Ruedesheim: It is the center of Germany's busy wine growing region. The vineyards have been groomed here for more than a thousand years. This little town is really very special. There is a narrow little street named Drosselgasse that stretches up the hill and is maybe 10 feet wide. There are more wine gardens and restaurants per square meter on this street than anywhere else in Germany. Heide and I used to come here during our dating period and have great memories. You could spend many lazy days just enjoying the food, drink and music along the Drosselgasse. But, you'll have to double or triple up at the health club when you got back home.

We stayed in a wonderful 4 star hotel, the Ruedesheimer Schloss,  for very reasonable rates. From the window in our room we could look down on all the visitors meandering up and down the street. See picture 0575.

The German wines are of very high quality and are very reasonably priced in the world market compared to other wine regions. The reason for this is that the world associates the cheap wines, Blue Nun and Schwartze Katz with the authentic fine Spatlese and Riesling wines from this region. So take advantage and drink up. It is said that the wine consumed in Ruedesheim alone is enough to provide a living for all the wine growing towns along this area of the Rhine River.

From the port at Ruedesheim we embarked on a Rhine River Cruise past many castles and the storied Lorilei. Lorelei Rock, as told in folklore, is responsible for the deaths of many sailors who heard a mermaid singing there. With their attention set to finding the mermaid vision they would loose control of their vessel and find themselves being dashed among the rocks and torn apart by the swift current. Luckily, our captain kept his eyes and ears focused on navigating the river.

The Rhine is a very swift and dangerous river that takes about 4 fold the amount of time to return to our port against the current as it took to go down river. Not having modern engines, it was very difficult for ships to traverse in the old days. Along the shore of the river, teams of oxen were employed to pull them along. They had to stop at various castles and pay toll (see 675, 676). Many of these toll castles were owned by the Church. Some of them have been restored and are still in use as residences and hotels. Others are in ruins. The French had invaded most all of Germany's castles and burned and pillage them to shambles. Maybe that's why some Germans still hold resentment toward the French.