Regensburg Redux

Our second attempt at Regensburg turned out to be glorious - high 70s, clear sky, no wind.  We arrived at about 10:30 and decided the old stone bridge would be our first destination.  I suggested we walk along the Danube to get there and along the way we ran into a tour boat.  Carissa went up to the information booth and found out that the next tour was leaving in about 5 minutes so we paid and got on board.  We sat on the top deck and ordered some beverages.  We learned yesterday that Germans mix everything with sparkling water - the kids ordered Orangensaftschorle which is orange juice and sparkling water.  We had ordered this and Apfelschorle (Apple juice + sparkling water) many times without realizing what it was.  Carissa decided to share with the kids and I ordered a Thurn and Taxis Pils, which is a local brew owned by a German royal family (of the same name) known for European postal services in the 16th century as well as castle building.  This was not a great beer, actually tasted exactly like Miller Lite with a bitter finish.  Anyway, the boat tour was very nice, but it was hard to hear the tour guide over the loudspeaker as apparently everyone on board couldn't care less about the history of the town / river.  As a result, Carissa and I took turns getting up and standing next to the speaker and then walking back and relaying what had been said.

After the boat tour we made our way to the old stone bridge which was built 800 years ago and opened up international trade routes between Northern Europe and Venice.  As a result, Regensburg boomed and has been a hub for international commerce ever since.  Right next to the bridge on the river is also an 800 year old sausage factory that is still in business.  We got some for lunch and they were fantastic.

Really Old Bridge

Really Old Sausages

We followed that up by walking over to the Old Town Hall where Roman emperors (Regensburg used to be the northern most military post on the Danube of the Roman Empire) used to hold meetings.  Unfortunately you can only see the inside via a tour which was a couple hours off.  Too bad because apparently it has the original furniture that the emperors and their guests used.

Old Town Hall

After an ice cream stop and a shopping at a bookstore we wandered over back to the Cathedral to snap a few more pictures and tour the little museum next door.  It was housed in a much smaller but really beautiful sanctuary and contained all kinds of crucifixes, staffs, chalices, sculptures and paintings that the church had used in it's 600 year history.  Just down the street from there we accidentally found another incredible church, this one 1000 years old that is still active today.  Some of these old churches really have some spooky stuff - the tombs in this one of past bishops I thought were a little grim, but fun to see.

Church Museum

Bishops behind bars.  Finally?  ;)

We ended the day at a little street fair that we had seen while on the boat tour.  A little disappointing but we had some fresh cinnamon-sugar crepes that made the girls miss breakfast at Maria's and the kids got some new faces.  There are a couple things we still haven't seen in Regensburg - another sanctuary and the Thurn and Taxis castle, but after 6 hours on foot in the hot sun Dad was ready to go home.

Sunday we had a lazy morning and then went to the local pool.  We ran into our German neighbors and the kids had a great time with them.  At one point some of Lydia's friends from school showed up and Lydia spurned them for her new German speaking friends.  These two literally don't speak a word of English, but somehow it doesn't matter at all.  After the pool their mom Yvonne, invited us all over for coffee.  Carissa went with the kids while I went to the grocery store.  Upon leaving the grocery store on post I was reminded about the big Fussball match that I'm sad to say I didn't see a minute of.  The Germans had obviously won because columns of cars were flying down the streets waving German flags out the windows and honking their horns.  I am not missing the next one - there is a public viewing area in town where people gather to watch.  I'm hoping they win the whole thing just to see the reaction of the locals.

They call this the Walbad which apparently translates to Whale Bath.  I'm guessing because it's a large pool.  By the way, stay tuned for some German swimsuit styles....

This weekend we are heading outside of Germany for the first time to Prague.  My mom says it's one of her favorite places so we are pretty excited.  Hopefully the nice weather holds up.