This morning was all about criusing through the Rhine Gorge. The weather was about as perfect as it could be, cool early, warming up to a sunny day. This was one of the parts of this trip I was really looking forward to. When I woke up I realised that the camera had not charged overnight and the camera had a strange ‘ERR’ message. Eventually, we worked out that the charger had drooped enough from the powerpoint to affect the charging voltage. With my partially charged camera, I hit the top deck with the view to take as many photos as I could until the battery went flat again.
This stretch of river is amongst the most beautiful landscapes I’ve seen and the photos in the early morning light were amazing. There were many more than these ones. We spent 3 hours cruising down this stretch, revealing villages, castles and churches around each turn.
We arrived at the village of Rudesheim by around lunch time and after a feed it was time to explore the village. This region is known for its reisling and pinot noir wines, but we settled for a Rudesheim Kaffe instead. This drink is largely about the theater as the server mixes brandy with 3 cubes of sugar, lights the brandy and caramelises the sugar before pouring espresso in and topping it with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. Very tasty, but very sweet!
One of the best things to do here is catch the chairlift to the top of the mountain above the town to take the view as well as visit the statue. The monument was constructed to commemorate the founding of the German Empire in 1871 after the end of the Franco-Prussian War. The monument was inaugurated on 28 September 1883 and is 38 metres tall. There are stunning views of the valley below to be enjoyed as well.
We explored the town on the way back, declining to buy lederhosen, but exploring the streets and laneways of this village. This was eaxactly the type of village we expected to be exploring on this trip.
We had to return to the boat by 4:30 to emabark on our next stretch of river. At this point we leave the Rhine, joining the Main River and canal. Tonight we will traverse 11 locks. We passed the first couple of these in the evening tonight. Having never seen a lock in operation before, the idea seemed interesting, but another sunset was definitely much more rewarding.
Until tomorrow!
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