May 31 2024 Wurzberg Germany

 Wurzberg Germany

May 23, 2024

This morning we were docked in Wurzberg.  The tour today was up to the Wurzberg Residence followed by a walk through the town.  

The Wurzberg Residence was started in 1720 and completed in 1780 for Prince-Bishop Johan Philipp Franz von Balthasar Neumann (ok I copied that part off the hand out as nobody could remember a handle like that). The residence is a UNESCO world heritage site and is modelled after Versailles.  

From the moment you step through the main doors to the vast entrance with the huge arched ceiling and ornate plaster work you are awed.  Next is the grand staircast to the second floor. is in a 600 square meter room topped by a fresco depicting the four continents.  As you move through the rooms each has huge tapestries. A lot of them are easily 20 feet high and 60 feet long. There is a mirrored room which depicts wild animals.  Even the parquet floor is just amazing.  

From the main residence we exited and went into the chapel which was for the bishop and high court officals.  It is easily one of the most ornate baroque chapels I have seen. It is construted of three ovals, the entrance, the main seating area, and the last oval which has the main alter.  Marble, gold statues, ornate frescos in every shade.  It is a real stunning display.

From the residence we walked down through the old town.  There were three other churches., The baroque Neumunsterkirche, which was very beautiful in side but not even close the Prince's chapel. 

The chapel of Wurzberg which was very nice but much plainer and was only a chapel as it did not have a bishop and then there was the Bishop's Cathedral.  It looked quite small as only the front was visible from the street, but once in side it was huge.  It was very impressive and they had included a lot of modern art works into the cathedral. 

The was a wind festival going on in the city and every square was packed with venders and tents serving wine.  Even though it was a cold and rainy day the city was packed with people.  Everyone was having a great time and enjoying the food, wine and music.  The wine festivals last two weeks and are held twice a year, end of May and end of September.  

It was really hard to pick which pictures to post of the 168 I took today.  

Tonight we had a glass blowing demonstration on broad the ship, as tomorrow we are in a town specializing in glass blowing.   Should be fun.

Terry    

  

May 30, 2024 Bamberg Germany

 Bamberg Germany

May 30, 2024

Todays tour was of Bamberg which is a UNESCO world heritage site. It is a complete medieval city. Bamberg only suffered 4% damage during WWII.  The majority of the half timbered buildings are along the river front and were fisherman's homes.  The majority of the buildings in the city were rebuilt in the early  part of the 17th century as Baroque.   The exception to this is the Bamberg Cathedral which is a combination Romanesque and Gothic architecture.  

When we left the ship it was pouring rain and this rain continued off and on through out the walking tour of the town.  The city hall has been painted with a huge mural and depicts popular scences from the 1700's.   A statue of Kaiserin Kunigund who was the queen of the area presides over the area.  The tour proceeded up the hill to the cathedral and into the palace of the Kaiserin Kunigund and on into the rose garden.  This palace over looks the city and even in the rain the scene was quite striking.  We could not go into the cathedral as today was a special holiday and there was a service on in the cathedral. 

After the tour ended I saw that the church service was over and people were coming out of the cathedral.   I really wanted to slip inside to get a picture of the Horseman of Bamberg as this statue is the symbol of Bamberg so I wiggled my way up stream and inside.  A couple of quick photos and I was ready to leave, however they were closing all the doors as a second service was about to start.  After a brief moment of panic I spotted a side door which had not been closed and made my escape.  

Outside the rain was now just hammering down.  Out came my umbrella and I was off to meet up with Agnes, Jim and Sandra in the pub where the Bamberg smoked beer is made.  This smoked beer was made by accident when there was a fire in the brewery and the beer came out with a smoky flavour.  Some people thought is tasted like bacon others thought it tasted like an ashtray.  However it is a must experience when in Bamberg.  

In the pub they had organized a table (quite a feat as everyone was trying to get inside out of the rain) and had a beer waiting for me when I got there.   I thought the beer had a bacon taste but was not something that I would regularly order. We ordered a light snack to go with the beer.  When we emerged from the pub the hammering rain was done and it was a bright sunny day.

We strolled back to meet the bus and on the way stopped into a second church which was a baroque church.  Bright and sunny inside with beautiful colours everywhere.

The rain held of until we got on the bus and back to the ship. 

Terry  

May 29 2024 Nurnberg Germany

 Nurnberg Germany

May 29 2024

The water level in the river is very high and is forecast to rise even higher due to the heavy rain fall which they have been experiencing.  This means that the ship cannot get under some of the lower bridges.  So Viking arranged for us to exchange ships with one of their other ships which was headed in the opposite direction and was about to have the same problem as us.  Last night we packed our bags and this morning we were loaded on buses.  After a four hour bus ride we arrived in Nurnburg.  

We had two hours of free time to find lunch on our own so Agnes and I joined Jim and Sandra and the four of us headed off to find some of Nurnburg's famous sausages.  By luck we stumbled into one of the premier sausage houses in Nurnburg. The sausages, which were delicious, were accompanied with sauerkraut (DUH). 

After lunch we joined our tour group which included a bus ride out to see the Nazi colosseum and Nazi rally grounds. Along the way we drove past the Nazi SS barracks which escaped the bombing and were later used as head quarters the the American army.   On the right was the Hall of Justice where the Nurnburg trails were held but I could not get a picture as there were too may trees.  At least I get to say I drove by it.  

 The bus tour ended in the Nurnburg castle which was built in 1200.  A lot of the castle was destroyed by bombing but it has been rebuilt.  Under the castle are these huge catacombs which were used in the 1200's to store beer but during the war were used as bomb shelters and used to store a lot of the art treasures from the areas churches.  From the castle there is a fantastic view of the old town which was over 70% destroyed but has been rebuilt to how it looked prior to WW2,  So it looks like a middle ages city but all of the interiors are modern.  

From the castle we walked down into the old town and saw a lot of very interesting buildings, the highlight of which was the St.Sebald church.  It was originally built as a gothic Catholic cathedral in 1215 and then remodeled in 1309.  After the reformation Nurnburg became a Lutheran city and the cathedral was converted to a Lutheran church.   All of the moveable art and the stained glass windows were stored in the catacombs of the castle and so were not destroyed. 

Finally about 5:30 were we back on the bus and on the way to our new ship.  It is exactly the same as the other ship. So we are on our way to Amsterdam.  It was a long day and tiring day.

Terry 

May 28 2024 Regensburg Germany

 Regensburg Germany

May 28, 2024

Today the ship docked in Regensburg Germany.  Agnes was feeling a little under the weather this morning and this left me to do the walking tour on my own.  It wasn't just Agnes who was under the weather, as it was raining pretty heavily when we started out on the walking tour.  

The first stop was the stone bridge into Regensburg which was built around 1000 AD and has been in continuous use ever since.  As the tour stopped to take pictures I looked off to one side and there was a beer garden which Jim and I and a couple of others had beer back in 2008 when we rode our bikes through Regensburg.  World Cup was on, Germany was winning and the place was just going crazy.  I recognized it instantly.  

Regensburg was not destroyed during WW2 and therefore  the entire town is all gothic architecture.  Most of the buildings date back to the 1200's.  The Wurstkuche is the oldest restaurant in all of Germany.  The tour continued though the Jewish quarter of the city which was a very thriving area and consisted of a lot of  large towers, that were constructed by wealthy traders.  The Jews where exiled out of Regensburg in the 1500's after the Holy Roman Emperor died.  

The Regensburg cathedral is a very typical gothic cathedral.  Constructions started in 1275 and was completed in 1675.   It is so dark that when you step inside it looks pitch black.  After your eyes adjust the details of it come out.  It is very unusual in that it does not have any gold leaf.  Even the main alter is silver.  The ceiling is plain white which is in direct contrast to the baroque painted ceiling frescos.  It was so dark that getting pictures was very difficult.  Like all of the cathedrals it is under going restoration.  

After the ship left Regensburg the ship seemed to be sailing east rather than west.  We passed this copy of the Parthenon which we had passed in the early hours of the morning.  Then there was an announcement "All passengers to the lounge for an important announcement"  It didn't sound good. Yes we are now sailing back to Passau.  Due to the heavy rains the river is rising fast and we will not be able to get under several of the low bridges which lie between us and Nuremburg where we enter the Rhine river. I will keep you posted as how this plays out.  

Terry