Traveling LaMannas

As we tour the cities and towns along the river in Germany, you can easily forget that many of them had been severely damanged during WWII. Most often, those cities that were of critical or strategic significance were the ones most heavily bombed and damaged. Some of the towns experienced 90% or more damage while others suffered much less (about 5%). It is nice to see that they have carefully attempted to restore the towns in keeping with the period to preserve and replicate as much historical value as they can. Wurzburg was one of the most heavily damaged large cities in Germany.

Wurzburg is home to one of Germany's largest and most ornate palaces - an impressive Baroque Bishops' Residenze (UNESCO world heritage site). This former residence of the Wurzburg prince-bishop was designed by architect Balthasar Neumann and built over a 70 year period, beginnning in 1720. Both the massive reception staircase and the overhead ceiling are considered masterpieces of design, made even more impressive by the Venetian artist Giambattista Tiepolo's stunning 'Four Continents' ceiling fresco. here in reception, we learn how guests were greeted - the prince-bishop would decend varying amounts of steps depending on the importance of his guests. rarely did a guest qualify for his welcome at the bottom of the staircase. the reception area was designed to allow the entrance of the guests horse and carrages, - so you can imagine the magnitude. the stairs are very low risers - designed so that guests - especially women - would appear to glide up the staircase rather than climb. the women wore tight corrsets and very heavy clothing and it was a concern that they might pass out on the way up the staircase! Closer examination of the 'Four Continents' reveal that the artist truely had not visited the continents, we some of the representations were not accurate. despite the inaccuracies, it was still a stunning masterpiece. we visited several of the rooms that were open to touring. some of this building has been converted into private 'residences' and if you are one of 'influence' you might be able to rent one of the apartments. The massive palace was impressive and even had ceramic furnaces in most of the rooms. pictures are not allowed to be taken in the Residenze - but of course - there is a gift shop where you can purchase postcards of the ornate rooms. the rooms we visited included several reception rooms, the first of which is where guests would leave their weapons and guards - the white room. it was purposefully designed to bring peace to the eye after taking in the glory of the ceiling fresco in the grand entrance hall which covered more than 2,000 square feet in area! the next room was a waiting room, but in this room, guests would stand, here as well there are beautiful paintings on the walls and ceilings, including one of the wedding of the prince bishop to his 12 yr old bride. the following room (also a waiting room) had large tapesties on the walls but also had seats. again, your status deterined if you warranted a single chair with a back or simply a bench to be shared with other guests. next we entered what was a bedroom - fairly simply laid out in comparison to the other rooms. then we entered the most ornate of the rooms - the mirrored room - which was completely done in gold and mirrors! stunning.

i really dont have a good idea of what a prince bishop did or was - but obviously they were men of means and power - as all through our journey their residences are the largest and most ornate structures in the city or town.

after leaving the palace, we decide to heff it into the main market square on foot. again i am impressed by the colorful and varied 'fair' like structures (booths?) that are set up and sell everything on would ever need. this inlcudes meats, cheeses, flowers, kitchen gagets, clothing, underwear, pots & pans, windows, vaccums, souviners, jewlery - to name a few! again the market is crowed and surrounded by people and shops and wonderful smells (food, flowers, etc). We spend time sampling some of the local specialities (no beer this time) and shop around before we head back to the ship.

We are docket a bit further from the town center - still walkable - but a bit further than most of our stops. there is a movie theater dockside and we tried to see if they were showing movies in 'english'. while it was a rather large complex (largest i had seen - in fact only one i had seen), they were not showing any films in english that day - i guess some days they do and some days they dont!. it was a warm sunny day and we enjoyed a pleasant time on the sun deck when we got back.

We are at that point in our cruise where we will be passing from the river Danube to the river Main. while we have passed through many locks and canals already in our journey - this is a real engineering marvel. the canal stretches 106 miles from Kelheim on the Danube to Bamberg on the Main river. This canal was the dream of Charlemagne in 793! can you believe that! what vision and foresight to conceive of somthing like this to ensure continuous water travel. The canal was completed in 1992 (wow - that took a bit longer than planned - guess it must have been a government job) and has 16 locks in total and the water level drops by 1,332 feet from the Daube to the Main. the completion of these locks enables continuous river travel from the North Sea to the Black Sea. amaing. if you have never been though one of these very deep locks - it can be an eerie feeling. once in the lock the ship just seems to sink lower and lower - one was so steep - i couldnt see the top of the wall when we reached bottom! good thing i am not claustophobic!

we arrive in Bamberg for the afternoon- it is the 4th of July and while that might be a big party in the USA, no one here even recognizes (except on board ship). Bamberg is the historical family seat of the counts of Babenberg, who were founders and rulers of Austria from the 10th to 13th centure. Its architectural and spiritual center is the cathedral (whoa what a surprise). our guide here is Urs - a young and if i do say - cute - college age student. he works for a group called History for All society - and they have provided several of the guides along our route so far - but his is by far the cutest and youngest. this university student (studyiing to be a teacher) later tells us that he was in a movie (as a juggler in the crowd) which was filmed in Germany. he is very knowlegable about Bamberg and its history - as we go on a walking tour with him.

The city skyline presents a picture of many church steeples rising above a multitude of gables on steep tiled or blue-slated roofs. the fact that it is still intact is unique - since it was not damaged during WWII. we visit the cathedral of St Peter & St George and learn that it is the burial place of the cannonised imperial couple Hinrich and Kuniguande - founders of the diocese and the first cathedral. we visit the jewish section of town and learn about how the entire jewish population was wiped out during the war. we also visited the old court and new residense - these guys really knew how to live. i still dont know where the money came from. the streets are cobblestone and meander throuh alleys and shops and restaurants. again there is a large market square in the centre of town where many gather to socialize, drink, eat and shop.

Bamberg is listed as a UNESCO world heritage site boasting 2,000 buildings listed as historical monuments, and its old city center is Europe's largest existing group of historic buildings. this is considered one of Germany's most beautiful cities.

we decide to sit at one of the cafes and sample the local specialty - smoked beer. i know what you are thinking - smoked beer - yuck. i thought the same thing. i dont even like beer. but when in germany..... i ordered a 'small' smoked beer. it is dark and full bodied. they smoke flavor is a result of the hops being smoked. apparently there are pretty stict laws in germany about what you can and cant put in beer. they take it seriously. our guide had shared the legend about how the smoked beer came to be - when there was a fire and the hops were 'smoke damaged' they decided to make it into beer anyway - and their reputation was born. i have to say - again not being a beer drinker - that once you got past the smell of smokiness - it didnt taste bad. i made a comment about the large size of my beer and the german customer at the next table assured me that there could never be too large a beer! over 50 types of beer are brewed in this city. the smokey beer is called Schlenkerla Rauchbier.

we have to head back to the ship - which was going to conitnue its journey as we enjoyed the sites in town - and we are going to meet up in Hassfurt.

Most of us have heard of the famous Nuremberg Trials. Even me, who is not a history buff, had. I was a bit hesitant about what i might feel when we arrived in this town. Again, relying on my limited knowledge about WWII history, i am sure that i had images in my head that clouded my expectations.

Founded in the 11th century by Emperr Heinrich IIi as a base for his campaigns in Bohemia, Nuremberg today is the 2nd largest city in Bavaria. Before WWII Nuremberg was one of the most beautiful medieval cities in Germany. Located in the crossroads of the major trade routes, the city was a veritable shop windown for Franconian craftsmanship. Elevated to a free imperial city by Emperor friedrich II in 1219, it retained this status until 1806 when the Kindom of Bavaria annexed it. From the 12th - 16th centure nearly all the emperors maintened their residence in the Kaiserburg (castle) and held their imperial diets here. At that time, Nuremburg was regarded as the unofficial capital of the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation. the first German science university was founded in Nuremberg in 1526. There were world renowned sculptors, artists and painters who profoundly influenced the German scene with their works. from 1600 onwards the political and economic importance of the city declined. the real prosperity ony returned when the first German railway between Nuremberg and Furth was inaugurated in 1835. During the 20th centure, Nuremberg gained notoriety, first as the site of the Nazi party rallies, later as the location of the infamous uremberg trails.

We opted to do the optional WWII tour rather than the usual walking tour of the city. We arrived at the extensive Nazi Party Rally Grounds which also houses a Documentaion center. The center houses detaled documentation of the history of the party rallies, clearly exposing the manipulative nature of the Nazi propaganda machine. The upper level of the center houses a new permanent exhibit titled :Fascination and Terror: which deals with the causes, relationships and consequences of national Socialist tyranny. Many emotions were evoked as you toured the facilty, there were movie clips from times and real accounts from the period of time from Hitler's beginning, his rise and finally his fall. It is a bit scary as you realize how close this maniac came to taking over the world. It was painful to hear the accounts of his torture and murder of thousands of innocent vicitims, especially the Jews and children. Hitler and his party controlled everything - his followeres were not aware of what he was really doing. The rally grounds were never finished and used - but a visit to the arena which reminds me of the Coliseum in Italy- is a large horseshoe shaped structure where Hitler envisioned his impassioned speeches, intended to work the crowds into a frenzy of support. the rally grounds were intended to hold training and exhibition parades for thousands of soldiers. the design of the grounds had the main road lead directly into the center of Nuremberg.

Next we visit the Palace of Justice and courtroom 600 where the Nuremberg trials were held. the prision where those charged were held was directly behind the palace and the prisioners could be escorted directly from the prision through underground tunnels into the courtroom. there was much concern that there would be attempts on their lives if they had to be transported publically. We listen to a local educator provide us with a summary of the trials and events and disposition of justice that was issued. It was a very sobering day all said.

Being a Sunday, the town is rather quiet. local laws prohibit shops from opening, so when we arrive at market square, it is somewhat desolate, save a few other tourists and an couple souvenir shops. there is a statue in the center of the square and legend tells of a scored lover who was rejected by the father of his beloved because the father believed the yound suitor was not a skilled craftsman worthy of marrying his daughter. To prove his talent, he constructed a stature surrounded by an elaborate gate. he intwined a brass ring into the gate with such skill, you canno see any markings where the circle is joined. then he left town to find another love. it is said that if you turn the brass ring counter clockwise, it will bring you much luck and wealth (Mack & Sky do it - hope it works).

We also stop by the Kaiserberg, once the imperial residence of the Holy roman Emperor. the palace consists of a cluster of buildings that date back to the year 1040. From the view, one can see the intact city wall, more than 3 miles long, with 80 defensive towers surrinding the old town center. This is a beautiful and amazing vestige of 13th centure medieval times.

After a full and thought provoking day, it is time to head back to the ship as we sail on. We will be traveling on the Main Danube canal as we leave the Danube River.

Okay, if you are anything like me with Geography, you probably have a good handle on where most of the European countries are located. But I had very little knowledge about most of the cities in Germany. My visions of Germany are shaped by visions conjured up though my studies on WWII and Hitler. I have to admit that my perceptions couldnt be further from fact!

As we approached our destination, our ship's captain advised us that due to some heavy rains in this region the day previously, he was uncertain that we would be able to pass under one of the bridges just outside of Regensburg. Fortunatley, the water levels subsided enough during the night to allow (just barely) or safe passage.

I was delighted with this town of Regensburg. It was charming. The ship docked conveniently next to the main area and with a view of the Old Stone Bridge. This bridge was built from 1135 - 1146 and is a masterpiece of medieval engineering. It has 16 arches, is 1,017 feet long and still carries traffic from the left bank of the river through the last remaining tower into Regensburg's unique Old Town. From there you can see the gleaming spire of Gothic St. Peter's Cathedral with its stained glass. Before we started off on our local tour with our group, we checked out the farmers market. the market in this town is set up on Saturday mornings and was a classic small town farm market. it was popular with the locals who shopped for everything from fresh fruit and vegetables, to meats, cheeses, wines, spices, nuts, and many other specialties. We quickly blended in (except that i had my camera and bloggie). David purchases a supply of nuts and fresh snacks that he enjoys to stay healthy. we also purchased some french wines to bring abord ship to try with dinner. we prefer red wines. cant wait to sample!

Our local guide, Monica (who speaks fluent English) tells us that the city was originally a Celtic settlement named Radisboha and in the year 179 AD the emperor Marcus Aurelius the Roman garrison of Castra Regina - this was a huge camp (of Roman soldiers) that guarded the northern fronteir of the Empire. We saw the emants of the Roma city wall "Porta Praetarja ' not only evidence of the Roman occupation, but a tribure to their engineering prowess. She tells us that during the 12thand 13th centuries, Regensburg becam the wealthiest and most populated city in southern Germany. She points out many of the structures from the 13th and 14th century that are not found anywhere north of the Alps and serve to give Regensburg its medieval appearance. Since the town suffered viturally no damage during WWII, the town is much better preserved and its medieval history is evident. Nearby our ship and the stone bridge, is a local favorite - the sausage hause. its a small grill that has been service their customers the same fare for hundreds of years. they only serve sausages. the only question you need to answer to place your order is 4 or 8 and with or without (saurkraurt). not being a sausage fan - i passed on this local delicassy. but i talked to a few fellow travelers who indulged and were delighted. it was certainly popular with tourists and locals alike.

Later in the day, we join up with a group of fellow Viking travelers and visit a Biergarten! We sampled Bavarian beers, including dunkel (dark), wheat, and Pilsner. Boy - they just dont know what 'small' means when serving beer! not being a beer drinker myself, i was uncertain that i would enjoy or partake in this adventure. throwing caution to the wind (when in Germany...) i ordered a 'small' dunkel. surprisingly it wasnt bad and i drank it! who knew.

After our beer drinking, we make our way through the cobble stone streets and alley ways, coming across a bakery that is rumored to serve the best apple strudel in town! wouldnt you know - that by this time of day - the apple is completely sold out - so we had to settle for other delectible choices. while i have nothing to compare to - they were scrumptous!

back to the ship as we recharge our batteries with a relaxing drink and a nice dinner. ready for our next adventure.

Next we head to Germany on our river cruise. Germany is 139,000 sq miles - just smaller than the state of Montana. Ther are 4 main geographic zones: broad lowlands in the north, central uplands, wide valley & gorge of the Rhine River in the southwest and the forested mountains and plateaus of the south. there are about 82.2 million people of Germany.

Our first stop in Germany is Passau- Dreiflussestadt - city on three rivers. it is situated at the confluience of the Danube, Ilz and Inn Rivers (our guide thinks this is the only place in the world this occurs - but someone on our group straightens him out). we arrive in the morning and head out for an early morning walking tour of the city. I have been surprised to learn that many of the places that we are visiting including those in Germany, were once part of the Roman Empire - and therefore, many of their early historical beginnings have their foundation from the Romans. The currents in the rivers are very strong and our guide warns us that the water can be very dangerousl. On our journey through town, we pass the Bishop's Residenz - an impressive structure. the castle Veste Oberhaus was built in 1219 by Passau's Prince-Bishop in order to control commerce across the rivers. over the centuries, the changes to the castle consist of gothic, renaissance and baroque parts. it sits high on the hill overlooking the city. This fortress was very important for the protection of the old part of the town against enemy attacks. The walls around Passau stand as proof of its 2000 year history - having seen the presence of roman armies, troops led by charlemagne against the avars, capaigns of the crusaddrs, turkish battles and napoleon's soldiers. i gather from our guide that the bishop had much power and wanted to show their strength and prestige so they built the largest and most impressive structures that they could. i am amazed at the size and beauty of these palace like structures. Someone was living very well.

Also on the walking tour is a stroll past the 14th century Town Hall and the town's magnificent 17th century St Stephan's Cathedral. St Stephans (i didnt know there was a st stephan) contains Europe's largest pipe organ. There are actually 5 organs in the church, but all can be controled and played from the main one. Included in our tour is an organ concert - the sound is incredible in this place.

We depart from our group and venture out on our own to explore the narrow cobble stone streets and alley ways, quaint shops and cafes. there are many bier garten - all over. the pedestrian shopping area is located on the Ludwigstrasse, the Grabengasse and the side streets. Bavarian souvenir shops are found along the Danube River prmenade. everyone drinks beer with almost every meal (it seems)! we stopped for lunch in a sidewalk cafe and have our first attempt to decifer the german language (menu). we did pretty good - everyone ended up with something they wanted. the boys sampled the local brew and i opted for a glass of white wine. what a delightful way to top off the afternoon walk. The children were successful finding a unique treasure to take back to remember their stop in Passau.

after lunch we headed back to the ship - preparing for dinner and our next day's adventure.