Heidelberg, Germany

Aug 5, 2010: Heidelberg, Germany

Back Highways and Rain

We decided to skip the morning Team Canada game so that we could do some touring. Our goal was the town of Heidelberg approximately an hour's drive away from Heilbronn. When we ran into highway construction on the main highway we took a detour onto the secondary ones. After getting lost a few times and driving through periods of rain, we eventually came through the mountains and followed the River Neckar right into Heidelberg. The low cloud, hills, and water reminded us of driving in Vancouver.

It took us almost two hours before we finally got parked above the gardens at Heidelberg Castle. The castle was built as a fortress by German royalty. Invading French armies blew up much of the castle. After it was partially rebuilt, lightning started fires inside. As the German style is to build the interior from wood, the fires decimated the castle. Portions of it are still being rebuilt today.

We took a guided tour of the castle which let us see many parts of the interior which are usually closed to the public. After our tour we walked to the viewing platform and took in the views up and down the valley. A quick walk to the cellars and we were able to see the colossal 18C cask, which can hold 221,000 litres (49,000 gallons) of wine. To give you an idea of scale of the cask the picture below shows the cask with Sharra and Allen standing on the platform on top of it.

After our castle tour we went into the center of Heidelberg. We walked until we found Hauptstrase, the main pedestrian street running the length of the town. We found a place for lunch and then went shopping afterwards. By mid-afternoon we had to leave to head back to Heilbronn for the evening game.

Team Canada Men played France. France kept Canada on their toes for the first half, but in the second Canada pulled and stayed ahead. We joined several other parents and walked along the river and into the center of Heilbronn. We found a cafe with outdoor seating next to the River Neckar and enjoyed a late evening dinner as the sky turned to night above us.

Allen and Sharra Excited to be Tourists