Day Five: Rüdesheim

In Rüdesheim in the Drosselgass

For our second day in Germany we will be exploring Rüdesheim am Rhein. This small town is located on the right bank of the Rhine River in Germany’s Rheingau wine region. Our ship was docked within steps of our destination so no coach rides were necessary. We crossed the street and ducked down a narrow street called Drosselgasse.

The winsome charm of this town became immediately apparent. The narrow, cobblestoned lane of shops, wine taverns, biergartens, and restaurants are housed in half-timbered medieval buildings.

At the top of the agenda was a visit to Siegfried’s Mechanical Music Cabinet Museum. Cabinets? Yeah, I was confused too.

The Medieval Brömserhof Building houses the Museum

The museum’s namesake, Siegfried Wendel was the curator of an astounding array of self- playing musical contraptions. Most were in poor condition, or even destined for the scrap heap before they were rescued and repaired. Some of the complex music boxes are so tiny that they can fit in the palm of your hand. Others are so huge that they fill up most of a room.

The only way to visit is by guided tour. Our adorable guide provided history and facts about all these machines with robust enthusiasm.

I don’t remember her name. She looks like a Heidi.

The first contraption we experienced was the enormous 1909 Hupfeld Violina Phonoliszt. It’s as big as a Buick and was absolutely astounding to witness.

Here’s a video:

If you’re wondering where the singing is coming from, it’s not a tiny man stuffed in the box. That was our Disney tour guide Danny. He just happens to also be an opera singer. What an over-achiever.

This Gebruder Bruder organ was much more colorful and played calliope music. Most of the mechanics are hidden inside.

Heidi demonstrating how the accordion style music sheets work.

“Heidi” played a record on this gramophone for us. It was Que Sera Sera from Doris Day. Brought me right back to the days of singing in nursing homes. The diamond needle on the arm has to be changed each time it’s played or it will destroy the record.

This Weber Maesto Orchestrion played a flurry of piano, violin, flute, clarinet, trumpet and saxophone along with xylophone, drums and cymbol crashes. You can see much more of the mechanics in this one.

Video:

I mentioned before that this museum is housed the medieval Brömserhof building. Two of the rooms’ vaulted ceilings are covered in gorgeous paintings preserved from the mid-1500s.

I think my favorite piece would have to have been this whimsical little singing bird box. “Heidi” came around and played it for each of us . You can also hear her adorable german accent in this next video:

I found this Youtube video showing how the mechanism creates this birdsong.

After the museum, we were released on our own recognizance. We wandered a bit taking in all the gorgeous atmosphere. The planters were just lovely. It was surprising how lush everything remained so late in the season.

We were given another “Freebee” to enjoy today. A coupon for a Rüdesheim Coffee. This a local specialty made with whipped cream and brandy. It can be found in any almost café here, but this particular spot is the most popular.

The recipe involves a flambé of brandy, some coffee, and a generous amount of whipped cream with shaved chocolate. I wasn’t drinking alcohol, but we thought maybe it would pretty much be burned off. When we asked the straight faced waiter, he responded with a flat out “No.”

They are always served in this particular cup.

I ordered a cappuccino, and gave my brandy laced coffee to Jeff, but not before swiping the whipped cream and chocolate off the top.

They make a big show of the presentation. Here’s one from the interweb:

When we first set out on this morning is was extremely foggy, but the sky cleared just in time for our next adventure: taking a ride on the Seilbahn Rüdesheim Gondolas. The tiny cable cars carry you up over the vineyards and affords the most spectacular view back down to the town and the Rhine River beyond it.

Rheingau is known as Germany’s premier wine-producing region and most famous for its rieslings. I’m sure the vineyards are just gorgeous anytime of year, but the glowing yellow of the just-turning fall leaves were absolutely stunning against blue skies.

Below is a video from the gondola:

Once you’re at the top, you’ll be greeted by the Niederwalddenkmal. This 125-foot-tall 19th century monument was completed in 1883 to commemorate the unification of Germany into a single nation.

Can you tell how gigantic this monument is?

When we took our gondola ride back down to town, we were quite ready for lunch. On the way we passed the world’s cutest mail box.

While we were bopping around trying to find just the right spot to dine we bumped into a fellow adventurer, Lynn. We had met her and her son Seth earlier on the trip. She was flying solo for lunch so we invited her to join us.

We found a lovely place on a sunny veranda, settled in and started chatting. Most of the folks on this trip were older couples, so Lynn and her twenty-something son kind of stood out. She shared that their family had suffered a great loss. Her son Caleb, Seth’s brother, passed away at aged 23 after a long illness in 2014. Her husband, who was not on the trip, was now also struggling with a serious illness. Because of these challenges they have made it a priority to make time to have adventures together. What makes Lynn even more remarkable is what she is doing right now for other families. While Caleb was battling his illness he decided to start a foundation. We’ve all heard of “Make a Wish” that serves to create a bit of magic for a terminally ill patient, but this would be different. Caleb wanted to give the caregivers, the family, a chance to get away and feel normal, away from the doctors, hospitals and stress just for a week. A Week Away was born. Caleb’s work is still being carried out by this remarkable woman and her team of volunteers. Please do click the link for more about Lynn and this foundation.

Oh, and lunch was amazing too! Jeff got a dainty charcuterie board, while I had a huge hunk of the most scrumptious crispy pork belly and potato dumplings. Not very lady like.

Next on the docket was a wine tasting at the Weingut Adolf Störzel winery. We were shuttled down in to the cellar for a loooong lesson on ice wine.

The host talked for so long that they had to hand off the last tasting as we headed out the door. It was a bit boring, but I’m not the best audience seeing that I didn’t imbibe.

This guy doesn’t know anything about brevity.

Wine tasting aside, the excursions have gotten even more interesting and beautiful as the week progressed. This day in Rudesheim might have been my favorite of the trip, but don’t hold me to that.

Today we will be “all aboard” earlier that usual. Up to this point we had been docked during the day and moving up the Rhine overnights. Makes sense, but Jeff had mentioned that he pictured sitting on the deck watching the countryside go by when he was looked forward to this trip. Well, today was the day! We all gathered on the sundeck for a guided tour of the Medieval Castles of the Rhine Gorge.

Seems like everyone brought their bottles of wine.

There are over forty castles along the Rhine gorge. Most are now museums, restaurants or hotels. The tour was hosted by our cruise director Crystal. She narrated all the castle facts over the loud speaker in real time. I was surprised they didn’t just play a recording. That’s a whole lot of talking.