Family Trip to Koblenz

Chris' parents visited recently, and we wanted to take them somewhere we hadn't been to yet. We thought Koblenz, Germany would be a perfect destination. We spent the first evening just walking around the town, enjoying a delicious steak dinner.

Sunset on the Moselle River

The next morning we boarded a boat for a tour down the Rhine River.

A waterpark along the Rhine

The first castle we passed was the Stolzenfels Palace. It was the summer residence of Frederick William IV of Prussia.

Chris finding some shade on the boat and enjoying the views

My refreshing grapefruit beer

We passed some quaint, little towns along the Rhine.

Vineyards

The police having fun on the water

We docked in the tiny town of Boppard for a hour. We walked around exploring the quaint city streets.

We found some Roman ruins just around the corner from the main square.

Excavated tombstones

Map of the Roman ruins

The "Boppard Chair" was created by Michael Thonet, a cabinetmaker from Boppard who propelled the notion of steam-bending wood. This invention allowed chairs to become an industrial production.

No day of sightseeing is complete without some tasty treats!

St. Severus Church is proudly located in the main square of Boppard. Christians have gathered here since the late 5th century. The church was later rebuilt in the 13th century.

Enjoying some local wine on the boat trip back to Koblenz.

The map on the boat with all the castles along the Rhine River.

After our boat ride, we took a cable car up to Ehrenbreitstein Fortress. For 3,000 years, this location has been used as refuge.The fortress was built by Prussians and was once among Europe's largest fortresses.

An enormous monument of Emperor William I overlooks the two rivers.

Overlooking the Deutches Eck (German Corner), the confluence between the Moselle and Rhine rivers.

We then had lunch on the patio of the fortress' restaurant with a phenomenal view.

Our view back down from the fortress

After dinner, we walked around and found a few more of Koblenz's interesting statues. The first one was the Schangel Fountain. The bronze figure of a boy spits water at random times. I almost got "spit on" while I was trying to take a picture!

Then we found the History Column, which represents the history of Koblenz from the time of the Romans, the French and Prussian era, the destruction of World War II and finally the present day.

On the way home, we stopped in Rothenburg, the medieval town, to share it with Chris' parents. We loved the city of Koblenz and our tour down the Rhine River. We would definitely enjoy a longer river cruise in the future!

The family on the Rhine River boat ride