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Germany
2006 Page 3 |
Main Travel Page Main Germany '06 Page |
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On our last full
day in Germany, we headed north from Rheinzabern, down the Rhein River
valley to the imperial city of Speyer.
Here we visted the Kaiserdom, the largest Romanesque cathedral in
Germany, the construction of which began in the year 1030. The Kaiserdom is
on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. |
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The interior of
the Kaiserdom is as magnificent as the exterior. In the crypt are the
tombs
of kings and emperors, including the cathedral’s founder, Kaiser Konrad
II. |
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On the Saturday
of our visit, Speyer’s main street in the Altstadt,
Maxmilianstraße, came alive with hundreds of strollers enjoying
the spring weather and the wares displayed in dozens of stalls. |
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Fresh flowers were
on display in Speyer and in every other market area we visited on our
trip. |
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At the far end of
Maxmilianstraße is the arched opening of the Altpörtel, the
old city gate. At the far end of the street can be seen the Kaiserdom. |
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North of
Speyer—down the Rhein Valley—is the city of Worms, site of the
1521 Imperial Diet at which Luther refused to recant his teachings. The
Luther
Denkmal (the Luther Memorial) honors the memory of Luther and other
leaders of the Protestant Reformation. |
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At the heart of
the old city in Worms is the huge Romanesque cathedral, Dom
St. Peter (St. Peter’s Cathedral). |
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From Worms, we
drove north to Gonsenheim,
where we checked into the Hotel
Zur Ludwigsbahn. The rooms do not have numbers, but rather are
identified by the fruit or vegetable motif of each room. Pat and Norm
stayed in the Zimmer "Kirsche," the cherry room. |
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We visited Kerstin Mohr and Thomas Becker and
their girls, Anabel and Simone, in their home in Gonsenheim. (Kerstin
is Norm’s cousin in the Mohr-Neff family.) We were then taken on a
delightful visit of the Altstadt, where we viewed the Rhein River and
enjoyed an evening walk around old Mainz. |
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A short spring rain did not stop our walking
tour of the old city. Here we look up at the great cathedral. |
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The Mainzer Dom
(St. Martin's Cathedral in Mainz) dominates the historical center of
Mainz. Construction on the predominately Romanesque cathedral began
about the year 975. |
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The Mainz Altstadt
suffered heavy losses from bombing in World War II. Today, the old city
is
a mixture of surviving historic structures, reconstructions, and a
variety of post-war architecture. The old University of Mainz is
surrounded by modern buildings. |
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Our charming
Gonsenheim cousins, Anabel and Simone. |
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Kerstin and Thomas
treated us to wine and dinner at the Weinhaus
Zum Spiegel in the Mainz Altstadt. The day has ended for Simone,
while Anabel hangs on. |
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The rain added a
glow to Mainz at night. Our evening with Thomas, Kerstin, Anabel, and
Simone was the perfect ending to our visit to Germany. |
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Day 8 (2 April)
was our departure day. We left our hotel in Gonsenheim early, returned
our
rental Fiat, and had breakfast at the Frankfurt airport. We arrived at
Chicago's Midway airport on time and drove home to Valparaiso. Auf Wiedersehen Deutschland! |
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