Last Friday I boarded a train to go home to our first high school reunion in almost 12 years. I was very curious to see what paths my former classmates had decided to take after finishing school. It was a very interesting and fun evening.

But while I was in Nuremberg, I also wanted to take some pictures of the town where I had spent my teen years. As I walked around town early Saturday morning, I found it very hard to take a picture. The beautiful sandstone buildings weren't jumping out at me as being something special, just normal. Buildings I have walked past hundreds of times and streets I have walked down just as often. I stopped to take my fist picture when I had almost reached the market place.  Just after I took the picture of the "Heilig Geist Spital" (a hospital in the Middle Ages, now a restaurant. See the German site for historical information), it suddenly hit me what I wanted to photograph.

Heilig Geist Spital

I wanted to take pictures of the bridges crossing the river Pegnitz in the old town. Then I realized that there were a lot of bridges. Something I had never actually payed attention to before- I just crossed them.

It was very cold, a fierce wind blew and my fingers were soon frozen. It was a dreary day, which encouraged me to take the pictures in black and white. I've left one picture in color to show you the beautiful color of the sandstone.

Museumsbrücke, first built around 1200, Heilig Geist Spital in rear

Detail of the Fleischbrücke (first built around 1200). A meat house (Fleischhaus) in the vicinity gave it its name.

Henkerstreg (first built in 1457). The hangman's (Henker) house gave the bridge its name and when called to do his duty, he crossed this bridge. Despite the name of the bridge, it is probably my favorite.

Obere Karlsbrücke (first built in 1451) was named after the Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI. in 1728.

Maxbrücke (built in 1457) is the oldest stone bridge in the city. It was called Steinerne Brücke (Stone Bridge) until 1810, when it was renamed to honor the Bavarian King Maximilian I. Joseph. 

Kettensteg (built in 1824) is the oldest surviving iron suspension bridge in continental Europe. Unfortunately I suddenly noticed I was pressed for time and wasn't able to get a closer picture of the iron work.

The Heilig Geist Spital and the building in the left picture don't qualify as bridges, although they are built over the river. I think they belong to this bridge collection anyways. The right picture shows a close up of the building in the left picture and the Maxbrücke in the background.

P.S. Most of the bridges were first built as wooden bridges, which is why I wrote "first built in...".