Monthly Archives: March 2011

Künstlerkolonie, Darmstadt

These photos were taken in Darmstadt (Hesse), Germany.

The artists’ colony “Mathildenhöhe” was founded in 1899 by Ernest Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse and the first exhibition of the artists’ colony took place in 1901. Ernest Ludwig motto was: “My Hesse should flourish, and the art in Hesse too” and he brought together several artists of the Art Nouveau (Jugendstil) in Darmstadt: Peter Behrens, Hans Christiansen, Ludwig Habich and Joseph Maria Olbrich.

Herrngarten, Darmstadt

The Herrngarten is the biggest and oldest park in Darmstadt, Germany.

Frankenstein Castle, Germany

The castle Frankenstein is situated about 5 km south of Darmstadt (Hesse) and was built in the year 1250. From the year 1363, the castle was splitted into two parts and owned by two different families of the Lords and knights of Frankenstein. During the 15th century the castle was “modernized” and expanded. In the 18th century the castle was falling into ruins and the two remaining towers are the historically inaccurate restorations from the 19th century.

The influence of the castle on the work of Mary Shelley (Gothic novel “Frankenstein”) aren’t grounded in facts, because she never visited the castle during her journey on the river Rhine.

Nowadays, American soldiers stationed in Darmstadt founded an annual Halloween festival at the castle. This event became one of the biggest Halloween festivals in Europe.

Kaisertempel, Eppstein

The pictures were taken in Eppstein (Hesse), Germany. The picturesque city lies west of Frankfurt am Main and is at the edge of the Taunus mountains.

The Kaisertempel was built in 1894 as a memorial to commemorate the Prussian victory in the Franco-Prussian War (1870/71). This victory unified the German Empire under King Wilhelm I of Prussia. From the area, you have a wonderful view of Eppstein as far as Bremthal.

Eppstein Castle (Hesse), Germany

The pictures were taken in my hometown Eppstein. Eppstein is a town in Hesse (Germany), lies west of Frankfurt am Main and is at the edge of the Taunus mountains.

The ruins of the Eppstein castle were mentionend as “Ebbensten” in the year 1122 and were the home of the Lords of Eppstein, who ruled the territories of the Rhine Main area. The castle includes a museum with an old baroque altar and some books written by early travel writers who refer to Eppstein.

Now, the legend about the castle: The strong and handsome knight Eppo built the castle Eppstein and rescued the beautiful damsel Bertha from Bremthal from a giant. He slung the giant into a valley to death and took one of his ribs. You can see the rib above the castle gate (but it’s from a whale and not from a giant…)

Footdee, Aberdeen

I took these pictures in Footdee, also known locally as “Fittie”. Footdee is an old fishing village near Aberdeen Harbour, Scotland. In former days the cottages would have housed fishermen and their fisherfolk families and had a first recorded refernce in the year 1398. I heard, that some fish families still live in the picturesque fishing cottages and their well maintained gardens set away from the hustle and bustle of Aberdeen City. Round the outside of the buildings square the cottages are regular, granite houses, but from the inside they’re anything but with shacks, sheds including outhouses jumbled with washing lines, floweres and a lot of knick-knack. First, the area was called Futty then the village became Fittie and nowadays the area is named Footdee and presents the official name.

Aberdeen Beach Esplanade

The beach is located in Aberdeen, Scotland and is famous for its golden sand.  The long curved esplanade between the harbour and the River Don’s mouth is a great place for walks and runs. The beach has a popular amusement area along the beach with restaurants, cinema and an amusement park.

Up