The Documentation Centre Nazi Party Rally Grounds is a 12 square kilometre in the south east of Nuremberg where the Nuremberg rallies were held annually from 1933 following the rise of the Nazi party.
Due to some petrolheads having a race weekend at Norisring which is a circuit that uses some of those 12 square kilometres we were unable to see some of the main areas of interest - given the petrolheads were running a round of the DTM (German Touring Car championship a la Liam Lawson) I guess they had an entitlement to encroach on our day!
The Documentation Centre itself is an exhibition highlighting the rallies from 1933 through to the prisoner camps that were set up on the rally grounds.
Interestingly the Yanks choose to hold the war crimes trials in Nuremberg (not at this site) as a show to Nurembergers and wider Germany that the Nazis had well and truly been defeated.
Much like Auschwitz the exhibition is thought provoking and again makes one wonder how could men do this to other men.
There were some old photos showing the numbers that attended these rallies
It is easy to imagine the crowds getting wound up when Hitler spoke (or Mr Hitler as the doorman to the Centre referred to him when he was speaking with me).
On the same site is the Concert Hall which is a huge building
and the only other highlight that we saw was the Große Straße, (Mr) Hitlers Great Road, which was the Central axis of the rally grounds
Great it certainly is and runs for 1.5kms and is 60 metres wide. 60,000 granite slabs were laid and the road was deliberately aligned with the Imperial Palace in the Aldstadt to create a symbolic link between Nuremberg as the City of Imperial powers and Nuremberg as the City of the Party Rallies.
There is a very good YouTube video that gives visuals of the whole area including those areas that we never got to see!
If interested click hereCentral to the whole area are 2 lakes which were well used and tranquil spots
even if the noise from the car racing caused a family of ducks to escape it by crossing the Great Road from one lake to another - they have obviously done the trek before as each of them ducked under the barrier tape.
An enjoyable visit if not a little disappointing because of the no go areas.
Some further observations
Why do you always hear songs sung in English when English is not the mother tongue?
It takes some getting used to having a dog sit alongside you in the breakfast room at the hotel
Is Germany a religious community - it would seem so as everyday in Nuremberg there are individuals preaching in the square and they attract a reasonable crowd of listeners. Also Jehovah Witness folk are on the street in all the cities (& even villages) we have visited every day
It makes a real difference having a transport system that is reliable and frequent
Kms driven to date 1611
Kms walked to date 225.9
Spent on Diesel €65
Highest price paid to date for diesel €1.479 Freiburg
Lowest price paid to date for diesel €1.479 Freiburg
Spent on tolls €0
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