Marburg an der Lahn

 

I’ve been living in Marburg for the past 46 days and I haven’t properly introduced it.

Marburg is a relatively small university town/city in the middle of the German state of Hessen situated on the river Lahn and is about an hours train journey away from Frankfurt. The city revolves around the university and is often given the motto “some towns have a university, but Marburg is a university.” The town is very appealing. The old town, die Oberstadt is very picturesque and typisch deutsch with its Fachwerkhäuser  (traditional German wooden houses) and its narrow cobblestone alley ways. The old part of Marburg is situated on a steep hill, hence why it is called Oberstadt (upper town) and at the top of the hill is a beautiful medieval castle towering over the city. Wherever you are in Marburg you have a wonderful view of the castle and Oberstadt. In my opinion the view is at its best early in the morning when the clouds are low and hugging the castle. It looks like something out of a fairytale.

 

Talking of fairytales Marburg is also a tourist attraction for people who are interested in the Brothers Grimm. Both Jacob and  Wilhelm studied at the Phillips University of Marburg and were residence of the town. The is a tower in the woods above Marburg which is called Spiegelust and this tower is supposedly the tower from the story of Rapunzel.

There are a lot of trees surrounding the city, which is something new to me. I know that there are woods and forests in the UK but I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many trees in my life. My halls of residence are in fact situated in a wood. I admit it is nice to be located somewhere new, this year is all about new experiences, but I find it difficult to cope with the amount of spiders I find on a regular basis. Thus I have resorted to only opening the window when necessary, its been about a week now, simply because every time I do open it the creepy creatures sneak in.     

A weird point about Marburg is its use of lifts (or elevators if you are American). I arrived at Marburg train station on the 1st September with a 28Kg suitcase and looked frantically around for an Aufzug (lift) I could not believe that there was not a single lift in the train station. I then had the same dilemma when I arrived later that day in my halls of residence where I had to drag my suitcase up four flights of stairs to my room (excluding the 3 flights of stairs outside of the building). I remember looking at the state of my “brand new” suitcase when I finally arrived in my room. I thought to myself that this town seems so backwards. I later ate my words because that evening I found numerous lifts. They weren’t at the train station or in halls, but instead they were at the bottom of the hill, on which Oberstadt stands. Right there in the middle of the street are two lifts which take you up into Oberstadt. I was very impressed. Unlike my equally hilly university town in the UK where I find myself panting for breath as I walk from one street to the next, Marburg found the ideal solution.

I don’t really know what else to say about Marburg except for that it is peaceful and pleasant and I really enjoy living here. :-)