Watch Our for Pirates!

---

Heidelberg is a beautiful city that feels very historic and untouched by the war. Our hotel overlooked the river and iconic bridge that was light up at night and only two streets over from the main drag of shops and restaurants. The first night was mostly spent walking up and down this street and along the river which was very beautiful. There was not much of a nightlife scene here and most things closed down by midnight. Being that we were in Germany, I couldn't resist the schnitzel for dinner.

During our second day, the group climbed the short but steep cobblestone trail up to the Schloss castle that overlooked the town. It was slightly raining on our way up, but the rain gave way to sun and the place provided beautiful views of the valley. The castle was impressive, but we all failed to get the history on it, so we were mostly just admired the views. Down below in town, they had a huge Christmas store that was fun to look around in. It had every kind of ornament or decoration you could think of, all hand made, and they were ridiculously expensive. Heidelberg is also home to Germany's version of Oxford, with one of the best Universities in the country. I went to check out a couple of the buildings and try to soak in some of the smart vibes from the students there but to no avail. I also checked out the two churches that were there. The largest protestant church was in the heart of the town and was older and Gothic style, and then the other church was a Jesuit church only three blocks away. This church was very grand and modern and was very symbolic of the progressive ways of the Jesuits.

While wandering the streets, near the University, we were bombarded by pirates! Actually, the were street performers called "the pirates" who talked to us for a long while and told us about a show that they were having that night at a small pub a couple streets down. The really won over the females in the group and their music on the street was good enough for us to want to check it out. When we told them we would try to make it, they told us to bring friends and we told them not to worry... we had 25 other people that we could bring. Needless to say they were really excited by that news. So we convinced our entire group to show up at this pub that was probably big enough to hold about 30 people, meaning with the few other people in there (mostly the bands friends) we packed the place! The band was awesome! They were German but played a lot of American cover songs along with some traditional German drinking songs. They were a five piece band with a Caribbean flair to it that made it great for dancing. We also made friends with the town drunk, Huber, who was the star of the show with his unique dance moves. It was most of ours favorite night on the trip with great memories.

One hour outside of Heidelberg are the Mercedes truck assembly plants. They make on average 400 trucks here a day. We got a great tour of the entire assembly line seeing the whole process of how they make these trucks. This meant we were constantly dodging and moving out of the way of forklifts and other moving platforms but it made it more exciting. Our guide Manuel, was really good as he had actually worked in the paint shop for 7 years before starting as a guide. It takes about 7 days to make one truck from start to finish and despite the nearly completely automated system and Just In Time inventory strategies, the attention to every detail is very impressive. We ate lunch in the employee lunch room. I ate with three mechanics who all worked there for a long time. It was interesting conversation, but limited as only one really spoke that much English.

Next stop: Paris

INTERESTING FACT: Heidelberg was one of the only cities that was not bombed in WWII because of the large number of American and British students studying at the University. Thus, it kept its historic and antique buildings and its overall charm.

---

Photos

I Heart Heidelberg
Along main street in town

The Famous Bridge
Our hotel is right behind the status behind me

Before the Hike
The castle is directly behind on the hill

Inside Mercedes Truck
closest I will get to driving a mercedes for a long time

Comments

[Aunt Lorraine]

Wow! I can't believe how awesome your travels have been - Thanks for including us. You certainly are expierencing a world of lifetime memories! Can't wait for your next enrty