River Boat Cruise - Speyer to Rudesheim

Wednesday 5th September 2007 Speyer (Germany)

We stayed in Speyer all day so after breakfast there was a walking tour of Speyer which we did in small groups with the aid of microphones and wireless receivers. Speyer was a Celtic settlement resettled by the Romans then destroyed by the Huns in 450 AD. The name “Speyer comes from the English word “Spire” probably referring to the six spires of the massive Romanesque cathedral built around the year 1030. The walking tour included the Kaiserdome cathedral which is one of the largest medieval churches built in only 30 years. Domnapf is the huge sandstone basin built in 1490 and filled with wine during medieval times when ever a new bishop was installed. We also visited the Jewish ritual baths dating back to 1100’s. Although the Germans never liked the Jews and over periods of plague etc used to blame them for the evils of the time and murder them, they needed them in the city as merchants and money lenders as the Catholics could not charge interest. We had coffee and Pam looked at some shops then back to the boat for lunch. After lunch we went to the beer garden and with the assistance of Skype we rang the children. Pam then headed back to the shops and bought jeans (29 Euro=$45) which will require weight watchers to fit in to them comfortably. Paul stayed at the pub and worked on getting the blog up to date and to replying to some emails. After dinner we watched a movie called “Step up” and Paul went back to the “bier garten” to complete the blog and emails.

Thursday 6th September 2007 Speyer to Rudesheim (Germany)

This morning we left Speyer at 6.00am and had a late breakfast in our room and watched Roddick v’s Federer in the quarter finals of the US Open. Great game. Lunch on board and 2.00pm we arrived at Rudesheim where we took to walk to Rudesheim where we had free time till 4.30. During this time we went up on the Chairlift over vineyards with great views but hazy with drizzle. This cable car goes to the Niederwald Monument which commemorates German unification in 1871. Back to a cafe in town where we had a” Rudesheim Kaffe” which is served in a special mug with cognac, lit for 5 secs, Coffee poured on top from a separate jug, then a huge dollop of whipped cream is added (also from a separate little saucer) and sprinkled with chocolate pieces. The whole thing is then drunk through a straw. Delicious and very very warming!
Rudesheim is probably the most famous wine town in the world being the centre of the wine industry in the fabled Valley of the Lorelei. They have around 3 million visitors a year with 50% of them being from abroad. Heavy bombing during WW11 destroyed most of the original Gothic and Renaissance timber framed and gabled houses. The main street is quite windy, only 6’ wide and 360’ long with many tiny little shops, cafes, & wine bars and is known as “Strangle Lane”! Great place for Riesling.
At 2:30pm we had to be back at the boat for a coach trip to a wine museum in the Bromsburg castle where we had a tour of this lovely castle and a wine tasting of the only wine they make – three different types of Riesling, which varied in price from A$10 to A$200. The three were all very different with the first one being very light and refreshing but dry, the second one was a little sweeter and not as fresh and the third one (Pam’s favourite) was more like a sweet dessert wine. The cellarmaster explained the importance of using the finest rimmed glass available and never filling the glass more than ¼ - 1/3rd full as this gave the wine the largest surface in which to breathe. Also explained that you never hold a white wine glass on your hands as they increase the temperature of the wine and the glass should therefore only ever be held by its stem. Cork stoppers are no longer used and are being replaced by screw tops (which he thinks the Germans may have some trouble with) and a new type of glass stopper.
Caught the bus back to the ship had dinner and watched Casino Royale. Updated the diary and off to bed.