DAY 9--NUREMBERG, GERMANY

When we awoke on day 9, our ship was already docked in Nuremberg. After breakfast we boarded German buses to take us into town and up the hill to the Castle Nuremberg where our walking tour started. Nuremberg is known for its red roof tops. Until WWII, Nuremberg was one the the finest medieval cities in Germany. But, 90% of Nuremberg was destroyed in WWII. Fortunately, enough was spared or rebuilt to give us a vivid impression of how it once looked.

These buildings show the half timber style architecture used in this beautiful city. Many European cities have these large outdoor cafes.

On our way to the top of the hill, we passed this building that was built for a barracks for the Nazi Gestapo during WWII.

 

We also passed the Nuremberg Palace of Justice where the 1945 Nuremberg Trails were held.

Our walking tour started on top of the hill by the entrance to the Imperial Castle Nuremberg, built between the 11th and 13th centuries by German emporers. The road to the entrance was built in a curve to make it more difficult for an invading army to use battering rams to knock down the gate.

This is one of the four corner towers that still stand today.
 

We were treated to views of the city from up here.

This is another corner tower where you can see down into what was once the moat. If you look at the brown extension near the top of the tower, imagine this was their version of indoor plumbing. The toilet was built in this overhang and the waste would drop down into the moat.

This small structure inside the castle was were the castle administrator lived. The Imperial Castle was only inhabited by the emperor during imperial visits. The window boxes filled with blooming flowers lent some European charm.

It seems every town in Europe has at least one famous church. This is the Church of Our Lady on the east side of the central Market Square. The 14th-century facade survived the January 1945 WWII bombing and, like much of Old Town, was meticulously reconstructed after the war, with the original stones plucked from the rubble. In the weeks leading to Christmas, this is where the Christmas market is held that is famous for its gingerbread.

After our scheduled tour was over, we wandered around the city center and crossed the Pegnitz River from Old Town to New Town. This was the view from the bridge. We marveled at our clean this city was.

We enjoyed a nice lunch at a famous sausage house near Market Square. We also drank our last authentic German beer on this trip. Look closely at the corner of the menu closest to Paul. The Flag of Great Britain indicated this copy of the menu is in English, which we appreciated. 

After our morning walking tour of this beautiful city, we boarded buses for our 4-hour ride to Prague in the Czech Republic. At our rest stop just across the Czech border, we saw this small class C motorhome getting gas. The only RV's we saw were this smaller size. Knowing many European roads are somewhat narrow compared to roads in the United States, it is understandable as to the size of this RV.

We arrived at our hotel, The Imperial, and headed out to dinner. We sampled some wonderful Czech beer and a nice meal of local foods which included a turkey snitchel salad and a combo sausage plate.

After a day of touring and a long bus ride, we headed in for an early night. Tomorrow will be our last full day of this fabulous vacation.