My husband and I visited Germany to see our new grand daughter, Katie,  in August, 2009.  The plane flights were uneventful, thank God!  Katie was the main reason  we travelled to Germany and it was worth it!!  My son and his wife were and are so enthralled with her,  it made me feel good. 

We all travelled  to Rothenburg which is a medievel village with ornate buildings with tons of history near the Tauber River.  The roofs had small windows jutting out on the roofs that the towns people used to protect and fight the enemies.   There were towers at the entrance of the village that were also used for guarding and fighting.  The village looks like it did centuries before with the cobblestone streets and unique architecture.  The absolute best building was the original Kathe Wohlfahrt Christmas Store.  I was going to take a picture inside because it was like  Santa’s house with elves, lights, and Christmas trees glistening all over, but there was that sign “No cameras allowed”.  I guess you’ll have to go see it yourself.

We took a night boat cruise up the Neckar River from Heidelberg to Neckarsteinach.  The Neckar is one of the major tributaries of Germany with  gorgeous green lush hills.  Neckarsteinach’s has four castles, which stand on crags or the slope leading down to the Neckar. They are the Vorderburg (“Fore-castle” or “Further Castle”), the Mittelburg (“Middle Castle”), the Hinterburg (“Hind-castle” or “Hinder Castle”) and the Schadeck (also called the Schwalbennest, or “Swallows’ Nest”). The castles were built between 1100 and 1230 by the Landschad von Steinach family.  The night we travelled to see the four castles was the last Saturday in July which is Guest’s Day.  Every year on this day the castles are flooded with lights that make them appear as if they are on fire, then lights that look like water pouring down on the fire.  Interesting.

Lastly, we drove to Strassburg, France, and took a boat ride around the canals surrounding the city.  This city throughout the centuries has been German or French depending on who won the battle.  It has tons of history!

The food in Germany appealed to my palate more than in France, but then we have only been to one French city. 

Neckar River, Strassburg,Neckarsteinach,travel,castles,Christmas

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