Eltz Castle

This morning we visited another castle......not again you might say!!  I must admit I did wonder about it too.......but oh I am so glad I went.  This was a true fairytale castle....and I loved it! Definitely the best we've seen so far.  It was only about a 45 minute drive from here in Coblenz, through stunningly beautiful countryside, along side a river that was like a mirror.....the whole thing was picture perfect.

The countryside on today's drive was stunning - beautiful farms, trees and landscapes under a blue sky with fluffy white clouds.

Eltz Castle is more than 850 years old and is privately owned by one family, who have done so for 33 generations, which is particularly impressive! It is open to the public for a few months each year. Photography inside was not allowed but it was so beautifully preserved and maintained.....it took my breath away actually. It is full of magnificent art, tapestries and furniture....and fresh flowers! It actually felt like a home - apart from the fact that it was very cold inside, due to 2 metre thick walls and not much sunlight coming in. So definitely my favourite castle so far!

Like a fairytale 

It was a beautiful summer day here today, so good to feel the sun on your face. After our trek through the castle, up and down winding staircases, staring at ancient tapestries and oohing and aahing at the art etc.....it seemed fitting to indulge in a nice cold beer......and it just so happened there was a cafe on site, which of course is the case in most of these places.

Good German beer :-)

Some of our merry group!

As we were leaving the castle I saw my car again.....a different one this time.....maybe it belongs to a prince?

There are many vineyards in this area of Germany and we passed some again today. It is intriguing how they plant vines on steep hillsides. I have learnt that this produces better grapes and therefore better wine as the fruit is able to get more sunlight because of the angle. The grapes grown on flat land produces wine that is considered just 'everyday' wine!

A typical vineyard on steep slopes.

This evening on board we had a Pirates Dinner with all the waiters dressed up and the dining room decorated. The 'boys' played their parts well.....so a bit of hilarity going on!

Filip our waiter in character:-)

Enjoying dinner with Helen and Gay

The hotel manager informed us at dinner that we are set sailing at 9am tomorrow.....woohoo! It is still very unclear how far we can get down the Rhine but at least we are on the move, and we will see what each day brings.  As much as we have enjoyed our time here in Coblenz it will be good to move on and up on deck after dinner there was a quiet air of excitement!

New friends.......Gay and Patty

And Filip.......he's really a charmer :-)

Till next time........