The Rhine Valley

Statue in Koblenz

Small town on the river

One of many castles/old buildings

Another small town

Castle

A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Rhine Valley extends from Koblenz southward about 65 km. Following the river, you will pass several small, old looking towns, and many castles--it is like driving into a time machine or a story book, a different era that has been impressively preserved today.

Our first stop was in Rudesheim, where we wandered along cobblestone paths and stopped by wineries and boutiques. Since it is winter, most of the vineyards were barren, but it was still very pretty. There is a wine called Alsach which is produced here. I meant to try it, but forgot to, though I did have some German ice wines.

As we drove along the river, we passed by another small town called Loreley, where people supposedly saw a mermaid. There is a statue there to commemorate this, although the statue is of a girl with legs sitting like a mermaid. Even though the locals call this a mermaid statue, the girl does not have a tail--she looks like an ordinary human girl. Maybe she is a mermaid that is able to develop legs (like the ones in H2O Just Add Water). I didn't get a photo of the statue, but you can google Loreley (or Lorelei) statue if you are really curious.

Koblenz is just a town, but they had a cool statue.

I really love how the castles are lit up at night. Then, it looks magical. Unfortunately most of the pictures cannot properly convey how beautiful that area is, since they are taken from a car. This trail was definitely one of my favorite trips in Europe.