Tuesday, August 22nd, 2017 - A River With a Song

The structure of our week here in Oberheimbach consists of several hours of singing under the direction of Richard Harker in the mornings, followed by outings in the afternoons.

So Rosemary and I, along with the rest of the group gathered outside the hotel for our first outing on Tuesday afternoon for a cruise down the Rhine, between Bacharach and Bopparder - about an hour in all. 

It was quite a large boat - and in addition to our group of approximately 30, there were many others waiting to get on.

It had large dining areas........,

...........but for photographic purposes, it was much better above deck.

We were rewarded pretty quickly with a view of Pfalzgrafenstein Castle, which was a toll castle built in the 14th Century. It seems they were pretty serious about collecting tolls - they would but up a chain across the river and hold recalcitrant mariners in their dungeon until a ransom was paid.

There were numerous other fortifications along the shore and on hillsides - too numerous to spell out here. It evokes a recognition that the river is steeped in history. Most of the hillside was cultivated with grapevines. Along a great deal of the shoreline one sees a row of houses, which cluster together into villages where the landscape provides some flatland. 

One of the famous sites along this stretch of river is a steep slate rock called the Lorelei. According to Wikipedia, the name actually means 'murmuring rock' because of strong river currents and a waterfall nearby.

The rock itself is a rather 'unprepossessing slate', but as we had prepared to sing the famous song about it, I have to show you a picture of it! The lyrics to the song were composed by Heinrich Heine in 1824 and tell of a beautiful maiden who sang like a siren and combed her golden hair here. Supposedly this lured many boatmen into the rock - thus wrecking their boats!.

There is a statue of a the maiden to commemorate the poem. It was actually hard to see and photograph and was almost half a mile past the rock itself, so it was a bit of a let down when all is said and done - although our singing was very delightful!

There is so much loveliness along the shore, that it is too much to log here........ there was something very familiar, it was not as lush or steep as I had expected, but it was a very beautiful experience.

I especially liked these flag displays that looked like ship masts at some of the villages.

Bopparder was a small, touristy village, but quite charming. There were Christmas shops.

This is the place for you if you want to buy a cuckoo clock.......

.......or a beer stein!

There was a busy central square. I liked seeing photos of Angela Merkel around.

The fun treat for the day was 'spaghetti ice cream'! The ice cream is put on a bed of whipped cream, then pushed through a noodle maker to look like spaghetti. The cherry-flavored topping substitutes for bolognese sauce and grated cheese in top is the 'Parmesan'! What will they think of next!

Just so we don't end on food (I don't want to leave you with cravings!), here's a photo near the train station. You can see that they do build new structures. I think the UNESCO World Heritage requirements drive those standards. This building was unusual in the context of this valley.