We spent the morning cruising the Rhine Gorge, soaking up sunshine and looking at castles, picturesque towns and mountain vineyards. This is a 65 kilometer stretch of the river, which has been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Our cruise director kept us entertained with nuggets of history, politics, and folklore. The weather was beautiful – cool when we entered the gorge at 6:30 am, then up to 75 degrees by noon, when we reached Rudesheim on the other side.
This statue of Emperor William I stands at the German Corner (Deutches Elk) – the point of confluence of the Rhine with the Moselle, at Koblenz, and marks the start of the gorge.
The Niederwalddenkmal monument is found above Rudesheim, where the Rhine Gorge ends. It constructed to commemorate the foundation of the German Empire after the end of Franco-Prussian War.
