April 4, 2018 ~ Wurtzberg, Germany

April 4, 2018 ~ Wurzberg, Germany

We had an early morning today.  My job seems to be the waker -- a different job than usual as Jeff is generally up and about long before I am in the mornings at home.  I had set my gentle alarm for 7 a.m. as I wanted to do a shower before heading out to breakfast.  I woke before the alarm and peeked out the window to see grey skies.  I took my shower and peeked again to see some hopeful breaks in the skies.  Fingers crossed, I got dressed and then woke Jeff.  We enjoyed breakfast with Gloria and Harold (a couple from Indiana with whom we had shared dinner the first night), and a new couple, Robin and Susan (pronounced Su-sahn) who were initially from Louisiana and are transplants to Texas.  

One of the delightful things about this cruise is sharing meals with different people from all over the US, Canada, the UK, and Australia.  We have meticulously tried to avoid political conversations, although every now and then we encounter folks who put their political views out there.  A gentle hand on Jeff's thigh one night kept his Quaker inner self from what might have been a contentious conversation with a "second amendment" fellow!  Lots of smiling folks onboard.  I chatted with a daughter who is traveling with her elderly mother, which made me smile and think about my own Mom and how very much she would have enjoyed the pampering that they give folks on this cruise.

Also in front of our minds throughout the trip so far has been our friend, Hans, who died far too young.  Visiting places we had seen with him was nostalgic to say the least.  

Anyway ... After breakfast, the various groups were called for their excursions.  Ours was to the Wurzburg Residence.  Wurzburg is a city in northern Bavaria, but according to our wonderful guide for the morning, Jasmine, don't call them Bavarian -- they are Franconians.  The city is equidistant between Frankfurt and Nuremberg and has a population of about 124,000 people -- a quarter of which are students, as Wurzburg is a major university city in Germany.  

There was a Bronze Age castle on the site of the current Fortress Marienberg, but the city does have Celtic roots.  It was Christianized in 686 by three Irish missionaries, Kilian (for whom the cathedral is named), Kolonat, and Totnan.  The cathedral is beautiful (haven't seen an ugly one yet) and dominates the city where there are over 80 church spires.  Our guide repeatedly told us that the city is "covered by churches."

A view from the other side of the bridge shows some of the close to 80 church spires in Wurzburg

For centuries the city was ruled by "prince-bishops" (no separation of Church and state here).  The first palace (the Marienberg Fortress) was high upon the hill and served as the residence for the prince-bishops for 500 years. 

By the 1700s the prince bishops wanted a more modern palace closer to the city, so they began to build a tremendous palace was built for the prince-bishop in the middle of town.  According to our guide, prince-bishop Johann Philipp Franz von Schonborn moved the court from the fortress Marienburg to a palace that was built between 1701 and 1704.  But, she said, the palace did not measure up; he wanted something more magnificent - something comparable to Versailles or Schonbrunn Palace (which we will see later in our trip).  He began construction of the Residence on May 22, 1720.  In 1729 construction of the northern wing was complete, and work stopped.  But in 1730 the new Prince-Bishop, Friedrich Carl von Schonborn began work on the south block, which was completed in 1733.  The central block was completed in 1743.

Photo from Wikipedia

Of everything we have seen so far, I was most awestruck by the vaulted ceilings over the Emperor's Hall and the adjacent White Hall.  Both were done over a twelve to fourteen month period in 1742 and 1743.  Balthasar Neumann was the designer of the ceilings over the main staircase, working in conjunction with Antonio Guiseppe Bossi, who did the stucco work. Giovanni Battista Tiepolo painted the frescos, many of which incorporate three-dimensional effects through the stucco work of Bossi.  The total cost of the building and decoration was one point five million guilders at a time when a day laborer made one guilder per week.

Fountain in front of the Residence

When we first walked up to the fountain in front, I was reminded of our last trip to Paris, where we stayed in the Place des Voges which was a true palace built by Henry VII for one of his mistresses.  This building defies description and photography was not permitted, so the interior photos are from various images on the Internet (websites credited).

                       

Over the grand staircase is a fresco depicting the four continents: Europe, Asia, Africa, and the New World.  Tiepolo represents each continent with what he thought was a typical landscape as well as animals native to that continent, along with a female allegorical figure.  Europe, for example, is holding a scepter and is symbolized by a bull.  There is also a boy playing with a cannon.  A tiger and an elephant represent Asia (ironically, the elephant Tiepolo painted is an African elephant).  The African continent has an elk and a caravan of Magi, complete with turbans.  Natives with feathers ride a crocodile to depict the American continent.  These photos above do not do justice to the work of Tiepolo and Bossi.  It is something that one must see to truly understand the genius of these artists.

From there we went into the White Room - decorated in the Rocco Style.

http://www.residenz-wuerzburg.de/englisch/residenz/weisser.htm

from Wikipedia

We passed through one of the typical "presentation rooms"

from Wikipedia

And then on to the "Spiegelkabinet" (the mirror room).

Photo from Wikipedia

Our Guide, Jasmine

From there, we took a stroll through Wurzburg with our guide, Jasmine.  Everywhere we looked a photo beckoned.  If it wasn't a spire or a clocktower, it was a dome or some architectural features.

Creepy Skeletons above the door to the dom

The doors to the Dom

The courtyard in front of the Dom

One of the many statues of Mother Mary that decorate buildings

A flower shop

Floral displays

Toward the end of our day we walked to the Alte Brucke where we popped into a restaurant, The Alte Mainmuhle for a snack.

 

This restaurant was fantastic.  You could go up to a little window and get a glass of Franconian wine, served in a real wine glass and then walk about on the bridge or stand in the sunshine to drink it.

  

I ordered a glass of the local Silvana, and Jeff got a beer and the special of the day - meatloaf with an egg baked into it that was served with a side of potato salad made with potatoes, chopped cucumbers, and some chopped parsley along with just a hint of vinegar and olive oil.  I did detect a bit of celery as well.  It was quite delicious.

Crossing the Alte Brucke

 We chose to eat at the front of the restaurant overlooking the bridge, but as I was leaving to catch the bus back to the ship, I noticed these charming terraces jutting out over the River Main.

 Back on the ship, and the rain began to fall -- we had escaped it all day long as the day was warm and sunny!  Truly a delightful day in Wurzburg.

Tomorrow .... Bamburg!