When we woke at about 6:30am, the ship was still sailing towards Wurzburg along the Main River. (The river for some reason is pronounced "mine"). We were due to get there at 9am. Our run of luck was continuing because it was another bright sunny day with blue sky - currently 7C and forecast to get up to 23C.
When we went to breakfast in the restaurant, every setting had a special Easter gift on the bread and butter plate - a bunny made of bread, a carrot made of marzipan and a coloured boiled egg.
Our ship arrived just before 9am. We were moored close to the town next to a bridge with stone arches. It was flat on our side of the river but hilly on the other side. There were grand buildings overlooking the river on the hilly side.
Our buses left for our outing at 9:30am. There were three optional tours today and we had chosen the trip to Rothenberg which is a well preserved medieval town almost an hour away by road.
The area we are now in is known as Falconia which is a wine region as opposed to Bavaria where we'd been which is know for its beer. Along the way, we admired the pretty countryside. Initially there were vineyards on the side of hills and then there was flat farming territory.
Buses are not allowed inside the walls of the ancient town and so we were dropped off at the northern end of the town. Our guide then showed us into the town and through the streets to the market square. This only took about 20 minutes.
We then had free time. The three girls went in one direction (shops, etc) while Chris, Jack and I went to walk around part of the wall. Next we found a bread shop to have a coffee in the open air. There was a plaque on the wall saying the building dates back to 1791.
Before climbing the wall, I had taken off my jumper because it was quite warm. However I needed to put it back on when we were sitting in the shade outside the bakery.
Before leaving Sydney, we had checked the weather forecasts for the relevant towns in Europe and they were all forecasting cold weather. As it turns out, the daytime temperatures here are higher than normal even though the mornings are cool.
So we'd brought warm clothes with us. This had been the right choice for the first part of our trip but we were starting to wonder now. I hadn't brought any short-sleeved shirts and I didn't bring any shorts.
The group were all back on time at 12:15pm in the market square for the walk back to the bus. The drive took us along the autobahn for part of the return journey to the ship. Buses have a speed limit of 100km/h on the autobahn but there is no speed limit for cars on the autobahn, Some of the cars were travelling much faster than the bus.
On the return journey our guide offered to sell us samples of local wine and liqueurs. Suzy bought a plum liqueur in a cute tiny bottle for 1.50 Euros. She enjoyed it so much that she bought another one to take home. She decided not to share it with me because she thinks she is coming down with the cold that other people have been suffering with.
We were back at the ship by 1:30pm. The staff had left Easter eggs for us on the end of our bed. They were serving a special Easter Sunday lunch in the restaurant with a lamb roast followed by ice cream for dessert. It was a great meal.
At 3pm, Suzy joined the group for the walk up the hill to the castle. I chose not to go because of my heart condition. Instead I walked into town to see some of the sights of Wurzburg.
I set off at about 3:30pm and walked along the path next to the river until I reached the next stone bridge. On the bridge there were only people and no cars. Most people were standing around drinking wine - mainly white wine. There were very few people drinking beer.
Then I walked into the centre of town. Believe it or not, they have churches in this town - with ornate architecture, statues and tall spires. They also have a tram running down the main street.
Perhaps because it was a Sunday public holiday, there were crowds of people. Also it was a beautiful sunny day - a great day to be out and about. The sidewalk cafes were well patronised. I was back at the ship before 5pm.
Suzy got back at about 5:15pm from her group's walk up the hill to the castle. She showed me the photos she'd taken on her iPhone of the castle and the view.
A few minutes later, a staff member came by delivering canapes. This happens every afternoon at this time. It's a nice touch to the end of the afternoon. If you are not in your cabin, they leave the plate for you next to the TV. Today's canapes were Camembert cheese.
As usual, we had a drink in the lounge during Emma's port talk and then went to the restaurant for dinner at 7pm. We found a table for eight of us near the end of the restaurant.
It was an even fancier dinner than usual. As for other dinners, there was a range of choices for each course - appertisers, soup, main course, dessert.
When the ship set sail at 7:30pm, I raced upstairs to get photos of the town of Wurzberg from the river. It was a great opportunity to capture and admire this delightful town.
Suzy was coming down with a cold and felt very tired - partly because of her hike up the hill to the castle. I was also very tired. So we went back to our cabin before 9pm to try to get a good night's sleep.
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