Where is the Princess?

Stolzenfels Castle

Middle Rhine

On my last post, I left off with our traveling south from Koblenz...appropriately named Going South. Clever, huh?

We continued our journey south to see some of the 40 castles and fortresses that still exists along the Middle Rhine.  The Middle Rhine is one of four sections of the river. Actually there are more than 40 castles and fortresses in this section according to some sources....those say correct number is 48. ("po-tate-o... po-tah-to",... it's still a lot of castles and fortresses) The Middle Rhine runs the length  of the river between Bonn, Germany and Bingen, Germany.  One of the most expedient ways to see a lot of these, would be to take one of the Rhine cruises. However, if you are there in December, you have to check to see what cruises are available. Many of the tourist cruises end on October 31st.  We chose to drive the distance so we had the luxury of stopping where and when we wanted.  Today, I am going to talk about just two stops.  I fear that I am already past the point of boring you with our itinerary.

Thought Number One: Stolzenfels Castle

No sooner had we left the city of Koblenz heading south...thinking our next stop would be in Boppert when we saw the prettiest castle sitting up on the bluff...which of course meant we needed to scope it out.

According to Europedia, the Stolzenfels Castle is open to the public everyday of the year for tours.  What I quickly determined is that Europedia is as accurate at Wikipedia...which means that I wasn't horribly shocked to see:

We, however, weren't deterred from walking around.  While my photography skills don't do justice to how pretty the setting actually is...it truly is  no less than spectacular. (My husband's camera does a bit better job capturing the richness of the colors but neither can capture the true beauty of the place.) There is a winding trail that goes up to the castle past a chapel and a gate house.  

A little background about the castle:

• The castle was built in 1259 as a toll station on the Rhine until 1412.
• It was occupied by several countries including Sweden in 1632 and France in 1634 and 1646.
• The French destroyed much of it in 1689 during the Palatinate Succession War.
• After the defeat of Napoleon, the town of Koblenz demanded ownership and gave the ruins to the Prussian Prince Royal, Friedrich Wilhelm.
• In 1836 the castle was restored to it's original glory.

 Thought Number Two:  Bacharach, Germany

After making stops in several towns along the way, each being more charming than the last, we pulled into Bacharach and parked next to one of the old fortress towers. 

My husband had been to Bacharach a couple of other times prior to my arrival, so you will notice some differences in the pictures. The day, I arrived,  the town had Christmas markets in the streets.

Bacharach has two very prominent tourist draws. One of them being the ruins of an ancient chapel. The Werner Chapel, unfortunately,  has a tragic story attached to it.  The chapel was first built in 1289 to honor a 16 year old named Werner of  Oberwesel who was murdered. The murder was blamed on the Jewish community and the accusations brought with it a number of crimes against the Jewish population.

The chapel remained uncompleted and was further damaged by the French when they destroyed Stahleck Castle that was located just up the hill.

What remains of Werner Chapel, however, is the architectural skeleton of what is some of the most enduring examples of Gothic art used in design of buildings.

The real attraction to the area is the Stahleck Castle that sits further up onto the hillside.

Background of the castle:

• There is no clear evidence when the castle was built but it is believed to be around 1135 AD.  
• The castle was sacked 8 times over the course of its history leaving it in various states of ruin.
• It was finally beyond repair when the French destroyed it in 1689. The French not only decisively destroyed the castle but also, destroyed Werner Chapel as well.
• In 1909, the castle footings and remaining walls were stabilized so work could begin to rebuild it.
• By 1925 it was rebuilt  incorporating the remains of the original structure, with the help of Erst Stahl.  His intent was to  rebuild it in it's original "spirit".  The newly rebuilt castle was intended to be a hostel. 
• During the First and Second World Wars, the buildings were taken over and used by the Third Reich for various reasons including an indoctrination camp for the young men of Germany.
• It returned to a youth hostel in 1947.
• Today it houses over 42,000 overnight stays a year. The 168 beds are nearly always reserved.

So...that is where, I will leave off for today.

Next week, I will show you Amsterdam.



Come Join Top Sites Tuesday and be #1 on BlogDumps!
The purpose of this Meme is to encourage
Networking between bloggers and to have fun while doing it!
Make sure to visit all the other participants and leave comments

Finding the Lost

After a morning dealing with the insurance adjuster on our hail-hammered roof issues, I wasn't feeling my usual cheerful (yet always cynical) self when I plucked this week's People magazine out of the mail box.  Normally, the stories of bad behavior getting rewarded with larges amount of cash, fame and adoration by the masses keeps me momentarily entertained yet digusted: hence just one of the reasons my blog is called "The ART of being Conflicted". 

I was flipping through the magazine today and came across a pretty interesting story called What They Lost.





The story is about Patty Bullion of Lester, Alabama who has undertaken the task of searching for treasures that have been ripped across the south by tornadoes.  Not the kind of treasures such as those things that might garner her some cash but personal mementos that people have lost in the recent storms.

It started when Patty found a picture of a pregnant woman's  ultrasound flipped over on the ground.  Patty  who was adopted as a two year old and has no pictures of herself as an infant was determined to find the person that lost that picture.

 She started searching along roadsides, in fields and beneath trees looking for keepsakes that had been displaced by the storm and trying to find the families that had lost them.  Since starting the hunt she has posted  around 3,700 images on Facebook page under the name of Pictures and Documents found after the April 27, 2011 Tornadoes.  Her hope is  that people will recognize the faces in the pictures and get them to their owners.



 I think this is such a lovely idea and such an act of generosity on Patty's part.  Don't all of you??

I have never been in the position of losing all my keepsakes or belongings  but I do have some first hand experience to how devastating it can be.

My dad's home was hit by a tornado a number of years ago in north central Illinois.  I was a newlywed at the time so I no longer lived  at home.  My dad thought he heard something similar to a freight train, which seemed odd.  As his home sat on a large farm surrounded by corn fields, it didn't make sense that a train would be coming through.  Sooo..he got up from his chair, walked to the door and as he opened it,  SHHHHOOOOOSSSSHHHHH....the only thing that remained was the door frame.  That quick.  The house exploded and left him standing in the door frame.

 I, also, remember how touched he was when people came by with bits and pieces of his belongings that were retrieved from yards and fields.



 Don't we all have the conversation some times about what we would try to save if we had the time to get out of the house?   Would it be important papers or would it be keepsakes, or jewelry?  What is the thing you would grab if given a little bit of time? 

Let's assume that all the people are safe and we are talking about things.  Several times I have sat in  in basements as the sirens sounded out their warning for an impending tornado.  I never think about grabbing anything other than my children and later in life my pets.  (again, hubby doesn't require me grabbing him, so he is accounted for) 

When not in the moment of a crisis, I always tell myself that I will grab the important document file and the computer external hard drive that would have all of our tax, bookkeeping and company files backed up on it.  Of course, those few times I actually made my way to a safe room, I was only thinking about the people that I care about. Those so-called important papers or documentation never entered my mind.

Back on track to the subject of  my inspiration for today's post. The thing that struck my about Patty's generous spirit is that she has picked up 3700ish pieces of pictures and papers that belong to people that didn't have time or presence of mind to save them. She has taken the time and caring attention to post them on a Facebook page so maybe someone will recognize who they belong to.  She is doing this out of the goodness of her heart.






 I just love the capacity for kindness in some people.  I will say that even my cynical, conflicted self can only find good in this act of kindness.  What a nice person to try to help those in a dire situation by trying to help them retrieve their personal effects. 


What are some of the things you would try to grab if given some time?  Have you had any situations similar to losing or finding lost belongings?






The Good for the Day...People with generous, loving spirits


The Bad for the Day.... That people lose so much at the hands of Mother Nature

The Weird for the Day....