Historic Trier is definitely a must-see
Trier, one of four Roman capitals, is Germany's oldest city. However before Trier became a Roman city, it was inhabited by the Celts 1,300 years before Rome even existed. After we purchased our PFD special fare tickets in 2004 and read Rick Steves' Germany, we knew that Trier was a must-see city.
We arrived in Trier at lunchtime. We used the Steves' map and found the Hotel Pieper within 15 minutes. The cook who spoke English booked us into our room. After lunch in the hotel, we were ready to explore Trier.
We entered old town Trier via the Roman gate, the Porta Nigra, the Black Gate. In 1035, Porta Nigra became the Saint Simon Monastery. In 1803, Napoleon destroyed everything that was not Roman. We enjoyed the great views from the three levels of the Porta Nigra. After centuries it's black with dirt and soot.
We found our way to the Kaiserthermen, the Roman Imperial Baths. We went underground, which is a bit of a maze and rather spooky. Slaves kept the fires burning in the underground furnaces.
From the Kaiserthermen, we walked about a half a mile to the amphitheater. Green grass grows on what was once the bleachers but now are just steep hillsides. We went underground where animals and gladiators waited for battle. Posters indicated that gladiator enactments take place from April to October.
We walked back to the Centrum and found Karl Marx's House but his museum was closed until May. Don took many photos of the beautiful medieval buildings that are strikingly decorated with bright colors, wall shrines, bells, business signs, and writing on the buildings. We also admired a fountain sculpture that represents the many different guilds.
The next morning, we walked across town to the Mosel River and followed the path along the river to see the 1400s and 1700s derricks. We followed the old walls to another Roman bath, the Barbarathermen - an active archeological dig. The site covers a city block. We spent about an hour walking around the fence that protected the site.
We slowly walked back towards the town center admiring old guard towers. The previous day we walked past a huge barn of a brick building that looked like a prison to me. The "prison" turned out to be the Roman Basilica. When we entered, we gasped. The three-storied Basilica is open to the roof and does indeed feel like a huge barn of a building.
This ancient site and Roman church has been torn down and rebuilt several times. It was bombed in World War II. The church leaders decided not to replace the two upper floors of the building. The ceiling is coffered, the windows are of clear glass, and the small amount of religious art is of modern design.
From the ultra modern Basilica, we visited the baroque Dom. Surprisingly, the choir's chapel is at the back of the huge Dom and faces the altar. Gilded angels line the back of the choir stalls that are made of marquetry.
Behind the altar and up marble stairs is the Chapel of the Holy Relic. The Holy Tunic of Christ is in a casket inside of a huge crystal container behind a locked wrought iron gate. The holy tunic is occasionally on display. During the last century, the tunic was on display in 1933, 1959, and 1996.
The tunic is not the Dom's only treasure. We paid a fee to visit the cathedral's treasury that includes communion pieces, a portable altar, and a reliquary for a holy nail. One of the most beautiful reliquaries appeared to have been made of and decorated with gold thread.
Attached to the cathedral is the much smaller Liebfrauenkirche, the Church of Our Lady built from 1235-1260. The stained glass windows are stunning. I found the small black stone on the floor where the visitor can see all 12 of the apostles painted on 12 different pillars.
In the late afternoon, we visited the bright yellow church near our hotel. Again, our mouths dropped open. The interior is light instead of dark. The baroque decoration is painted in bright colors and gilded. The chapel behind the altar is gated with live potted tree-like plants inside and outside the gate. This church's interior is unlike any we have seen in Europe.
The guidebook says of St. Paulinus' Church that the plainness of the exterior "makes the contrast of the magnificent, jubilant Rococo glory of the interior ... all the more overwhelming." St. Paulinus is jubilant and overwhelming. Most of the churches we have visited in Europe are overwhelming.
Trier is a must-see.