8/15 - At 8 we had coffee, croissants with marmalade in the promenade. I wore my long short sleeved dress & it was delightful on the sun deck. Fortified with my binoculars, camera, & a magazine, I sat in the shade & left Erna to the sun. The ship left the Main River for the Main/Danube Canal. We went to the champagne brunch buffet around 11. As I watched lovely scenery as the ship floated along, I sat in the lounge hearing easy listening music with Ferenc. He played nice music a few hours a day at different times, an hour at a time.
A little before 1, we departed by bus for a guided walking tour of Bamberg & some free shopping time. One of the 2 busses was a double decker. I made sure to take that one & sit on the top level. I took pictures of some houses while riding. This 1,000 year old Bavarian city is on the Main River & the Main-Danube Canal. It's tucked off the main routes of norther Bavaria & set amidst picturesque rivers & forests. Most of the buildings stand intact because it escaped the wartime bombings that devastated other German cities. Our walking tour revealed a perfectly preserved city, boasting the finest Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance & Baroque architecture. The city is listed as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site.
I took a picture in a flower garden surrounding St. Peter & St. George Cathedral. Standing above overlooking the town, I took pictures of the city. I found a place that sold place mats, etc. They are beautiful & will be used only for company. When Laurie saw them, she thought they were to good to use??? & wondered how I'd remove stains without damaging the fabric. I bought a few other things there as well. Dora bought some things there also when I showed her what I bought. She said she'll have to stick by me as I seem to find the best things at the best prices.
Then we went back on our double decker bus & returned to the ship at 4. As soon as we all came aboard, we set sail for Nuremberg.

I rode this into Bamberg	Overlooking Bamberg
Flower garden surrounding St. Peter & St. Paul Cathedral	Inside the Cathedral
Me in Bamberg next to a fountain	Hotel Timian Riemenfdord Had lunch in their dining room
Jane in dining room of hotel

8/16 - We left a 8 in 3 buses for a city tour of Nuremberg, which also included some walking & free time (which I always use to buy things). Our tour guide was Annette & she explained things quite well. She also used a w instead of a v when saying wine, etc. We saw the site of the postwar Nuremberg Trials & Hitler's parade grounds. I took a picture of Congress Hall from across a lake. It's the same building where Hitler made his speeches. Also took a picture of the Zepplin Grandstand. The parade ground was not much to see as it is being used now for children's sports activities. I & others got out of the bus to take a picture of the 4 windows in the courthouse where the trials were held as we weren't allowed inside the building.

Sometimes on these tours, I felt like one of a herd of cattle going to the slaughter. We took a walking tour of the former capital of Franconia & now Bavaria's 2nd largest city. Dominating the walled historic center is the Imperial Castle. From here our guide led us on a walk through scenic old town. The castle & 3 old churches here were painstakingly rebuilt using the original stone. Allied bombers had reduced the city to rubble in 1/2/45. Of 10,000 Jews living in Nuremburg before the war, 10 survived. Allied bombing raids of the city killed about 2,000. Fortunately for posterity, the Nazis had envisioned the devasting bombing raids & had removed all important works of art from the city's museums & churches & stored them in a bomb shelter. The city's churches contain valuable artworks.

We were given some free time to walk around & shop. I asked Carol where the nearest MacDonald's was & she pointed me to it. Erna started to walk with me but I paid her no mind. She waited for me on the street when I came out. I kept going & managed to lose her. Enough is enough! I went on my own & made good headway. In one of the stores, I found a bag made in Englad to carry some of the stuff I bought.

Nuremberg, Bavaria
Congress Hall Taken from bus	Parade Grounds Taken from bus
Zepplin Grandstand Taken from bus also	Nuremberg Courthouse Four windows on third floor where trials took place
Stephen Hoffmann gave lecture about the Main/Danube Canal	Napkin with picture of Augustiner Keller on it
One of the waitresses	Slicing & serving the suckling pig

8/17-8/18

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