more on German settlements

Hopefully this will give you a better idea of where we went yesterday. While down in the valley is rich farmland, the further up the slope you go, the more the fields are just full of rocks. Given the steepness of the ascent, times must have been quite dangerous if they preferred having their town right up at the top. Not to mention the dropoffs.

Another thing I like to do (since I like words and Germany) is to read detailed atlases. Here are some German village names I think are funny:

Rottenegg (no explanation needed!)

Schweinheim (which, according to a local sign, is a corruption of "Sven's Heim/home", and NOT!! named after pigs. Right.)

Bubenreuth (Buben are boys in southern German dialect; reuth refers to a cleared area in a forest--I'm thinking this was a "No Girlz!" village?), which is not far from

Frauenaurach (Frauen are women; au is a river bank; rach has to do with water--so we make our own club and don't let the boys come over)

And all this gender separation leads to the unfortunate city of

Bad Kissingen

I hope you're enjoying your local town names, wherever you are!

mystery scene

One more and then I'll stop, promise :). We came upon this hiking it the woods the other day. Any guesses as to what it is?