This morning we wrapped up the rest of our Nurnberg old town walk. Unfortunately, there was no audio tour on Rick Steves’ mobile app for Nurnberg – so we had to read it ourselves out of the guidebook like suckers. I detest walking around with tourist guides because it always draws extra smirks from the locals – as if we didn’t elicit enough smirks just being us in another country. It wasn’t quite the same as hearing the descriptions in Rick’s voice, but I did my best to read it as he would – and even hummed his theme song between stops so that Charles would know when it was time to move to the next stop.

After wrapping up our tour, we headed to the train station to catch a train to Wurzburg and pick up the rental car we’ll be using for most of the rest of our stay in Germany. While we were in Wurzburg, we checked out the Wurzburg Residenz (palace), which I found to be much more enjoyable than the Munich Residenz. The rooms were every bit as grand and beautiful, but it was far less crowded and overwhelming. As with most historic buildings in the area, it sustained a good amount of damage toward the end of WWII and had to be reconstructed. Toward the end of the tour, there was an exhibit about Lt. John Davis Skilton, one of the “Monuments Men” who was responsible for rescuing much of the building and artifacts post-war. I thought it very moving that they would dedicate an exhibit in recognition of him. Unfortunately, photography was not allowed so we weren’t able to document any of the tour – but we highly recommend a visit if you pass through Wurzburg.

After the Residenz, we completed Rick Steves’ self-guided town walk through Wurzburg (complete with hummed theme song), checked out the Christmas market, and grabbed a quick lunch before getting on the road to Rothenburg for the night.

We’re staying at a precious bed-and-breakfast style hotel in old town that reminds me a lot of a German version Fawlty Towers (in architecture and decor only – not in management).

After checking in and dropping off our luggage, we headed to the market square for a quick stroll through the market before dinner at a cozy (gemutlich) restaurant where we shared a table with another American couple, stationed hereabout with the Army. We exchanged travel stories and had a wonderful visit and all headed back to the market square to participate in the night watchmen’s tour of old town. The tour was delightfully touristy – with our costumed “night watchman” English speaking guide giving us a glimpse of what medieval life would have been like, as well as a brief history of Rothenburg from the middle ages through WWII and reconstruction after the war.