Take Me To The River (Rüdesheim, Germany)

Well dear reader, here we are in Rüdesheim. Quite expectedly. The river level rose just enough to allow us to continue on from Frankfurt where we were expecting to disembark. Today's schedule went as planned, albeit a day later than anticipated.

Today's title, Take Me To The River, can be be interpreted in numerous ways. Simply, the township of Rüdesheim is carved into the side of a hill and all roads heading downhill, lead to the river. Talking Heads, from 1978, is the band I will attribute the song to, although it is an Al Green original.

Aside from the low water level, not a bad view to wake up to.

We made excellent time last evening and arrived in Rüdesheim around dawn after passing through the lock from the Main to the Rhine River around 3am. Neither event made for a good sleep event. Engines on and then off and then on and people thumping around on the roof as we came into dock, rearranging the deck furniture. Anyway, the morning vista was far more pleasant than the industrial perspective of recent ports.

After breakfast the Choo-choo train - I kid you not, that is its name - arrived to drive us the 10 minutes into town. It was complete with an American voice over on the journey and contained pearls of wisdom about wine tasting and how to swirl your wine and hold your glass. First class information for philistines that had never drunk wine before or were just completely ignorant. Upon reflection, my interpretation of said information may be a little harsh. We once shared a bottle of champagne with a couple who served it in plastic wine tumblers. I still shiver at the thought.

All aboard.

Our destination was the gondola ride up the mountain side to the Niederwald Monument that dominates the skyline above the vineyards. It was a beautiful day, a blue cloudless sky, although a little hazy from the mountain top. The view on the way up the mountain and from the top was spectacular. As our exercise regime has been somewhat impaired by our changing schedule, we opted to return to Rüdesheim on foot through the vineyards.

Talk about a bad hair day.

The view from the gondola

Once back in the village we located the café that lays claim to making the first genuine Rüdesheimer coffee. Believe me, it is an art and a performance and also way too much trouble to be making on a daily basis at home. At €7,90 a cup it is also not cheap.

Into a large cup are placed three sugar cubes. That scared me immediately, I don't remember the last time I felt the need to add sugar to coffee or tea. To the cubes is added a (mini bar sized) bottle of warmed Asbach - a local brandy. This is lit to caramelise the sugar and then you add the black coffee. But wait, there's more. On top is placed an industrial sized amount of whipped cream, topped with shavings of dark chocolate. Voilà, there it is. It is only made in Rüdesheim for reasons that are probably obvious and we won't be attempting to replicate this masterpiece of performance art any time soon.

Protecting the grapes from the birds

Rüdesheim is another picturesque, olde worlde charm village with most of the commercial area focused around the entrance to the gondola and another in the town square. It is a wine production area although there was the obligatory brewery and in this case, the Asbach distillery.

After loading up with the local coffee, we made our way to the river and back to the ship for the next briefing. It is a day-by-day existence at present. The good news today is that the water level has risen enough for us to sail the Rhine Gorge and photograph the 26 castles. This part of the trip will take about 4 hours.

Sadly, or happily, depending on your perspective, my camera battery died part of the way through the gorge and I had to resort to the phone while the battery was given a quick charge. I won't inflict every castle upon you dear reader, just a couple.

Legend has it that an agreement was reached during the second world war not to bomb cultural sites. The result was the Germans built castle like structures on the entrances and exit points of their train tunnels. Clever.

It looks like a castle, but ...

After the unexpected excitement of the Rhine Gorge, it was time to again farewell the crew and staff and have another four course meal.

Tomorrow we will wake in Koblenz to disembark and board buses for Amsterdam. The other good news? Getting that little bit closer to Amsterdam means only 5 and a half hour bus trip, not the original 9 hours.

Until tomorrow.

Heartbreak Hotel (Miltenberg, Germany)

Our time on the ship is approaching an end, dear reader, and although not unexpected, it is unfortunate. The climate change induced drought, gripping many parts of Europe, is increasing its impact daily. Pictures of dry river beds of the Loire, the Rhine and other rivers are unprecedented. Isn't that just the word to describe these times, unprecedented. I can't imagine the problems this is causing people who live off the rivers.

The fountain in front of the public toilets.

Today's post focuses on a town not originally a part of our schedule. As we are unable to navigate sections of the Rhine, we have stayed on the Main River. Disturbingly, the Main is also showing signs of distress and there is a significant algal bloom that has been with us for three days now. Miltenberg, a charming little medieval town was our destination, we arrived in the early morning, after sailing overnight which has become the pattern.

Too pretty

Miltenberg is literally a town that time forgot. The world moved on after the 30 year war and left Miltenberg alone, ensuring that modern development had minimal effect. During the 1300s, the original houses in the town were constructed totally of timber. A couple of hundred years later, the first floor of the older dwellings was rebuilt using a local stone. This gives rise to some amazing structures.

Has anyone got a spirit level?

The town is carved into a hillside on the banks of the river. Perhaps the first houses occupied the site of an old quarry. The largest wine cellar in the town is similar in style to a French cave, it is a tunnel cut into the rock that goes back into the hillside. The difference being that here, they are working with sandstone, not limestone.

There are the usual flood markers chiseled on house walls. Our guide remarked that when the town flooded, the water was trapped between the rows of houses and "the streets became canals, like Venice, only not as romantic". And then of course, there was the smell and the mud as after the water subsided.

The 1909 flood level

The construction of the houses followed a simple plan. The ground floor was often used to house the animals and the upper floors were residential. The front yard was walled in, not to contain a garden but piles of dung from the animals. Dung was also used in the construction of the walls and in fact was the most expensive component. Gives new meaning to the Australian expression 'shithouse'. The bigger the pile of dung in the front yard, the richer the peasant that lived there. That is not a competition I would choose to enter. I am sure it made the old town very aromatic.

Elvis stayed here. Yeah, I didn't care either.

Above the doorway of many of the houses is chalked a mark '20CMB22'. This is a blessing that is bestowed on your house by children who come around seeking donations on the feast of the Epiphany in January. If you give, they write the year around the letters that in Latin stand for "Christ bless this house" to bring good fortune whilever the chalk mark remains visible.

I wonder what happens if you don't donate.

In essence Miltenberg consists of a couple of streets, running parallel to the river. Most of the shops are hospitality focused, balanced out by numerous boutiques. It is  one of those little villages people flock to to eat and drink and waste time, people watching.

The view to the castle

The hotel that accommodated Elvis during the war also gives rise to today's title, Heartbreak Hotel from 1956 and here is the youtube link for a very special reader (you know who you are). On the sign hanging outside the hotel was, what I thought, the Star of David. Only to be informed by our guide that it was the beer maker's symbol. One religion for another. Prost, as they say here.

We all have a religion ... of sorts.

Years ago I discovered the French ability to frame everything like it was a picture. You'd turn a corner and there was a magnificent building. Turn your head as you walk past a laneway and at the end is a stunning view. I also learned that the French have a knack of destroying that same view. A trait that seems to have emerged in other parts of Europe, like Germany.

I guess it's garbage collection day in Miltenberg.

The rivers are the lifeblood of Europe, not just for the cruise industry. Although the low water levels have severely restricted shipping, there are still many barges plying their trade. The whole family lives on the barge with accommodation at the rear. It is here that the car/s and motor boat/tenders are stored. Children must attend school at least five months of the year and some attend a boarding school for periods of one month or more. There are special schools set up to cater for seafarers' children.

Barge life

Dinner tonight was a special dinner. Allegedly. The meals have been excellent all the way through. No buffets and a different menu every night. Anyway, after the special dinner, the head chef did the rounds of each table to see how we liked our meals. He then handed each diner a special sweet treat sort of like a Raffaello ball. Not sure if we would have received our treat if we had had not praised his culinary efforts.

They all seem to have nice cars.

We left Miltenberg in the afternoon and sailed to our next Main River stop, Aschaffenburg, arriving around 2am.

Until tomorrow.