Day 5 - Baden-Baden

   Today we saw the coolest castle!!  By far the best castle I have ever seen.  (Admittedly there isn’t a whole lot of competition.)  We traveled up to Baden-Baden and on a mountain above the city there is an old castle ruin.  I don’t know the name of the castle but it was built in the 1400s.  It was fairly extensive, with two high walls to walk on, a tall tower and many rooms and partial rooms.  Fortunately the walls had railings and all the wells were filled in so I didn’t need to worry about the boys’ safety.

The castle at Baden-Baden

Mommy and boys in the castle gate

Will in the courtyard

  The boys and I were so excited to see the castle.  Somehow, Will got it into his head that all castles have ghosts so that was the theme of the day.  First the boys searched for ghosts and exclaimed every time they thought they saw a glimpse of white.  Then Will and Jon found invisible ghost friends who led us all over the ruin.  I have really cute video of this but I can’t post it for technical reasons.

Mommy and Will siting on the castle wall

Grandma and the boys on the stairs

James inside the castle

a ruined wall above the valley

Grandma and Jon hanging out on the wall

  

  We climbed the highest tower which was a little scary for the boys because the stairs were pretty dark.  There were no lights in the castle and the narrow windows only let in a little sun.  As we climbed up the last ladder onto the top of the tower Will said, “This is where I want to get married.”  Jon quickly agreed that he wanted to get married there as well and as we gazed out over the valley the boys discussed their wedding plans.  Will said that he wants to dance in the ten by ten foot space.  I don’t know where all the wedding talk came from but it was adorable.

Walkway on the ruined castle walls.

The tower doorway

Climbing down from the tallest tower

Looking out over Baden-Baden

  Another cute moment came when Jon found a window between the inside and a balcony.  He climbed into the window so that he could pretend to be a picture.  He stood there for quite a while until we came out to admire the picture on the wall.  Then he shocked us all by coming to life!

Jon in the wall

A picture of two cute boys

Leaving the castle

  We probably spent two hours climbing around the castle but finally our empty stomachs got the best of us and we headed into town for some lunch.  We found a little place where Jon tried and loved everything on the table.  He took particular joy in stealing Daddy’s food and feeding Daddy some of his.  The boys don’t order their own food but they have been doing great asking for their own drinks in German.  I’ve managed to order my own food and I have finally learned how to say “excuse me” in German.  It is a phrase I use all the time but it is really hard to say!  And I still can’t spell it…

Jon serves himself and eats at the same time

Ice cream!

Jon enjoys himself

  I have to confess that I am not a fan of Baden-Baden.  Although I admit that we only saw a small part of the city and it is entirely possible that we missed the good bit.  But where we were couldn’t compete at all with the charm and ease of Gengenbach (a town that I love) though it might be unfair to compare the two.  Baden-Baden seemed full of stores and restaurants and felt… touristy.  It reminded me a bit of North Conway, a place of amazing beauty but where the view is blocked by stores full of tourists. 

  On the positive side, we did get to see a ruin of a Roman bath which was pretty cool.  Unfortunately we couldn’t take pictures.  But Jon really enjoyed the German video which showed how the bath worked and what it looked like.  And the baths in Baden-Baden looked amazing.  We should have brought our bathing suits!!

  

  Before we left the city the boys found a toy store where they each bought a sword and shield.  The rest of the walk we were constantly beset by dragons which the boys valiantly fended off.  They made me be the princess who needed to be rescued.  At one point Will roasted the sea dragon he had just killed and served it to us on a platter.  Yum!

Camille, Bethany, Will and Jon in Baden-Baden

Will and James in Baden-Baden

New swords!

Fighting in the streets

  It was a full day so after the city we came home for dinner.  The boys played on the grass for an hour killing dragons until it was too dark to see.  They should be worn out so hopefully bedtime will go well…

Good night!