prince Karl Phillip in 17th century) during the first week of my parents' stay here in Germany. The castle which served as their summer residence is located in Schwetzingen. It is popularly known as the Schwetzingen Castle. This is one of the most interesting site in our region, Baden-Württemberg.

Schwetzingen is an old city ,mentioned in the year 766. It has been said that there were traces of settlement in this town since the Stone Age. It is approximately 10 km southwest of Heidelberg and 15 km southeast of Mannheim.

The castle was built in the 13th century. It began as a simple aristocratic fishing retreat and had an eventful architectural history, in several phases of construction, especially during the reigns of the Electors Palatine Karl Philip (1716-1742) and Karl IV Theodor (1742-1799). The gardenhas a French and an English part. It consists of waterworks and fountains, statues and sculptures, temples and pavilions, bridges, an orangerie and a mosque.


We visited the castle during the week because it is normally crowded during the weekend. In the morning it was cloudy and had rain showers but later on the weather was better.

As we got into the garden, it reminded me of the palace in Versailles, France. Though, this is much smaller than the Versailles Palace. The museum was quite small. We spent most of our time in the vast garden. Instead of taking a guide, we bought a map of the castle and the garden and went around the place.