Program

Social Program

Guided city tour (Monday 3^rd August)
In the evening, after the first day of the conference, we will meet at the market place in the centre of the old town for a guided tour (in English) through the historical old town.

Boat trip (Tuesday, 4^th August)
After the second day of the conference we will meet at the Neckar Bridge in the old town and will be taking a boat trip down the Neckar in a famous "Stocherkahn" - a typical Tübingen boat that is propelled by a long wooden pole. The boat ride offers a scenic view of the picturesque Neckar waterfront and the famous Hölderlin Tower. After the boat trip we let the evening end at the German beer garden (drinks not included in the registration fee) as harmoniously as it had begun.

Conference dinner (Wednesday 5^th August):
All participants and accompanying guests are cordially invited to attend the sumptuous conference dinner, which will be held in the evening of the last day of the conference, 5th August. It will begin at 7:00 pm at the "Casino am Neckar" in Tübingen, which is located in the old town centre. The cost for the conference dinner is included in the registration fee. If you have any restriction for meals, please let us know so that we will try to accommodate your request.

Excursion (6^th August):
All participants and accompanying guests are welcome to attend an all-day excursion starting in the morning at around 8:00 am on the 6st August. The cost of the excursion is not included in the registration fee. Participants and accompanying guests who want to attend the excursion should indicate this on the registration form. We are arranging an all-day coach trip to:

The Bears' Cave and Charles' Cave - Cave of Erpfingen

The Karlshöhle (Charles' Cave), the first part of the Bärenhöhle (Bears' Cave), was discovered in 1834 by Karl Wilhelm Fauth a school teacher from Erpfingen. The original entrance can be seen 20m behind today's entrance as a cleft, about 50cm wide, which resulted from the collapse of a piece of the ceiling. It is though that plague victims were probably thrown into this cleft during the Middle Ages as several skeletons were found in the debris under the cleft. At the time that Charles' Cave was discovered there were huge amounts of cave bear (Ursus spelaeus) bones on the floor. The bears had entered the cave not by the Fauthsloch, but by an entrance at the other end of the cave, near the artificial exit, though this entrance collapsed many thousand years ago. Included in the costs of the day trip is a guided tour of the caves (in English). Outside the caves are many places for collecting moss with tardigrades.

Lichtenstein Castle & Forester´s lodge

Lichtenstein Castle can be described, without any exaggeration, as the, "fairy tale castle of Württemberg". The novel "Lichtenstein" by Wilhelm Hauff, published in 1826, provided the inspiration for Count Wilhelm of Urach when building this beautiful castle complex. The former hunting lodge on the steep rock above the Echaz Valley was rebuilt during 1840-1842 and contains a large collection of historic weapons, armour and treasures. Here, at the Forester's lodge beside the Castle, we will have our lunch. (If you have any dietary restrictions for meals, please let us know so that we can try to accommodate your request). After lunch everybody will have time to visit the castle (for an additional fee not included in day trip costs).

Hohenzollern Castle

After lunch we will go by coach to the Hohenzollern Castle. Hohenzollern Castle is the ancestral seat of the Prussian Kings and German Emperors as well as the Swabian branch of the Princes of Hohenzollern. It ranks among Europe's most famous and popular castles. The stunning panorama of the picturesque landscape was admired by Emperor William II (1859-1941) who visited the castle several times and is said to have commented, "The view from up here is truly worth the voyage". Again, included in the costs, we will have a guided tour (in English) of the castle. The day will finish at around 6:00 pm when we will have return to Tübingen.

Castle Hohenzollern 360° image Link1 and Link2 (Quicktime required)

Accompanied person's programme:

Bebenhausen Monastery and Palace (Wednesday 5^th August)

In the middle of Schönbuch, amidst charming scenery, lies the former Cistercian Monastery of Bebenhausen, which was probably founded around 1183/84 by Palgrave Rudolph von Tübingen. The monastery experienced its heyday in the 13^th to 15^th centuries, and was one of the wealthiest in Württemberg. Later it was used as a protestant monastery school and as a hunting palace for the Württemberg kings. In the years 1947 to 1952 it served as the seat of the "Landtag" (state parliament) of Württemberg-Hohenzollern. On Wednesday afternoon we will offer transport and a guided tour (in English).

Top page