Tuesday, July 21st - Nuremberg, Germany

Another sailing morning so no rush to get up.  We slept in a bit and didn't make it to the deck for breakfast until just after 8 a.m.  That would have been fine because we were expected to cross the highest lock mid morning.  However, with no other traffic on the waterway we apparently made great time through the locks so we are again several hours ahead of schedule so we missed the highest lock, which was about 7 a.m.  

The first lock we saw came about 9:30 and it was pretty impressive.   The Eibach lock has a drop of about 65 feet.  As we approached the lock we were that much higher plus the height of the ship so it looked like the end of the world ahead as we couldn't see anything except the door at the end of the lock.  We all thought Christopher Columbus must have felt much the same when he thought the world was flat.  It was a single width lock again so we just fit in with a few inches to spare on each side.  As we stopped at the front of the dock we could see trucks driving over a road below the front of the lock and that gave us a perspective of how far we were going down because we were going to have to drop below the level of the road to go through.  

The cement wall in front of us seemed very formidable and as we sank slowly into the lock you definitely knew you were going down as it got darker and darker on all sides.  The captain opened the upper deck so people could get a better view but just as we approached the bottom he came on the speaker and apologized that everyone would have to leave again so they could get ready to go under the big cement wall in front of us.  That was a bit of a surprise as I assumed it would go up or swing open or something, but in fact the concrete wall stayed stationery and the part below it rose up in front of it so that we sailed out under the concrete wall with not more than a few inches to spare.  As soon as the people came down the stairs from the upper deck you heard the railings being lowered so we could clear the lock.  And as the bottom part slid up the sunlight came in and we could see the water and the rest of the world beyond.  It was quite amazing and with 16 locks on this section - anywhere from 28 to 82 feet in depth change - the whole system is quite spectacular.  For the bigger locks with depth changes of over 55 feet, they have extra canals to hold the water beside the lock and extra conduits to let the water back in.  The locks fill at a rate of 5.5 feet per minute and there is no turbulence in the lock, and they don't need extra pumps to accomplish this so it's quite amazing.

We arrived in Nuremberg around noon and after lunch we boarded our buses for our city tour.  All three buses were going to most of the same places but the first two buses got free time to go to the market place while our third bus was going to the Documentation Centre.  Nuremberg was a Free City in the 13th century (whatever that means) and had special status.  The German crown jewels were stored here for over 300 years and it was the location of the first parliament presided over by every newly elected German king.  The city was also a major centre for the arts.  Unfortunately it was also a perfect place for the Nazi party and that is how it is remembered by many people today.  During WWII 90% of the buildings in the city were damaged and 75% of the old city was reduced to rubble.  The Nuremberg Trials in the late 40's ended that part of the city's history and the city was rebuilt starting in the 50's.

We had a great tour guide who gave us a great talk about the history and culture as we drove along in the bus.  Our first stop of the tour was at the Palace of Justice where the Nuremberg Trials were held.  We could not go in the facility as it is still an active courthouse.  The prison where they held the prisoners was just behind and there was a special pathway for them to get from the prison to the court room for the trial, and the gallows were supposedly just behind that.  We didn't stay long and there wasn't much to see but the importance of the history that was made (or heard) in this place was not missed by anyone.

Our next stop was at the castle and fortification built in the 11th century.  Strangely enough it was called a castle but no one really ever lived there.  Apparently when important dignitaries came to town and they wanted to really impress them, then they moved their furniture and everything into the castle for the duration of the stay but then moved it back home later.  The fortification around the castle is immense.  There are three different levels of hight walls around a dry moat and a series of 80 towers ran the length of the whole fortification wall around the city.  The views from the terrace of the castle are fantastic but we did not have time to go into any of the specific areas within the complex.

Our next stop was at Zepellinfed, a long stadium-like facility beside a lovely lake.  While it now looks tranquil, this was once the rallying place for the Nazis and Hitter could pack about 50,000 people in and fire up the crowd to suit his purposes.  It is a huge grandstand and then acres of fields where the people would gather to hear him.  On the other side of the lake is the never totally complete New Congress Hall.  Hitler also used this to gather the masses together and the facility is designed after the Coliseum in Rome but much bigger.  The Coliseum can actually fit entirely inside the Congress Hall walls.  Now, within the completed parts of the building, you can find the Documentation Centre that covers the rise and fall of the Third Reich from the 20's to the 50's.  The Centre is very well done and you really need a half a day or more to see and hear it all.  We only had an hour and a half so we had to pick and choose what we listened to.  It is all a truly amazing story, not one you really want to hear or see, but one that must be told nonetheless.  I found it really interesting and truly wished we could have had more time.  I was never much for history in school but the way Hitler took power always amazes me.  The whole exhibit was moving and informative and told/shown in a very unbiased way.  I'm sure a lot of people learn a great deal from it.

I'm sure we saw other sights from our bus but I know longer remember what they were.  There were a lot of old buildings and a lot of new.  Our guide tried to help us distinguish between the two but it wasn't as easy as you might think.  Anyway, our tour ended and we all arrived back on board around 6 p.m. so just had time for a quick dip in the pool before the port talk and dinner.  None of us lasted very long after that so it was an early night for almost everyone.