We arrived in Wurzburg around 7:00am. Looked like it was going to be a clear and pretty day, and we awoke to a lovely view of Marienberg Fortress.
We had gone through 15 more locks by the time we reached Wurzburg, most of them overnight. It would be hard to explain, but you quickly become attuned to the feel and sound of going in and out of locks, even on the middle of the night. We sometimes hit the walls pretty solidly and get some noticeable vibrations.
We skipped the guided tour of the Bishop's Residence, since it sounded like heavy security and no pictures allowed. Turns out that may have been a misjudgment. Folks returning from the tour said it was quite spectacular. Nevertheless, we opted instead to walk into Wurzburg.
We walked to the Alte Mainbrucke (the bridge over the Main (mine) River), which dates back to 1500. It is fondly described as a small version of Prague's Charles Bridge, because of its statues, which were added during the Baroque period. We were treated to two Sunday morning church bell serenades during the course of our walk on the bridge.
We circled the large Marktplatz (market square) with its Marienkapelle (Church of St. Mary). The church is ringed with what are called "swallow shops" (think swallows' nests), little businesses run by the church to help pay for it. I initially thought the market square had glommed onto the church, but it turned out to be part of the original design.
Just off the square is one of the more eye-catching buildings done up in over-the-top Rococo fashion--the Haus zum Falken (Falcon House).
Before we left the Marktplatz, we were graced with yet another bell concert. Afterwards, we popped into the Neumunster Basilica, next door to the Dom (St. Kilian's Cathedral, which had just provided our bells).
We ambled back to our boat and lunch before heading out on an afternoon excursion to Rothenburg.
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