Castles of the Rhein

Burg Katz, looking out over Loreley and the Rheinland

One of my all-time favorite trips was our drive along the Rhein, from Rüdesheim to Koblenz.  It wasn't the destination, it was the journey, that made it great.

My son, mother-in-law, and sister-in-law tagged along on this little day-long adventure.  We didn't really know where were going exactly, just planned to follow the river and get a nice view of the castles that line its hilly banks.  We brought with just a guide book, which indicated the names and locations of the castles.  To get a better idea of their actual location, here is a link to a map that depicts where they fall on the Rhein.

We saw so many amazing castles and sights.  I'm going to post a brief description of each below.


Rheinstein
source: http://www.burg-rheinstein.de/


Rheinstein was one of the first castles we saw, as it is located near Bingen/Rüdesheim.  It is considered "the southern gateway" to the UNESCO World Heritage "Upper Middle Rhine Valley".  This is one of my favorite castles on the Rhein.  I love how it juts out from the rocky hills.

"The history of the castle dates back to the 13th expiring Century. Under the Archdiocese of Mainz, it was built as a toll castle and served as backup for the Mainz territory in the fight against the robber baron castles. The heyday Rhine stone - between 13 and 16 Century - the castle fell into disrepair in the 17th Century ruin."





The castle was reconstructed under Prince Frederick of Prussia, with work finishing in 1829, making it one of the first castles on the Rhein to be rebuilt.

Reichstein

source:
http://www.loreley-info.com/eng/rhein-rhine/castles/reichenstein.php


"Reichenstein Castle, also called Falkenburg, is located above Trechtingshausen. The large construction is one of the spectacular examples of the castle reconstruction in neo-Gothic style. Reichenstein Castle, built in the 11th century, was owned by a robber-baron. Therefore it was destroyed in 1253 and again in 1282. It decayed since the 16th century.

In 1834 Friedrich Wilhelm von Barfuß started the reconstruction. Baron Kirsch Purcelli bought the castle in 1899 and continued generously the work of reconstruction. The shield wall is particularly noteworthy.

In the castle are to be found in addition to the largest collection of cast-iron plates in Rhineland-Palatinate 1200 hunting trophies from all over the world, weapons, arms, porcelain and furniture from five centuries."

The castle is also rumored to be haunted by the headless ghost of Dietrich von Hohenfels.



Sooneck
source:
http://www.loreley-info.com/eng/rhein-rhine/castles/sooneck.php


"Sooneck Castle, probably built in the 11th century, was part of an expanded defence system of the abbey Kornelimünster near Aachen. The chatelains neglected their obligations, undertook raids and raised toll arbitrarily, which impaired the trade strongly. King Rudolf of Habsburg put an end to their practices in 1282. One robber nest after the other, also Sooneck, was destroyed. The rebuilt castle was again destroyed in 1689. Friedrich Wilhelm IV. ordered to convert the ruin into a hunting seat in 1842. He commissioned the Prussian architect Schnitzler to do the work, which was finished in 1861.




Today the castle with its impressive location and the wonderful view is a popular destination, which provides an insight into the 19th century. In addition to the magnificently equipped interiors the extensive Köth Wanscheid donation impresses particularly with its wonderful paintings and precious furniture."

This is another of my favorite castles.  Again, I just love how it juts out of the landscape.

Furstenberg

source:
http://www.loreley-info.com/eng/rhein-rhine/castles/fuerstenberg.php

"Fürstenberg Castle, built in 1219, was built by order of an archbishop, the bishop of Cologne. It provided protection of his estates and was used for the levying of tolls. Destroyed in the course of the Palatinate Succession War, the castle ruin now only gives an idea of former monumental impression."

Pfalzgrafenstein
source:
http://www.mygermancity.com/pfalzgrafenstein


"This ancient toll booth had its beginnings in 1326, when Ludwig the Bavarian erected the tower in a pentagon shape. A defensive wall was later added to give the building a more fortified feel.
By 1477, Burg Pfalzgrafenstein fell into the hands of the Count of Katzenelnbogen. During his rule, the castle truly began to become the fierce stronghold it is remembered for today.
Between 1607 and 1755, gun bastions, the turrets and the signature Baroque-style tower cap were added on as well.

With its strategic location “eternally afloat upon the Rhine,” Pfalzgrafenstein became a force to be reckoned with. It stopped any boat crossing the rivers at this point with a massive iron chain that stretched across the water, ready to be pulled at any moment, if the ship was unwilling to pay the toll. The reluctant boatsmen were also kept in the castle dungeon until their bill was paid.
It should come as little surprise that this ferocious fortress was never conquered or destroyed by marauding armies, or even the forces of nature. Tolls continued until the Prussians took control of the country in 1866.

For the next hundred years, it had the more benevolent purpose of acting as a signal station for boat traffic on the Rhine.  By 1946, Pfalzgrafenstein was again in state hands. It was turned into a museum and restored to its previous glory."

Gutenfels

source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burg_Gutenfels

"The Burg Gutenfels (also known as castle Caub) is a castle 110m above the town of Kaub in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It was build in 1220. It was used with Pfalzgrafenstein Castle in the middle of the Rhein and the fortified city of Kaub on the far side to provide an impenetrable toll zone for the Holy Roman Emperor until Prussia purchased the area (1866) and ended this toll in 1867. The Castle is in part of the Rhine Gorge, a UNESCO World Heritage Site added in 2002."

Katz
source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katz_Castle"Katz Castle (German: Burg Katz) is a castle above the German town of St. Goarshausen in Rhineland-Palatinate. This magnificent castle stands on a ledge looking downstream from the riverside at St. Goar. It was first built around 1371 by Count Wilhelm II of Katzenelnbogen. The castle was bombarded in 1806 by Napoleon and rebuilt in the late 19th century, between 1896-98. It is now privately owned, and not open for visitors."

We actually drove to St. Goar, to the top of the hills, and got a magnificent view of the castle from above.

  

Rheinfels

source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rheinfels_Castle

"Rheinfels Castle (German: Burg Rheinfels) is a castle ruin located above the left (East) bank of the Rhein in Sankt Goar, Germany. It was started in 1245 by Count Diether V of Katzenelnbogen. After expansions, it was the largest fortress in the Middle Rhein Valley between Koblenz and Mainz. It was slighted by French Revolutionary Army troops in 1797. It is the largest castle overlooking the Rhine, and historically covered five times its current area.

While much of the castle is a ruin, some of the outer buildings are now a luxury hotel, "wellness" centre and restaurant.  There is also a museum within some of the better preserved structures."

Marksburg

source:
http://www.marksburg.de/english/frame.htm


"Marksburg Castle is the only hill castle on the Rhine that has never been destroyed. It has been lived in for over 700 years and thus represents an ever-changing and developing building complex that has been growing into its present shape over the centuries.

On the Rhine's right bank, upstream from its junction with the Mosel, a hill rises above the town of Braubach. Crowning the hill is Marksburg Castle, its unusually slender keep towering above the surrounding courts and ramparts.
Beginning with the construction of the keep in the 12th century, the castle grew into its present shape throughout succeeding centuries. In the Middle Ages, the strengthening of the castle's defences became essential and urgent by improvements made to firearms. Huge outworks date from this time, as does the conversion of a gateway in the outer wall to a strong bastion. It is mainly due to these extra defence works that the castle was never seriously attacked. In more peaceful times, it was used mainly as a state prison."

Koblenz

We completed our trip with a short and blustery visit to Koblenz.  We went to see the Deutsches Eck (German Corner), the Basilica of St. Castor, and the Christmas Markets, before taking the less scenic route back home to Wiesbaden.

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Bad Kissingen, Germany

Jackie and I went to Bad Kissingen as part of an Army Chapel Retreat.  I was doing child care for them at the time, and retreats were an added perk - you worked longer but had transportation and  accommodations provided.  After the daily activities were done, we were free to walk around, explore the town, and pretty much do whatever.  

We drove there from Wiesbaden, and were very glad we did, as our hotel was on the top of a rather steep hill above the town, so in order to do any sight seeing, we had to drive down and park downtown.

The town was mainly a spa town, and I'll be honest, up until we went, I really hadn't heard much about it (though apparently it is a fairly popular place as far as Germans are concerned).  We didn't really know what to go do or see, so we picked up a map and walked around, seeing a few of the attractions.  We didn't really have too long to walk around, and comparatively, there wasn't quite as much to see in the town, but we enjoyed walking around and seeing the sites.  The town was pretty: very green, lots of flowers, and strangely, lots of palm trees.  It was pretty hot though, so we ended our adventure a little early and stopped for some nice ice cream.

To compliment my lack of information about the town (and my short stay), here's a little bit of the history (complements of Wikipedia):

The town itself was first documented in the year 801 as “chizzicha” and was renowned above all for its medicinal springs, which are recorded from as early as 823. Kissingen was first mentioned as a town in 1279, and the first official spa guest was recorded in 1520, the same century that the town established itself as a spa. Kissingen grew to be a chic resort in the 19th century, and was rebuilt as such during the reign of Ludwig I of Bavaria. Crowned heads of state such as Empress Elisabeth of Austria, Tsar Alexander II of Russia and King Ludwig II of Bavaria, who bestowed the 'Bad' on Kissingen in 1883, were among the guests to the spa at this time.

On 10 July 1866 in Mainfeldzug, Kissingen was the site of fierce battle between Bavarian and Prussian troops.

Imperial Chancellor Otto von Bismarck visited Kissingen's spas many times, and in 1874 narrowly avoided assassination by Eduard Franz Ludwig Kullmann there. Bismarck’s former home in Kissingen is now the Bismarck Museum. Other well-known visitors to the resort included author Leo Tolstoy and artist Adolph von Menzel.

The resort’s clientele changed in the 20th century, with more ordinary citizens visiting than noblemen and women. 1945 is the only year that the spa resort remained closed.  ...  In 2003, 1.5 million people stayed in the town.

At the eastern edge of the Bad Kissingen town center Manteuffel Kaserne (Manteuffel Barracks) was established by the German military as part of Hitler's program to expand the German "Wehrmacht" (Army) prior to World War II. In 1945, the American military entered the town peacefully, and took over the barracks which were renamed Daley Barracks in 1953.

  

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Partnach Gorge and the Olympic Stadium

Nate went to PLTCE in early July of 2008, and as part of their course, they got a chance to go to Partnach Gorge and the Olympic Stadium.  Here are some of his pics:

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Alghero, Italy

 Nate's mom came out to visit from 7-21May and when she got out I told her that Jackie and Caiti had planned a trip to Venice, that I had declined to go because it got back at midnight and she had to leave the next day for an 8am flight.  Ultimately, this inspired us to search for our own cheap flights.  WE got onto Ryan Air's website and found several, the most appealing of which (to me anyway) was the 160 euro (round trip for two adults and a child)l  After much deliberating, we decided to book it.  They charged an extra 10 euro per person for an airport check in and another 16 euro for the stroller, but the whole thing ended up being just over $300 for 3 people - not bad.  Afterwards I got online and booked a room at the Alma di Algero.  IT was right across from a beach, a 15 minute walk from the "centro historico," included breakfast, and it was only 99 euro/night.

So on the 19th we drove up to Frankfurt Hahn at about 11:30.  It took us just over an hour to get there because of construction on the last leg of the trip.  We got there just as the check-in opened.  They gave us our tickets and tagged our stroller and we went through security.  I was a little worried because I was carrying 5 juice boxes for Caedmon (well over the limit for liquids) but they didn't care.  Security was fast and we didn't have to show our passports at all (despite the big, vacant, passport control area), which I thought was odd.  So we sat and let Caedmon run around, watch the airplanes, and feast on M&Ms.  He did really well until we lined up to board, but he got over it once we started walking out to the plane.  They let us take our stroller all the way out there and took it just before we got on.





The plane itself exceeded my expectations.  Granted, I was half expecting a Monterey-style prop plane.  But it was a jet with two rows of three seats and it had a little over 30 rows.  It didn't have a lot of the usual amenities, like movies or TV, and snacks/beverages were for pay only, but otherwise it was about like any other airline I'd flown with.  They had Caedmon sit on my lap during take off and landing and we used a little seat belt extension for that.  Otherwise, he sat in his own seat in between us and enjoyed the ride.  RyanAir doesn't have reserved seating, and in this case, it worked to our advantage.


We landed in Alghero as scheduled, but in the middle of drizzle.  We got our stroller in about 10 minutes then headed out to find a bus.  We got a schedule and tried to get tickets but the machine at the Tabacci was broken.  So we went outside the airport to wait for the bus.  In that time, the drizzle turned into a downpour, which ordinarily wouldn't be a problem, but apparently Alghero rarely ever sees rain, so there were no covered bus stops.  A bus (not ours) pulled up and the driver invited us to step inside to wait for ours.  When ours did come, he even helped put our stroller on and showed us how our tickets worked.  It was only $0.70 per person, but by the time we got on we were soaked.

The bus ride to the hotel was pretty incredible.  We drove through groves of olive trees, past stone walls and arches and bright pink, orange, and yellow houses.  We saw Alghero and the port on our way to Fertilia (the village in between the airport and our destination).



It was about 20 minutes to our stop and the drive kept checking with us to see where we needed off.  He told us exactly where to go from our stop in order to get to our hotel and even stopped to ask a local if he knew any English so that he could explain better to us, but with Oma's Spanish and a guidebook, we were able to understand.

So we walked the two blocks to our hotel.  It was entirely along a beach.  Our receptionist showed us to our room (literally took us there).  The keys worked differently -  you waved it in from of the door.  Inside the room was all white and blue with tiles floors.  It has a flat screen TV and refrigerator stocked with food and drinks for purchase.  They put in a children's bed for us, which was great.  The shower was tiny and the bathroom had a badeau.  But best of all, we had a balcony with a view of the beach.

We stayed in the hotel long enough to get organized and dry and then headed out.  Caedmon splashed in lots of puddles  and then we found a pizzeria (Ramblas).  It was nice inside, but Caedmon wanted to "outside play" so I told Oma I would take a pizza and took Caedmon to the beach long enough to calm down.  When we came back Oma had ordered an appetizer, pizza, a plate of spaghetti, and a bottle of wine, so we ate some fine Italian cuisine!  It seemed like it took forever for the food, but it was good.  The pizza compared to that of downtown Wiesbaden only with less cheese (like what we had in Croatia).  We paid the bill shortly after finishing and stopped by the beach for some night photos and to dip our toes in the Mediterranean.  I picked up a few small shells, but it was late and Caedmon was spent, so we went back to our room and crashed.

 

The next morning we went to the continental breakfast (after some cartoons, coffee, and packing for our day).  The breakfast buffet was like any other European B&B we've been to - bread, meat, cheese - only there were also tomatoes, olive oil, and lots of pastries.  IT was good and we left to check out shortly thereafter.  Caedmon looked at the fish in the reception area and the hotel employees went gaga over him.

From there, we walked along the beach and palm trees (in the drizzle) to Alghero's Centro Historico.  Looking out over the water you could see rolling hills in the distance, and in the other directly, the harbor and historic center of Alghero.

  

After reaching the center I found out my memory card in my camera broke, losing all of my pictures from the airport/hotel/beach, which put a damper on my mood.  (I was later able to recover everything, thank goodness!).  About 5 minutes later the drizzle turned into downpour and we found ourselves walking the streets of Alghero soaked through and through.

 

Despite the wind and rain, the city was very beautiful, with lots of churches, colorful buildings with flower boxes, laundry lines between buildings and hanging from windows, and view of the sea from various points in the town.

 

We made through loops around the old city and stopped at a cafe in the process.  We stopped in a few shops as well, but after a while, the rain got the better of us, and we decided to head back to the aeropuerto early.  We walked a few blocks back to get our tickets, and in the process, Caedmon fell asleep, so we stopped in at another little cafe for some cappuccinos while waiting for the bus.

We made it back to the airport well in advance of our flight, so Caedmon got to burn off some energy (and we got a chance to try off and freshen up after a day of walking around in the rain).   When we got our boarding pass, the guy at the counter even stopped what he was doing to play with Caedmon.  He was a pretty good sport on the way back, and fell asleep on our way home.

All in all, it was a pretty good trip - fun and spontaneous.  I admit, it would have been better without the rain, but you can't change the weather, you just have to do what you can with what you have.

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