Exploring Brandenburg's visitor attractions

This village is in many ways strikingly different to the usual boroughs of Brandenburg, offering a wide variety of opportunities and places to relax, marvel, walk, read, browse and enjoy. The village owes its prominent role to the brilliant writing skills of the most famous Mark Brandenburg poet. Theodor Fontane so skilfully captured in verse form the legend of the squire who gave out pears, and of the pear tree that sprouted out of his grave, that Ribbeck has become a household name in many parts of Germany.
Although the sheer length of the poem "Herr von Ribbeck auf Ribbeck im Havelland" sometimes caused whole generations of schoolchildren to work up a sweat, the name made an impression.

Today, visitors can wander through a renovated castle including a museum, restaurant, drawing rooms and wedding chamber. Just a stone's throw away is the church, which has been restored to its former glory. Enterprising parishioners offer coffee and cake and tell interesting stories about the stump of the original 18th century pear tree on display, which was broken off in the storm of 1911 and on which Fontane's poem is based. Right behind is a shop selling antiques and crafts, which is known far and wide for its huge pear cakes. In the "old school" you can also find refreshments, hire a bike or marvel at a classroom from ancient times.

Incidentally, Theodor Fontane supposedly never set foot in Ribbeck, despite his extensive wanderings through Mark Brandenburg. He merely read in two books around 1898 about the legend of the pear tree and composed his famous poem.

For more information, please visit www.ribbeck-havelland.de