HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY FROM KOBLENZ AND TRIER!

Hotel Blucheral aka _____
Blucherstrasse 162
Bacharach, Germany
Thursday, July 4, 2024
69F, cloudy – sunny

 

Roman gate in Trier

Out the door at 8 a.m., on our way to Koblenz. There is a very good bakery on our way to the train station where we have stopped for water every day and where TK buys my croissant. Today he also bought a marzipan filled pastry which we saved for our ride back to Bacharach.

Our first stop today, after two trains, was Koblenz. The city is situated on the confluence of the Moselle and Rhine rivers. In fact, according to Derek, Koblenz came from the Latin word for confluence.

 

TK noticed Konigsbacher Braue beer

Chris bought a bottle and TK posed with it

Rhine River

Moselle River

We walked to the junction of the rivers and saw a very large equestrian statue of Kaiser Wilhelm I—45 ft. high, first created in 1897.

Kaiser Wilhelm I

Kaiser Wilhelm I

Across the Moselle River we saw a campground full of campers—it certainly looks like Germans enjoy summer camping too!

Campground

We continued our interesting stroll along the Moselle – bicycles are prevalent, parks, fountains, churches, old and new buildings, it is a dynamic city. I was especially interested in old Koblenz because my Great Uncle Archie was stationed here as part of the Army of Occupation during WWI, as mentioned before. I wanted to feel as if I was experiencing some small part of his experience there.  His letters from this German city indicated he was developing a sort of fondness for the Germans, that he did not carry a grudge. When I read his letters I thought that was very significant—he got to know the Germans as people.

Since we were hungry, we decided to take another train to Trier (1.5 hours), considered to be the oldest town in Germany, founded by the Romans in 16 B.C. on the banks of the Moselle River. It is 31 miles from Luxembourg, and 62 miles from Koblenz.

Trier, population 111,000, is a southwestern German city in the Moselle wine region, near the Luxembourg border. It contains several well-preserved Roman structures like the Porta Nigra gate, the ruins of Roman baths, an amphitheater just outside the center and a stone bridge over the Moselle River.

There are eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Trier, the Porta Nigra gate, Constantine's throne room, the imperial bathhouses, the Roman bridge and an amphitheater are scattered across the city, plus other Roman sites.

We headed, with Derrick’s guidance, to zum Domstein Convivo Gastro GmbH, an excellent restaurant. I was delighted to see Quiche Lorraine with salad on the menu and TK had Beef Roulade with potato dumplings and the best red sauerkraut.  By this time, we all needed sustenance.

zum Domstein

After dinner we had time to shop or walk around Trier, so TK and sauntered along the cobblestone streets soaking in the German ambience.  Trier is where my Uncle Archie went on leave (1919) and took an airplane ride.  I love imagining how someone in 1919 was so adventuresome to fly in an airplane only 16 years after the Wright Brothers made the first successful flight at Kill Devil Hills, Northe Carolina!

Another side of the Roman"Black Gate"

A Woolworth store!

Vending machines are fun in Germany

What's not to like about a train station?

Soon enough it was time to hop on two trains to return to Bacharach.

 

Time to shut this down--Internet somewhat better, finished July 3 and today--its only 5 p.m. in Erie, bedtime in Germany.

 

TK’s Takes:  Pickup trucks are rare—he saw a Torok truck today (VW) he liked.  Not many bugs outdoors.   We can see Riesling grape vines from our hotel balcony—on a very steep hill.

Janie:  15,700 steps

TK: 14,500 steps