Free Day in Ulm

Ulm is a most attractive city, with its twin centres of the Old City and New Ulm divided by the Danube River. The old city, and indeed most of the new city is dominated by the huge Ulm Minster. Although it is not officially classed as a cathedral, it is a mammoth structure, that took over 600 years to be finally completed. Its spire is an eye watering 161 metres tall, making it the highest church steeple in the world. In fact, for a time the Ulm Minster was actually the highest man made structure in the world (higher even that the Great Pyramid).

If you have the stamina and enthusiasm to climb the 700 steps of the staircase, you can get the best panoramic view of the city and the surrounding countryside. Since I have climbed this staircase twice before, and since I am now 7 years older, I decided to give it a miss this time.

Maggie is still struggling with her back, so we had a rather leisurely day wandering the historic Fishermen's Quarters and walking alongside the Danube, interspersed with several coffees along the way. The low light of the day was the time spent in the Laundromat, catching up on the ever increasing mountain of dirty laundry.

On the other side of the ledger, the highlight was watching a traditional German band playing to an enthusiastic crowd near the hotel. It was the perfect way to sample the rich culture of this place.

Tomorrow we leave the Danube and head to Lake Constance.Read more