Stephen and I finally took a weekend trip!
Again, it was thwarted on our first try (we originally signed up for a camping trip that got canceled due to lack of interest … that sounds familiar). But we decided to keep looking and I found a USO Bus Tour that took us to Bernkastel Germany.
Bernkastel is a small city that is joined by a bridge to another small city, Cues. So, it's called Bernkastel-Cues. It's nestled in the valleys of the Mosel River and wine country. The day was beautiful! Sunny and clear, and low 70s. The bus trip took a little more than an hour but the views were breath taking. As we neared the river valley, the hills seemed to climb around us, and then the vinyards started popping up.
You can't even imagine the steepness of these hills! The lush greenness was everywhere.
When we arrived in Bernkastel, the tour guide gave us a quick 30 min. introduction to the city. We walked around the squares, in the oldest church and thru some neighbor hood/shopping areas. Then we were left to roam for about 2 hrs.
Stephen headed the opposite direction as the group, to heck if we were going to get caught up with the rest of those Americans! We walked around, window shopping for a while and then stopped at a Café where we enjoyed cappuccinos on the outdoor patio. We then continued our walking and shopping and in fact, I even picked up a small gift for my best friend who would be celebrating her birthday in a couple weeks.
Near the end of our 2 hours, we sat under a tree overlooking the Mosel River and nibbled on sandwiches. We didn't want to eat a full lunch, because we were next headed off to a winery where we would be served lunch and get to taste wine!
We all got back on the bus at about 1pm and we took a short ride out of the city and into the hills. We arrived at the Rosenberg winery. The owner, the grandson of the founder, was delightful! Friendly and funny and very serious about his business.
He served us 13 samples of his wines…multiply that by 2-3 oz per taste…and you quickly add up to a bunch of drunk-ass Americans! Who then had a hard time taking Herr Rosenberg's business seriously.
Needless to say, the bus ride home was lively and far more festive than the bus ride to Bernkastel.
In the end, Stephen and I ended up taking 18 bottles of wine home! A nice starter for our wine collection.
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