Since we were unable to get a cruise on the Moselle that fit our time constraints, we started the day planning to dump our luggage in a locker at Mainz and tour Mainz's old town before continuing to Darmstadt to visit with family. However, we realized while we were on the train that this was the train that continues to Heidelberg and that the trip from Heidelberg to Darmstadt was only 37 minutes on one of the express trains. We had wanted to visit Heidleburg, but thought that it was too much out of our path and just didn't have time. Now we had the time and it wasn't going to be much extra effort.
We exited the train and hopped a bus to the Old Town dominated by the Heidelberg castle high above it. The castle is located on a rather steep hill and given our time constraint we choose to take the funicular up and then walk down after visiting the castle.
The castle is a mix of styles from gothic to renaissance. It was built between 13th and 17th centuries and a good portion of it was destroyed in the Thirty Year's War.
The Fountain Hall was a regal residence and is said to have columns from Charlemagne's old palace.
There are really nice views of Heidelberg and the Old Bridge from the castle.
When we walked down from the castle, we made our way to the Old Bridge, which in turn offers a great views of the castle.
The Old Bridge and its wooden predecessors lead to the town's main north entrance which was protected by the Bridge Gate.
After crossing to the other side of Neckar River, we enjoyed views of both the bridge and castle.
We finished up our brief tour of Heidelberg and rode the bus back to the train. Several family members met us at the train station and escorted us to their flat where we were immediately fed, even though we ate on the train. During the meal we had several toasts with a nice Cognac. After the meal, we were given a walking tour of some sites in Darmstadt, like this church built by the Russian Tsar.
After the walk, we were treated to tea and snacks at the other place, accompanied by several toasts, this time with a pepper endowed Ukrainian vodka. We then returned to "our" place to sleep.
The next morning we spent time visiting with the family. We had breakfast, followed by breakfast number two at different location, and then a ride to the airport for a flight home.
