Sept 29: Into Germany

We enjoyed our breakfast at our house before leaving for what would be a long driving day. The north of France is rolling plains, and we took the Autoroute all the way. If you take your time here you can make a real historical tour of the area. We had done that in past years, so decided not to this time. It is here that most of the fighting of WW I took place- the fields of Flanders, the Somme, and on and on. The memorials are well done. As well, here is the battlefields of Agincourt and Crecy are located, watershed battles in the wars between France and England. Now this land is farmed by big agribusinesses.

On the way into Germany we played a game- one would say a word in German, then the other. We did this for many miles, so we were more confident of our language skills.

Finally, just as planned we arrived in the area of the Rhein, just north of Frankfurt. The town is called Rudesheim. It has been many years since I have been here and I wanted to show it to Maryvonne. It is picturesque, at the beginning is the Rhein wine country. The river here is a very large one, with a very fast current, and carries a lot of barge traffic. We took a ferry, then parked and searched for a hotel. Once that was taken care of, it was time to explore and have dinner. First things first: beer! Nothing better than German pilsner. A nice fat brat and we were satisfied.

An evening walk ground the town to get our bearings. It is far more touristic here than I remember, bus loads of Japanese and English tours to buy wine and trinkets. Some of the eating places have successfully attracted the tours and are full. Others are empty or closed, this being Monday.

Paul drove like a champ. He is now enjoying a beer.