En route from Heidelberg to Eberbach

We bid a fond farewell to Heidelberg. We are no longer on the Rhine river but are biking 33 miles along the Neckar to Eberbach.

Good bye Heidelberg Castle

On the way, we encountered a small village built into the side of the hills.  I'm sorry I don't know the name.

When I say built into the side of the hills, I mean the roads zig-zagged to and fro in front of and behind the houses and shops.  The front doors would be on one level and the back door would be on the second floor.  The roads were so steep that half way up we had to abandon our bikes and continue on foot.  I couldn't imagine living in such a place.  The people there must have basketballs for calves.

Neckar River

Our boat floating below.

On the edge of the village was an old church.  I don't know it's age but judging from the Gothic arches I could say later Medieval.

The church was different from other churches in that it had painting on the walls. I deduce this church was older than the others we had previously seen.

As an organist I find these small self-contained organs fascinating.  I would have liked to play on it or look inside the box and see how it functioned.

These are the tombs of ladies and knights gone by.

From our cabin on the boat.

Back on the boat and on to our final stop:  Eberbach which I will present next time.

Heidelberg continued

In Heidelberg we walked around and spent some time sitting in the town square eating chocolate bars and enjoying the scenery. Here are some scenes from our afternoon.  Notice above how narrow the streets are.

Town square

The reason the streets are so narrow and labyrinthine is because it helped ward off invaders from getting to the castle.  While the enemy was working their way through the maze of streets and alleyways, the citizens of Heidelberg were retreating to the castle and fortifying it.

Turn of the century house we toured.

Heidelberg Castle

Castle overlooking town square.

Wouldn't you like to live in a town where the houses looked like this?

The markings on the edge of the building show the water levels when the Neckar River over flowed and flooded the town.  Apparently a serious problem at times.

Still smiling after biking 30 miles.  Or grimacing.

The Heidelberg monkey is at the foot of the bridge that leads into the town.  The brass monkey has superstition wrapped around it.  Touch the mirror for wealth and the monkey's hand to return to Heidelberg.

Next to the monkey are a couple of mice.  If you rub them you will have many children.  I rubbed it for fun, but I'm not particularly fearful of any fertility after results.

 

Heidelberg University, established in 1386, is Germany's oldest university.  Mark Twain wrote about it as well as the town in his story, Tramps Abroad.

 The church of the Holy Spirit is an interesting mix of modern and traditional art.  If I remember the tour guide correctly, the windows on one side were blasted out during war and replaced with modern works.  I must confess that I preferred the order and harmony of the traditional windows but you can decide for yourself.

 Don't ask me what the white thing hanging from the ceiling is.  Something modern.

 The above window is quite modern but also lovely.

And that is our time in Heidelberg.  Back to the bikes and the river!

Bike Trip on the Rhine: Heidelberg

Our boat chugging down the Rhine

Our next bike trip was one of the longest with a butt-numbing 48 Kilometers (30 miles) along the Rhine and through some more nature reserves.  Somewhere around Mannheim we stopped for lunch.  Looking at all the buildings I tried to see some trace of the Germany I remembered when I was a kid back in the seventies living in Germany.  Then Germany was still very much a post WWII society and firmly entrenched in the Cold War as a divided nation.  I did see one old apartment building with the little balconies outside each apartment.  This style of apartment building was prominent when I lived there. Other than that I could conjure up no sense of nostalgia.  It was like I had never been there before.

This was slightly before my time but the apartment buildings looked exactly the same in the seventies.

There were places on our bike ride where we had to cross the river on a small ferry such as the one above.

As usual Josh took photos of geese and ducks.  They are beautiful, aren't they?

We finally made it to Heidelberg and since we didn't want to waste time we parked our bikes at the dock and wandered around the town. I stopped at a pharmacy and bought a few Chocolate bars.  Some people like to sample beer from different countries.  I like to taste chocolate from every nation.  I fully intended to bring some back home for my family but the heat melted the chocolate bars pretty quick so Josh and I had to eat them so they wouldn't go to waste.  Which was sad.  Sad for the people back home, that is.  They were yummy!

 Heidelberg Gate

The following photos were taken as we walked around the downtown area of Heidelberg.

On the hill you can see part of Heidelberg Castle.  I visited it as a child and would have liked to again, but Josh and I were too hot and tired to walk up the mountainside to get there.  So we contented ourselves with admiring it from a distance.

I don't know the age of the bridge above the house, but it looks Roman.

Heidelberg Castle

Some of the buildings in the town square.

Later we took a tour led by a slightly crazy German woman who, nevertheless, was passionate about her subject:  Heidelberg history.  She took us to the University there and old apartments of important historical figures such as Robert Schumann.  It was also where Martin Luther went to defend his 95 thesis, Heidelberg playing a significant role in the Reformation. Below are photos of a Lutheran church.  I found it remarkable in its contrast to St. Peter's.  The one filled with opulent, gold plated figures and adornment, the other striking in its almost Shaker-like simplicity.

St. Peter's Cathedral interior

Another view of St. Peter's Cathedral in Worms

Lutheran church below

There's more to Heidelberg than these photos but I think that's enough footage for now.  I hope and pray you all have a blessed week and very Merry Christmas!!