We’ve been on The River Rhapsody for 8 days. We’ve visited some gorgeous places: tiny villages like Riquewihr in the Alsace, big cities like Basel and Strasbourg, and old towns like Boppard and Speyer. Right now we are in Bernkastel, on the Moselle River (sometimes spelled the Mosel) in Germany. As you know, we started on the Rhine; yesterday we turned the “corner” at Koblenz, and started sailing on the Moselle. (BTW: Koblenz means “confluence” so the name makes sense as it’s the confluence of the 2 great rivers.) We are heading for Trier, which is the oldest city in Germany before we turn around and join up with the Rhine again.
We have seen our share of castles of the Rhine, which are fortresses, but yesterday at Cochem, we saw our first fancy castle. Cochem Castle started out as a fortress on the top of the hill but over the centuries it had been sieged and gutted by fire many times over. By the 1860s it was a ruin, when it was purchased for pennies on the dollar by a German steel tycoon. Over the next 10 years he spent millions of dollars restoring it. He dolled the place up with tapestries and fancy ceilings and stained glass and parquetry. The result is an impressive monument. Sadly, he died 2 years after he completed his masterpiece. The castle now belongs to the State as not too many people can afford to live in the land of make believe and fairy-book castles. We climbed the stairways, discovered the secret passages, took a ton of pictures, and oohed over the furnishings.
Yesterday was Sunday on the Moselle, so there were people strolling along the market streets (which were open for business); eating in the sidewalk cafes, and picnicking along the beaches. The sun was out and everyone was enjoying it.
Everywhere in Germany we see people walking dogs, yesterday was no exception. I’ve been asking if I can take pictures of their dogs and each proud master has said “yes,” so, I snap away. We then have a little laugh and off we go. No matter the language, everyone is happy to show off their faithful friend.
We have been discussing the wonders of river cruises with our fellow travelers. As with any cruise, there’s great food, but it goes beyond that. We have good company, beautiful scenery, well planned shore excursions, and every night we don’t have to worry where we are going to stay. All we have to do is show up at the boat.
We are all practicing our German “skills” and the locals are coping with our mistakes with a smile. Yesterday, I was in a little shop and a local started asking me something (I have no idea what?). I just stared at her, she stared back, I smiled and said in my best “German” that I did not speak German, finally, I told her I was an American. We smiled and laughed, then she replied that “I looked German” (in English), and we laughed again – so folks…I look German!
Our party of 6 is having a grand time. If we do not see each other during the day, we discuss at dinner all the great things we have been doing. Today they are going on the tour of Bernkastel while we are inventing our own tour of the town, which will include a stop at an internet café. I even remember where it is from our last visit here 6 years ago. We sailed on a lot of water since then!
Keep watching this space as I’ll post pictures when I get home.
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