Roads of the world

Therapeutic beauty along the spa route
The Swabian spa route (Schwäbische Bäderstrasse) has a wave-shaped symbol of water and an onion dome as its logo,and for good reason: the country road at the foot of the Alps is awash with thermal spas and churches. There are nine health resorts and therapeutic baths dotted along the road like pearls on a string. They offer thermal baths, mudpacks and other treatments. The spa route, a scenic 180-kilometer long stretch of road through Upper Swabia and the northern Allgäu region, is a remarkable therapeutic and cultural tour. At the eastern end of the route, the “Patrona Bavariae”church looks over the horizon like a raised index finger.The church is situated in Oberegg,a village like many others in the region: houses surrounded by lush meadows,crouching under the protection of the house of God. This is the birthplace of Johann Nepomuk Holzhey, one of the most important South German Baroque organ makers. In the 18th century, he built forty instruments for the monasteries and churches at the foothills of the Alps.Holzhey’s name is all but forgotten, but the country is still benefiting from another man of faith to this day: Sebastian Kneipp, the “water doctor.” The development of his therapies in Wörishofen in the mid-19th century saw the start of health tourism along the Swabian spa route and led to the establishment of one of the world’s most famous natural healing treatments. Kneipp believed not only in the healing power of water, but also in a balanced diet and the power of herbs; the herb-filled meadows of the Allgäu region were his fragrant natural apothecary. And the priest was no friend of excess:“There is order in moderation; every bit too much and every bit too little causes sickness in the place of health. ”And health seekers traveling along the spa route are well advised to leave their vehicles parked for a while and take in some of the route’s sights by foot.How did Kneipp put it? “Everything would be better if we would only walk a bit more.”