Day 17: Lightning round of Golf! (Tuesday, September 6th)

The forecast for today in Wiesbaden is for sun and heat. Similar forecast for our destination Bernkastel-Kues located in the heart of the Mosel. Our check-out time is 10:00 and we will meet that deadline. We ate our usual fruit bowl with blueberry (purple) yogurt. We decide to load eight (8) of our large bottles of Riesling in our new suitcase and it weighs in at 15 kgs. Lana's Super Elite status with Air Canada provides a weight limit on each of her three suitcases to be 32 kgs so we already know we will be good with the weights regardless if we purchase four more bottles to reach our own limit of eighteen bottles. That's assuming the suitcase can handle such weight of course LOL. We have eighteen wine skins on this trip.

As usual we are leaving our Airbnb apartment pretty much as clean and tidy as when we arrived. The only challenge will be getting the lockbox open to return the apartment keys. The apartment is a good location, but there is street noise. The shower may be the smallest shower stall we have ever encountered, but it worked for us little people. Parking is a challenge with driving through the gauntlet of other parked cars. 

As you can see from Google Maps the drive will be just under two hours from our apartment to the town of Bernkastel-Kues. We were in this town six years ago when doing our Riesling wine pilgrimage and used it as our jumping off point for our Weingut visits. Basically, it gets its name from towns on the opposite side of the river joined by a bridge. Huge tourist spot with many baby boomers (and older) and hikers/cyclists convening there. I could not find an Airbnb so we are staying in a hotel on the Kues side of the river. The drive is uneventful except for a portion where I needed to get in the right hand lane to make the turn towards Bernkastel-Kues and I didn't. The reason was I was in the left hand lane trying to pass another huge semi when the road splits and yup I can't make the turn. This means we drive for another ten minutes and then return on the freeway so I can properly take that turnoff. 

We arrive in B-K around 12:00 and are two hours early before check-in at 14:00 at the Burgblickhotel. Unusual for me to book a hotel, but we notice there are many "Gastehauses" (informal guest houses or room to rent here). We are hungry and could use some lunch. We park the car in what we hope will be shade during the two hours and go for a walk into B-K, but over the bridge into the Bernkastel side. We do not want our 14 bottles of Riesling to get warm while inside our vehicle. They are our babies right now.   :-)

                                               Burgblickhotel in Bernkastel-Kues.  

Lana gets creative with an ice cream cone we had in the vehicle that we had to eat as it was melting and some waffles she had bought a couple of days ago. It was delicious especially the ice cream part with the waffle. Lots of delightful sugar and it was melting in the afternoon heat. Lana calls it a Drumstick Waffle.  It is super hot in B-K today!

Lana took this picture from the bridge towards the Bernkastel side to evidence just how steep the Riesling vineyards are as they tower over the Mosel River. 

Bernkastel side of B-K with the village beside the Mosel River, the steep vineyards rising to the top of the hill. The trees provide cover against the winds and soil erosion. 

Picture of the Rathaus. Very old building which in its time would be the Mayor and City Council premises. 

Just wanted to show how beautiful the old German homes/apartments can be with their use of wood and stone. Very imposing and well built.

Lana found a place for lunch and we went inside to sit as there were no tables outside. We received the menu and everything was super expensive. A lunch would have cost us around 80Euro! We left saying we would be back for dinner --- Lana's brilliant idea as we felt less guilty about leaving. Just around the corner we found Café Thiesen. They did not have outside seating period, but they had a good table inside for us and the place was pretty busy. They have authentic German food and the server appears anxious to provide great service. 

The menu for Café Thiesen. Prices much less and this place was just around the corner from the more expensive place. The menu is in German and English. We do like to just read German menus, but sometimes we appreciate it being less complex.

Lana's order of house-made Sausage with Mashed Potatoes and Sauerkraut. In German: Sausages mit Gräwes. We learn that Gräwes is a regional dish that combines mashed potatoes and sauerkraut and carrot etc. It is delicious!

Randy's order of Strammer Max being Brot mit gekochtem Schinken und Spiegeleiern. In English this is farmer bread topped with cooked ham and a fried egg. Yup, I am a sucker for a fried egg on anything and this did not let me down. 

Fantastic old compact narrow townhouse from the 15th Century called The Spitz Häuschen. Very beautiful and incredible. There is a Weingut on the basement floor. It looks like it might topple over at any moment! Check out the narrow streets.

I asked Lana to take a picture of the various large tourist boats moored on the Bernkastel side of the Mosel. There are many boats for tourists at this juncture in the river and all are very long and narrow. Plus, this is a great angle for a view of Bernkastel. The river is very green and I am thinking there must be an algae bloom?

The Federweißer is a Mosel type of wine and we are both excited by the prospect of drinking this extremely unique wine again. The wine is really suspended yeast that contains bacteria, lactic acid and a large amount of Vitamin B1 and B2.  It occurs early in the wine fermentation process and is called a grape juice that is half-way to wine. It has effervescence so it is very refreshing to drink. This area of Deutschland makes this concoction from white wines although they can use red wines as well. The alcohol volume can range from 4% to 14% although the ones we have tried are on the lower side of the alcohol by volume. We will have some of this unique wine later today!

Lana takes a picture of this huge span across the Mosel. Six years ago it was half-finished and have only 2-3 columns built so looked like a bridge to nowhere. We wondered what the heck it was doing in the middle of nowhere? 

We do check into our room around 14:00 and discover our wines although in our warm vehicle are not too warm so will not be damaged. Our room is on the top floor of the building across the street. lt is so different being in a hotel room from an Airbnb apartment. Just one room and then the bathroom. Our room is fairly new and it should be quiet. Our Frankfurt friend Markus had mentioned about a town on the Mosel called Traben- Trarbach and that is was very ancient and great architecture. It is much too hot for Lana to be outside in the sun today so doing a cycle is not an option so getting in the car to navigate to the town seems like a good idea.

It is supposed to be about twenty-five minutes away, but this is not possible given the road construction in our town on the way to T-T. Wow, traffic very slow and steady. We finally arrive at Traben-Trarbach and it is very beautiful. Like B-K it derives its name from both sides of the river. I did some research on major tourist sights. Very narrow streets in this town and difficult to find your way to the only bridge. Many cyclists of course in the town. We decide to search out Fortress Mont Royal as there are road signs to follow. 

We do make it to Mont Royal area and read some road signs and other information. This area was taken over by the French many centuries ago and by now the forest appears to have overwhelmed anything left. Also, we come to the conclusion you need to park somewhere and just follow signs to various landmarks?

                                                               Map of Mont Royal.

This helps in figuring out what Mont Royal is supposed to be. Mostly in the forest?

We drove back down into Traben-Trarbach and found parking across the river. Lana had some change. While walking around the town we quickly discovered a small place right near the bridge that served Federweißer! Yeh! Also, they recommend you eat onion tarte while you drink your Federweißer. We quickly grab a table looking onto the busy bridge and get our single glass and onion tarte. 

This is our glass of Federweißer and you can see its colour and slightly effervescent. Lana thinks they are refreshing although you can taste a little bit of alcohol. Unique drink. Tastes like "sparkling alcohol grape juice" per Lana. You can taste the yeast. It may impact your stomach if you drink too much... If you buy some to take home it comes with an aerated lid to let the gas escape otherwise not good to keep this stuff fermenting.

This is the mandatory onion tarte to pair with your Federweißer. This version was not as good as others as the crust was soft and gummy. Usually it is a flaky pastry and the onion very savoury. 

While we were briefly walking around Traben-Trarbach, Lana came across a pamphlet that advertised Mini-Golf! We decided, while drinking our wine, that it might be a fun experience to play mini-golf in Deutschland. It looked like it was pretty close to the town so we returned to our parked car and plugged in the name into our GPS and started off. We decided not to spend much time in this town as it seemed pretty similar to what we already have in Bernkastel-Kues! It was about a ten minute drive into the countryside and above the town. The fellow running the mini-golf course was very proud of the place!

It cost us three Euros each and we were given a putter and golf ball + a score card. It was still pretty hot, but dark clouds were forming. We were behind a couple with a dog on a leash and given its temperament one of them needed to ensure they had a good hold so they were super slow. Anyway, both of us are competitive although Lana has never beaten me at mini-golf. This round would not change that trend....but we were tied up at one point earlier on--then Lana cracked from the pressure!!

This sign was on the first hole. Yup, all in Deutsch so we have no idea what we are not supposed to do. The putting was on a rubberized surface and very tricky for getting your putt in the hole as there were many angles. Many of the holes were very tough. Some of the holes difficult for your ball to stop as it would keep rolling. 

While we were golfing there were sounds of thunder and they sounded very close. By the tenth hole we saw lightning. At the moment the course manager came over to tell us to stop golfing and get to the main office to avoid possible electrocution. Good that he was pro-active as within about five minutes there was a torrential downpour of rain! It was bouncing off the parking lot surface! We stood under some large patio umbrellas to wait it out. We had a good chat with the course manager/owner. This is the very first mini-golf course in Europe so is famous. 

OK, on this hole you actually teed up your ball and then struck it with a lot of force to go between the mesh fence in front of you to get to the hole in the distance. Wow, pretty creative and unusual. 

After the torrential downpour we needed to use these squeegee rods to push the water off each hole otherwise way too much rain to putt. By this time everyone had left so it was just Lana and I golfing the last seven holes. Pushing off the water took some time, but it was worth it. Randy scored a one over par 48 and Lana scored 64 although she had four very bad holes. It was fun and something totally unexpected!

This sign is at the entrance and basically indicates this is Deutschland's very first mini-golf course.

This afternoon while in Bernkastel-Kues when we were walking back to our hotel we went into the local bakery: Zuruf. I went to the counter to order something while Lana made a bee line for their toilet facilities. The German name for my dessert: Pfirsichschmand. It is a typical german dessert which has a crust and fruit on top--basically a peach dessert that I will eat tomorrow. 

With the lightning/rain delay on the mini golf course it was getting late when we returned to our hotel room. The route back was completely different than how we arrived. We were taken by our GPS in the opposite direction. We were in the middle of the forest and on a route with at least ten hairpin turns. No traffic though! When we arrived in Bernkastel-Kues we came from the opposite way. A major change was beside the river on our Kues side there was now a huge fairground with rides and lots of people. 

We are both hungry and Lana finds a German restaurant that is not too far of a walk from our hotel. We arrive around 19:00 at Hoffmann Weinstube. There appears to be only one other table occupied although later we see that there is another room that had about four diners. The server is not attentive at first, but eventually takes our drink order and dinner order. We have nice table by the window - kind of our own nook. Our food takes quite a while to arrive.

Randy's order of Schweinefilet, Schwarzbiersoße and Gräfes. Pork with a dark beer sauce and their regional potato dish comprised of mashed potatoes, sauerkraut, speck and carrots. It was a great find. The pork was cooked perfectly. Plus, I ordered a 2019 Riesling Spätlese which paired with my pork.

Lana's order of Pasta mit Garnelen, Chilli und Knoblauch. Linguine with shrimp, chilli and garlic in a tomato sauce. Delicious and Lana wanted something non-german after her lunch today. I helped her finish her meal as it was quite a large portion size.

We open the windows in our room to get as much fresh air and breeze as possible. Lana is very tired and within a short time has fallen asleep on the bed. I needed to load all the pictures from today and start doing some of the text. When I get to bed around 22:30 Lana is right out of it. Pretty comfortable king size bed though. An interesting day with some driving. We are back in the Mosel and did not do a wine tasting today.