Tour of the Rhine Valley

Easter Weekend is a BIG deal in Germany and the Czech Republic. People get days off of work for it -- even at the public schools. Since this past weekend was Easter Weekend, and Dustin got two days off work (Friday and Monday), we decided to make a big trip of it!

On Thursday (April 13), we left Aachen in the afternoon. We traveled via train south, to Bacharach. The best of the Rhine (its castles and scenery) is from the hamlet of Bacharach up to Koblenz, according to Rick Steves, our traveling God :). Between Aachen and Cologne, we took the fast Thalys train. After Cologne, we took a quaint little train that stopped in every little town along the way to Bacharach. It was very enjoyable to just ride and watch the people.

The countryside is very not majestic, like in Wyoming or Montana, but more subtle in its grandeur. The train followed a track which started in the towns, moved through farms, and ended with a slow tour of the Rhine. The Rhine cuts through the land like a mini-Grand Canyon. One can only imagine how the water slowly has worn away the sides of the valley... The hills -- they are certainly not mountains -- leading up to the Rhine have smaller evergreen trees in the distance. As one gets closer to the water, the foliage changes to flat vineyards and then slopes steeply down to the river. Apparently, the limestone that walls the Rhine valley warms during the day and stays warm through the night. It is in this continual warmth and shallow soil that the particular Rhine grapes are grown -- and what makes Rhine wine so good.

We started our Rhine Cruise at Bacharach -- officially on the list of one of my favorite small villages in Europe. Bacharach is exactly what I want in a small hamlet -- only cobblestone streets throughout with a small, dramatic cathedral, at one side and a small, storybook castle overlooking the valley below. And, book-ending the village, of course, are beautiful, small vineyards. While in Bacharach and waiting for our ship, we had some Riesling Gelato (Italian-style ice cream) -- yum!

Walking down to the dock, it was clear that the Rhine is quite high now. Apparently, the region is experiencing quite a bit of rain (and unseasonable chilly days - bad for me, as I brought sandals!). We got on the cruise boat, which had maybe 20 people on it. There was fun music playing in the background, and we got a seat directly by a window in the resturant.

We had a wonderful meal with Rhine wine, of course. The tour lasted three hours and was a definite highlight of our time this weekend. Here are some more pictures of the Rhine...