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-4-

Krauters Sat night since the burg isn't open until Sunday night.

Monday was a magnificent day- much more interesting than we had
expected. In the first place it was warm and sunny so that by 9:30
we had our jackets off and spent the rest of the day in our shirt
sleeves- spring weather for sure. The countryside between Mainz and
Worms is almost completely flat. Much like the San Joaquin valley
except that it much greener here. Mostly large farmlands, lots of
truck crops. We followed along the Rhine to Oppenheim, there took a
short break to walk through the side streets. Here we left the river,
following the highway, straight as an arrow southward to Worms.
Here the Rhine comes back to meet it. With the help of a nice tailwind
we helped the 50 kilometers to Worms in 2 1/2 hpurs [hours]- arriving at noon.
We bought some supplies, found a small park for lunch, then stretched
out on the grass in the sunshine for a lazy 45 min. doze- Ah. The lazy
life of a traveling student.

Fully relaxed and refreshed, we set out to see a little of the city.
Worms is the oldest in Germany dating from some time before the Roman
occupation of the area about the time of Christ. It has been a royal
city and a Bishop's seat, has a long and rich history. But of course,
most of this cannot be seen in architecture etc. so its visual impact
is something less than its historical significance. We saw a fine
monument to Martin Luther and his fellow battlers in the Reformation.
Remember, his trial took place in Worms. Sculptures of the main leaders
with the pedestals containing the seals of several German cities, scenes
from Luther's life and some of his most remembered sayings. Also nearby
are ruins of the old Roman walls of the city and, very close to these,
the city's cathedral. This last was unfortunately badly damaged in the
many wars of the past 200 years but is now quite well restored. Especially
from the outside it is very beautiful, in particular the sculptured
figures at the sides and above on the main entrance- Gothic period and very
striking. Reminded me of those on the Fraunkirch in Nuremberg.

Inside the cathedral is sort of a cluttered display of the salvaged
sculpture of the original church dating from about 1000. Too crowded to
appeal to my simpler tastes. The altar is especially ornate and bold, high
baroque.

Having seen the most interesting part of Worms by about 4:15 and having
heard that morning that the stretch from Heidelberg to Heilbronn, would be
rough biking, we decided to go on further for the night. So we headed
east across the flat valley toward Bensheim- actually to Eppenheim, where
there is a youth hostel. These towns lie at the foot of a range of high
hills (in Germany they are considered mountains) which run north and
south from Darmstadt to Heidelberg. As we came across the valley toward
Heppenheim, the mountain came into view and, on one of the very highest
right above the town stood a tall tower, the ruins of an old fortress.
Sure enough, further inquiry indicated that the youth hostel was in this
tower on top of the hill so, after 70 kilometers biking, we finished off
the day with a 45 minute clontain climb, pushing our bikes up the road
to the hostel but it was surely well worth the effort for the view in
every direction was breathtaking- out over the large valley to the Rhine,
back into the small valleys in the hills, across to other nearby
wooded crests, down to the roofs of Heppenheim.