It is a beautiful day today, blue sky was shining through scattered clouds and the golden morning light was sitting on the vines of grapes as they clung to the hillside leading up to the castle as we stood on our balcony for the final time taking in the view.
Rosie and The Operator were a little sad to be leaving this village, it had been such a good base and the perfect place to explore, wander and relax in. Still, so much more to see and do. We bade goodbye to Ellen and wished Dirk all the best for the German challenge in the Soccer World Cup – he had just hung the draw in pride of place behind the bar and was confident for the home team.
We drove out of Bacharach with lovely memories and the sun glinting on the Rhine and turned onto the autobahn heading for Heidleberg, one hour away. This section of the autobahn has no speed limit, we think, is it urban myth, not sure. But the speed reminder on the navman disappeared…indicating in The Operators book, anything goes….and anything does go…and very fast. The road is brilliant, well sealed, three lanes,wide gentle curves and straights. The Operator had the Yeti on a steady 130km, the normal speed limit….and we were in the slow lane…man were some cars moving, The Operator estimated the average speed would have been 150km….then some were doing at least 200km, wild!
Rosie is loving Navman, his gentle dulcet, albeit Australian tones are the saviour of Rosie and The Operators marriage, he is doing so well in guiding us unwaveringly to our destinations that there is no stress at all in navigation. Glorious. To the door of Villa Marstall on the banks of the Neckar River in Heidelberg we drove.
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It was Sunday when we arrived, and early, the lovely lass at reception stored our bags, gave us parking and touring instructions and off we went to explore the city. From our carpark we directly accessed the funicular that took us up the hill to Schloss (Castle) Heidelberg.
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Built on top of a Medieval Castle above the Old Town, the view is just breath taking, we hadn’t appreciated the grandeur, compactness and beauty of the town when driving in. Rosie is loving the warmth of the colour of the terracotta and the way the river sparkles in the middle of the setting.
This city is regarded as one of the most romantic cities in Germany…Rosie turns to look for The Operator, time for a little smooch on the balcony…he is busy checking out some scaffolding couplings and shaking his head as to the apparent lack of care on construction. Rosie is surprised he didnt pull out his permit pad and issue a stop card. Never mind, this city is not short of beautiful places to stop and linger.
The Castle was lived in by the districts Prince Electors who called this place home for 400 years. The oldest preserved building is the residential area which was built in 1400. The walls and towers were destroyed in a battle in 1693 and the building is a symbol of the entire German Romantic Period.
Inside the cellars is a giant wine barrel, there have been 4 such barrels in the history of Heidelberg. In 1751 it was constructed and had a capacity of 221,726 litres, due to the drying of the wood through the ages its capacity is 2000 litres less.
130 oak trees were used in its construction and it is six metres high. Back in the day it was used to hold taxes, in the form of wine, from the local wine growers…but it has rarely been used, a staircase takes you up to the top of the barrel where a dance floor has been made so you can party on top of the barrel. You can see savage axe marks in the front of the barrel where Napoleans men tried to gain access…they didnt…but more fool them the barrel was empty.
The Operator is not greedy, he will go for the slightly smaller barrel.
There is also a little Apothek Museum in the castle…pharmalogicals from through out the ages. Rosie is loving the medicinal drawers and ancient equipment.
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We take the funicular down to ground level and we are basically in the middle of the old town, so many people are trying to find abit of shade from the mid day sun, Rosie and the Operator wander around and look for a place to have lunch. Is it a crime to fore go Weiner Schnitzel and just have plain old Nachos and beer….thats exactly what we do.
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Heidelberg is a university town of 149,000 residents, The main street Haupstrasse is one mile of pedestrian only walkways.
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Heidelberg was never bombed in the war, the Americans wanted to use it as a garrison because of its excellent railway and roading system and its easy access to the rest of Europe. Heidelberg has one of the biggest American populations outside of North America.
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Refreshed after lunch we walked on, and headed for the Old Bridge which crosses the Neckar River. It was thronged with people, all wanting there photo taken with a curious bronze monkey statue.
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Touch the fingers of the monkey and you will return to Heidelburg, touch the mirror for wealth and touch the mice for fertility. The shiniest part was the mice, see them on the left of the monkey on their own…Rosie and The Operator both touched the mirror.
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There has always been a bridge here since earliest days, this particular version was built in 1788, the bridge gate is from the Middle Ages. It is pedestrian only and has a bow in its back as you wander along the cobbles. It is another place to linger as slowly wander the city, today there as a rowing regatta on the river, eights, four and single scullers were everywhere making the bridge a good vantage point.
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On the opposite bank of the river were stone seats with people sitting, lying and lounging in the sun having picnics or reading books, just enjoying a sunny Sunday afternoon.
Rosie and The Operator were going to take a walk up The Philosophers Way…Rosie missed the wording in the guidebook which called it ‘one of Europes finest mountainside trails’….The famous walk is paved and stepped, you wind up the hillside follow a tight winding corridor, its saving grace is that most parts of it are nice and shady.
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It is steep, very steep, it almost broke Rosie, but once again, the view was totally worth it. This is the view that inspired poets and writers from the city to fame and fortune. The best view is from a small stone balcony, a lady was sitting in the cool shade drawing, a man was reading, Rosie was puffing…it was glorious. The Operator gently wiped the sweat from Rosies top lip and I go my romantic smooch in a very romantic place.
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Hot, bothered and ready for a wee rest Rosie and The Operator checked into the Villa Marstall, what a beautiful place and our room is amazing. Three large windows overlooking the river that we opened wide and a grand, curtained four poster bed. Rosie is sitting at the window writing this now feeling pretty good and rested.
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Oh, lets talk about the Snowballs…made originally in Rothenberg ob de Tauber (where we are heading tomorrow) they looked so impressive in the shop window when we wandered through town. They were described as being pastry with a cream flavored filling.
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Greedy Rosie thought they must be giant cream puff type things…..wrong, should have asked. Greedy Rosie bought three…they were horrible….kind of mushed together layers of hard biscuit with a hard cream icing mangled through it….
The Operator is going to feed the ducks and swans which are in the river outside our window later.
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We wandered down the road and ate alfresco on the riverside, it was the perfect out side temperature and a really pleasant night. Afterwards we wandered down to the Old Bridge again and loitered, absorbing the view in the setting sun. It was great this time of night, the tour buses had left and there was hardly anyone about.
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We crossed the bridge to the riverbank with our bag of crushed snowballs….most of the ducks we had seen earlier seemed to have disappeared, or gone to bed.
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A big, cranky swan was grateful for the late snack, kind of, as soon as you had finished throwing him offerings or were not quick enough he would advance, wings back neck forward it would hiss at you. The Operator did the big wind up and threw the last handful as far as he could and we legged it back to the hotel. Rosie could see the big white swan perusing the riverbank looking for us from the hotel room.
Tomorrow we drive to the much anticipated Rothenburg ob de Tauber….its either going to be a full on tourist trap or a relaxed medieval village experience….Rosie is hoping for the latter.
The photos are brilliant. That Holy Water must have been good