Grüße aus...beautiful Baden-Baden!

Our hometown of Bühl lies just a 10 minute drive from the beautiful city of Baden-Baden. Its name means "bathe-bathe" and that's exactly what people have been doing in Baden-Baden for two thousand years!

Underground hot springs were discoverd by the Romans under the rule of Emperor Caracalla (186-217 AD) and they named the area Aquae (water). The Germans of the Middle Ages renamed the city simply Baden and it received its repeated name of Baden-Baden (as in the city of Baden in the state of Baden) in 1931. The springs were rediscovered in the 19th century by the upper-class and the city became the unofficial summer residence for European royalty. The city thankfully managed to escape destruction in the World Wars. Baden-Baden is nestled in the Black Forest foothills so there is a lot of walking up and down hills through the city.



The city today is still best known for the life of lesiure it offers. There is a famous casino (Germany's oldest) that opened in 1855, decorated by the Parisians (beautiful!); the 19th century Theater modeled after the Paris Opera offering ballet, opera and dramatic performances and the Festspielhaus, a theater offering ballet, opera and music (a beautiful building that was once the central train station); a fantasitc pedestrian area with shopping galore; and, of course, there are the spas! People still come to Baden-Baden to bathe! The two spas in the city are Friedrichsbad and Caracalla. Friedrichsbad was built on top of the original Roman bath ruins (which have been excavated and can still be viewed today in the spa's basement) and opened its doors in 1877.



Mark Twain visited the spa during his journey through Germany and famously said of it: "Here at the Friedrichsbad you lose track of time within 10 minutes and track of the world within 20." Most Americans, however, don't feel very comfortable visiting Friedrichsbad because everyone is required to bathe naked (most days men and women bathe together but twice a week the sexes are separated for most of the bathing stages). At the nearby Caracalla spa, however, bathers wear a bathing suit. As you can see, people really just come to Baden-Baden to relax (the city is home to a lot of retirees).

There are, of course, castles and churchs to see as well. The Altes Schloss ("Old Castle") was built in 1102 and sits high in the hills overlooking the city--we haven't gotten to visit yet--and the Neues Schloss ("New Castle") sits on a hill within the city--but noone is able to visit it.



The Neues Scholss is privately owned and currently under renovation. But there are lovely pathways up and down the hill it sits on and it offers a lovely view of Baden-Baden as well as a nice place to eat your lunch (which I did last week).