Your Stay in Arnstadt

The history is here, but, as mentioned, you will have to look for it amidst the deterioration of the past decades. However, on Tuesdays, summer and winter, you will find the open-air market, typical of all of Austria and Germany. With its array of clothes, flowers, cheeses, "Brathendl" (roasted chicken), beer and again the Thüringer Wurst which tastes even better in an open-air market than in a "Gasthaus," you will enjoy wandering through this typical market. However, highly recommended reading in this article, as a unique item, is the section on "Gewölbe" below.

 There is a small "Gasthaus/Pension" on the market-place called "Zum goldenen Adler," first opened in 1829, but after numerous owners, and name changes, it has once again been restored to its original name. Here you can not only eat, but you can also overnight. (The photo shows the out-door section of the "Gasthaus," and the rooms are directly above.) Even though there are only a few rooms, they are large, totally modernized, most reasonable in price, and some of them overlook the market place, and the statue of Johann Sebastian. The location, as with any market-place is within walking distance of most of the note-worthy sights in town, including not only all of the references to Johann Sebastian Bach, such as the Bach church, etc., but a number of castles, a puppet museum, numerous other historic buildings, etc.

The restaurant, fairly large, family owned and operated, and attractively decorated in a simple, traditional style, offers excellent "bürgerliche Essen" (traditional local home-cooking), specifically the "Thüringer Wurst," the most famous, and delicious sausage in all of Germany, as well as the speciality of the area, the "Thüringer Rostbrädl," shoulder pork-loin either plain or garnished with an outstanding sauce. As you can see in the above photo, on a warm spring through fall day, you can sit in the market-place, enjoy you drinks, food, ice-cream, a great banana split, etc., and reminisce on Johann Sebastian Bach whose statue stands immediately in front of you.

Gewölbe: - The Cellars and Tunnels.

Often, as a tourist, you miss some of the most historically interesting, delightful and traditional parts of many places, and in this instance you would probably miss the cellar, - the cellar! Two small rooms are found here with low, vaulted ceilings of stone, clearly dating back many centuries., the "Gewölbe Kellar," (arched ceiling in the cellar) as it is called, was built primarily with stone. In the middle ages, following the "romanesque" architecture of the rounded ceilings, it was constructed as the place to store the wine and beer. The first room now has a pool table, a dart board, and miscellaneous tables and chairs scattered around in a most casual manner. You can simply drink here, or eat as well; you will be served from the main restaurant upstairs. In the second, smaller room, watch your head, a local sports club meets twice weekly, and this section of the restaurant itself has hosted some really fancy parties for some of the notables of town as well. The room, the "Gewölbe," painted white and immaculate, is approximately 45 feet long and 12 feet wide with a low ceiling. The long table is approximately 35 feet long, and 24 inches wide. Is this a cave? Was this also a tunnel? Regardless, it's cosy and delightful, and takes you well "back in time."

Some of these cellars were originally nothing more than tunnels connecting one place with another, and providing escape routes in the case of invasion. In reality here in Arnstadt one finds a meriad of tunnels connecting homes in the town square to two of the major churches, the "Liebfrauenkirche" and the "Oberkirche." (It does not appear that the Bach Kirche was also connected, being in effect a slightly later addition to the town.) Although these tunnels no longer provide open access to the other locations, an owner of a "Gasthaus," actually the "Marlitt Stübchen" immediately ajoining the "Goldenen Adler" relates, that in the late 1920s he had stored his wines in one of the tunnels under his "Cafe." Eventually he noted that his wine appeared to be disappearing faster than he was selling it. Apparently someone from the church above, the "Oberkirche," was creeping down to this cellar late at night to embibe a little. He sealed up the entrance and never had any further problems.

Gastlichkeit and Beer

OK, you've eaten, but you're really interested in the beer. Here you will find one of the two traditional, eastern German beers, Radeberger Pils on tap, their top seller, and the one that the locals remember and love from the communist times. (See Bertold Brecht's letter of 1956 above.) They also offer the traditional Berliner Weisse, popular especially in the summer as you sit outside, in front of the "Gasthaus," virtually in the market-place. And here you will find a "Lokal" where they also emphasize various mixes with beer, such as, - a Berliner Weisse Blau (Berliner Weizenbier with blue curacao), Berliner Weisse Spezial (Berliner Weizenbier with Creme de Cassis), Altbier Bowle (Altbier with fruit), Allbier Cola (Alt bier, cola, and cherry liquer), Cola Weizen (Weizenbier with coke), Frührstück Weisse (that's a breakfast Weisse, 1/2 orange juice, 1/2 Berliner Weizenbier), Orangerei (Pils with orange juice), Bismark (1/2 Köstritzer, 1/2 Champagne), Heller Mortiz (Weizenbier with a shot of champagne and lemon-lime), "Pilsner and ginger ale," "Pils and banana saft," with your banana split, "Pilsner with cherry liquer,"and so goes the mixes on and on. (See also The Mix: Concoctions with beer.). The address: Zum goldenen Adler, Markt 13, Arnstadt, D-99310, Germany. Ph: 011 49 3628-48320; fax: 011 49 3628-46428.

Editorial

What is needed is a somewhat indepth look at the history of each of the towns in which Bach worked, Eisenach, Ohrduf, Weimar, Arnstadt, and Mülhausen, in order to gain some sense as to the circumstances in which he lived and worked. Bach walked though history every day of his life, by old castles, churches, houses, many dating from the 13th century or even earlier, and he was born into a great musical family. Which or how many of these items influenced his musical output? To this indepth look should also be added Leipzig. Although only a hundred miles away, it is in Sachsen (Saxony), and not in Thüringen. In 1986, while Leipzig was still under communism, my wife and I visited Leipzig in search of not only Johann Sebastian, but also after the famous Gewandhaus. The two "Bachkirchen" (Nicolaikirche and Thomaskirche) were there, but with little fanfare. In 1996, a decade later, I had the opportunity to once again seek out Johann Sebastian in Leipzig. The Gewandhaus, as mentioned, is totally new, but the "Nicolaikirche" was hidden behind a huge, modern "Kaufhaus" (a chain like Sears, Macys, etc.). Only the small corner around the "Thomaskirche" was still intact, and inspiring. The "Kaffeehaus" where Bach met with students, and which clearly inspired the "Coffee Kantata," is preserved simply by a very small plaque in a garden stating the the Coffee-house had been there. For this we have to blame the allied bombing, - no respect for history, - and we all share in "freezing Bach in time," or in this instance "loosing Bach!"

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