We made one last trip to the former Eastern German border area.

Our first stop was in Eisenach at the Wartburg Castle.  This is the castle where Martin Luther spent a year hiding from the Catholic church officials. 

Martin Luther's room

Our second stop was in Erfurt to see the two huge cathedrals-unfortunately we didn't get to see the inside of either one of them

On the way home we stopped in Alsfeld, a little town known for it's half-timbered buildings

This area of Germany is along the Fairy Tale Road-the region where the Brothers Grimm lived and wrote their famous Fairy Tales.  This tower is supposed to be the building that influenced their story of Rupenzel.