Category Archives: Germany

Last Stop: Mainz

Germany, Travel, , , , , ,

July 17 – One more trip to the train station for our last journey south to the city of Mainz, also right on the Rhine River. We’ve had our own Rhine River cruise, without a boat!

Our hotel is right on a path that follows the river…
…with a shady corridor for strolling and sitting
Mainz is a city of many faces
…many of them quite somber
We walked down to see St. Martin’s Cathedral, or the Mainzer Dom. Although Mainz was pretty thoroughly bombed in 1945, the cathedral didn’t suffer much damage.
The inside was dark…
…and filled with bishops looking down at us disapprovingly
…one on every column
I usually don’t show pictures of crucifixions, but this one spoke to me
A pretty altarpiece, but absolutely no one is smiling
…and a guy who’s lost his head!
We walked around the old city and admired the architecture
We checked out the Gutenberg Museum – Johannes Gutenberg was born and died in Mainz in the 1400s
There were several artists rendering of what he may have looked like, but he never sat for a portrait, so no one knows for sure
His invention of moveable type transformed communication and the world
We saw two of Gutenberg’s bibles – only twenty-one originals remain intact worldwide. Only black ink was used for printing. The colorful capital letters and red highlights were added later by hand.
We watched a demonstration of the moveable type process given totally in German. We got the general idea.
Happy Jim
The museum shared space with the Natural History Museum – a small but interesting collection of old stuff
This is the famous Fastnachtsbrunnen, or Carnival Sculpture
…containing hundreds of characters from Mainz’s winter carnival
We checked out lots more faces around town
…then made or way down to St. Stephen’s. Another church? Are you kidding? Wait for it…
St. Stephen’s was bombed during WWII, and lost all its windows. Nine new stained glass windows were designed by artist Marc Chagall, a Russian Jew, all in shades of blue. The windows contain scenes from the Old Testament, and were offered to show the commonality between Judaism and Christianity.
In a close-up view you can see people
…and flowers
…and doves
The church is bathed in serene blue light. Just lovely.
And so our journey ended. We brought home a generic blue delft Dutch plate to remind us of our hike on the Pieterpad (although we didn’t see many windmills), as we couldn’t find any Pieterpad related souvenirs…
…and a plate to remind us of the places we stopped along the Rhine River. We’re tired, and happy to be home.

Off to Rüdesheim am Rhein

Germany, Travel, , , ,

July 15 – Happy birthday to our dear daughter Jae! We packed our bags once again and walk the one minute walk back to the train station. Today our journey is just one hour south to the pretty little town of Rüdesheim, which is right on the Rhine River.

Our first view, walking in from the train station.
Cuteness!
Rüdesheim is a stop on the Rhine River tours, and the town was full of cruisers eating ice cream and shopping for souvenirs.
Plenty of wall art
The Church of St. James is on the Camino de Santiago route
Inside we saw James with his pilgrim staff and shell
We decided that this was the town to give in to our bratwurst craving – these didn’t disappoint!
No trip to Rüdesheim is complete without a tour of Siegfried’s Mechanical Music Cabinet, a museum of antique music makers
This one played Entry of the Gladiators (the Circus Song) so loud we had to cover our ears
Some were from old merry-go-rounds, with beautiful workmanship
Our tour guide explained how the songs were imprinted on a metal plate
An old Victrola and a gramophone
This one had an entire string orchestra and a player piano
Then it was time for – you guessed it – the cable car ride to the top of the hill!
We got to look down on the Rhine River
…and the rows of grape vines. This town is known for its winery tours, but as we don’t drink wine, we didn’t investigate those
It was pretty windy in the cable car!
At the top of the hill was a huge statue called Germania, holding her sword down to indicate a desire for peace. It was built in the 1870s by Kaiser Wilhelm to celebrate the unification of Germany.
…with images of War on one side and Peace on the other
The multitude of soldiers with the Kaiser on his horse at the center
The statue is too huge to take in up close
Then we walked back down the hill through the vineyards
…and back to the river. Rüdesheim, we had a great time!

And Now To Koblenz

Germany, Travel,

July 13 – Back on the train for the two hour ride south to Koblenz. This is a much smaller city, that sits at the Deutches Eck, where the Moselle River meets the Rhine.

Quaint architecture, old fashioned but not old
Cute little statues with moveable arms
A pedestrian shopping street
They have a Woolworth here!
We looked into the Church of Our Lady, which has been an active parish since the 600s. Parts of this building dates from 1180, with renovations after WWII.
The altarpiece
New stained glass
A bit of wall art the sign says “to the little kettle”
These statues had little plaques posted next to them, but we didn’t get the jokes…
Pretty flourishes
We walked toward the river
A statue of Kaiser Wilhelm on his horse, accompanied by an angel
This is the Eck (corner) – where the Moselle River on the right flows into the Rhine
Rhine River cruises on one side
A not very old (rebuilt)  castle on the other side
There is a monument celebrating all the different regions that make up Germany
We popped into the modern art museum. There was one Picasso….
… but otherwise, we were not impressed
I had been craving a good doner for a while, and this was the town to get one. With the addition of a little red cabbage for a uniquely German twist, it was delicious!
Thanks Koblenz – we had a great time!

On to Cologne

Germany, Travel, , , , ,

July 11 – Now that our hiking is done, what should we do with our remaining time? Rather than a long travel day back to Frankfurt, we decided to stop in four German cities along the way. Today’s goal is Cologne, or in German, Köln.

One last lovely yogurt, fruit, ham and cheese breakfast
We walked to the Maastricht train station with our big packs on our backs – no more luggage transport for us
…and stepped off the eastbound train two hours later in Cologne, Germany. As soon as we left the rail station, we ran smack into the Cologne Cathedral of St. Peter, or Kölner Dom, the tallest twin-spired church in the world, and the tallest cathedral in the world. Pictures cannot convey the BIGNESS of this place. It dominates the skyline.
Can you see the gold sarcophagus on the main altar? It’s very far away! The building of the cathedral started in the 1200s as a place to display the reliquaries of the Magi, or the shrine of the Three Kings, but building was not completed until the 1880s.
Vibrantly colored stained glass
St. Christopher carrying the Christ child
The cathedral was bombed 14 times during WWII, and remained standing while all the surrounding buildings were destroyed
A richly colored Madonna and child
Plenty of dead bishops lying in state
…including St Engelburtus, who remained jaunty even in death
Jim noticed that many of the bishops are shown with dogs at their feet, and also lions and birds. These depictions were thought to comfort and protect the deceased in the afterlife, or to represent the qualities of loyalty and strength they showed in life. You decide.
Modern painting on the ceiling
Mother of all?
I’m always looking for female representation. Are angels female?
Back out on the street, we see and smell the 4711 (sieben und vierzig elf) building. 4711 is the essence of Cologne, and one of my favorite scents. My Oma wore it, and I keep a bottle of it at home to occasionally sniff.
We walked across the city to the Botanical Gardens, or Flora und Botanischer Garten. Why walk in the city when you can walk in a garden?
An aroma garden dominated by sweet daphne
Water lilies in many colors
We walked back along the Rhine River, where there were lots of boats taking tourists for river cruises. See the cathedral? It’s taller than any of the downtown buildings.
And we’re back to the crowds, with tons of folk at the sidewalk cafes sharing lunch and beer. A fine day!

Xanten to Groesbeek

Germany, The Netherlands, Travel, , , ,

June 25 – Today Boris and his friend Simon picked us up in the morning for the 45 minute drive over the German border into the Netherlands. There is no border, of course, just a sign on the highway. We are heading to the town of Groesbeek, where we will start our Pieterpad hike tomorrow.

We bid adieu to Simon and Boris
We checked into the lovely de Wolfsberg Hotel, then walked into town to see what there were to see.
Groesbeek is best known for the Museum of Freedom, or Vrijheidsmuseum, shaped like a parachute, and dedicated to the WWII participants in Operation Market Garden in 1944
There were so many thought-provoking displays in this museum, including examples of Dutch citizens during the Occupation. If it were you, would you work for the Germans to feed your family, lay low and wait for it all to be over, or join the Resistance? Good questions for us to ponder today.
One of Dr Seuss’ many wartime cartoons encouraging the U.S. to actively join the Allies
A different version of Rosie the Riveter, by Norman Rockwell
This chart was depicted in 3D in the final room of the museum. I had always thought about the war being about Germans, Japanese, Brits and Americans, and was astounded to see the number of Soviet and Chinese dead. Very sobering…
A sculpture of souls rising up from the many local cemeteries after the war, to see how it all turned out. This museum blew my mind. If you ever get the opportunity, please go!

On to Xanten

Germany, Travel, ,

June 22 – This morning we took the metro back into Frankfurt, a long train to Duisburg and a short train to Xanten. We were met at the station by Jim’s dear friend Boris and his daughter Sofia. We are here for just a few days so that Jim and Boris can catch up. Then we will start our Pieterpad hike.

Boris and his wife Anke treated us to a wonderful barbecue with grilled eggplant and mushrooms, shish kebab, and all kinds of meat – steak, chicken and sausage. Their son Louis (17 and a student) speaks excellent English, as does Boris and Sofia (23 and a pediatric nurse). Little Emily (6 and just completed kindergarten) was cute as a button.

Boris and Jim
Xanten is is pretty little town with interesting shops
…a pedestrian shopping street
…stately buildings
…historical buildings
…an old church
…kitschy house decorations
…and wall art!
Beautiful flowers
We had a wonderful time visiting with Boris and his family!

Palmengarten

Germany, Travel, ,

June 21 – For our final day in Frankfurt, we walked over to visit the historic Palmengarten, developed by architect Heinrich Siesmayer, and opened to the public in 1871. Most of the buildings were damaged or destroyed in WWII, but were refurbished starting in the 1960s. The gardens were reopened in 1992.

Shady hosta
Bee still, my heart?
Lush tropical flora indoors
There was a tiny subterranean aquarium with colorful fish
A little pond with paddle boats and ducks
Daylilies in many colors
Even a waterfall!
Orchids
Hibiscus
These begonia leaves are my favorites!
Beautiful roses
A lovely day!

Frankfurt am Main

Germany, Travel, ,

June 20 – Now it is Friday and Frankfurt is back to normal after yesterday’s holiday. The shops are open, and traffic is zipping along.

Lots of folks ride bicycles here, and we see all sorts of contraptions to enable families to ride together. There are clearly marked bike lanes, and e-scooters for rent on every corner.
We headed back downtown with the idea to look inside the Cathedral of St. Bartholomew, which was off-limits yesterday
A friendly face at the altar
Medieval bas reliefs on the walls
A strange last supper – looks like poor John was overserved
A blond curly haired Jesus
Every cathedral visit must include a climb up to the top of the bell tower for a view of the city
The beautiful Main River
This statue is of David and the remains of Goliath
We wondered who this protest was for: Palestinians perhaps? Nope – poor chickens and pigs that are eaten against their will
Where to eat lunch? We are surprised to see so many signs in English. This place is not sure if it has the best falafel…
A lovely day in the city!

Happy Corpus Christi

Germany, Travel, , ,

June 19 – After a rocky attempt at a night’s sleep, we thought a nice walk in the sunshine would help reset our internal clocks. We ate our breakfast of fruit, yogurt, brown bread and cheese, downed a few cups of strong coffee, and set out toward town.

The first thing we noticed was that the supermarket we visited yesterday was not open – unusual for a Thursday, don’t you think? As we walked along, the streets seemed very quiet. As we approached the center of town, we saw that all the stores were closed. What’s up? Time to consult Google!

It turns out that today is the state holiday of Corpus Christi (body of Christ), a celebration of the Eucharist by the Roman Catholics here since the year 1246; always falling on the tenth day after Pentecost.

We made our way toward the cathedral, figuring that is where the action would be, and we were right.

The entire square was filled with folks participating in an outdoor mass, with dozens of priests handing out communion wafers.
Parades of priests, acolytes and musicians worked their way through the crowds
Lots of nuns in different colors
The shops were closed, but the buskers were out to entertain
This guy was whistling behind his happy mask
They have wall art here!
Happy monks
You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one… We had enough excitement for one day, so went back to relax at our tropical hotel. More tomorrow!

Pieterpad – Take Two!

Germany, The Netherlands, Travel, ,

June 17, 2025 – You may remember that Jim and I had plans to hike the Pieterpad in the Netherlands back in the fall of 2023. Instead, we both got Covid and spent most of our vacation holed up in a motel, waiting to feel better.

Jim is not a person who can let a good trail go unhiked, so we are on our way back to Germany and the Netherlands to try again. Here’s to a healthy month!

June 18 – We flew from Norfolk to Newark, walking off one plane and directly onto the plane to Frankfurt with no incidents to report. We figured out the Frankfurt subway sufficiently to get to our hotel. Once we found the correct train, it was easy peasy, with stops displayed and spoken in both German and English.

We are staying at the Rioca, a Brazilian themed hotel with tropical furnishings and recorded bird calls in the hallways. We’ll be here a few days to get over our jet lag.

Feels like we’re in Rio!
The sign outside our hotel door, in case we forget where we are staying
The hotel has a rooftop restaurant with a lovely view of the city
We ventured out to find a grocery store. Fields of wildflowers are planted along the walkway to attract birds and insects. With only two hours of sleep last night, we tumbled gratefully into bed. Tomorrow we will explore!