Geoff Brock & Bruce Gamble
         
     
 

Würzburg
Well! A little bit of sunshine, they're off and I'm left to fend for myself again. And as for that little episode with the gangplank, I'd like to know who was responsible for damaging it in the first place! And when will they get it fixed once and for all. I did hear the captain saying something about it only affecting one side of the ship and that the next few stops would be on the other side of the ship, so let's hope he is right! How can I plan my escapes with all this uncertainty!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Wednesday 30th April 2014
  

The distance between Bamberg and Würzburg is not that great, but there are a number of locks to negotiate, which slowed our pace. We were not due to arrive in Würzburg until around lunchtime, so we had a leisurely morning relaxing on the ship and taking in the sights on shore and in the river.

We saw some interesting bird life along the way, including these cormorants.
Geoff went to a cookery demo, given by the chef, who prepared whole lobster tails with basil pesto, which he then let people sample.
 
Our first glimpses of Marienberg Fortress, as we approached Würzburg. Could we walk up there, we wondered?
 
The chapel of the Capuchin monastery
Our ship docked here. It was a lovely sunny day, which was especially welcome after the past two grey days ...and the view was excellent!
"Brock" street cleaning services!
 
There was one minor problem. The mechanism which operated the gangplank had been damaged somehow and it wouldn't work. All hands were summoned to the deck to help lift the (heavy) alternative gangplank!
 
 
 
 
 
The whole operation took over an hour, while the excursion guides waited patiently ashore.
 
 
"Residenz Wuerzburg Vorderan" by Christian VisualBeo Horvat - Transferred from de.wikipedia.org [1]: 2004-11-29 19:05 . . VisualBeo. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Residenz_Wuerzburg_Vorderan.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Residenz_Wuerzburg_Vorderan.jpg
We had been given a choice of two excursions for this afternoon, one of which was to the medieval town of Rothenburg; the other to the Würzburg Residenz (left). We chose neither and instead opted to walk and explore the town for ourselves.
 
Once we had disembarked, we plotted our independent walking tour.
We decided to walk along the right bank as far as the old bridge and take it from there.
 
 
The five hundred-year-old Old Main Bridge
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Having crossed the old bridge, we decided to cross back again and go into the town
 
Vineyards were to be seen all over the place. Franconian wine is well known (allegedly!)
View from the Old Main Bridge towards the cathedral
 
 
 
 
Brocks everywhere!
 
Würzburg Cathedral
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
After visiting the cathedral, we wandered about slightly aimlessly taking in the sights and enjoying the sunshine.
 
Market Square, dominated by the Church of St Mary...
...but nobody could ignore this over-the-top example of the Rococo style, Falcon House!
 
Inside the Church of St Mary, the Twelve Apostles, by Riemenschneider, are on display (they once adorned the church portal).
 

Surprisingly, we still felt quite energetic after all that, so we walked back across the Old Main Bridge to see whether we could make it all the way up to the Marienberg Fortress on the other side.

We climbed, and we climbed...
... with stops to rest en-route...
 
... and we finally made it all the way up. The views were stunning!
 
 
 
Then through a long dark tunnel into the fortress itself.
 
 
 
 
 
Romanesque chapel
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
A view of the Residenz, which we didn't visit (next time, definitely!)
 
 
 
Our ship is partially obscured by the bridge.
 
 
 
Back on board, tired but happy and in good time for our evening departure.
 
 
©Geoff Brock and Bruce Gamble