Kaysersberg
14 September 2017, continued
We decided to make a stop in the town of Kaysersberg, which we have heard so much about prior to now. It is difficult to settle on which towns to visit when planning a trip through an area like Alsace, as there are so many that look so pretty and there isn't time to see them all. But when you hear different people mention the same place over and over, you have to at least stop to see... especially when the people talking it up are locals. We found a lot and parked, walked past the old tower, and just like that we were in the most beautiful town! The bridge over the river gave an amazing view down the waterway, with the old buildings tightly lining the banks the way the buildings lined the road in Riquewihr. You really wonder when you see places like this- they are all so beautiful now, but you know at one point in time this was not the picturesque and romantic place we now see. But times change, and the old wood balconies that hang over the river have so much charm!
We wandered through the town taking in the scenery and all the pretty colors. As this wasn't planned as a stop, I didn't have my map marked with points and highlights as I usually do, and we were going through a bit blind. We found signs for the castle and followed those, still appreciating the wonderful town around us.
Just through the little archway, the old town and cobblestones gave way to paved streets and bright green overgrowth. Next to a tiny arrow sign that read "Chateau", we found the inconspicuous stairway to the trail that led up the hill to the castle above. Through the brush, we walked the small trail above the city and climbed until we could see the tower rise before us. We approached the crumbling walls and went into the courtyard. There wasn't much to the main structure but the ruined walls, but the tower was well intact. Up the spiral stairs we went, turning and turning until we finally came out on the top.
What a view!
The town that seemed so large when walking through the streets now looked to be a few tiny rooftops in the trees. To the east the vineyards covered the hillside, patchwork plots of green and mazes of trails stretched out to the horizon. So many grapes! The French tricolor fluttered in the wind overhead as we looked down and saw our shadows between the battlements on the ground far below. We spent a good bit of time on that tower, it was an amazing place to be!
Back on the ground I took pictures in the courtyard while Beth found pieces of glass that were scuffed up from the dirt. They looked a lot like the sea glass she finds at the beach, so she collected some for her jewelry. Looking forward to a new line of Castle Glass! We continued around the back and started down the path by the vineyards. The grape vines were not the only thing growing, though... we found a large bush of wild hops! Too bad I couldn't collect some of those for a batch of beer, a French chateau ale with foraged hops sounds great to me! The stairway down from the castle gave an amazing view over Keysersberg, with a stone wall along the right and the picturesque town to the left.
We made our way down to the bottom of the stairs in a little patch of greenery behind the Eglise Sainte Croix, the large church in the center of the Rue du Général de Gualle. We followed the wall behind the church, which really looks like it could have been a continuation of the castle, and we began to find our way around the front. There was a small iron gate door in front of an alley between the old buildings, and the gate was open. As it usually does, our curiosity got to us and we followed the little alleyway. In the dim light that passed between the old buildings, we found the alley was just a short bit until it had a dead end. As we turned to head back out, we peered through an old broken window into what we assumed would be the basement of the church. We looked in, then stopped. We looked at each other for a moment, allowed our eyes to adjust, then looked in again. What we saw was the most chilling thing we've ever seen.
Through the old broken window THERE WAS A WALL OF SKULLS AND BONES!!!
Real human skulls, interspersed with real human bones, built into a wall in the basement of the old church, viewed through an old broken window down this dark, gated alley. We could not believe what we were seeing! It was incredibly dark inside the room, and with only a tiny spot to aim through, we tried to get pictures as evidence that we did actually see this. As we walked back into the bright sunlight from the alley, we were trembling with excitement over this macabre find. A bit of research didn't turn up a whole lot, but what we did find out is the common opinion of the residents here. According to local lore, the bones belonged to plague victims whose bodies were just piled in the church basement because there was nothing else to do with them, and years later the bones were arranged into this mausoleum of sorts in a proper burial. These are the types of amazing things to find in these ancient towns with old buildings. Like that hidden chapel in Vienna that was lost behind closed doors for years, who knows what else lingers forgotten inside these buildings or just under your feet below the surface. These pretty facades can hide some incredibly dark secrets!
We were still trembling with excitement as we went through a nice courtyard and found our way into the church. It was a nice church, dark inside with a giant crucifixion statue hanging from the ceiling. But the feeling inside was different than usual, because we knew what was hidden below us (or beside us... we weren't sure how the layout actually was). We looked everywhere to see if there was a mausoleum entrance but couldn't find anything. Maybe there is another entrance somewhere, but even when we peeked through the broken window, it looked like a place closed off to most people.
We took one last stroll through the streets before we decided to head back to the car. We had some leftover cheese as a snack (sounds so French) and pondered everything we just saw. Maybe if we ever run into those people who suggested we visit Kaysersberg, we could thank them emphatically. Such an amazing little town!
