May 22, 2025
Weather: mostly cloudy, windy and chilly (low 50’s)
Marksburg Castle
We woke up docked just south of Koblenz on the east side of the river. We could see Marksburg Castle against the sun and said good morning! We have a busy day today. Bob, Anna, Loren and Pam have a walking tour of Koblenz and Shirley and Paul go up to the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress for a guided tour. We ate breakfast together and prepared to jump on busses and off adventuring.
The Walking tour around Koblenz was reported as well done and worth every penny. Shirley and Paul paid for the optional tour and were bussed up the mountain (by Chattanooga standards) and were introduced to Humphrey.
John Humphrey, special observer of the Prussian engineering works reporting to His Majesty, King William of England. (In other words, he was a spy.) Humphrey was played by an actor from Koblenz and was a consummate professional. Projecting voice, lines memorized and having fun with the character.
The Prussians built this fortress after the Napoleonic wars as part of a defensive group of forts around Koblenz. It was state of the art in 1836. We learned a ton of details about fortifications and construction. We didn’t learn much about why they did it here.
Humphrey and Shirley inside the (dry) Moat
The tour lasted about an hour and as it ended Humphrey shared a story about German Bureaucracy: they gave him a key to enter the premises, but not a key to exit the same gate. So, to let us out, he had to take the long way to the entrance where he could work the key to open the gate let us out. We exited and made our way to the gondola that would bring us to our bus.
The view from the gondola
Once down on river level, we had a nice walk to our bus past some pretty gardens and shops.
Koblenz promenade
Once we were back on the boat, we started our way down the Middle Rhine. This is the money shot. Castles, vineyards, quaint villages along the river were in abundance. We scored some seats on the Sun deck and listened to the Program Director’s running commentary of the castles. There were too many to include the pictures. Bob took a number with his good camera and telephoto lens, so we will probably have a treat when he gets home.
We did get a picture of the Lorelei rock and the statue of the Lorelei. This is a treacherous part of the river and was controlled by navigation signs and radar. Think one lane road ahead.
The Lorelei Rock
The Lorelei Statue
We cruised past more than 20 castles of various states of repair and aesthetic. It was windy and cold. Some braved the duration; others did not. The Captain had a technical presentation about the inner workings of the Viking Longship and some found that interesting; others did not.
Next stop, The Dinner
The waiting train
This train took us from the Rüdesheim waterfront into a fairy tale village of shops, eateries, tourists and locals milling about. The streets were narrow and cobbled. The buildings were old but kept up well. During the trip we heard a tape all about the area. They hold several special events throughout the year. AND, they have our Viking Cruise Director’s favorite Christmas Market!
A typical Rüdesheim Street
We entered the Drosselhof restaurant and were greeted by the owner and ushered to a large room. The band (a trio) was playing an eclectic mix from Elvis to Eidelweiss. And we settled in for a party. The staff did not disappoint. The beer glasses were never empty, the wine bottles were kept full, the food kept coming apace. We ate typical German food, rye bread with lard, salad, pork with mashed potatoes, greens and good gravy, light cheesecake and (of course) a shot of schnapps. To make the point the band played the “Ein Prosit” song and we all emptied our flutes. Great fun!
Dinner
We filed out of the restaurant and up the street to the train which wound our way back to the ship without the tourist spiel. We slept well!
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