Rothenburg

Rathouse (Town Hall).

 

This is the Baumeister ("master builder") Haus where the man who designed and built the Town Hall lived. It features a famous Renaissance facade with statues of the seven virtues and seven vices.

This is the Councilors' Tavern (the clock tower is from 1466).  At the top of every hour the little doors on either side of the clock open and the wooden figures (from 1910) do a reenactment of the Meistertrunk ("Master Draught") story.  You can read more about this story here.

More sights from around Rothenburg.

Bacharach

Rheinfel's Castle

 

There were some very interesting loos at the castle.

We took a short cruise on the Rhine.

 

 Bacharach

 

Our hotel.

Cologne

Cologne Cathedral.

 

It was built to house the reliquary of the Three Kings (aka Three Wise Men).

 

This fountain commemorates the legend of the Heinzelmännchen (house gnomes).  These little gnomes are said to have done all the work of the citizens of Cologne during the night, so that the inhabitants of Cologne could be very lazy during the day. According to the legend, this went on until a tailor's wife got so curious to see the gnomes that she scattered peas onto the floor of the workshop to make the gnomes slip and fall. The gnomes, being infuriated, disappeared and never returned. From that time on, the citizens of Cologne had to do all their work by themselves.  [Wikipedia]