I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and a great start to the new year. Today's photo is from our cruise down the Rhine River in Germany. There is a stretch of the river in Germany that features twenty-eight castles and too many little towns to count. Many of these towns have beautiful churches that dominate the surrounding buildings. About an hour after entering this part of the Rhine, the heavens opened up, making shooting a bit tough. Despite this, I was determined to get a few shots despite the fact that everyone on the observation deck had abandoned it (at least there was some cover). I was able to get this shot of the Church of Our Lady in Oberwesel, Germany through the raindrops after which I headed below decks to have some refreshments while enjoying the scenery.
Night Spires
Last week I posted this image of Cologne, Germany's waterfront. In that image, the spires of the Cologne Cathedral (also known as the High Cathedral of Saint Peter) can be seen in the background. Later that afternoon, it started to rain and we headed back to the ship for some drinks and dinner. During dinner, the rain stopped and I decided to grab the camera and tripod and head to the top deck of the ship to take a few night shots. The spires of the cathedral was even more pronounced in the night sky with all of its lights on. I usually don't shoot at night but I really enjoyed it and hope to make this more of my routine.
On a personal note, with Thanksgiving tomorrow, I want to thank everyone who has visited my site this year. When I started this blog, I wasn't sure how long I would do it. It has been 18 months since I started the blog and thanks to all of you, I am inspired to continue to do so for quite a long time.
Cologne Waterfront
The Rhine River flows from Lake Toma in eastern Switzerland and flows through Switzerland, Austria, Germany, France and the Netherlands before flowing into the North Sea at Rotterdam. Along the way, there are beautiful towns and cities that dot this beautiful route. Some are small towns while others are large cities. What is so great about a river cruise is that the boats often pull up to the side of the river so that passengers can just hop off and be in the city. One of my favorite stops in Germany was Cologne. After the ship docked, I hopped off and was only a few steps from this scene on Cologne's waterfront. While the weather wasn't at its best, the town was quite inviting as we sampled the local brews and cuisine.
Heidelberg Rooftops
When one travels along the Rhine River, it is impossible to go very far without a castle or a church being close by. Many of the tours involve visits to one or the other and sometimes both. On this particular morning, we took a tour of the Heidelberg Castle which towers 300 feet above the wonderful city of the same name. The castle is a complex consisting of several buildings that surround an inner courtyard. The buildings were built and rebuilt over the centuries and, as a result, they each feature different German architecture. My favorite part of the castle is the outdoor terrace that gives this image's vantage point of the rooftops of the city alongside the Rhine River. For anyone that wonders about the influence and importance of the Catholic Church in Europe, they can take a look at this skyline and see how the Church of the Holy Spirit is by far the dominant structure.
Rhine River Protector
One of the main attractions of a Rhine River cruise are the castles that tower above the river. There is a particular stretch of the Rhine River in Germany from Koblenz to Rüdesheim that is home to twenty-eight castles and fortresses. Some of these structures are in ruins while many of them are in good shape and are tourist attractions. There is at least one that is now a hotel. As with any outdoor photography, we were at the mercy of the weather. When we left Koblenz, the weather was threatening but all in all wasn't too bad. As we approached the prime section, the heavens opened up and we were forced indoors to watch from the ship's lounge. It was still great to see despite my inability to shoot it. As we began the last third of the section, the weather cleared and I was able to run up to the observation deck to grab a few shots.
The first castle I was able to shoot was this one, the Rheinstein Castle. Rheinstein Castle is built on a steep cliff overseeing the town of Assmannshausen on the other side of the river. Built in the 14th Century it is great example of castle reconstruction.
High Cathedral of Saint Peter
Our first stop on our recent river cruise in Europe was Cologne, Germany. One of the differences that I really liked on the river cruise was that when you come to port, you can walk off of the ship and you are in the city. This is much different than ocean cruises where you are often outside the city because the ships are too large and you have to be bused to see the sights. Disembarking in Cologne was great as we were only a couple of blocks from the Cologne Cathedral also known as the High Cathedral of Saint Peter. We had a wonderful guide and he was extremely informative. One of the things we learned about the cathedral is that it is home to the remains of the three wise men and, as a result, it is a very popular religious destination.
It was pretty dark in the cathedral and since tripods were not allowed, I pushed the ISO to 6400 for the first time and shot a hand-held five bracket burst. I was quite amazed how well the resulting image turned out as the noise was pretty manageable.