Ahrweiler

This past Saturday we decided to get out of the city and explore the region a bit. We hopped on a train and went to Ahrweiler. This is up in the mountains to the south-west of Bonn; about half an hour by train.

 

Ahrweiler and its sister-town (Bad Neuenahr) are spa towns, with natural springs forming the basis for a whole medical industry based around the magical curative powers of the bubbly water that bubbles out of the ground, bubbling. The Appolinaris mineral-water company is located there. There is a spa and a water-slide-park for the young'uns.

It is an old, medieval walled city and we wandered around a bit. There is the obligatory cobblestone town square with a pointy church providing a picturesque backdrop for our hedonistic lifestyle. We had a so-so lunch in the sun (accompanied by some of the worst plonk I have sipped in decades) then wandered around some more. Meandering down a narrow cobblestone pedestrian street lined with cutesy shops,  Christine and I both had the same brainwave: This is really boring. Can we go watch TV or something?

I am sure that we could have a great time there if we stayed in a fancy hotel and spent all day in the whirlpool. But it's hard to have much of an adventure with the little one along. Arianne was very well-behaved all day and did not cry on the train. But next weekend we are going to do something crazy-extreme. Probably involving cake and cappuccino.