A walk by the river

So I've been ill the last couple of days, which has meant lying in bed all day and, rather counter-productively, eating a horrific amount of bad food to cheer myself up. By this evening though, I really needed to just get out of my flat and walk for bit. Well, further than the distance to my fridge. Anyway, that's how I found myself walking along the river between Neckargemünd and the next town, Neckarsteinach. It's a lovely warm evening here and I thought I'd just share a few photos that I took. I'm going to miss having all this right on my doorstep.

A home from home

I won't lie, I often like to boast about how great the weather is here in comparison to England. It makes me feel just a bit smug everytime I hear that it's raining at home whilst I'm enjoying sunshine and blue skies. This Sunday though, I got what was coming to me. Emily, James and I had been expecting rain all weekend which never really came, but just as they left and I was about to head home, it struck. I was literally soaked through in seconds, the only time I've seen rain like this was in Florida! The streets had rivers running down them and I couldn't even see for water. Maybe it's not so different to England after all...

Schlossbeleuchtung Heidelberg

This weekend I welcomed yet more visitors to Heidelberg, this time Emily (her second visit) and James. After the slight hiccup that was their flight out being cancelled, we had a really great weekend. Admittedly our time consisted mainly of eating and drinking; we went to quite a selection of cafés, bars and restaurants in their three days here, but we also fitted in a more cultural side too! The weather had promised to be terrible with non-stop heavy rain, however we were lucky enough to more or less escape that, which mean that we were able to do the Philosopher's Walk along the river once again, as well as walk up to the castle so Emily and James could get a look at the view from that high up. Somehow no matter how many times I walk up to the castle, this never ever gets boring. 

Instead of walking back down, we decided to use the free ride on the funicular railway that was included in our castle ticket price. We were quite excited to go right to the top of the hill, but we realised after much confusion that our tickets actually only covered the journey between the ground and the castle, which was the first stop. To go any further it costs 12 euros per person, so in the end we decided against it. Still, at least we can say we went on the funicular.

We also got to go to Heidelberg Zoo, which was great because I've seen signs for it since the day I arrived here in February but I'd never actually been. It isn't a massive zoo, but there is still an impressive selection of animals, including lions, tigers, zebras, camels and elephants. It was also quite fun looking at the more common animals too; Emily was particularly taken with the meerkats and a little bunny which was completely adorable. Meanwhile James found himself a favourite amongst the donkeys, which lined up along the fence where he stood and then made quite a fuss when he walked away!

The highlight of the weekend for me though was by far the Schlossbeleuchtung, which translates to 'Castle lighting'.  Three times a year, the castle is lit up on the hill and then a firework display is held by the Old Bridge. Saturday evening was the second lighting of the year, and we joined hundreds, if not thousands, of other people in the street to watch the impressive display. The best view is of course from the hill on the other side of the river, because it is possible to see both the fireworks and the lit castle from there. However, we didn't really fancy the walk up the hill at 10pm at night, so we sacrificed our view of the castle and stood by the bridge instead. It was absolutely incredible and I'm so glad that Emily and James were there to see it too. I tried to get some photos, but of course they aren't the best because of the difficult lighting/timing. Luckily I also got a video, so you can hopefully get an idea of what it was like!

A quick trip to Switzerland!

The last weekend of June brought a spontaneous trip out of Germany and across the border into beautiful Switzerland! I was lucky enough to meet a group of people a few months ago in Heidelberg, one of whom lives in Switzerland, and having said I wanted to travel whilst I was here, he was kind enough to invite me to stay with his family for the weekend in a small Swiss town called Heiden. 

The train journey took about 4 hours and was stunning; the railway ran right through the Black Forest so I was surrounded by trees and hills for most of my journey. Unfortunately the moving train didn't allow for any photo opportunities, but it was certainly one of the more interesting train rides of my life! I arrived on Friday evening in the city of Konstanz, which is half in Germany and half in Switzerland. It is situated on a giant lake, which marks the boundary between Germany, Switzerland and Austria. The train station was in the German half,  but once I met with my friend we crossed into Switzerland. Heiden is about an hour away from  Konstanz, and the road to his house follows the lake, so I just sat in awe for most of the journey as I looked out my window. 

On Saturday I continued my tour of Europe as we crossed the border into Austria to go to a lake beach. Now sometimes I can be a little hesitant to swim in lakes, but it was absolutely beautiful. Due to the hot weather there were lots of people, but we still managed to find a spot where we could simply sit back and look at the view.

After spending nearly the whole day sunbathing and swimming, we made our way to the nearby restaurant and indulged in some ice cream. I got a walnut and caramel sundae and it was delicious! Hey, we ate fruit during the day....Once we were finished and went to leave the sun was just beginning to set and the sky looked amazing. It felt surreal that the day before I'd been working and just 24 hours later I was standing looking at a beautiful sunset in Austria. 

It was, or course, only a flying visit, because I had to head back to Heidelberg on Sunday in order to be ready for work Monday morning. Luckily I still had some time on Sunday though. My friend's dog had recently had seven puppies, and we ended up spending most of the morning in the garden playing with them. They were absolutely adorable and I had my heart set on having one until I found out that they cost about 1000 euros each! I did suggest that I could simply steal one, but that idea didn't seem too popular. 

Finally it was time to leave, so we drove back to Konstanz and had lunch in the city before I had to catch my train. I didn't get to look around much, but I'd love to go back because from what I did see, it is a really lovely city. It was a really tiring weekend but I'm so glad I went!

More visitors to Heidelberg!

So it's been another busy couple of weeks and there's been lots going on, so I'm sorry for the delay in updates. But now I finally have a spare few moments so I'll catch you up on what's been happening here in Germany.

The last weekend brought my next group of visitors to Heidelberg, this time my auntie and uncle Jan and Peter and, once again, my mum :) It was unfortunately a flying visit; they arrived on Saturday afternoon and left on Monday. Nevertheless, we packed quite a bit into the weekend and it was lovely to see everyone.

Once they arrived on Saturday afternoon we enjoyed a late lunch at our favourite cafe in Heidelberg; Cafe Burkardt. And by lunch I mean lunch followed by a generous helping of cake. Well, it wouldn't be an afternoon in Germany without coffee and cake! After we'd replenished our energy it was time to hit the Hauptstrasse to do a bit of shopping before the shops shut. Unfortunately all the shops here shut so early that  things didn't quite go to plan. After walking right to the end of the street I found the shop I was most looking forward to showing them was already closed. That's the problem with being a London girl, I expect everything to stay open late everyday. Instead we decided to call it a day and head back to our hotels to freshen up before dinner. We hit another one of our Heidelberg haunts in the evening with a meal at Vetter,  a brewery and traditional German restaurant near the Old Bridge. Once again, we didn't go hungry; everything on the menu is served in massive platefuls, particularly the roast pork that auntie Jan ordered, or the half chicken that I went for. Somehow I managed to get through it though..!

Sunday started off as a lovely day, and we headed out after breakfast at our hotels to Neckargemünd. As I had only just over a month left, mum, Jan and Peter were being sent home with a selection of my belongings to make my suitcase at the end of July just a little bit less full. After a brief stop at my flat, we drove onto on of the neighbouring hilltop towns called Dilsberg. It was a very cute little place, mainly houses with just a couple of shops, cafes, a church and the main attraction, a castle.

This is genuinely their fire station. It looks like a cottage...

Being a Sunday, EVERYTHING was shut and we found ourselves on a search for somewhere to get a drink and/or ice cream. Eventually we  found that the castle had a small snack shop, so we paid the entry to get in. It was definitely worth the money, because once we were inside we found the staircase up to the battlements which gave an amazing view out across the river valley.

Once we left Dilsberg, Peter made the most of having a car and decided to take a drive through the hills and woods. We did, admittedly, get a little bit lost, or at least we drove a little further out of Heidelberg than we'd anticipated, but we did get some lovely views of the old town and river across the valley.

By then it was time for lunch, so we found ourselves in yet another one of my favourite cafés in Heidelberg. Once we'd eaten, we decided to take a short boat trip on the river to see the town from the water. There was a 50 minute round trip along the river on a solar powered boat which we decided was a good option, so at 4:30 we took a seat on the Neckarsonne and began our trip. It was a nice idea in theory, but in reality it didn't quite live up to expectations. We found that a large amount of the commentary was dedicated to discussing the complexities of the boat rather than talking about what we were seeing along the river. It was also just a little bit boring, and the slightly rainy weather didn't help. We were all close to nodding off by the end (Peter actually did), and we happily left the boat behind to go and sample yet more German cakes!

After a brief sleep to let the cake go down, we headed out for our final dinner in Heidelberg. We cleverly chose an Italian restaurant, which made for quite an entertaining evening considering it was the evening England played Italy in Euro 2012! We realised quickly that we would be sharing the staff with the television when we sat down to see all the staff crowded around a screen, singing the national anthem and waving sparklers. Nevertheless, the meal was great and the service was actually very good. Luckily we also left before it went to penalties and England lost...

Mum, Jan and Peter stayed in Heidelberg until just after lunch on Monday, but unfortunately I had to leave promptly on Monday morning to head back to work. I can't complain though, it was a lovely weekend and I was thoroughly spoiled with lots of attention and lots of lovely food!

Another beautiful day in Neckargemünd

Lebendiger Neckar

It really felt like summer this weekend (hence the sunglasses!). The sun finally came back out and it was a weekend of festivities to mark 'Lebendiger Neckar', or Living Neckar. That meant that all along the river between Mannheim and Eberbach there were events taking place.

Here in Neckargemünd there was 'Menzer Park Fest' in one of the local parks, with the main event being Saturday night when everyone gathered to listen to live music and pig out on things such as burgers, sausages, doughnuts and waffles from one of the many food and drink stands. I did intend to go, but having been in Heidelberg most of the day, headed back to my flat to get changed and have some dinner and then just as I left to go to Menzer Park Fest it started to rain and I decided that a evening in eating chocolate and watching The Thick of It was preferable...The rain got pretty heavy in the end so I think I made a good decision. Unfortunately there wasn't quite the same atmosphere when I went to see what was going on today - probably everyone who was there last night was too hungover to be out in Neckargemünd this morning, and that meant it was only small children and a few elderly people who were dancing along to the band that was playing. Needless to say, I didn't hang around long. 

Also taking place today here was Orientfest, where there were a few stalls selling Middle Eastern style food, clothes and other items, as well as a stage where local dance schools were performing. I went along because Joanne's daughter is part of a belly dancing and tribal dance group. Here is a photo from their performance:

It was interesting to see a dancing style that I haven't really seen before, apparently it is quite popular here. I was a bit shocked to see one of the women start belly dancing on the tables during her performance, but hey, she seemed to be enjoying herself.

I didn't stay in Neckargemünd too long, because there wasn't much more to see in all honesty. Instead I headed into Heidelberg, and as expected there was a lot more going on. 

Here on the Neckarwiese there were people EVERYWHERE, and loads of stalls selling things or promoting local schools and businesses, as well as hundreds of food and drink stands. It was a really nice atmosphere because there were areas set up with tables and chairs and people were all just sitting together eating and chatting. There were dance performances taking place here too; I stood at the streetdance stage for about 15 minutes and some of it was really impressive. There was also a ramp set up by the river for cyclists who wanted to do jumps into the river, and another group were doing rope gymnastics above the river which was cool to watch. I attempted to get a photo but you can't see very well.

I would loved to have gone into Mannheim to see what was taking place there too. As it's a much bigger city there probably would have been more to see. Unfortunately I didn't really think about it until too late, but I definitely have to get to Mannheim before I leave, apparently it's good for shopping too! Nevertheless, it was  still nice to have another weekend soaking up the sun in Heidelberg; I don't think I'll ever get bored of it. I really couldn't have asked to end up in a nicer location.