Burg Eltz & Rheinfels Castle

Our adventure in the Rhine Valley continues with our second day in Germany. We had kind of a rough start after our first night because Mike hit the snooze on his alarm a few times and/or turned it off. :P Rob and I of course were no better off as we didn't realize a travel alarm clock would be so crucial (none of the hotels had one except our last hotel). We were relied on the Pennock's to knock on our door to wake us up. The church bell going off in town reminded us we should be at breakfast and not in bed. We threw on clothes and tried to look conscious as we went to the restaurant.

We grabbed a table and got some delicious coffee (nectar of the gods) and experience our first German breakfast. Fresh baked rolls, ham, salami, other pork meats, cheese, medium boiled eggs, and spreads (honey, jam, nutella). It was definitely different that cereal and a banana, but it was so good!

After we finally got ready for the day, we were off to our first castle viewings. First on the list; Burg Eltz. This castle is still family owned some 33 generations later, although the family only comes for a few nights during the summer (according to our tour guide). This castle was constructed to house different branches of family in separate parts of the castle because none of them could afford to build one on their own. Apparently only the very rich could do this. We grabbed a quick lunch here and continued onward to our next stop.

From Burg Eltz & Rheinfels Castle

When we left Burg Eltz, it was overcast and trying hard to rain. We we arrived at Rheinfels Castle, it was of course raining pretty good. It figures that Murphy's law would apply in Europe just as well as it did here. Burg Eltz is still completely in tact. Rheinfels Castle is in ruins.

From Burg Eltz & Rheinfels Castle

We climbed around the caslte with Mike and Rob both narrating at different points around the castle. Even though the castle is in ruins, it's in huge ruins and only taking up a fifth of the land it used to cover. With it's prime location on the Rhine River, they taxed the ships that brought goods on it. This river appears to have been a very heavily taxed river with castles all along it. Of course, this always sparks confrontation and war. This castle had been rebuilt at least once in it's time. After the French won it over in 1797, they destoryed it to prevent furutre battles/wars over it.

After climbing around in the rain, we headed back to the hotel/town to grab some souvenirs, wine, and food. With the crappy weather we created our own wine garden at our hotel. :)

From Burg Eltz & Rheinfels Castle