Everything seemed to be going well this morning. Enjoyed a filling breakfast and then caught a train headed to Luxembourg, which is opposite the direction I need to go to get to Heidelburg. The detour wastes a little time, but rewards my mistake with some beautiful scenery.
Heidelburg is a picturesque place to wander through on my way to the castle. The enormous castle is easy to find, situated upon a hilltop. The ruins of the castle walls and turrets are decorated in foliage that make it difficult to take a terrible picture.
The castle was spared destruction during WWII because the city itself held no strategic significance other than the possibility of becoming an ideal military post after the war. Built in the early to mid 13th century, the castle has been repeatedly damaged by lightning strikes, fires, war and time. Work to preserve the castle was completed in 1890. Finances limit ongoing restoration efforts to maintaining the castle in its current condition.
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| Photo courtesy of Wikipedia Creative Commons |
From Heidelburg, I caught the train to Frankfurt. On the way, I realized I had forgotten to collect my hostel card from the reception desk back in Mannheim. This oversight means I'll be staying in Mannheim one more night.
I don't know why I'm having such terrible luck getting around lately. Mannheim has this auspicious quality to it that keeps drawing me back to it, like a magnet.
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"Sometimes it's necessary to go a long distance out of the way in order to come back a short distance correctly."
~Edward Albee
