Tour day four

Trip Start Aug 28, 2008
1
11
40
Trip End Sep 24, 2008


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Flag of Germany  , Rhineland-Palatinate,
Friday, September 5, 2008

SJ - Trying to take advantage of a hotle computer with a real keyboard, but there's only 1 and I don't want to hog it.  I'm a day behind on this blog.   Hopefully I'll catch up today.  I know that if I get too far behind, I'll start forgetting stuff and will give up.

We woke up in Bacharach.  Another overcast day, but no rain to speak of.  On tap is a walking tour of the city, a visit to a castle in nearby town (can't remember the name) and a 1 hour boat ride back to Bacharach up the Rhine.

Breakfast was good old eggs, cheese

Holy Crap! - some dude is snoring so loudly I can hear him in the lobby! (it's about 5:30am).

they have some amazing fresh baked rolls that I spread with soft butter and Strawberry marmelade.  Delicious.

The walking tous is lead by a local, former scholmaster, named Herr Jung (pronounced yoong, unless you're Judy, then it is some form of 'zhyung').  What and amazing guy!  He's about 85 or so and was a young boy during WWII.  We strolled around on a cool morning and he told us about the town's history.  I've already forgotten most of it.   He showed us the high water flood mark from 1850 that had haldf the town under water.  The most memorabel moment was when he described his horror at seeing aerial battles overhead as a boy and his reaction to seeing an bomber crash nearby and going to the site to look for survivors.  His simple, articulate tale of finding the reamins of the ball turret gunner laying in the field was very moving.  The emotions wer still very fresh for him.   There wasn't a dry eye in the bunch.
At one point he designates me the group 'boy scout' and has me scurry ahead to the next stops ahead of the rest of the group.  I later find it's because I 'cast a large shadow' and it will be easy for the other tour members to see their destination.  Fortunately, the 'boy scout' label hasn't stuck.
We walked by a grape field (?) on the way to an observation tower.  The hill sides where they grow the grapes are amazingly steep.  I guess they bring Polish folks in to pick them because the wage is too low for the locals.  Sounds familiar. 
After the walking tour we get on the bus to the castle.

Gotta go now.  More from the BB when we get on the bus today.
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