Well today (12/5/2019) we got up still in Rüdesheim am Rhine and got out to tour around the neat little town. The first thing we did when it opened was take a cable car up the nearby hillside  which is completely covered in vineyards. It’s a long ride but at top you get a beautiful view of the surrounding valley as well as seeing up close the massive 38m/125 foot tall statue of Germania, the embodiment of Germany, built in and then completed in 1871/1883. It was built to commemorate the unification of the German nations and states under William I. When we got down we got to go visit the town and see the beautiful Christmas markets – though unlike the others, the market in this town stretches all throughout the old town. In the other cities the Christmas markets are a bit more clustered together, and some many have multiple markets around the city.

We didn’t have much time, but at least you don’t need a lot of time. We left early in the afternoon and headed further up the Rhine through the beautiful Rhine valley. Along the way we saw many, many of the famous castles dotting the top of the mountains surrounding the valley.

Castles and Rüdesheim here!