The Romantic Rhine and Rudesheim

 Today was another lazy start day! Starting to lean in to these “mornings”—the boat is on the move until about 2:00 or so, so we entertain ourselves on the boat by eating, treadmilling, eating, sitting in lounge chairs on the deck, and eating… you see the pattern here. Please note that I am not complaining and am starting to see the virtues of being fed every two hours or so….

The Rhine is called Romantic because it is—both literally and figuratively. The castles you see along the river are often Gothic or Medieval and then renovated in the Romantic period, which gives them elegant turrets and beautiful architectural additions. There are about 60 castles total on the Rhine, and we saw about two dozen of them today. If you have about two million euros, the guide says, you, too, can have your very own romantic castle! Some re-assembly required!

Then, a German lunch—today’s fare was more savory than sour, and I loved everything I tried, but the apple strudel, of course, was the highlight. Finally, after a morning of taking pictures and sampling local wines and foods, our boat docked at Rudesheim—roo-dess-hime—and it was time to take a tour!

We stopped first at a music museum, which I enjoyed more than I thought I would—all the musical instruments we met today played themselves, either through German or American engineering. There was a carousel machine that played the music you hear as you circle around on, well, a carousel, a player piano that also played violins at the same time, and a grand player piano in a knight’s hall—turns out the museum also doubled as a former knight’s keep, complete with a great hall that was modest in size but properly old; the foundation dated back to the 12th century.

After that, a special Rudesheimer kaffee—a Rudesheim coffee, made of coffee, sugar, Asbach Uralt brandy, whipped cream, and chocolate, served in a special mug specifically for this treat. The family who served us are the extension of the family who still make the brandy and Riesling this area is famous for—the Breuers met us and explained the recipe. Can confirm it was marvelous, and faintly Christmassy, which makes sense, because the next thing Rudesheim is famous for is the Christmas market. I definitely helped the economy here by buying the one item I knew I wanted from Germany—a German Christmas pyramid. I have one that goes out every Christmas in my house, and it’s special because my grandma Gene Craig gave it to me, but now I have one from Germany as a souvenir of this amazing trip and a nod to my own German heritage (my grandma Alberna Arbeiter Hickman was fully German and only learned English after she was about seven years old).

Following this adventure, we meandered our way back to the boat by way of the little German shops, where showers and dinner awaited us. Tonight, we enjoyed a lovely classical concert after dinner, performed by local musicians—a violinist and a guitarist—who played all the greatest hits of the Italian and German composers.

Please enjoy these assorted castles, a Hickman fam selfie, and Rudesheim!

“Please watch your ears,” she said, as she fired up the loudest music box in the whole wide world….

This town is so charming… I want to pack it into my suitcase and bring it home.