The oldest castle fortification in Germany

After the road blocks were removed and we were able to get out of Dodge, we drove to Friedberg. The Iroman cyclists had gone thru it and the reporter mentioned that old fortification built between 1171 and 1180 by King Barbarossa. Hubby needed some fresh air after his trip back from CA and having slept for hours. Cute little town.If there was more time, I'd go back for some shopping,but hey--I'm off to Paris next.
The castle's gardens had an exhibition of unpublished photos from a private collection of the Tzar family.It commemorated the 100th anniversary of the Tzar and Tzarina coming to Friedberg in August 1910. Buddies Nick (Nikolaj of Russia and Will, Wilhelm, Emperor  of Germany, enjoyed the summer here with their children..Four years later, World War I broke out and their were arch enemies.The exhibition referred to it as an almost forgotten war here in  Germany in contrast to other countries, e.g. England who commemorates it on Poppy Day.
Fortified with an umbrella we walked the grounds and took many good pics. It got quite chilly alright.We warmed up in a local brewery and were glad we had done this little trip on the spur of the moment. See glass of beer. We didn't go to one beer garden during our stay as expected.Too wet and cold.

A Historic Spa: Bad Nauheim

We went to a neighboring town called Bad Nauheiim, 22mls north of Frankfurt.It's one of the age old spas renowned for taking "the waters'. A fashion that developed over a hundred years ago in towns that had mineral wells, hot or cold which were deemed to have remedial qualities for many an ailment. The resort is noted for its salt springs, which are used to treat heart and nerve diseases. Here's one of the public water fountains.
Elvis Presley lived here during his stint with the army and he used the gate of the castle ("Burgpforte") as the motif for a record cover in 1959.
It's also renowned for another historical factor: General Patton was assigned to command the Fifteenth Army with its headquarters in Bad Nauheim. While Frankfurt was heavily bombed, this little resort was spared because the general loved it so much that the uS headquarters were moved there. On December 9, 1945 General Patton left Bad Nauheim for a hunting trip near Mannheim, which resulted in a fatal car crash that took General Patton's life. Happy 4 July!