Yesterday I went on a trip along the lovely Rhine river. We started at Reichenstein Castle which is better described by my photos than words. The second stop was at Stefan's Wine and Christmas Paradise where we sampled eiswein, the top wine in Germany. It is made when the grapes have received their first frost, but not thawed yet. On the drive to Stefan's we passed the Loreley rock on the Rhine, so I purchased a Loreley shot glass and a Bavarian music cd. The next event was our Rhine river cruise. We sailed up and down the river enjoying the many castles, vineyards, and adorable Rhein towns. After the cruise was lunch in an awesome restaurant. Old instruments were everywhere - hanging on the walls, hanging from the ceiling, it was neat to look at them all. The meal was schnitzel and fries, but since I ordered the vegetarian meal I had a potato schnitzel and fries. Very carb-filled. After lunch we walked next door and had the most fun wine tasting I've ever experienced. Hans, our wine director, was hilarious. We tried his red wine, rose, riesling, and another white wine. Germany is more known for white wines than red. I bought some wine because I had so much fun! Our final stop for the day was in Rudesheim am Rhein, where I went to the Music Cabinet Museum and wandered the streets. The music cabinet museum was so cool! I have lots of pictures for that too. Of course, on the way to the museum I start talking to Ramos and we end up getting lost, but we found the museum eventually. We had a large puertorican group on our tour, they are training at a nearby army post. He was practicing his English on me, and I practiced my Spanish. After the museum I walked along the Drosselgasse, the most famous street in Rudesheim, so I bought another shot glass to remember that. I shared a piece of cake with the tour guide and another passenger in a fancy cafe until it was time to go. It was a fun day, and though it would have been great to do it with Chris, I'm proud of myself for trying something on my own, succeeding, and having such a good time.
