On missing trains, turns and trails.

Sunday morning I woke up to a German woman... talking to me in German. I looked at her, kind of still thinking I was in a dream and just smiled and rolled over. In hindsight that was quite rude of me. Oops. 

I then got up, shook off my state of confusion and headed for the castle walls. My plan was to walk to this one tower that I saw off in the distance and then turn around. Problem was, when I reached the tower, I realized that I could go still higher up the mountain for a better view. 

So a twenty minute walk in my flip flops and travel hat turned into a gorgeous hike that I was very unprepared for. So worth it. 

I took a later boat from Bacharach to St. Goar for more views of castles and vineyards. Rick Steves had a wonderful tour in his book, describing each castle and detailing legendary tales. For example...

There are killer reefs on the Rhine called "The Seven Maidens." And legend has it that the prince of Shonburg castle had seven spoiled daughters who always dumped men because of the shortcomings. Fed up, he invited seven of his best knights to the castle and demanded that they each choose one to marry. But they complained that each man had too big a nose, was too fat, too stupid and so on. The rude girls escaped into a riverboat where further downstream, God turned them into the seven rocks that form this reef.

I was cracking up while cruising down the Rhine... hopefully this story isn't true because I feel like I would probably end up being the eighth maiden.

Upon arrival in St. Goar, I was of a one track mind: find a place to put my backpack. So, I asked around and found a hotel that let me drop my bag there, taking pictures of the surrounding area to make sure I could find the place again. You never know. 

I stopped in one shop, curious as to what they might sell, and was immediately met with a shot of brandy... to "better enjoy my shopping experience." If all shopping was like that, I think I would find myself shopping a bit more.

Lunch was next on the itinerary. I went to Gasthaus Zur Krone which had exceptional food and the best Riesling wine that I have ever had. Next on the to-do list for St. Goar was to go to Rheinfels Castle, which is supposed to be the best castle on the Rhine to explore. I started off up the mountain towards the castle, taking the scenic route, which I personally found very confusing. And after second guessing myself and backtracking several times, I arrived at the castle. (I think that all the trails actually might have led to the castle...)

Rick Steves has a great tour of the castle which I dutifully followed. 

I, of course, was cutting it close with time, and had to rush down the mountain. I decided to run through town (because I had to pick up my bag before heading to the train station), reassuring myself that I wouldn't see any of these people again, so it was fine. Of course, the spot where I left my bag was a lot further than I realized, so I had to run once I had my backpack on too. Got some looks for sure. I made it to the train station and ran up the stairs and there was my train!... on the opposite side. So, I ran over there and reached the train right as it was pulling away. 

Well so much for not seeing any of these people again. I took the opportunity to grab a spot and relax with some more Riesling. It wasn't so bad getting some extra time in St. Goar.

Next stop was Cologne, Germany. After settling into my hostel, I decided that it was about time I ate some dinner... seeing as it was around 10pm. I set out to a street that I was told had pizzerias and Turkish places. If you tell me that there's a place that I can get falafel, there's no turning back. So I kept walking and walking (passing tons of pizza places, of course). I eventually found a currywurst bar which I also love, so it was a win. 

I had gotten to this place by walking through a roundabout. Turns out... I took the wrong street when I walked back through. And didn't realize it for at least thirty minutes. I would think that I was going the wrong way and then convince myself that I had just seen something that I recognized. I also thought that maybe I had walked farther than I thought because my mind had been so set on falafel. But no, I had only walked about 10 or 15 minutes to find food. And then thirty minutes in the wrong direction. 

I'll have you know that I made it back to my hostel in one piece, bringing my wonderful days in Germany to an end.