Koblenz - And the Rhein River Boat Ride

Tuesday, the 16th, we checked out of the Presidential Hotel in Bonn, walked to the train station one last time, and quickly got a train to Koblenz. As soon as we were off the train, we found the lockers right there in the main hallway, and we locked up our packs. The lady at the information kiosk told us about the tourist information center across the street where we could learn more about the boat rides up the Rhein. The lady in the tourist information center provided us with maps, and showed us exactly where we needed to go in order to catch one of the boats, and a good idea of the itinerary and various travelling options. We had about an hour before the next boat was leaving, so on the way to the port, we stopped in a cafe for a bite to eat and drink. At the boat ticket office, we learned that we could ride for free because of our Eurail pass, so that was an unexpected very pleasant surprise. We were giddy with thoughts of the day that lied ahead and anxiously waited for the boat to arrive as it was running a few minutes late. The large river boat finally appeared, and the crew situated a wobbly bridge for us to cross over and board, which we did, quickly and carefully. Up to the sundeck, and it was not more than 10 minutes or so before we began to see how amazing this riverboat journey was going to be. Before, while we waited for the boat to arrive, I read alound a few pages of information about the history and significance of the Rhein, it's boats and it's wineries, but now, on board, we were experiencing it for ourselves, and we were elated. I continued reading more about the Rhein during our trip, and followed a map of the many castles we saw along the way. It was amazing to think that we just "happened" to even consider doing this trip simply because of a tiny blurb I read in our Lonely Planet guide the previous morning, and thought maybe it ought to be something we consider. Wow!! People come from all over the world JUST to travel the Rhein Valley, and here we were, doing it "on a whim", as a day trip. Soon, we were approached by a super sweet and friendly couple from the States, who were curious about our travelling to Greece. I think that the gentleman, Michael, misunderstood the map I was looking at, and I explained that earlier in our trip, we had wanted to go to Greece, but that we ended up not going, and then that launched into a whole conversation that we so thoroughly enjoyed and wanted to continued, but we had to make time to enjoy all the castles that we were seeing along the river banks. She was originally from Texas, and he was originally from Ireland, and now they lived in Virginia and travelled the world as financial consultants and writers. Later, they would come over to talk with us some more, and Michael actually planned out our entire trip to Ireland for us. AWESOME!!! We finished talking, and another man, Jim, from the States began a conversation with us, and he was fascinating too, and so friendly. Turns out, he is was a Lietenant Colonel in the Navy (VERY military, and was actually wearing a U.S. Navy jacket), and finished his career with the NSA, owns a condo in Cape Code where lives part of the year, a condo in St.Pete where he lives part of the year, and travels Europe for a few weeks/months the rest of the time. We talked for a long time, and talked a few more times during the remainder of the trip. The castles and vineyards and craggly slate and forested mountains of the river valley were gorgeous, and the weather turned out to be fantastic too, despite the forecasts. Vee read quite a bit of her book while keeping a close eye on the beautiful surroundings and snapping lots of pics. I used up the last of my video tape, and continued reading more about the Rhein River Valley until we decided to disembark at a little river town called Rudesheim, rather than Mainz, the town we had originally planned to visit at the conclusion of the trip. We stopped in a little cafe and had a bite to eat, and wandered the touristy little streets, crammed full of very authentic looking biergartens, weingartens, and cafes. It was getting late, and we needed to get back to Koblenz, where our bags were, where we had a hotel room reserved for the night, but most importantly, where we were meeting up with Vee's closest childhood friend Sandra for a night out on the town. The train station in Rudesheim was rough due to renovations, but we finally figured out where we needed to be to catch the train to Koblenz. Once on board, the heavens opened up and it poured, but by the time we arrived, it was as if the rain had completely bypassed Koblenz. We got our bags, after wasting a two-Euro coin in the locker, in addition to the required 1.5 Eur. We pulled out the laptop, and checked the address of our hotel, and found it to be right across the street, yeehaa! We checked in, dropped off our bags, called Sandra, and began the walk across town to meet up with her. Vee was very excited, and very anxious, and I was curious. Vee has talked about Sandra, and her family, so frequently, and I knew how important they all were to her, and how significant they were in her life as a little girl in Germany, and now I'd finally be able to meet her. They saw each other from across the busy intersection, and recognized each other immediately. Sandra showed us her, and her boyfriend's ("Gido"?) awesome flat overlooking Munz Platz, and then took us through most of the old town center and over to German Corner, and back to a nice cafe where we had some drinks. Sandra and Vee had a blast, reminiscing, and getting caught up on some of the things that have happened in their lives since they last saw each other the last time Vee was in Germany in the late 90's. I loved seeing the two of them laugh and giggle and talk. Sandra was super friendly and sweet, and her English was quite good, so I was able to talk with her some too. We had to move to another bar, because the one we were at had to close the outdoor seating area where we were seated. Once inside the other place, a spanish tapas bar, the girls had margaritas and I had more beer. I had a contact lense attack, and had to leave the table to get myself together, and shortly after my return, it was time to leave again, as it was 1am and time for the bar to close. It was pouring rain outside and Sandra walked us to the taxi station nearby where we exchanged hugs and goodbyes. We both had a great time with Sandra, and I am sure that Vee feels a great sense of relief, peace and warmth with having this unique opportunity to spend some time with someone who had meant so much to her, and had so much of an impact on her. Once back at the hotel, we read a little bit, since we both are so totally wrapped up in our latest books, but quickly crashed with exhaustion.