Weinheim

On Monday, day 14, we finally made it to Weinheim and got parked in a parkhaus in Bismarckstrasse which turned out to be a bit farther from the centre of town than we had planned but manageable. Weinheim, together with Heidelberg and Mannheim makes up the Rhine-Neckar  triangle. It is on the eastern slopes of the Odenwald one of the warmest regions of France. If the weather we are experiencing at the moment is anything to go by then it is warm! We're in the high 20s and set to go as far as 40 by Sunday!

This monument to the right looks as if a tourist is asking directions from a local. The one above was somebody returning from Berlin, I think.

This is the Church of St. Laurentius.

The Castle Palace Park is a lovely place to relax or to take a walk from there into the Exotic Forest. The Castle Palace was originally built as a noble estate in the Middle Ages. It is now the headquarters of of the town's administration.

This was a cluster of trees that formed a canopy and that would be a wonderful shady playing place for children

This is called the Blue Hat, taking its name from the original colour of its slate roof.

This is part of the herb gardens. I recognised some but couldn't understand the German of the others.

The ruins of the Castle of Windeck which can be seen in the distance.

We did a bit of a walk in the exotic forest. The paths in the forest take you through impressive deciduous and coniferous trees from distant lands - hence the name.

Irish Pub!

The Tanners' Quarter is a number of twisty narrow streets and old timber frame houses. These were once tanners' houses. Alongside them is a stream in which, on our visit, workmen were washing their spades and brushes.

We had difficulty finding The Protestant Town Church because it stands amidst a row of houses in the High Street. When we found it, we liked its simplicity.

Just outside the Church in its covered courtyard area there were these stone representations of the 4 Evangelists.

At this stage we were practically overcome with the heat and we got back into the car to return home.

While we were sitting in the shade, watching Jurgen and Helga (the landlords of this apartment who live in their apartment upstairs but look after the garden) gardening in bright sunshine, Jurgen shared some of his redcurrants with us. I always thought they were bitter yokes and only fit for redcurrant jelly. However, in the proper climate, they are quite nice. Jurgen suggested that we join him and Helga in town for a beer later. This turned out to be dinner and several beers/glasses of wine. Their English is very good and we had great fun over mispronunciations and mis comprehensions. As we parted they invited us to join them the following evening for a barbecue. Lovely!