2_0_DiscoverGermany_Issue36_March2016:Scan Magazine 1
26/2/16
12:52
Page 44
Centuries of culture, coal and a Cistercian monastery After its last remaining mine closed in 2012, the vibrant town of Kamp-Lintfort is now enjoying something of a renaissance. With its new identity as a university town, it still visibly thrives on its industrial heritage. TEXT: EMMIE COLLINGE | PHOTOS: KAMP-LINTFORT | BETTINA ENGEL-ALBUSTIN, FOTOAGENTUR-RUHR
Located in the Lower Rhineland, the town is perhaps best known as the home of Germany’s first Cistercian monastery, founded back in 1123. Today, visitors flock here for days out, picnics, open-air theatre and concerts, taking the time to stroll around Kamp Abbey and its exquisite gardens. But away from the manicured park, the rest of the landscape proudly bears the memories of Kamp-Lintfort’s productive past, and the network of hiking trails and cycling routes provide the perfect opportunity to explore. Its deeply rooted heritage is firmly celebrated at Lehrstollen, an exhibition where visitors delve into the former mine workers’training building and explore firsthand accounts of what life was like working in the mines. As the industry flourished, the town duly built orderly residential areas for the workers, of which some have been
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expertly restored to their original state.True to life, the Miner House museum depicts a genuine two-family home from the 1920s, in which day-to-day living is shown alongside the technologies with which they worked on a daily basis in the mines.
Main image: Germany’s first Cistercian monastery. Top right: Residential areas. Above right: Lehrstollen Bottom main: Panoramabad Pappelsee. © Bettina Engel-Albustin / fotoagentur-ruhr Bottom right: The Stephanswäldchen
No longer reliant on industry, Kamp-Lintfort is proving that history and progress can go hand in hand as it embraces innovation at the high-tech Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences, transforming customs into culture and enticing visitors with centuries worth of culture. www.kamp-lintfort.de