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Published: January 22nd 2008
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The Gang In Rothenburg Ob der Tauber
Bernard, Kathy, Buzz, Almarene & Mary Jean Christmas Markets (Weihnachtsmärkte) Along the Rhine & Main Rivers Germany 2007
Hello again friends,
This will just be a short blog to share some photos with you. On December 6 Bernard and I flew to
Bochum, Germany to visit with friends before doing our Christmas Market cruise. Special thanks to
Heike Spieker who generously gave us accommodations and use of her car, in addition to wonderful company and conversations. We visited also with friends
Emre & Fulya, and spent a fun day with the
Fischer Family - Horst, Renate, and Sophie - Viki was at school in the Netherlands (medical school). At the university we hoped to visit with many folks, but
Suzanne Galle was the only staff on duty at that time, but we had a fun visit with her. Unfortunately I didn't take any photos of all these lovely people (jet-lag I guess - didn't have my camera at the ready), so they aren't included in the photo gallery that follows.
On December 10 my sister,
Mary Jean, her husband,
Buzz (they live in Gig Harbor, WA), a friend from Tucson,
Almarene, Bernardo and I set sail on the River Odyssey from
Cologne down the Rhine
Route Map
The trip started in the Netherlands, but we and most others picked it up in Cologne. Sweinfurt (Pork Fort as we liked to call this lovely town), near Wurzberg was added to the itinerary because of the whole high water/have to change boats mix up River and into the Main River, ending in
Nuremberg. Along the way, in addition to Cologne & Nuremberg, we visited
Rüdesheim, Mainz (or Heidelberg*), Miltenberg, Würzburg, Rothenburg Ob der Tauber, Sweinfurt (fondly referred to us as "Pork Fort") and Bamberg.
We had only one problem at the beginning, which wasn’t really our problem, but the tour company’s. It had been raining for weeks, so the rivers were very high. The boat we were supposed to be on, the River Discovery, couldn’t get under a series of bridges, and another of their boats, the River Odyssey, was stuck on the Cologne side of the bridges. So we were put on the River Odyssey in Cologne for the first half, then bused around the problem bridges and put on the River Discovery for the second half. Like I said, not a problem for us (except we had to pack), but the staff had to prepare bar tabs, transfer luggage & passengers, clean cabins, rearrange menus, etc., on both boats.
In each town we toured places of interest (see photos) and also visited the local Christmas Market where sampling as many of the hot, spiced wines (
gluhwein) and eating as many
Our Accommodations
This was our home, lounge, restaurant and transportation on the Rhine and Main Rivers different types of wurst were our goals. You’d be surprised at the variety of gluhwein, although apple and berry, as well as the traditional red wine, were the most common. Buzz even tried
hot beer at one market - said it must be an acquired taste. Bratwurst and currywurst were common, but in different cities the local sausages were available too and had to be tried - tiny, juicy Nurembergers, for instance. Mary Jean's favorite delicacy was
Kartoffelpuffer. Depending on the region it is also called Reibekuchen , Reibeplätzchen, Kartoffelplätzchen, Erdäpfelpuffer or Kartoffelpfannkuchen or, as in my friend Mäcki's home region (near Nuremberg), Baggers. Kartoffelpuffer (we just loved saying the word) are potato pancakes served with applesauce and/or berry compote. No, we didn't just eat and drink, there were booths selling wonderful, often handmade, crafts, specialty foods, Christmas tree ornaments galore, candy, gingerbread figures (hearts, bells). In some towns there were separate Kinderfests for the kids with carousels and other rides, Santa to talk to, special foods and drinks for children - very nice.
Each town had a community nativity scene (crèche) - life-sized and well thought out. Plus there were many more at the churches. My favorite was
Scene Along the Rhine
This is wine country and vineyards rising from the river up the hills was a common, yet beautiful, sight in Sweinfurt - it had real animals! There was a dispensing machine where kids (mostly) could insert a coin and get a handful of feed for the animals - very nice touch.
It was cold but we didn’t have any rain, for which we were soooooo grateful. The boat we were on held 160 passengers and about that many staff! No kidding, the service was amazing, the boats were beautiful, our accommodations comfortable and cozy, the food delicious and we made many new friends.
Speaking of friends, a highlight of our trip was connecting with some friends we’d made in the Netherlands.
Henk is Dutch, but his wife
Mäcki is originally from the area around Nuremberg. We email frequently so they knew about our trip and arranged to meet us in Bamberg - what a treat! We spent the afternoon with them walking around Bamberg and then met up with everyone back at the boat just before dinner. Having Henk and Mäcki as guides was fun and informative, plus they took us to a great little local restaurant for lunch and helped us order some specialties of the area - I had to stop myself from picking up
Another River Scene
Castles, abandoned and/or still in use, were often sighted and sucking on the bones of the duck I'd eaten, it was that good.
*Bernard and I visited Mainz because we’d been to Heidelberg many times; Mary Jean, Buzz and Almarene toured Heidelberg.
Be sure to look below for more photos-you can click on any particular photo to enlarge
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Shanti Ch
non-member comment
Miss that place... wanna go there again >.<