Germany is known for this fairy-tale like castles and Upper Middle Rhine Valley is where you get to see 40+ castles in a stretch of 67km! I'll write more about it in another post, for now, here's in detail about the few villages/towns where we stopped and explored.
BOPPARD: My next stop along the Rhine was Boppard where we stayed at Hotel Bellevue. The only place that I got to see here was St.Severus Church. The site was originally a Roman Baths and ever since 5th C CE, a church stood here. The current structure belongs to 1236 CE. Originally built in Romanesque style in 13th C, it was renovated and expanded later in Gothic style. The cross on the altar is as old as the church.
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There are some murals that depict the life of St.Severus in the nave. There are some murals in the right aisle ceiling as well. These murals too belong to the early Romanesque era. Early Christian grave-stones as old as 5th-6th C CE are on the wall here as well as the original baptismal font.
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ST.GOARHAUSEN: The most picturesque place when you go cruising on the Rhine - Loreley Rock! That's right here in St.Goarhausen. While the view from atop here is great, the best thing is to go the other side of the river to St.Goar and see the rock in all its glory, along with the way the river bends here!
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ST.GOAR: 2 very important sites here - Rheinfels Castle & Loreley Observation Deck. The Rheinfels castle was built in 1245 CE. As I mentioned in the earlier post, this too began as a tax collection point. Soon it became a defence castle and withstood a year long seige. In course of time, the Count Diether V von Katzenelnbogen, with his clever tie-ups, built the Katz castle on the other side of the river and effectively he could block every ship on the Rhine!
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Today the castle is in ruins but is mostly intact and its sheer size is huge! Its built of slatestone and for a moment I felt it was petrified wood! There are 3 things that fascinated me in this castle. One, ofcourse the watch tower that gave such a magnificent view of Rhine.
Two, the underground tunnels - main ones called the fox tunnels and the tiny tunnels that branched out from them called mine tunnels. This was probably dug-up in 1600s when gun powder came into being when they could blow up the enemies above by lighting gunpowder in these tunnels just below them! Today these tunnels are filled with spiders! I couldn't help but think that they should organize Halloween walk inside these tunnels with just a candle!
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Three, the cellar. It is the largest vaulted cellar without support in the whole of Europe. You should look at the walls - half of it is natural rock and then its built over that. Probably it was originally a moat and as the castle expanded, it was converted to a cellar.
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The Loreley Observation deck is here in St.Goar as well, for tourists & trekkers alike, with a memorial for Henrich Heine, swings and a sheltered viewpoint with seating arrangements. There is a small cafe here called the Loreleyblick Maria Ruh as well. Here's a 360°view for you to get a glimpse of the impeccable beauty of this place!!!!!
Two, the underground tunnels - main ones called the fox tunnels and the tiny tunnels that branched out from them called mine tunnels. This was probably dug-up in 1600s when gun powder came into being when they could blow up the enemies above by lighting gunpowder in these tunnels just below them! Today these tunnels are filled with spiders! I couldn't help but think that they should organize Halloween walk inside these tunnels with just a candle!
Pic Courtesy: Claudia Schwarz
Details on few more villages coming up in the next post. Stay tuned.
To Get There:
On Google Maps: Koblenz Cable Car, Ehrenbreistein fortress, Deursches Eck statue, Schängel statue, St.Severus Church, Loreley rock, Rheinfels Castle, Loreley Observation point
All these sites can be accessed on foot from the ferry points, as well as railway stations of Koblenz, Boppard and St.Goar.
Entry Tickets & Timings:
Koblenz Cable Car: 9:30AM to 5:30/7:00PM (in winter/summer respectively). Closed 04 Nov to 28 Feb for maintenance. €11 for cable car ride only; €14.80 for cable car + fortress combined ticket.
Ehrenbreistein fortress: €7; 10:00AM to 5:00/6:00PM (in winter/summer respectively)
Rheinfels Castle: €5 for regular tour & €7 for lantern tour at night (this happens once a month on a Saturday and is updated on their website); Mar 07-Nov 10 - Open daily 9:00AM to 5:00/6:00PM; Nov 11-Mar 06 - Closed.
Deursches Eck statue, Schängel statue, Loreley Rock & Observation Point: Free; Open 24 x 7
P.S: I was invited by UNESCO Germany to experience the region for review purposes, however the opinions are my own and this post does not to advertise the product/service.