Heidelberg

Today we decided to see the city of Heidelberg. Mindy has done some touring during the day but has been limited by having two kids and no car. In the evenings after work, we have also done a little but really not much more than look at a few shops and grab something for dinner.

The weather today was pretty much what we have had for the whole week - cool and cloudy. Before going up to the castle, we decided to spend some time in the city, hoping that the fog lifted a little and the weather improved. We went into the Altstadt region of the city and spent some time walking along the typical German looking cobblestone streets, looking in shops etc. Naomi and Fiona picked out a couple of German dolls and so they thought it was time well spent.

We then rode the "funicular railway" up to the castle. Heidelberg Castle contains structures built as early as the 13th century and as "recently" as the 17th century. It is certainly the tourist highlight of the city. The views from the castle are great and despite some of the castle being in ruin, the majority of it is in good enough condition to make for an interesting couple of hours.

After this, it was back onto the rail to continue our ride up the mountain. This involved two trains - the modern train to take us some of the way, then a ride on the renovated original railway dating from 1907. This took us up to Konigstuhl, Heidelberg's highest point (550m above sea level). The views from here were spectacular, not only of Heidelberg but the farmland and other towns in the distance. After a few moments of silence, enjoying the scenery, I was shaken back to reality with Mindy forcefully stating that "They said they are cold and hungry...and I agree with them!", so we grabbed something to eat.

The lunch we had was superb. Mindy and I both ordered the Pork Rahmschnitzel...what is not to like about breaded, deep fried pork, smothered in a creamy gravy. This will certainly be consumed again before we leave!

After lunch we visited the Heidelberg Fairy Tale Park (Heidelberger Marchenparadies). Basically a small theme park with various displays telling the stories from old fairy tales. Unfortunately the narration was in German but the visuals were still interesting. In addition, there were jumping castles and other rides that the kids really enjoyed. I would certainly recommend this for anyone travelling here with small kids.

Then, down the mountain and back to the hotel where we saw a few indications that we had achieved another goal of running the kids ragged! Fiona fell off the last ride at the park. Naomi then slipped and was bashed in the head by the mechanical gate leading to the train. Then, back at the hotel, she went to lean against the door of the elevator...just as it opened and so tumbled into the lobby of the hotel. They both crashed asleep relatively quickly allowing me to download and watch the Wallabies beat the All Blacks in the rugby...go you good things!