Wurzburg

Tuesday we headed up the steep hill behind our hostel to the castle at the top. I liked the castle grounds a lot. The walk up was beautiful, with a really great view of the river and the town and other houses outside of the town, and there were vineyards on the slope on both sides of the path as well. We visited a museum in one of the buildings while we were up there and saw some really famous woodcarvings (by a man named something like Reimschneider) and different artifacts from that area and time.

Then we went into town and visited the palace of the bishop of Wurzburg, which was ridiculously grand. The palace was modeled after Versailles, and was huge and extravagantly decorated. The rooms were huge, with painted ceilings, the floors were magnificent parquet, and the entrance was big enough for the empress to be dropped off inside by the staircase from her carriage. Also, the staircase is very famous and big. The gardens were lovely and were my favorite part.

Later we had lunch together at a neat restaurant--the room we ate in as a group (which was really fun by the way :) was decorated like a chapel or a medieval church. I had baked camembert cheese with toast, butter, cranberry jam, and fried parsley. I really really liked it. The cheese looked like a little fish patty or something because it was breaded; I think it still had its rind.

Then we broke for the day. Justin and I shopped for shoes and sweets, settling for an odd chocolate covered mound that turned out to have some kind of pulverized nut filling. We sat on the edge of a fountain and talked while we ate that, then each had some down time alone before dinner. After dinner, Justin and I climbed back up the hill and watched the sun set from near the castle. It was a beautiful sunset, framed by the hills and the castle wall and the vineyard. It was a great time. Then we went out with the group because it was Dr. Schuetz's last evening with us. We went to the bar of the same restaurant we ate at for lunch. It was great to spend time with the group and I enjoyed hearing Dr. Schuetz's stories. Afterward J and I went on a little walk with the Taylors by the river, and then headed back to the hostel.

Tonight's feature: When we stepped outside of the Ratskeller, our restaurant and pub for the day, I saw a man walking along in 17th century dress or something like that--he was walking along with a great tricornered hat, a long black coat, and probably interesting hose and shoes and cravat. He was carrying a lit lantern and a halberd, I believe they're called--long spearlike weapons with an axe-looking head. I watched him and we smiled when he looked our way. A few minutes later, we saw a little black smart car (a very very small European car that looks toylike) buzz back by, and as it drove off, we saw the halberd sticking up from the back. How funny. :)

posted by LizC @ 4/05/2005 09:53:00 AM