Rhine River

Last weekend, we went with our friends Dave and Dominique to take a river cruise down the Rhine River.
On the Rhine in the summer there is a large festival called the Rhine in Flames. This is where a number of the towns along the Rhine put on fireworks displays the same evening. Well, it has become so popular that at least one company (the one we went with) offers a smaller version of the same concept.
So, we drove up the road to the town of Saint Goar where we boarded the boat. These next couple images are the views from a little cafe where we waited for the boat and had a snack.
The castle in the background is Burg Maus (or Mouse Castle).

Interestingly, this castle is called Burg Katz … or the Cat Castle. This is due to the fact that the Katzenelnbogen family are the owners of the castle. It is also the reason that its neighbor is called the Mouse Castle.

The cruise itself was quite enjoyable. The boat was packed with people. The four of us found our seats and a new friend, Susan. She was traveling with a group of Americans through Germany. Also, there was a musician playing a variety of music. It was fun to sing along to the German music. Well, ok, it was more like watch everyone else sing and we just got swept away with the jubilation.
When we reached the beautiful little town of Bachrach, we disembarked for a delightful stroll and dinner in this town of 1,000 people.
As you can see, I had a little fun with longer photo exposures.

After dinner, we got back on the boat to watch the “Rhine in Flames” firework show. Perhaps a bit underwhelming, but nice nonetheless.



Eventually, we made it back to St. Goar and Burg Katz.

Another long exposure image.

So, that concluded our (short) trip down the Rhine with all its castles and ruins. Although we are still preferential to the Mosel River, it was very pretty and we can’t wait to go back and explore further.
So, until the next adventure…
–Jim