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You can see St. Martin's Cathedral from across the river. The towers rise above all of the white and half timbered buildings in the market square. The cathedral advertises that is 1,000 years old. While it is true that the original cathedral was begun in 975 AD, it has been burned and rebuilt several times since then. Most of the cathedral that we see now is from the 13th and 14th centuries (which is still quite old in American terms! We had this discussion with our tour guide at the Vatican. Europeans call art from the 15th and 16th century "modern". When I hear the word "modern" the 1900's come to mind. We don't quite have the kind of history that these European countries have.)
It was at Mainz Cathedral on March 27, 1188, that Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, announced his support of the Third Crusade. In the middle ages this is where kings and queens of Germany were crowned. During WWII, Mainz was bombed several times and the cathedral was hit in August, 1942. Most of the roof burned, but a good portion of the cathedral remained in tact. The frescos and the stained glass windows did not survive. Restoration of the cathedral ended in 1975 and the city celebrated the thousandth year that the cathedral was created. In 2001 they started another project of restoration, which is expected to last for 15 years.
Outside the cathedral, in the historic market square, was the Christmas market. Just passed the main entrance to the market there was a 36 foot high Christmas pyramid that had figures of angles, Santa Clause, and one of the most important people in Mainz history: Johannes Gutenburg. Mainz is the where the first book in the Western World was printed. Johannes Gutenburg was the inventor of movable type in 1450 and has been named the "Man of the Millenium".
The boys took a ride on the merry-go-round and got to see Santa at the Karstadt department store.
Oh, I forgot to share that we had a little hichhup at the parking garage today. We couldn't find a spot and ended up circling the top floor for about 10 minutes before someone pulled out. The spots were so small that Maddox and I had to get out before Ben parked the car. Then we couldn't open the door wide enough to get the sleeping Carson out, so Ben had to pass him out through the trunk. It's the little things that make this such an unforgettable experience.
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