KOBLENZ – THE ROMANTIC RHINE RIVER

It was a three hour journey from Heidelberg to Koblenz on the Highway. We made a stop in Manheim at Starbucks. It’s the only place I can get a ICED COFFEE. The Europeans do not believe in ice nor keeping their refrigerators cold for drinks. Waters at the gas stations are more on the warm side than cold.

We arrived at our hotel. Diehls and were escorted to our room on the river with a balcony to relax on. Just beautiful and picturesque. We took baths and headed down the river bank and took a ferry across the Rhine river. We found a boat leaving on a cruise of the castles. There are so many castles on what used to be the busiest trade route in Europe on the 36 miles from Mainz to Koblenz. We had sausage, ice cream and zero coco cola on our boat tour. They have a monorail that takes you to the castle behind our hotel. Pressed for time we chose to walk along the river bank where the Mosel river meets the Rhine river. We found another Starbucks inside an air conditioned shopping mall. We picked up some clean shirts, underwear and socks. We then walked the old town where there were squares either of churches or restaurants crowded with people drinking espresso and smoking cigarettes. The truth is we got lost. Our feet and bodies were sore and tired. Frustrated that there were no taxis around and just not physically possible to walk back the distance to our hotel. We called the hotel who got us a taxi ride back where we plopped into our large bed. GUTE NACHT GERMANY. Brussel here we come.