Rhine Gorge

Today we sailed the prettiest section of the Rhine, through the Rhine Gorge and past the Lorelei Rock. The banks of the river were covered with forests, vineyards, pretty villages and innumerable churches and castles. Here you have The Pfalz, a toll castle in the middle of the river. It was established in 1326 and has been added to over the centuries but never destroyed or rebuilt. It stopped collecting tolls in 1867 and is now a museum.

We moored in Rudesheim which has grown enormously since I was last there - well it was 1972! A university friend and I went to the Munich Olympics and then toured around Germany.

Today we went to a concert in Schloss Johannisburg, a monastery rebuilt as a castle with wonderful vineyards. The concert was a Strauss and Schumann recital by Ryan Wigglesworth and Sophie Bevan. They are both have international musical careers which they balance with two young children and a 5 month old baby. We know them as they live in a nearby village to us in Oxfordshire. We bumped into them before the concert with their baby and her mother who is the magic ingredient who makes their lives possible.