Schweinfurt

We stopped at Bad Neustadt on our way to Schweinfurt (‘Bad’, the German for baths, means that it’s a spa town). It was another pretty town, though there wasn’t much to it beyond the main square.

Bad Altstadt
The first one of these we’ve seen for a while

This morning we continued on our way to Schweinfurt, which translates as Pig Ford! Apparently nobody knows how it came to be called that, though everyone’s agreed that it has nothing to do with pigs being herded across the bridge over the river.

Schwinefurt is quite a large town, with the stellplatz just a 15 minute walk away on the other side of the river. The focal point of the town is the large market square, where fruit and veg markets are still held twice a week. There’s a lovely Rathaus building dating from 1572 standing at one corner of the square, and there are several narrow shopping lanes. It was another beautiful, warm and sunny day so we enjoyed walking around the town and mooching around the shops.

At the outbreak of WWII Schweinfurt was Germany’s largest producer of ball bearings, making the factories there a prime target for Allied bombing. The town was apparently devastated by 2,285 Allied planes over 22 raids, so much of the town has since been reconstructed.

Schwinefurt from the river
Street sculpture/fountain courtesy of Sparkasse Bank
The Rathaus
Altes Gymnasium Museum
St Johannis Church
Another street sculpture
St Salvator Church

Tomorrow we will drive on to Würzburg.

Mike

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