Beautiful! - In the valley of the Saale - water, wine & world history
In the heart of Germany lies the Middle Saale Valley. Here lived the most beautiful woman of the Middle Ages, Bibi + Tina rode on Amadeus and Sabrina, and world-class gymnast Lucas Dauser trains under the eyes of gymnastics father Jahn. Daniel Aßmann starts on the Leuchtenburg near Jena and travels past other magnificent castles and palaces, through the northernmost wine-growing region in Europe + through the Hohe Schrecke nature reserve - with different means of transportation: While he prefers the e-bike on the Saale Cycle Route, he puts on his inline skates for the Werra-Unstrut Cycle Route. Daniel Aßmann travels on foot to the site where the Nebra Sky Disk was found; he canoes from Camburg to the Käthe Kruse town of Bad Kösen. And he experiences the confluence of Saale + Unstrut from the ferry. Daniel Aßmann explores Jena, Naumburg + Freyburg and lets a former German wine princess show him her home - including wine tasting.
Naumburg: The cathedral, Snow White's evil stepmother and Nietzsche's home: Uta, wife of Margrave Ekkehard II, is considered the most beautiful woman of the Middle Ages - and Walt Disney made her the model for Snow White's evil stepmother. Carved in stone, she is one of the twelve donor figures in Naumburg Cathedral. Daniel Aßmann is guided through the almost 1,000-year-old UNSECO World Heritage Site by cathedral archivist Matthias Ludwig. Together they also visit the former home of philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.
Hiking among vineyards: Saale-Unstrut is the name of Europe's northernmost wine-growing region. Here, Daniel Aßmann learns a lot from former German Wine Princess + current winemaker Sandra Polomski. They visit one of the oldest sparkling wine cellars in the country + hike from Naumburger Blütengrund through the vineyards to the almost 1,000-year-old Neuenburg Castle, which towers high above Freyburg. Barely 20 minutes away, in a former open-cast lignite mining area, lies the Geiseltalsee, Germany's largest man-made lake - and a local recreation area.
Rare animals + a chainsaw artist: In the valley of the Saale and Unstrut rivers, animals that were almost extinct in this area are now living again, such as the bone glossy beetle in the Hohe Schrecke nature reserve. This is also where the Rabenswald forest is located, with an adventure course + the smallest tree-top trail in Germany. Daniel Aßmann is apprenticed to a chainsaw artist - and saws out an owl.
Broadcasting on 04th of September 2022 at 08.15pm on WDR/ARD
Music: POPVIRUS Library