River Cruise Buzz: Mainz and Rüdesheim via Uniworld Cruises

Day 5: Mainz and Rüdesheim

Featured Excursion: Siegfried’s Mechanical Music Museum, Rüdesheim

Uniworld Cruises SS Antoinette in Koblenz

Day 5 on my Uniworld Cruises Rhine Christmas markets cruise included stops at Mainz and Rüdesheim; a cooking demonstration about Black Forest Cake; a lecture about German Christmas traditions; and a music concert. Cruise passengers sailing on S.S. Antoinette were treated to a double-whammy: two cities in one day. It was nice to be able to get off the boat twice to discover the unique features of the towns of Mainz and Rüdesheim.

Mainz

Once the capital of the state of Rhineland-Palatine, Mainz was one of the first German towns to be founded by the Romans. Modern Mainz is a bustling city with wonderful Christmas markets. The biggest Christmas market is located in front of the cathedral, on the historic market square in Mainz.

Besides the Christmas market, another diversion worth the time to explore is the Gutenberg Museum. Cruise guests can learn about the inventions from the man who created the printing press and who printed his 42-line-per-page Bible from 1452 to 1255.

Cooking Class onboard with Claudio Sousa, Executive Chef

Black Forest Cake: Three simple fillings: chocolate sponge cake, cherry filling and cherry cream with a sprinkle of Kirsch for good measure.

We discovered that the history of black forest cake has many versions, but the most popular rendition is from confesctioner Josef Keller who invented the black forest cake named “black forest cherry” in 1915 in his cage Agner in Bad Godesberg.

Rüdesheim

Located in the heart of the Rhine Valley the sail into Rüdesheim was beautiful. The rolling hills dotted with castles, vineyards, monuments and charming villas left me wanting to come back in spring. While in Rüdesheim, our tour consisted of a visit to Siegfried’s Mechanical Music Museum and its unique collection of self-playing musical instruments.

Links:

Tourism information: http://www.germany-christmas-market.org.uk/ruedesheim_christmas_market.php
Destination Germany tourism information here.