Trip to Bavaria 2007 - Rothenburg, Nuremberg and Rhine River

On day 6 we left the big city of Munich and headed North out of the Danube Valley to medieval Rothenburg, with its ramparts and towers, cobbled lanes and 16th Century houses.

Rothenburg is still Germany's best-preserved walled town. In the Middle Ages, when Frankfurt and Munich were just wide spots in the road, Rothenburg was Germany's second-largest city, with a whopping population of 6,000. Today it's said to be Europe's most beautiful medieval town, enjoying tremendous tourist popularity.

Our next stop was Nuremberg for our walk through the pedestrian area of the Old Town.


We visited St. Sebald Church, which was painstakingly reconstructed as a monument to peace from the rubble of its near total wartime destruction… it was shocking to see the pictures inside the church of the city in total rubble. Nuremberg had always been a center of politics - in the Middle Ages it was preferred residence of German Emperors and later Nuremberg became burdened by the legacy of the Nazis. Although bombed to rubble in WWII, the medieval city center with its main buildings had been reconstructed, using the original stone. The main sights of Nuremberg, the churches like Sebaldus and St. Lorenz, romantic half-timbered houses in the castle quarter, cobblestoned squares and the majestic Nuremberg Castle the "Kaiserburg" create a nice medieval atmosphere in the Old Town.
Before leaving Nuremberg for the West we visited the Nazi party rally grounds, a huge site with monumental buildings where the Nazi party rallies were held and Hitler's troops had their parades.


One of the members in our group helped to lighten the mood… Ken flies a kite in every city he visits and then writes the place and date on the tail. We all cheered as his kite took flight.


We soon were on the road again and traveled via scenic roads to the city of St. Goar. We had time for an independent lunch and a short walking tour before boarding the Vater Rhine for a relaxing cruise along what is the most scenic section of the Rhine River. Gracing the shores of the Rhine are more medieval castles than in any other river valley in the world. The fairytale castles, combined with the breathtaking landscape of rolling carpets of terraced vineyards and old-world towns, create a dreamlike setting.

We arrived back in Frankfurt in time for a special farewell dinner at the hotel. We’d had our last full day in Germany and predictably no one in our group was ready to leave… I had a thoroughly enjoyed the Globus Germany trip.