Nürnberg - 21 October
We started the morning with the second deepest lock on our route, at 25m. We watched this from the front of the boat as we were opened down into the concrete lock that seemed to just keep going. These ones are a little different where the bottom of the gate lifts up and you sail underneath. The width of the concrete gate was incredible, something like 25 tonne.
Our boat docked at Roth at a dock that was built by Avalon. Some of the cruise went on a tour of Roth but we opted for the trip to Nürnberg. It was around a half hour bus trip and much more to see. We were on the Rally Ground Tour which focuses on the part Nürnberg played in the Nazi Party history. The first sight we were greeted with on the bus was a drive by the Congress Building. This was purpose built for the Nazi Party but was never finished. The scale of the building was massive, and modelled off the Colosseum for granduer. We got a good look from the other side of the lake, where the building is open and been left to go to ruin. Unfortunately the documentation centre was undergoing renovations so we couldn't go in to that one. Just a few metres from the lake sits the old rally grounds where the Nazis gathered and Hitler used to speak. Again it was purpose built for them and the whole area is enormous. There is divided public opinion around whether it should be kept and maintained, or destroyed. Parts of it were blown up in the sixties to remove traces of the swastikas, but to date the rest remains in a bit of an unkempted manner. Interesting that this space didn't get bombed during WWII when 90% of Nürnberg was destroyed. There are still the remnants on all of the structures where the aircraft deterring lights were attached. Photos of these on with the Nazis gathered in the grounds send chills down the spine.
We carried on to the Palace of Justice where the Nürnberg Trials were held. This is a huge Court House, and the room used for the trials was an active courtroom until 2 years ago when they had the means to build a new wing and therefore had the space to be able to memorialise the courtroom.
After a fairly heavy tour we were dropped in the Old City for some free time to look around. Nürnberg is one of the only cities that has not destroyed its original city walls. They still have the watch towers and dry moat in tact. The old city is quite charming and quite the contrast to the legacy the city carries.
Back to the ship just in time for happy hour...which we thought was free on the first night as compensation, but turns out it is free every night.
Our boat docked at Roth at a dock that was built by Avalon. Some of the cruise went on a tour of Roth but we opted for the trip to Nürnberg. It was around a half hour bus trip and much more to see. We were on the Rally Ground Tour which focuses on the part Nürnberg played in the Nazi Party history. The first sight we were greeted with on the bus was a drive by the Congress Building. This was purpose built for the Nazi Party but was never finished. The scale of the building was massive, and modelled off the Colosseum for granduer. We got a good look from the other side of the lake, where the building is open and been left to go to ruin. Unfortunately the documentation centre was undergoing renovations so we couldn't go in to that one. Just a few metres from the lake sits the old rally grounds where the Nazis gathered and Hitler used to speak. Again it was purpose built for them and the whole area is enormous. There is divided public opinion around whether it should be kept and maintained, or destroyed. Parts of it were blown up in the sixties to remove traces of the swastikas, but to date the rest remains in a bit of an unkempted manner. Interesting that this space didn't get bombed during WWII when 90% of Nürnberg was destroyed. There are still the remnants on all of the structures where the aircraft deterring lights were attached. Photos of these on with the Nazis gathered in the grounds send chills down the spine.
We carried on to the Palace of Justice where the Nürnberg Trials were held. This is a huge Court House, and the room used for the trials was an active courtroom until 2 years ago when they had the means to build a new wing and therefore had the space to be able to memorialise the courtroom.
After a fairly heavy tour we were dropped in the Old City for some free time to look around. Nürnberg is one of the only cities that has not destroyed its original city walls. They still have the watch towers and dry moat in tact. The old city is quite charming and quite the contrast to the legacy the city carries.
Back to the ship just in time for happy hour...which we thought was free on the first night as compensation, but turns out it is free every night.
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