Today I would like to take you to the charming castle Hohenklingen that is towering above the medieval town Stein am Rhein in Switzerland.
Let's go!
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I came by car but if you prefer you can walk up the hill from Stein am Rhein to the castle. The route is 3 km long and it should take you around 1 hour to walk up.
The castle dates to 1200 when a residential tower was built on the site of the present castle by Walter von Klingen. It is assumed that there was a wooden tower even before 1200.
The castle was originally the seat of the monastery St. Georgen. After various changes of ownership, the castle came in the possession of Stein am Rhein in 1457.
In the 17th century the castle played an important role as a military fortification. Additional security and support teams were transferred to the castle.
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The construction of the castle continued over centuries until it reached its current form at the beginning of the 18th century.
The complete renovation of the castle was undertaken at the end of the 19th century. The last extensive restoration was completed in 2007.
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There is a path around the castle and we will walk there before we enter the building.
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It's a very easy relaxing walk with nice views. It's usually crowded but I came very early and I only met two other people on the way. Actually, I had to walk around the castle as it was not yet open.
I've seen a couple of squirrels and lizards but I'm bad with animal photography and they usually don't wait for me until I'm ready to take a photo 😊
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It doesn't take long to walk around the castle.
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This path will take us to the stairs leading us inside of the castle. It's open already!
The castle Hohenklingen was never destroyed and it still corresponds to its medieval appearance. It is the best preserved castled in the area of Lake Constance.
There are different floors in the castle. We will walk through the Lower bastion - Unterer Wehrgang to get to the Upper bastion - Oberer Wehrgang.
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The Upper bastion is made entirely out of wood. We will walk through this area to get to the terrace and from there to the tower.
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There is a chic restaurant that is usually fully booked for lunch. Who wouldn't like to eat with such views?
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We are now looking directly at Stein am Rhein. I will take you for a tour there next time.
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From here you can take a boat to either Lake Constance or Schaffhausen. These trips are popular because of the spectacular views and crystal clear water.
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The tower is 20 meters high and it's split into three floors.
The first floor was used as kitchen. There is also a cool storage room without windows. Nowadays there is a bronze statue placed in this room. It is called 'Das Gesicht' (The face) and it's created by Rudolf Blatter. The sculpture is hidden in darkness and you need to wait for 5 to 10 minutes to see the eyes and the mouth popping out in front of you. However not everyone will see it. It looks like the sculpture has its own will. You might be lucky or not. I've been there several times, but I've seen the sculpture only once. It comes and disappears again. It is a perfect example of playing with light.
The second floor was used as living room. There is a chimney which suggests a heater. This gave the room a touch of comfort in cold days.
The third floor offers amazing views. It was used as bedroom.
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There is a remaining cannon placed in the tower.
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After I enjoyed the views I walked back down to the main castle. There is a small museum showing the construction of the castle and some artifacts found in the area.
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Take a peek into this room through a small window in the museum. It is very dark to give you a feeling how much light was coming in the room in the past.
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In the middle of the courtyard is a well. It's not used anymore. You can enter a small chapel through the door on the left side. It's an empty space with a few chair. Nowadays it's used for weddings.
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From the courtyard you can see a bridge connecting the museum with the restaurant and the tower.
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This is where we will end our tour today.
There are a few more rooms in the castle used for various celebrations. My former employer organized a Christmas dinner there a few years ago. It was such an interesting experience. The owners of the castle prepared a medieval performance for us and we were served by waiters dressed as medieval people.
I hope you have enjoyed our walk today. I really like visiting such well preserved and maintained castles. And the best part is that it is for free! 😊
If you ever happen to be in Switzerland, please make sure to spend a day in this area. It is absolutely worth a visit!
Before I go home I will enjoy a cup of coffee at my favorite cafe in Stein am Rhein. There is no 'photo of me taking photos' today as I was alone.
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All pictures are taken by my Nikon D3200 AF-S NIKKOR 18-55 mm 1:3.5-5.6 G II (except of the ones indicated in the text)
Thank you for reading!
Cheers,
Martina
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beautiful! I love castles!!! And that blue sky!!! I have never been there, thanks for sharing! Might have to go on my next trip to Switzerland
Thank you for stopping by Eve! You should come! I will take you around!! :)
wow... I love castles... and as always, you show it amazingly :)
Awesome Martina!
Thank you Dave! I will show more castles in the future :)
The castle is cool, but WOW, this view has captured my heart. It's perfection.
That sculpture that you were describing sounded tremendous. I've never heard of anything like that before!! Thanks for sharing that piece.
It's so lovely that they don't charge for people to visit the castle. If I'm ever out that way, I will visit for sure.
You should come to Switzerland Lyndsay! You and your family would love it!
When you're there for the first time it's a bit scary (your boys would love it, lol). It's pitch dark and you just wait and wait and wait.
Thank you for your kind words! :)
It sounds like Heaven...
wow I wish I had one of those transporters..one minute you're in one country and the next minute you're in another. Hey I could be a world traveler too if I had one of those! lol.
howya doin delishtreats? This has to be some of the most beautiful country in the entire world. I want to eat at that restaurant. everyday!
those views oh my...and I'm shocked that it's free to go up there. man..anything like that here would be $50.
in my humble opinion: another brilliant post. dang near perfect.
Hahaha, I was there last week! I forgot to specify that, lol! I didn't know you would be picking on such small detail!
Oh, 2 days ago I kicked a table and hurt my pinky toe very badly. It turned blue and I couldn't walk yesterday. Today it's a little bit better so I'm glad it's not broken! I hate sitting on the couch doing nothing. Such a small thing and so painful! I can't even put on my shoe!
Yes, it is! Switzerland is great! Views from that restaurant are stunning! Usually you have to pay some entrance fee. This is an exception.
Thank you for stopping by and for your kind words!
ha! I found them, I have no idea how I missed these, will reply later, working on a post right now!
I am still offended! LOL!
you should be! I thought I had a system! well hey if you ever don't hear from me for a few hours just say hey did you see my comments? I don't know what else to say but I'm mortified by my mistake! lol.
You should apparently review your system, lol! I might or I might not! If you don't respond to me then you don't like me enough, LOL!
You should be mortified, hahaha!
yes Ma'am I'm still mortified and trying to get over that mistake! but hey, come to think of it, I should be offended at you too!
yeah, I didn't see any comments from you in my post yesterday!
the one about the cattle?
well well well..look who finally decided to show up. me! lol. whoa I'm sorry to hear about the toe, does your husband carry around everywhere now? lol.
I really, really want to go to that restaurant! It's not vegan is it? ha! I'd still eat there.
It's better now :) I even walked a little bit today. I've already planned some trips for tomorrow. We are leaving in 2 days so want to spend some quality time with family.
They have vegan options. We went there a few times either for lunch or dinner. Come to Switzerland and I'll invite you!
I'm so glad you're feeling better but you should have milked it a little longer so your husband would have to carry you around!
Switzerland...maybe someday if you pay for everything like food. oh and wine, I love wine.
I couldn't as I want to go outside!
We have a saying in Slovakia: you give him a finger and he takes your whole arm 😂 sounds a bit like what you're doing, don't you think?
yes it is! actually I think it's called negotiation. You may have heard of it? lol.
That is quite a place and looks really interesting, the views from there are amazing. That must have been some dinner with medieval waiters and waitresses.
Thank you for stopping by! Oh yes, it was a great experience! I love it!
I would love to see the bronze statue you mentioned. That sounds pretty intense.
I thought it ironic that you mention this castle is the "best preserved" in the area. In the States, you've either got a castle in the area or you don't, and typically you don't. To have so many that one is known for being in better shape than all the others sounds like you are awash in castles. :-)
While in Europe, I was quite surprised just how many there really were. I was kind of expecting them to be rare like they are here, but they really do seem to be scattered all over the landscape.
Thanks for the tour! It might be a while before I get back there, so I'll have to live vicariously through you for a bit.
It's cool to see it but I wouldn't enter that room alone, lol! It's completely dark!
There are so many of them in Europe. Some of them are very nice to see. I will try to visit more castles and make some other posts about them 😊
My pleasure! I hope you'll come back to Europe soon!
Thank you for stopping by! ❤
Thanks for sharing this. It is rare to see a castle that is still intact. I love to visit castles whenever I can, but living in the US, it is not very often. I try to imagine the lives of those who lived in them when they were built and how different it must have been from ours.
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Thank you for stopping by! I heard from many here that there are not that many castles in the US.
Oh, yes, it must have been very different. Can you imagine your life without electricity? It's dark at around 5 PM in winter time in Switzerland so what do you do then? It must have been very dark and pretty scary with candles only 🙂
Such a beautiful place. The crystal clear water always amazes me. It is mesmerizing. It's also great that these structures still stand to this day and well preserved and maintained.
Do you think you can live in such time? I always thought I can belong in the era of kings and nobles and knights.
I have to get back to this since my internet is slow and the photos are not loading.
Thank you for stopping by! It's been such a long time! :)
Well, I could live in the castle but not around it. Don't forget they didn't have canalization so I can imagine it was very smelly, lol! But I would love the pretty dresses and jewelry!
Take your time :) I hope your internet will work better soon!
Have a lovely day and talk to you soon!
Saw the pics and it was lovely and beautiful especially the view. Looks like an idyllic place to live. I can picture myself living there during its time but I still have to figure out if I be a knight or a noble or a commoner haha!
Are the woods used original or have they been replaced?
I think I would go for a noble. As a knight you would have to go to fight! :) and commoner is out of question :)
I'm glad you liked the photos and the views. It's a beautiful place!
I have no idea but can look it up and let you know :)
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Wow which place is it?
Wow thanks @delishtreats for another AMAZING blog. I love castles and your wonderful photography made me feel like I was almost there - apart from the smell of these old places of course which is always a big part of the experience. Thank you so much for another top top quality report. You are on the Steemit World Map - another beautiful achievement - some day all steemit bloggers will be this good😆🌈🦋❤️🌴🍀
Thank you dear Sallybeth! I see that your connection is working better now :)
There are SO many great bloggers on Steemit but I'm very happy that you like me! :)
Wonderful post. Too bad you were walking alone today ;) I always like time spent with others on my walks. Very impressive views. Especially from the tower. I am always interested in European castles because US doesn't have the same history from that period. Fun to see one this well maintained/restored.
Oh, I did the walk last week :) This week I'm in Slovakia. I should have mentioned it in the post.
I also enjoy being with others but I like to take my 'me' time too.
I will show you more castles in the future :) I got a few more responses from people asking for more.
Thank you for stopping by!
Looks like another wonderful walk. I just love old buildings like that.
Thank you for stopping by! I also love such old buildings! I can't even imagine living in a modern city :)
Having done both. I really prefer the older cities. I grew up in Southern California so everything always had to be just so. I spent 7 yr in St Louis, MO . Wonderful older buildings and great history.
I also like the older cities. Actually, I've never lived in a 'new' city.
Have you been to Prague? If not, you must go! It's the most beautiful city :)
I have not. The only other countries I have been to besides my own is Mexico and Canada. I don't consider my trips to Mexico even visiting. They were always to Tijuana. I have yet to leave North America 😢
Prague is on my 'must see' list. I love what I can see through pictures.
Oh, I hope you will visit Europe soon. I've never been to the US to be honest but I can imagine it is quite different here. If you ever come, let me know and I will show you around :)
Guaranteed 'when' I make it there I will let you know :)
I bet it is haunted at night.. building those towers had to be dangerous.
Fun, I would love to see this. #steemitbloggers
Maybe, lol. I haven't heard any stories, though.
You are right. It is on the top of the hill so it must have been tough to even bring the material up there. Plus as you said it must have been dangerous. I can imagine they had no health and safety rules, lol!
Thank you for taking us on a tour/walk around/through the castle with you :) Very lovely indeed! <333 :)
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Thank you for stopping by! I'm pleased you liked it :)
My pleasure :) Cheers! <333
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Seems pretty well preserved for something that is over 800 years old!
You are right! Swiss do their best! 🙂
What a splendid history right on your doorstep, lovely old architecture standing strong over the years, thanks for sharing @delishtreats visited that region many years ago.
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Thank you for stopping by Joan! Which places did you visit there?
So cool! Thanks for sharing!
I'm sorry I missed this comment! Thank you for stopping by! 😉
I love visiting castles!
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Thank you for your generous support! I will do more posts about castles in the future :)
Oh my, this place looks wonderful!
Thank you for stopping by! Yes, it's stunning! :)
That's a good camera, I had one once
Thank you for stopping by! I will change the gear soon but I'm quite happy with this camera :)
The views from the castle are spectacular. Having lunch there would be a real treat. I would imagine that having your bedroom on the third floor could be a little cold in winter! I enjoyed the tour very much.
Thank you for stopping by. I had lunch there a few times and it was a lovely experience.
You are right! I was surprised with the set up too!
It's great the government has such great treasures & am willing to share it with the world. Many castles have deteriorated so much that it's gone. But, since it's been so long ago.. there's got to be some spiritual stories, right...
Btw, the view is beautiful. I can imagine it must be pretty creepy at night with all the huge rooms & walkways.
There are many castles in very good conditions in Switzerland. I will try to visit more of them and show them to you. I love it!
I can imagine too. When we had the Christmas dinner there were plenty of people so it didn't feel strange but I don't think I would go there alone in the evening, lol.
Thank you for stopping by!
I love European castles. This one is awesome, with some incredible views. Thanks!
Thank you for stopping by! Yes! It's a lovely place with amazing views! 🤗
Very cool. That sculpture honestly sounds creepy as hell, heh.
You are right! I wouldn't go there alone, lol!
That was a nice walk through a castle. Will definitely check it out if ever in Switzerland. Thank you :)
I'm sorry I missed your comment! Thank you for stopping by! You should definitely come! Congrats on becoming a minnow 😉💪
haha
thank you so much 😊
Isn't that something that it is a real castle. too cool.
I would love to visit there.
There are so many of them that you would find it difficult to decide which one you'd like to visit first 😉 Thank you for stopping by!
These pictures are great almost felt like i was there!
Thank you! I'm pleased to hear that!