September 16th, 2016
On a cloudy Saturday in mid-August, we grabbed our rain coats and drove to the quintessential city of Heidelberg. Being one of the few German cities that survived World War II, Heidelberg’s history is preserved within its architecture. It is home to the oldest university in Germany (founded in 1386), a medieval castle, a late-Gothic church and a wonderful Altstadt (old town). We only spent an afternoon there, but left with a wonderful taste of this lovely city.
After finding a parking garage that we hoped was somewhat close to the downtown area, we took off on foot. We walked through a part of the university grounds on our way to the Altstadt. Here is a short video showing our youngest in classic form!
We strolled along the main pedestrian walkway, enjoying little window displays. It didn’t take long for us to find a café that served both kaffee und eis (coffee and ice cream). A great combination for our family!
Fueled up and caffeinated, we were back on our feet! Our next stop was the Heiliggeistkirche, (Church of the Holy Spirit). Per our tradition, we lit candles and prayed. Something unique about this church was its Prayer Wall. A nearby table had colorful pieces of paper and pens available for visitors to write out prayers and then affix their papers to the wall. What a beautiful visual of the words spoken through the hearts of so many.
Our boys both added their own prayers. E wrote his out while little S dictated to his Daddy his prayer. Love!
The church was beautiful! It dated back to 1398. It has been used by both Catholics and Protestants, sometimes simultaneously when a partition was inserted allowing both congregations to hold their services without disturbing each other.
The Marktplaz (Market Square) was just outside the church. Several vendors had souvenir stands set up to allure tourists. We are learning to navigate these ongoing traps a little better with the boys. Sometimes, we simply avoid the stalls all together. However, this summer, we started our allowance system which is divided into three categories: giving, spending, and savings. Now, if the boys want a souvenir, they get to use their own money to purchase it. It’s amazing how this seems to curtail their desires for just anything. Go figure! While I was waiting for one of them to make up his mind on a purchase, I saw this sign with my Dad’s name. It made me smile!
Here are a few more of the surrounding sites…standing in front of the Rathaus (where the city council meets), a restaurant that reminded me of my PopPop, and Schloss Heidelberg looking over the city.
We walked up a steep, cobbled-stone road to Schloss Heidelberg. We heard there was some sort of funicular (a railway on a cliff) but missed the entrance and instead made it up to the castle on foot. About half-way up, the boys began to lose steam. Snacks always help!
The views from the top were beautiful! The building with the tall dome in the second picture is the church of the Holy Spirit with the prayer wall. We paid our admission fee and explored the castle (circa 1214).
We walked down to the wine cellar and saw the world’s largest wine barrel called the Heidelberg Tun. It was built in 1751 by Prince Elector Karl Theodor to house the wine paid as taxes by the wine growers of the Palatine. Its seven meters high (22.9659 feet), and eight and a half meters wide (27.8871 feet). It holds 220,000 liters (58,124 gallons) of wine! We walked up stairs to the dance floor built on top of it.
We also walked through the Pharmacy Museum. We took a sniff test of various herbal treatments in a children’s display.
It started to rain but that doesn’t seem to faze people here. Out come the umbrellas!
On our walk back down, we passed the funicular. “So, that’s where it was!” On foot, we miss things but also unexpectedly come across some wonderful places. I love traveling with these feet alongside mine!
This kid’s park was one of those fun finds. The boys REALLY wanted to take the slide but the rain was coming down hard, we didn’t have a change of clothes and still needed to eat dinner somewhere. Our alternate route across rope bridges was still a treat!
We ate a delicious dinner in the Marktplatz. Our clothes dried as we dined. Eating out at a quiet restaurant felt a little easier that evening with the boys. We timed their hunger and exhaustion just right! We walked back to our car with full tummies and relatively dry clothes. Of course, the boys managed to find every rain puddle on the walk back to the parking garage. I need to be on the lookout for rain boots this Fall!
