Many of central Europe’s cities, including Zurich and Heidelberg, are built on waterways which eventually flow into the mighty Rhine River and many others like Cologne are built on the banks of the Rhine itself.
My nephew lived in Zürich for some years and had frequent visitors. When I visited I slept on a blow up mattress behind the couch while two other guests slept on a double blow up mattress on the other side of the room. Somehow that seems so typical of Zürich which often wins the competition for the world’s most livable city. The transport system is second to none, the city is small enough to be ‘gemütlich’ but big enough to be interesting. On the other hand the alternative Dada art movement started in Zürich in 1915 and seems a fitting response to the strictures of Swiss society. I spent my days in art galleries and sketching by the lake.
I have been a frequent visitor to Heidelberg, on the river Necker, while visiting friends in nearby Neckargemünd which is equally picturesque. Heidelberg, is smaller than Zürich, but very well connected to everywhere else by train and bus. The Neckar valley is wooded with roads running a long the river, perfect for cycling. From Neckargemünd you can see right along the valley to the Castle at Dilsberg which is a favourite for visiting tourists.
The Neckar flows into the Rhein which has been an important transport hub for centuries. Taxes were collected by local overlords as ships passed along the Rhine. The boats of those who didn’t pay were impounded until they came up with the cash. Each village along the Rhine is prettier than the one before and imposing castles stand on many of the surrounding hills.
Villages are scattered along the plateau above the Rhine, including the small town of Weisel which is five km along a winding road up the hill from Kaub on the Rhine. From the top of the hill you can see for miles and wouldn’t know there was a mighty river below.
Weisel is a quiet town with occasional tractors driving through and the odd car. My friend Ulla restored a very old house there, one with wooden stairs that get ever narrower the higher you climb. The walls are thick and keep out the cold and there is a half timbered shed out the back.
Further north west the Rhine leads to the city of Cologne.
