Koblenz

The second place we visited was a larger town, it could even be a city, I'm not sure, called Koblenz, set on the banks of the mighty river Rhine. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and was able to tell us an awful lot about what we were seeing out the windows of the coach. 

All the way through the valley of the Mosel River on our way to Koblenz were almost vertical vine yards, requiring a ladder to access the vines for tending and picking.

You can just make out the ladder 3/4 along the photo. How on earth the tend these vines is a mystery to me when they need a ladder to get to them and once there the sides are so vertical it must be nearly impossible to stand, but it must be worth it as the wine grown in this region is devine! 

Koblenz is quite a large town/city, overlooked by a massive fortress set high on the hill tops above. It is a very cosmopolitan place with stylish restaurants and bars and a fantastic array of shops and boutiques. The Christmas markets here were fab and once the light started to fade their magic really came to life.

This was an amazing bar with the fans on the top gently spinning whilst the locals all gathered to drink Gluhwein, a delicious type of mulled wine. I have to say I did indulge in one or two cups and then discovered it really was quite strong!

Another Gluhwein stall. The locals all gather here in the evenings wrapped up warm to drink the steaming hot red liquid. It really is a very social affair.

We loved this area of the markets, along with selling the steaming hot Gluhwein, they were selling traditional fried potato cakes and delicious bratwurst sausages, so we stopped for lunch and sat inside the amazing log cabin behind the bar to warm up.

I can imagine this being a very social place at weekends and in the evenings. So that was Koblenz and the next day was the big, traditional market in Rudesheim.........................