The History of Regensburg: it is the oldest town in Germany, dating back to Roman times. When the Romans first arrived they built a fortress with a huge wall surrounding it. Later on in medieval times the city was expanded and they (I don’t know who “they” are – Regenburgers?) built a huge stone bridge that is quite the sight to see. Regensburg was an important trading city since the Danube runs through it and it was the northern most tip of the Danube at the time. Regensburg was never destroyed in WWII and many of the old churches and attractions are still intact today. Regensburg has A TON of churches, almost an excessive amount, and a famous sausage house.
We hadn’t been 10 minutes in the house when Heini took Zach and I out to tour Regenburg by car. He showed us as much of the downtown area as he could and parts of the surrounding countryside. We headed back soon after our driving tour to meet Heini and Ingrid’s good friends, Gerhard and Indo. They were such a fun couple. Indo is from Malaysia and has moved to Australia and Gerhard is German and lives in Australia. They have lived all over the place, included Davis, California.
All six of us left Heini’s house to walk into downtown and see the jazz festival. Heini was a great tour guide, showing us all the old parts of town and where the Romans had lived, pieces of the old wall, etc. The jazz groups were great too. They were scattered all over the downtown area in small squares. It was a great afternoon. Ingrid went home early though since she was feeling sick still. Regardless, we had fun. We all had some ice cream (more like works of art) and also went to a beer garden. Regensburg reminded us a lot of Italy (for Zach and I just pictures since we have never been) but it had small side roads with shops and the buildings were very colorful. It was a cute little town.
Saturday evening for dinner, Ingrid and Indo made us a fabulous dinner. It was a three-course meal starting with an apple, fish, and onion appetizer. Next we had a rabbit with lemon and olive, it was the first time Zach and I have ever had rabbit before but it was so good! I loved it! It tasted a lot like chicken only more moist. Plus it was darker meat. However, it was just so yummy. For dessert, we had vanilla yogurt with fruit. Such a simple dessert but it was perfect. I think I am learning to like fruit for dessert instead of chocolate (but please, don’t quote me on that). During dinner, we went through almost three large bottles of wine, larger than the normal size. Plus Heini, Zach and Gerhard drank beer. It was incredible just how much alcohol was consumed over one night of dinner.
The next morning, Sunday, Zach and I woke up and came upstairs for a delicious breakfast.
***SIDE NOTE*** Ingrid and Heini made Zach and I breakfast every morning. It was a spread of bread, jams, fruit, yogurt, coffee, freshly-squeezed juice, eggs, meats and cheeses. Just about anything you could want they had.
Gerhard and Indo had to leave that morning to go meet Gerhard’s brother and Zach and I were sad to say goodbye. We just enjoyed them so much and if we ever go to Australia, would love to meet them for dinner!
Heini went to church and Zach and I walked around Regensburg’s downtown more. We saw the famous sausage house and walked along the Danube. We also devised a plan to start our own beer garden in the USA! We think Fort Collins would be perfect and have Fat Tire/90 Shillings be the beer we serve. All we need is a financial backer…any takers?
We met back up with Heini and he took us to see the countryside of Regensburg. We went up to this huge Greek Temple built by Ludwig I, a German king. There’s no point to this place, it’s just to bring a bit of Greece to Germany. It was great though and we had some amazing views of the surround area. Heini took us to a beer garden in some small town where we were able to see the Danube while we sat. The last stop on our adventure was to meet Heini’s mother. She is the cutest lady! I didn’t think she would speak any English so I introduced myself in German. After we sat down, she starts rattling off in English! Well, I hope my German was okay. She offered us all sorts of food and drinks but when she discovered we had never tried egg liquor, we HAD to have some. It was so gross I’m glad it was only a shot of it. I just don’t think I am a fan of egg-tasting products unless it’s just plain and simple eggs.
Once back at the house in Regensburg, we got ready to go back to Munich. It was a fairly relaxing evening with just a car ride home and a simple, but still tasty dinner of bread, mozzarella and tomato. Zach and I also had to pack our bags since we were leaving the next day for Füssen. We were off to see King Ludwig II castles, the one that Disney is made to look like!
Staying with Heini and Ingrid was the best. We had a comfortable place to sleep, more food than we could eat, and some wonderful company to start our time in Germany. Zach and I can’t be thankful enough for all they did for us and we really had that much better of a time because of them. So Heini and Ingrid if you read this, here’s another thank you for everything!
Love,
Sara
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