City walk: Behind the mountain at the Babschers

Does that make him a real Bieber boy? Stephan Färber explains: "You become an Offenbacher when you register. You become a Bürgeler when you live there for five years. You become a Bieberer when you have three generations in the cemetery." In his case, there are only two generations, but due to his grandfather's political commitment, one was waived, he says with a laugh.

Follow an enchanted path to the first stop and you will soon see the Bieber observation tower. The Bieber observation tower is open every Sunday and public holiday from 1 May to October and can be recognized by the hoisted flag. Tower sponsors from the Offenbach 03er and the music club regularly unlock the tower. Stephan Färber, who was the tower's patron for one season in 2004, got the big key for the group. Once at the top, the tour participants could see all the way to the Spessart, the Odenwald and the Taunus. "I've never had a view like this before," says Stephan Färber enthusiastically.

The Bieberer Miniland at the cemetery was the second stop on the tour. Before that, the participants stopped briefly at the old railroad station. After being bought up by a private owner, the once beautiful building has been allowed to fall into disrepair as he does not want to comply with the many monument protection requirements. The group agreed: "A disgrace!"

Many families from Bieber and the surrounding area know Heinz Heiliger's Bieberer Miniland, and Stephan Färber's daughters also enjoyed visiting.

With great attention to detail, Heinz Heiliger has created a garden railroad with various tracks and buildings, including the Bieber observation tower. Seven trains, including the old "bone mill" (streetcar) and a cable car, run on the eight by ten meter layout, you can hear church bells ringing and constantly discover something new. In the past, you could simply take a look over the fence, but today the garden is fenced in high because too much has been destroyed and stolen. However, Heinz Heiliger is happy to open the Miniland to groups, especially children's groups.

Just a few meters away, Stefan Färber points out a stumbling block: Samuel Augenblick lived in the house until he was deported to a concentration camp. He was a member of the SPD and, according to Stephan Färber's aunt, "a fine man". Färber's grandfather was a member of the Center Party, but both parties agreed to take turns filling important posts and to prevent the National Socialists from taking over. As late as 1932, after a torchlight procession through Bieber, it was said: "Where are the Nazis?" "In the cellar!" But in 1933, the Nazis were also in Bieber, and the village was incorporated into Offenbach in 1938. All these stories were formative for Stephan Färber's political commitment. He was an SPD city councillor for many years, held various political and other voluntary positions and is still a member of several Bieber associations today.

In Alt-Bieber on the church square, Stephan Färber showed where the former Bieber town hall stood until 1938, when its demolition removed the last sign of Bieber's independence. "But the small Gallic village lives on, the magic potion is the Äppler," laughs the tour guide, pointing out traditional pubs such as the Wiener Hof or the former Bach Nikles.

The tour continued through the winding alleyways, past the last section of the town wall and into Langener Straße. Here, the group met Hubert Wiljotti, one of the last "Babscher" in Bieber. Originally his job title was "Portefeuiller", the Huguenots had brought the job description to Germany and the people of Offenbach made it "Portefeller". Under the Nazis, a German term had to be found, the "Feintäschner". But as the glue was called "Bab" in Offenbach, the name "Babscher" was coined.

Hubert Wiljotti is not a Bieber boy himself, but he married a real Bieber girl after coming to Offenbach from Swabia in 1956. Stephan Färber and he know each other from the choir, and they know each other in Bieber anyway. Offenbach was the leather center par excellence, and it smelled of leather everywhere. Hubert Wiljotti is still a keen tanner, albeit nowadays more as a hobby, as the business has been closed since 2002. He explains in detail to the tour participants how a bag is made, which takes around eight to ten hours of work. Stephan Färber and Hubert Wiljotti share many more Bieber stories over an Äppler and pretzels in the garden, and many a tour participant has an anecdote to tell.