Gone to Pot(tenstein!)

Let’s go to Pottenstein today, which is a wee place in historical Swiss Franconia with its own castle! 

This is one of the oldest castles in Franconia dating back to the mid 11th C and is very much associated with St Elizabeth of Hungary who stayed here for one year in 1228, Elizabeth after becoming a widow, became a secular member of the Franciscans looking after the sick and poor till her untimely death at 24, and you can take a peek at what would have been her bedroom (good, the synthetic curtains presumably weren’t there in her day). 

The castle itself is a bit rundown but worth the steep climb alone for the view, a later occupant used the castle for hedonistic, medieval orgies and you can view three of the rooms all decked out to party! To be honest I don’t know how they found the energy to be hedonistic after the steep climb up from the small town below but they obviously did. 

There is a collection of weapons and family artefacts but to be honest it all needs a bit of TLC. 

Having finished viewing the castle we headed off for some cooling beer and a bite to eat, taaaadaaaaa a Franconian specialty……. Schäufele with potato dumplings and when it comes to calories very hedonistic. The Schäufele, is pork shoulder cooked in gravy with fabulous crackling and washed down with a cool beer! Yummy. 

Not sure that St Elizabeth would approve, she took a vow of poverty and only ate enough to keep her alive; although what you need to keep you alive is a very personal thing, I needed this.