Farwelling Henry in Regensburg.

For our last day in Germany Henry took us to Regensburg, a town full of exceptional buildings and architecture dating back to the 9th century. The town, which was the first capital of Barvaria, is now a UNESCO world heritage site. The abundance of incredible buildings in one small site, the narrow streets steeped in history and the lovely riverfront has ensured its popularity with tourists and it was certainly busy the day we explored. After arriving we decided a coffee and ice-cream was in order and we found a lovely cafe near the Old Town Hall. It is clearly a popular place to get married as we saw 3 weddings whilst having our coffees. The kids were both very impressed, particular by one where they had butterfly confetti. They loved throwing the confetti over each other and pretending they were getting married.

After a wander around town, including some sausages for the kids from an historic sausage factory (it has been a restaurant since 1146 and is one of the oldest continuously open restaurants in the world), we headed back to the apartment for some down time. The kids brushed up on their German whilst watching German Tom and Jerry whilst Daniel and I tried to fit everything back in our packs ready for our train journey in the morning.

The evening was spent at a beer garden with a view back over the old town where we enjoyed a delicious meal. We said an early goodbye to Henry the next morning, both kids were very sad to leave Opa. We had throughly enjoyed our time with Henry and were grateful to be able to hear about his history and upbringing in his country of birth.

Re-enacting the wedding.

After watching 3 weddings the kids loved playing in the confetti.

Wandering the narrow streets of Regensburg.

The ornate chapel.

Exploring the chapel with Opa.

Excited to find his age on the waterfront.

Waiting for sausages from an 800 year old sausage factory.

Looking into the main square of Regensburg.

We loved wandering the narrow streets.

Crossing the river to dinner.

The view from the pub we had dinner at.

Enjoying the beanbags and books in the main square.

A squirrel or a 1000 year old town, which would prove more exciting?

Wednesday was spent exploring the nearby town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, an extremely well preserved, walled town that was a major trade route in the 1600's and was extremely important in the German Reformation (the separation between church and city). It is a picturesque town with narrow, cobbled streets and rows of peaked roofed houses in a variety of colours. The whole town is enclosed by a wall, complete with towers. We were able to walk the wall and even climb one of the medieval towers to get a superb view of the town. It was an impressive town but the kids were more taken by the Christmas Museum we visited, than the architecture of the town. While Henry and Daniel visited a Medieval Crime and Punishment museum I took the kids to a Christmas wonderland. After much ooohing and aaahing at the gorgeous displays I let them choose one ornament as a souvenir from Germany. That was certainly one of the hardest decisions they've ever had to make. Half an hour later they had finally chosen. 

Afterwards we were walking to a playground for lunch when I spotted a squirrel. We spent a few marvellous minutes, mouths agape, staring at this new creature before it scampered up the tree and out of sight. The kids were amazed, it was certainly the highlight of their day so far.

Their day was to get even better as we made our way to a 'Wild Park', a huge outdoor 

playground with an animal park attached. We spent a few hours playing on the awesome equipment and visiting the deer, wild pig and turtles. We arrived home exhausted and enjoyed dinner on our balcony for our last night in Wurzburg.

The kids will most certainly remember their first encounter with the squirrel, the absolute highlight of their day.

My standard position in the car (clearly we were exhausting them with all the sightseeing).

The narrow, cobbled streets in Regensburg.

A fountain in the town centre.

In the Christmas museum.

The view over the old town of Regensburg.

Walking along the old town walls.

The peaked roofs and coloured houses really add to the character of this town.

Walking the town walls.

A playground with a view

Our lunch spot just beyond the city walls.

Feeding deer at the huge outdoor playground and animal park.

These super sized swings were so much fun!

Going for a horse and cart ride with Opa.

Taking in the vista at Wurzburg.

Wurzburg is a picturesque town on the river Main. The first thing that impressed us was the huge (over 300 rooms) palace as we drove into town and we continued to be impressed for the 3 days we stayed in Wurzburg. We chanced upon the most incredible accommodation, an apartment on the 5th floor in the city with views over the fortress on the hill across the river. We had a balcony so enjoyed breakfasts and dinners overlooking the city. On our first evening we joined the locals and tourists in the tradition of enjoying a cold glass of local Franconian wine and taking in the view on the 600 year old main bridge. We even got to see a large boat move through a lock and under the bridge, which impressed the kids.

The next morning was spent wandering the streets and marvelling at the beautiful baroque architecture that is typical of this area. We joined all the other English speaking tourist for a tour of the opulent, and extremely over the top, Wurzburg Residence, one of the most important baroque palaces in Europe. It was designed by the now famous architect, Balthasar Neumann, and features a large staircase roofed by an unsupported vault. This roof is intricately painted with one of the largest frescoes in the world. We walked in awe through the huge rooms with ornate ceilings and gold gilded walls and wondered at the ego a man who requests a bedroom covered in decorated mirror. Even the entrance hall was large enough for a carriage and 6 horses so guests could be dropped of the bottom of the main staircase. It was all built to impress and certainly highlighted the money and power held by the church in those times (it was the palace for the Prince-Bishops who ruled that area).

We had promised the kids an afternoon at the pool, but as we began walking to the pool a huge storm came. We all got drenched running back to the apartment. After tears from Emilia we promised to try again when the rain stopped. About an hour later we set off again but as we rounded the corner towards the pool (me proudly declaring I had navigated us here) we were met with a demolition site. The blue tiles gave it away and we had to tell two very disappointed children that there was to be no pool today!

Thankfully the owner of our apartment had told Henry about a kids water playground, which was only a few minutes walk away. They enjoyed wading in the stream and we all helped to build a dam and pump water. It was still humid by 5pm so we decided to try a boat bar we had seen that morning. It was another drink with a view as we took in the bridge from another angle. Just as our chips got served the sky opened again and it poured. We all managed to huddle under a big umbrella and enjoy our chips and beer on the river. We were still staying in Wurzburg for another 2 nights but tomorrow was an adventure to a nearby town, one of the best preserved medieval towns in Germany. Wurzburg had certainly impressed already.

The gorgeous barque style church.

Dark chocolate sorbet....Jackson was in dairy free heaven.

Icy cold wine on an historical bridge with a view....beautiful.

The view from our rooftop garden.

Enjoying the sunset over the 1000 year old fortress.

On our morning walk around Wurzburg.

Ice cream spaghetti.

At Wurzburg Palace.

The impressive palace is surrounded by beautiful gardens.

Palace selfie (with lollypops!)

Our first attempt to get to the pool, we got caught in a storm instead.

After our second attempt to get to the pool we settled with water play.

Enjoying a beer on a boat pub before .............it absolutely poured on us (see pic below).

The Katz reunite.

We arrived at Hans and Elisabeth's house in Stommeln about an hour before the Katz Family Reunion was scheduled to begin and preparations were in fully swing. Both of their daughters, Gondula and Dorethea, were there with their families, who were all busy preparing food and organising drinks for the 30 people who were expected. By 11.30 we were drinking champagne and chatting with many of Daniel's German relatives, quite a lot of whom he had never met. Henry was visibly pleased to show off some of his grandchildren to his brothers, his cousin and their families. Many had travelled from afar, up to 6 hours away. We had a wonderful afternoon of fabulous food (so much of it too), great wine and lots of interesting conversation. Everyone spoke English quite well so we managed to converse easily. The kids were kept entertained by the extensive train set Hans has set up. Daniel's cousins' children (who are all in late teens, early 20's) spent hours showing them how the intricate system ran. We all collapsed into bed with very full tummies excited for the next day when we were being taken to an outdoor theatre to watch Cinderella. 

We had a huge champagne breakfast the next morning with Henry's brother Fredrich and his wife who were unable to attend the previous day's celebration. The afternoon was spent at Zoln, an historic town near Stommeln, that runs outdoor theatre performances in the summer. After wandering around town with ice-cream we settled in for the show. It didn't matter that the show was in German, the elaborate costumes and great acting made it easy for us to understand this well known story. We were all thoroughly entertained and the kids were so excited to get a photo with Cinderella and the prince at the end of the show. Attending this theatre is a family tradition for Hans and Elisabeth and after the show they always go to the nearby Rhine River to skim stones. It was a lovely way to end a great day.

The next morning the kids fed the deer again (their neighbour has deer in his backyard), picked blackberries and enjoyed playing in the gardens before we had to say goodbye.

It was sad watching Henry farewell Hans and Elisabeth, being unsure when he will see them again. We had a wonderful time and we are so grateful to everyone for making such an effort. Once again, we were thoroughly looked after by Daniel's relatives and we hope we can repay the favour if they ever travel to Australia (we encouraged Daniel's cousins children to come when they finish their studies so hopefully they do).

A big drive next to Wurzburg for our last 4 days with Henry. 

The Katz crew.

Trying out a sword when we chanced upon some men practising their sword fighting.

The gorgeous grounds in historical Zoln.

Walking the streets of Zoln.

At the outdoor theatre with Elisabeth.

Trying out the stage at the outdoor theatre.

The stage was incorporated into the old city walls.

Cinderella and her Prince.

With some of the actors.

With Cinderella and the prince.

Skimming stones on the Rhine.

Really getting into skimming!

One of our delicious breakfasts.