MILTENBERG (On MAIN River)

VIKING TRAVELOG GRAND EUROPEAN RIVER CRUISE RHINE-MAIN-DANUBE RIVERS

DAY 5 – MILTENBERG (on MAIN River)

We were now entering the scenic part of our journey through the narrower Main River, which would lead to the Rhine-Main-Danube canal, and then on to the Danube River. Plan for the Day: The morning is spent sailing along the beautiful Main River as it winds its way through the Spessart region, home of the actual Snow White. During our sail, be sure to take advantage of the opportunity to learn about the region’s glassblowing traditions during a live demonstration. After lunch, we stop in Miltenberg, known for its half-timbered houses and Germany’s oldest inn. Join our walking tour that concludes with free time for you to explore. We sail through the night.

When I woke up in the morning, I noticed from the Ship Tracker that we had sailed past Frankfurt am Main and were on our way south to Miltenberg. I also checked the weather report for the day, and the forecast for the next five days (low 70’s F, mostly cloudy).

Elsa was happiest in the morning after she had her cup of coffee.

After breakfast we continued to watch the scenery of the countryside pass by. We were interrupted time after time by the inevitable locks that impeded our progress.

The Main is navigable for shipping from its mouth at the Rhine close to Mainz for 396 km (246 mi) to Bamberg. Since 1992, the Main has been connected to the Danube via the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal. The Main has been canalized with 34 large locks (300 × 12 m or 984 × 39 ft) to allow CEMT class V vessels (110 × 11.45 m or 360.9 × 37.6 ft) to navigate the total length of the river. The 16 locks in the adjacent Rhine- Main-Danube Canal and the Danube itself are of the same dimensions. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_(river)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_%28river%29#/media/File:Verlaufskarte_Main.gif%20 Main%20(river) (map of locks/dams along the Main)

Cathy, our traveling companion, spent a lot of her time sitting on the sun deck, or in the lounge, drawing sketches of her surroundings.

The villages and the vineyards seemed to be much closer now since the Main River was not so wide. I also noticed that the vineyards were now terraced in horizontal rows, instead of the steep vertical rows on the Rhine River.

Ever so often a castle or palace (or church or abbey) on a hilltop would entice me to bring out the camera and take a snapshot. This building had a small cross on it.

At 10:30 AM we were invited to attend a Nautical Talk (with slideshow) presented by Chief Engineer Catalin Cimpeanu in the lounge. We learned that the Viking longships were built in shipyards in the northern German city of Rostock. Viking is privately owned (owner from Russia), and the vision was to eventually build 100 longships. We were told it cost about 25 million euros to build one ship. https://www.cruisemapper.com/ships/Viking-Vali-2151 (Viking Vali details)

One interesting photo of the longship stood out – it showed how the top deck was cleared and the captain’s cabin lowered hydraulically in order to safely pass under a bridge.

The locks were built to accommodate ships and boats with a width of 39 feet. I took a photo of the side of the ship, which showed a leeway of about one foot on each side.

While we were slowly moving through the lock, several crew members were cleaning the windows with buckets of soapy water and squeegees. 8

The locks were managed on a “first come, first served” basis. When the longship entered the lock (going upstream), it had to wait until the lock filled up with water before it could proceed out of the lock. A system of lights was installed to help the captain know when “the coast was clear.”

Plaque on side of the Viking Vali longship showed that it was built in 2019 in Rostock (founded 1850) by Neptun Werft.

We entered the vicinity of Miltenberg at 11:30 am. A sign near a look-out building stated that Miltenberg was “Die Perle des Mains” (The Pearl of the Main River).

The Mainz Gate (tower) is the western gateway from Miltenberg to the west.

http://wikimapia.org/25589034/Mainz-Gate https://www.miltenberg.info/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Stadtplaenchen-mit-Highlights- Miltenberg-Buergstadt-Kleinheubach.pdf (illustrated map with numbered-labeled sites)

As our Viking longship slowly moved to the right bank in preparation for docking, we watched as the charming half-timbered houses on the shoreline came into view.

The townscape revealed a medieval town that was documented for the first time in 1237. A castle on the hilltop, and a church below, seemed to be the pattern for that time. We were presently passing the Schwarzviertel (“black quarter”), so called because of its narrow streets and tall buildings preventing most sunlight from reaching the ground. The Mildenberg Castle stood high above that section of the city. 11

Presently, the twin towers of the Catholic Parish Church St. James came into view.

And then the Mainbrucke (bridge crossing the Main River) presented a dazzling gatehouse at the south end. The gatehouse was built in 1900, and it was originally a toll booth for the bridge.

As it turned out, we did not dock in Miltenberg. Instead, we continued upstream for another several miles to a town called Freudenberg Stadt. That’s where we docked, and then a bus took us later in the afternoon on an eleven-minute ride back to Miltenberg, where our three-hour walking tour began at 3:30pm. I took a video of our bus ride to Miltenberg -- https://youtu.be/j1GjT0-jYsc (11:24).

Freudenberg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freudenberg_(Baden)

Since we had several hours to kill before our late afternoon tour of Miltenberg, Elsa and I decided to take a walk along the promenade of the town Freudenberg.

We spotted a large building (hotel) near the bridge called Goldenes Fass (the Golden Barrel). There was also a sign on the building saying “Distelhauser” (beer).

We decided to take a walk across the bridge to the other side. A sign on the bridge indicated we were entering Kiirschfurt, municipality of Collenberg, in the county of Miltenberg.

Coat of arms sign of Miltenberg County Advertisement for Europe. Best idea!

I stopped to take a photo from the bridge of our Viking Vali longship (with top down) and the scenic town of Freundenberg.

A sign on the other side of the bridge showed that we had come to “Unterwegs im Naturpark Spessart” (Roads and paths in the Nature Park Spessart).

Elsa loved to walk through new neighborhoods, so we kept walking until the road to the right ended. Then we turned back and returned to the bridge. I noticed an interesting trellis for several small maple trees. It appeared that the owner wanted the maple trees to grow in a certain pattern along the bamboo-shaped trellis.

The double lion crest (heraldic symbol) made of stone was placed next to the walking path of the bridge. The word BAYERN (Bavaria) marked the bottom of the stone.

Sign on bridge: Freiheit, Gleichheit, Schwesterlichkeit (“Freedom, Equality, Sisterhood). Sign on bridge: Main – Tauber – Kreis (with coat of arms of Main & Tauber rivers on bottom and six-spoked Wheel of Mainz on top)

Back to the Viking Vali – what a beautiful longboat (longship) to look at and admire.

Photo opportunity for Elsa to be placed in a picturesque village setting.

Back in Freudenberg, we walked down a narrow street and looked at the beautiful buildings. One beautiful half-timbered building caught my eye. It had the coat of arms of Stadt Freudenberg on the side of the building. Of course, I had to look up that coat of arms. The shield is quarterly divided. Top left in a silver (white) field is a black demi- eagle. Top right has a blue field divided by a golden (yellow) fess wavy. Below left in a blue field is a golden (yellow) heraldic rose. Below right in a silver (white) field are three black peaks of a ridge of

mountains. https://www.crwflags.com/FOTW/FLAGS/de-tb-fr.html

It was also a photo opportunity for me to show the brick-paved promenade beside the scenic town and the River Main.

(1) Ad for the beautiful Freudenberg http://www.freudenberg-main.de (2) Sign about the Wertheim Gate and the story of the town 20

The Wertheim Gate was the town’s third gate. There is a crucifix placed on the side of the gate (to the left).

Newly erected in the 1950’s, this was the third church devoted to St. Lawrence. The house of worship is built in the style of the 1950’s with local sandstone and colourful glass painting.

(1) St. Nikolaus (protector of seamen), donated by the fishermen and boatsmen, greets the faithful coming from the river. (2) Sign: the Neue Kirche (New Church)

This is where the Viking Vali was docked in Freudenberg. From here we took a bus to Miltenberg for our afternoon (3:30pm) tour. I took a video of our bus ride to Miltenberg -- https://youtu.be/j1GjT0-jYsc (11:24).

WALKING TOUR: AN ENCHANTING RIVERSIDE VILLAGE (WWW.VIKINGRIVERCRUISES.COM ) Take in the fairy-tale charms of Miltenberg by foot, the most intimate way to get to know one of Germany’s most delightful riverside towns. Begin your tour in the Old Town, following its cobblestone streets past medieval houses fronted with flower-bedecked balconies. The town square, lined with half-timbered facades, is one of the most picturesque in all of Germany, laid out on a narrow strip of land between the hills and manicured banks of the Main. Nearby, the handsome and richly hued hotel Zum Riesen (“Inn of the Giant”), Germany’s oldest inn, is a Renaissance treasure; it first opened its doors as a hotel in 1411 and has been open ever since. You will also see the Mainz and Würzburg town gates and catch a glimpse of Miltenberg Castle, built in the 13th and 14th centuries, high over the roofs of Miltenberg.

Our tour guide, Elke Pfandler, pointed out the castle in the distance as we began our tour of Miltenberg. We would not be going to the castle on our tour.

Statues of 3 boys (fountain).

The funny part about the statues of the three boys was that it was placed right in front of a WC (Water Closet), the letters used to indicate a public restroom (toilet). I couldn’t resist taking a picture with those boys. Boys will be boys.

And right across the street was a statue of a saint. Talk about the juxtaposition of the sacred and the profane.

Our guide, Elke (e pronounced like in “a guide”), pointed out a narrow lane with crooked houses, with crooked windows. “It looks like it’s bent, with the beams going down, and you have to put something under your bed or you’ll roll out of bed at night. But people still live in there. If it wasn’t for the other houses propping it up, the house would fall. They probably did something wrong when they built it. They didn’t put enough of a strong foundation into the sandy soil. Every time you have a flood, the sandy soil is washed away. But this house was built in the 16th century, or earlier, so they probably didn’t know much about it.”

Next, we walked down a totally picturesque street. The building to the left had a sign above the entrance: “Speise Saststatte Goldene Krone Fremdenzimmer” (food restaurant Golden Crown guest room). Our guide told us we were now in the “Black Quarter,” which was labelled that way because it was really dark inside the buildings.

Column with statue of St. James on top, with a shell mark and the words “Santiago de Compostela” underneath. Our guide said, “If you see a shell, you know that you are in front of a Jacob’s church, from St. Jacob (St. James), and this is one of the points where you can get a stamp. Jacob’s way is a pilgrim way, and you walk it about 800 kilometers from North Spain to Jacob’s church in Spain. And from this point (indicated on the column), it’s only 2577 kilometers to Santiago de Compostela. In Spain, it usually takes six to seven weeks to complete the walk. Lots of young people walk Jacob’s way when they get out of universities. They usually do it to find themselves. Or sometimes to get away from computers and the internet. I think it’s a very good tradition because you can get your peace (of mind) there.”

Catholic Parish Church of St. James

We were coming to Market Square (Marktplatz), the marketplace, the center of the old town. Elke told us a story here about a Nazi demonstration here (in 2006), which the towns people didn’t appreciate. “There was nothing we could do about it because they got permission. They made lots of noise here, walking around with flags and banners. As soon as the leader climbed up on the stage and was about to start his speech, the priest (Ulrich Boom) had locked the doors to the church and he rang the bells until all the right-wing people had left. Since our constitution gave even extreme groups the freedom of speech, the priest had to pay a 5,000 euro fine afterwards. But the people of Miltenberg collected it for him and paid it off. So now he is the Auxillary Bishop, and the right-wing people don’t come into this town because he promised he’d do it again. We appreciate it in this town because we don’t need right-wing people.” Someone said “Amen” when Elke Pfandler finished the story.

The fountain (Marktbrunnen) in Marktplatz was built in 1583 (out of red sandstone) by a stonemason at the request of the town mayor, who wouldn’t pay him until the work was done. The stonemason (Michael Junker) got his revenge by placing one of four children in a posterior (showing his butt) position towards the mayor’s house.

The fountain (on the octagonal basin) and the half-timbered houses make for a perfect photo opportunity (for Elsa). The dancing cherubs on the slender column reminded her of her grand-daughters. On top of the column is a sculpture of Lady Justice, with Miltenberg’s coat of arms on her shield.

It’s curious that Lady Justice is not blindfolded (as usual). The reason she wasn’t blindfolded was that the mayor was too fond of himself, and he claimed that in his town there was no crime. There was crime, but he didn’t want to see it, so that’s why she was sculpted without the blindfold. Elke added, “Nowadays it’s OK that she’s not blindfolded, because we have a good economy and things are good.”

Small statues are seen on buildings as patron saints (protective deities). Here Lad Madonna stands with her feet on a globe and a serpent. A crown of 12 stars encircles her head (a reference to Rev. 12:1).

Elke stops and tells us about the small round Schnapps bottles in front of a “distilled spirits” store. She said that her favorite was hazelnut Schnapps.

Elke said the sculpted figures were probably sisters. “In those days it was common to get married to an unmarried sister of your first wife, if she died giving birth to a child or died otherwise. The figure on the left looks like a brother (with a moustache). It could have been a first cousin. Even today we’re allowed to get married to a first cousin in Germany.”

A colorful Madonna on the building. She is the saint for the family that lives in that house. She’s protecting everybody in the family. It’s also a sign of wealth. Also, Catholic.

Left - On top of the doorway is a gargoyle to scare all the bad luck away, and all the bad people.. Right – “stumbling stones” with Jewish names on them, placed on the ground as a remembrance of those who died in the Holocaust (or in a concentration camp). The stones are placed a little higher than the surface to “stumble” over them (to be reminded of what happened back in those days).

The sky started to darken, and rain was imminent.

Chalk writing on the wall or on a door indicates the year (20 _ _ _ 18), and the letters C + M + B indicate the Three Wise Men (Caspar, Melchior, Balthasar). This is the blessing for the house for 2018. Children walk around on January 6th (Three Wise Men day), and they collect some money, and they buy some sweets for themselves and also give money for projects to help poor children. The blessing to the house is called “Christus mansionem benedicat” (Christ bless this house).

https://www.german-way.com/history- and-culture/holidays-and- celebrations/christmas/epiphany- sternsinger/

Those of us who wisely carried the red umbrellas that were provided to us by Viking opened them up and protected ourselves from the ensuing downpour. Elke continued to point out the important sites in the medieval town.

Altes Rathaus. Miltenberg’s town hall was first documented in 1379. In those days it was also a warehouse and store. Built from stone, the old town hall catches the eye thanks to its unadorned facade, with four mullioned windows underneath a classical pediment. Elke told us an interesting story about this house and the lady who lived in it. “She had an upper window area built so she could watch the towns people walking up and down, and see what everybody was doing. The window also opened up. This way she would hear and know the latest news (gossip). This was basically their television, the only entertainment they had.”

A sign on the wall says: “Staffelbrunnen, 1611.” This was one of the wells that you couldn’t drink water from. It was a relay well built in 1611. When the drinking water went bad, the towns people started drinking wine, even the children.

At this point we were told to turn around and look into the distance. There, high on a hill, was the Mildenburg Castle.

We were heading down the Hauptstrasse (Main Street) to one of the most talked about buildings in town. It was called Zum Riesen (“The Giant Inn”), Germany’s oldest inn.

At the end of the Hauptstrasse, tall and majestic, is Gasthof Zum Riesen (the giant's tavern), one of Germany's oldest hotels dating from 1411 and rebuilt in the half-timbered renaissance style in 1590. The stories it could tell. Famous guests include two Holy Roman emperors, Napoleon Bonaparte, Empress Maria Theresa, Richard Strauss and Elvis Presley, who has long since left the building. The arch at the ground floor is where the carriages drove through.

Signs indicated what kind of business was being done in the building. There is a six- pointed star under the sign. It looks like the Star of David, but it actually is the sign for a brewery. Every time beer was available, the star came out. 36

May Pole at the center of the large Engelplatz (Angel Square). 1st May is maypole day in Bavaria and a day for the local folklore group dressed in their finest costumes to gather all the villagers together to celebrate this important annual occasion. Each and every maypole is uniquely decorated with ribbons, wreaths or signs denoting local craftsmen’s guilds. The hoisting of a maypole is an important part of all spring festivities. The earliest reports of Maypoles, as a symbol of all things that grow and bear fruit, date back to the 13th century. Today the Maypole reflects the wealth of the paticular community. https://www.bavaria.by/experiences/city-country-culture/traditions- customs/1st-may-is-maypole-day-in-bavaria/

Franziskanerkirche (Franciscan Church) at the Engelplatz (Angel Square).

This house had the guild sign of a pretzel on top of the façade. The pretzel was the guild sign for the bakers. The sign of the pretzel was basically invented by monks, who prayed with their hands folded across their chest. So they shaped their bread like that during Lent and sprinkled some salt on it.

Walking down the street away from Engelplatz (Angel Square), where we were to meet the bus to take us back to the Viking longship. Elke told me that I could find a WC at the bottom of the street. She told me there would be a sign pointing the way to the WC. So I headed down the street called Ziegelgasse towards the Main River.

Sure enough, I saw the sign of a boy telling his father “Vatter-do!” and pointing in the direction of the WC. What a relief to know that the Germans think of everything.

Afterwards, I returned to Engelplatz to wait for the bus. Our program director, Stephen Guy, saw that we were soaking wet from the constant rain, and he managed to get the buses to drive us back early to the comforts of a warm stateroom at the Viking Vali.

When it came to dinner time, I had Sea Bass, and apple strudel for dessert. That really warmed me up – after a cold, wet afternoon in Miltenberg.

Satellite map from Mainz (upper left)– where we entered the Main River – past Frankfurt am Main (top) and down to Miltenberg (lower right). https://satellites.pro/#49.910335,8.881073,11 40

Resources: https://www.vikingrivercruises.com/ships/longships/viking-vali.html https://www.cruisecritic.com/reviews/review.cfm?ShipID=1325 (review, photos of ships) https://www.thecrazytourist.com/15-best-things-miltenberg-germany/ (15 best things to see in Miltenberg) https://www.miltenberg.info/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Stadtplaenchen-mit-Highlights- Miltenberg-Buergstadt-Kleinheubach.pdf (illustrated map with numbered-labeled sites) https://www.miltenberg.info/ (includes English-speaking video of Miltenberg history) https://youtu.be/N9nwkeiWgcU (You Tube video, 8:12) Miltenberg - Die Perle am Main https://youtu.be/5OnfISgevlk (You Tube video, 7:39) Destination 2016: Miltenberg