wine

Rhens main center with the Town Hall on the extreme right.
We left the Mosel ( Moselle) region and moved to the Rhineland side of the river.  Our place of choice was Rhens, which is 10 minutes by bus from Koblenz.   When we made the decision to book our apartment in Rhens, we had no idea of what the town would be like.   We booked the apartment almost 8 months in advance.  We took the train from Cochem, had to change the train in Koblenz and arrived in Rhens train station as planned.  Only two other people got off at Rhens with us and before we could check where the exit was they disappeared.  The main building of the train station was closed.  Almost all small stations are not economical to run and hence Deutsche Bahn has no staffing in these stations.  You can purchase your tickets at an automatic ticket machine.  There is no information window to check where to go.  So, we dragged our bags went around one end of the station and asked a young lady sitting on a bench for directions.  She told us to go up the road and turn left and keep going till we see number 13.  With her directions, we dragged our small carry on bags and arrived at No 13. Happy to see a name we recognized on the door bell we push the button.  A tall man answered the door and said he was waiting for us.  He introduced himself as the owner of the apartment and showed us in.  He was very friendly and with a lot of enthusiasm showed us how the various items work in the apartment. Our next agenda item is always to find the nearest grocery store so that we can stock up the fridge and get all the necessary items like milk, tea etc and not have to wake up early on the first morning to run to get it. We were told how to get to the 3 supermarkets in town. They were about 500 meters from the apartment. Very handy and easy to find.  Once our grocery items were home we settle down for the evening.
We had researched before we arrived in Rhens that we would have to buy the VRM 3 day mini group tickets to travel around and see the region. The VRM 3 day ticket for 2 people costs euro 43.50, and you have to use it in 3 consecutive days.  The area map gives you the train lines and bus lines that can be used and the stations it covers.   Almost all  who come to this region see the main towns on the Rhine i.e. Boppard, Bacharach, Rudesheim, Mainz etc.  We touched most of these places briefly and they were all picture postcard perfect with tourists and large boats bringing in floating hotels for more people to enjoy the locale.
Let me tell you a bit about Rhens. A small town population of 2800.  3 supermarkets. No gas station. 2 hairdressers. 1 information office (open only half a day). 2 fast food Donor Kabap and Pizza joints.  2 Pubs. We came across 2 restaurants. Roter Ochse and Rathousechenke (half chicken only restaurant).  Now you will laugh at the second, but it’s true. The place only serves half a chicken with bread and nothing else by way of food. Not my kind of place as I am a vegetarian. But the locals love it and it’s busy every evening.
Herr Werner (Owner)
Herr Horst ( father)
As for the Roter Ochse, it is historical,

Restaurant

.  Opened in 1935 by Herr Rudolf Kochhaeuser, succeeded by his son and currently run by  the grandson Herr Werner Kochhaueu.  The owner told us that his father (Herr Horst Kochhaeuser) hunts and he cooks the game and serves it in his restaurant.  So it could be Wild boar or Venison because that is what his father hunts. People in Rhens are of an older school of thought.  We went to dinner and Der Werner made a special dish for me, and Hemant had a feast of a variety of meats from wild boar to venison.  Visiting this restaurant gave us a different experience with very personal service.
It’s been rather unfortunate that the few businesses that were here have had to close down. The culprit is the closeness of Koblenz and the locals patronizing the businesses there.  Also they seem to have a resisstance to change of any sort.   One main street runs through the town.  There is an old city wall that dates back to 1700 and the old town has been declared a UNESCO heritage site. There is still a partial old wall that stands around the old city.
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The apartment we rented in Rhens is owned by a very nice couple Dietland and Ralf Wronna.  The apartment was clean & spacious.  They had everything in the apartment.  Even the kitchen had tea, coffee, sugar etc, all the basics that one needs when you arrive home.  Yes, it did feel like home and we were very comfortable.  The weather for the first few days was warm and they gave us a big fan which circulated air all through the apartment. We did not feel hot inside the apartment while all of Europe was sweltering in the heatwave.  The bus stop was right outside the door.  During the weekdays the bus runs every half hour and every one hour at the weekends.  It takes you right into the middle of the Koblenz city. When coming back especially if you have a few things in your hand, the bus drops you off right in front of the apartment door.  It is very convenient.   We were here for 12 days and bought  2 sets of 3-day mini group tickets for the VRM network.  We exhausted ourselves walking and taking in every sight possible and the and then we took a 3 day break.  We booked this apartment through VRBO.
http://www.vrbo.com/2324329ha
.  Tell them you saw it on
http://globezing.com/
They also have a single room next to the apartment with 2 single beds. All complete with a small kitchenette and a full bathroom.  Once again a very affordable and nice place to spend a quiet few days.
Wonderful evening with Ralf and Dietland Wronna.
On one such weekend, Dietland and Ralf asked us out. They offered to take us to see some wineries and to drink the local Riesling.  We went to a small town called Mosel Weiss near Koblenz.  The town was small and quaint.  We had a lovely evening with them and ended up back in Rhens at the Roter Ochse.  Ralf and Dietland had arranged a lovely farewell dinner for us on the last night.  Ralf a great cook, and Dietland an amazing hostess.  We made two new friends from this little town called Rhens.
During our stay here, I  seem to have reverted back to my student days in Germany in 1981.  I seem use a lot of “danke”,”doch”, “ach so”, “genau” and words that come so naturally, that I can say I am now a German.  Even though I have not mastered the language, it’s fun to see expressions on German peoples faces and some even saying, ” no you speak good German”. I can related to talking in metric and spontaneously saying “MIT GAS” even before they ask “Still or mit gas” when I ask for water.  Choosing a drink has become complicated.  Its not just a simple, beer or wine please, but a selection of what kind of beer and not just white or red wine, but, trocken (dry), halbtrocken (halfdry), Lieblich( another in-between choice) add to that the various types of Schnaps.
OUR MEMORABLE DAY TRIPS FROM RHENS
We made full use of the 3-day passes and visited almost all the little towns on the train routes.  We enjoyed the following places the most. Everyone goes to the Rhine and Moselle Rivers, we decided to explore the Lahn river as well.
1. PFALZGRAFENSTEIN CASTLE – on the Rhine River.
We had always wanted to go to the Pfalzgrafenstein Castle which is in the middle of the Rhine river.  The only way to do this was to go by train to Kaub on the West bank of the river.  From Kaub, a small ferry ride (euros 2.5 per person) took us to the island where Pfalzgrafenstein Castle was, with its perfect white, black and rust colors inviting us to go in.  Its costs euros 3 to explore this castle. An audio device can be rented for 1 euro so hear the history.  I read the  fable for this castle on this website
http://great-castles.com/pfalztale.php.
I found it very interesting and wanted to go and see the castle more than ever.  We were not disappointed.  Not many tourists go to Pfalzfrafenstein and its the only place on the Rhine that you can go and be on the beach of this island on the river.  It is also one of only two castles in the Rhine area that were never destroyed.
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2.  BAD EMS and der Lahn – on the Lahn River
Bad Ems is in the Rhine-Lahn rural district and is famous for its sauna, thermal baths and health and wellness facilities. Europe’s leading Ayurveda clinics provide a wide range of treatments here as well.  This was a summer residence for various European monarchs.  This town is situated in the most picturesque region of the Lahn valley. We spend our time walking along the gardens of the river and ended up at the baths to take a peek and see what they looked like.  In an old setting with Palaces and Churches, we found this very modern spa and thermal swimming pools at the end of our walk.  A Russian church is on one side of the river bank while the large Palace ( which is now a hotel) on the other.
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3. Limburg an der Lahn – on the Lahn river
Old wall of the Schloss
St. Georges Cathedral
Schloss Limburg from the courtyard
Cathedral from the back
Streets of Limburg
Restored house leaning right.
Inside the Cathedral
Limburg was actually not on our itinerary for a visit.  But on the last day we decided to make the trip, and we were very happy to have come here.  The St. Georges Cathedral or Limburger Dom as they called it in Germany sits on top of a hill and is visible from far away.  The Limberger Schloss is behind the Cathedral.  The preserved wall is seen from its courtyard.  In the old town, narrow streets have well-preserved partial timber buildings. Some tilting so much that it’s a wonder that they are still standing.
4. Remagen
We crossed over in a ferry from Erpel after our visit to Linze.  A 5-minute ferry trip took us to the west bank of the Rhine to Remagen. Remagen has a long promenade along the Rhine, and is steeped in WWII history as the Remagen bridge was an important crossing for the allied forces.  Several attempts were made by the Germans to destroy the bridge.  Several attemps by the Germans to blow up the bridge had failed and the allies captured it and were able to move men and equipment across the Rhine.  However, the weakend bridge did not survive for long and ultimately collapsed, resulting in the death of 6 american soilders.  The two towers on either side of the Rhine still stand as a memory of the advance that was made during WWII.  The tower on the Remagen side is now a peace museum with the complete history of what happened there during the war.  Remagen was also home to 250,000 German prisoners at the end of the war.
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