Life is what happens when you make other plans

Today I went to places I'd dreamt about since 1994 or so. I visited the Abbey of St Hildegard of Bingen (Abtei Hildegard von Bingen) and the parish church (Pfarrkirche) dedicated to her in Rudesheim, too. I hesitate to call anything about Hildegard part of a "bucket list." Today was part of a life-long pilgrimage I am on. Other pilgrimage sites include, but are not limited to: Avila, Lisieux, (return to) Leipzig, Ruen, Amien, Greece, Texas Women's University, Holland. The list goes on... Holy, mystic sites to me.
The vineyards surrounding the Abbey, which sits high on a hill overlooking the Rhine, are bare. The vine-tenders were out pruning on the steep, steep hillsides. The grapes become Spaetlese and Riesling wines. My favorite is the halb-trocken (half-dry) Spaetlese. Goes down smooth and keeps on giving! I now have 3 bottles of wine, a split of champagne, and 2/3 bottle of brandy in the car with us as we motor along.
Today we were to move to Hohenschwangau and the Mad King's castles in Bavaria (Bayern). Alas, we could not yet leave the beauty of the Rhine and the music of Hildegard, so we checked back into our comfy Hotel zum Baeren for another night. They were happy to see us return! Tomorrow, we will be on our way to the Schwangau region. We will not be traveling to Salzburg this trip. We are okay with it as we will be able to slow down and drink--I mean--soak it all in. I have discovered that I am not as physically young as my brain believes I am. Walking uphill takes twice as long as it did 10 years ago. Walking downhill requires better concentration than it did when I was 44, too. Never mind the creaks and cracks in my hips and knees when I stand up. Oh, arthritis, you interfere with my life!
From Hohenschwangau, we head back toward Paris to return the car and stay for a week. Rick joins us on Monday. We are looking forward to the Black Forest and all of the beauty we will experience there.
Must sleep soon!
TTFN!
~N
PS Some have expressed inability to post to my blog. My apologies for this. I'll see what can be done about that.
Peace out!