This is my third time driving a motorhome into Europe.
The first time was in 2012, when my wife did not come with me, because her grandson was born, which caused her love to shift, and she willingly stayed at home to take care of the grandson.
The second time I entered Europe was in 2014. My grandson was 2 years old, and my wife finally agreed to follow me to Europe. But unfortunately, the car overturned in the Caucasus Mountains near Sochi, Russia, and the caravan was scrapped. She injured her cervical spine and had to stop the trip.
The third time was in 2015. After a year of treatment and recuperation, my wife has basically recovered. After mobilization again, she made a resolute decision—to follow me to Europe. No matter how difficult the future is, she will realize her dream of traveling with me in Europe. This time, I drove a brand new RV with a wider wheelbase, which greatly improved the stability of the vehicle. The journey went smoothly, passed through northern Europe, went to the UK, returned to France, and went south all the way to Spain and Portugal. In the blink of an eye, it was September and the weather was getting cooler. We entered Germany from France and visited several small towns in southern Germany. From Würzburg to Rothenburg, and then from Rothenburg to the south, after visiting Heidelberg, enter Freiburg and Lake Titisee in the Black Forest.
Germany is basically the same as other European countries. The caravan culture is very developed, and there are parking lots and campsites for caravans all over the country. Germany is a big economic country in the world and a big tourist country, with rich tourism resources. From north to south, there are many world-famous tourist attractions, especially some small towns in southern Germany. They have a long history, beautiful environment, warm and quiet, which make people fascinated. .
Wurzburg soaked by rain
It is only 130 kilometers from Frankfurt to Würzburg, and it takes two hours. There is light rain in the sky, the ancient streets, the paving stones that have been rounded and smooth by history, are wet by the rain, like mirrors paved with mosaics, faintly reflecting the mottled figures of passers-by on the road. The buildings on both sides of the road are tall or low, fat or thin, and they all appear thick and deep in color in the rain. The flowers on the street are covered with crystal water drops, which are delicate and charming. Trams jingled and passed people.
Along the ancient streets, go up a slope to the Main River Bridge. The bridge was built in the Middle Ages and has a history of more than a thousand years. There are ancient statues on both sides of the bridge, which are said to be the historical celebrities who first built Würzburg.
Cross the bridge and climb up a hill. There is a castle on the hill. Go up to the high place and overlook the small town on the other side of the river. There are several tall spiers of churches standing among the red tiles. The rain had stopped at some point, and the setting sun passed through the scattered clouds and sprinkled gold on the steeple of the church. It was resplendent and resplendent, and the small town looked more vibrant after the rain.
Medieval Pearl of Rothenburg
Rothenburg on the Taub River is known as the Pearl of the Middle Ages. The town is quiet and simple, picturesque. The ancient city wall surrounds the ancient city. Walking on the city wall, you can see the names of many people engraved on the city bricks. There are people from all over the world and some from China. They are all donors for the restoration of the ancient city wall.
The small town couldn’t be smaller, even if you are blind, you won’t get lost here. The town hall is on the market square, and narrow streets spread out from here. No matter where you go, as long as you turn around, you will come back here.
What impresses me the most about this small town is not the clock that turns on at the city hall at a fixed time, nor the medieval prison torture equipment, nor the small shop selling Christmas gifts and toys, but the wrought iron signboard hanging on the roadside shop. The signboards of each store are different, but they are all works of art hammered out by blacksmiths. Fawns galloping with head held high, bulls calm and composed, eagles spreading their wings to fly, and birds among flowers will bring you beautiful enjoyment. It is mainly green, dotted with gold, and the complicated vines stretch out half the street, and the exquisite signboards are hung on the heads of passers-by, which is pleasing to the eye. From time to time, I stopped to admire these signs, not like I was shopping, but like I walked into a huge art gallery.
Heidelberg, a famous historical and cultural city
Heidelberg is a famous tourist and cultural capital in Germany. Many famous philosophers, poets and artists in history have left their footprints here. Heidelberg University is one of the oldest universities in Europe, and Hegel’s dialectics was born here. Today, Heidelberg is still the youngest city in Germany, and one-fifth of its population is full of vigorous college students. There are always some restless students among the students. In order to punish those naughty students who committed minor crimes, a student prison was built in Heidelberg in 1712. Criminal students go to class during the day and stay in confinement at night. Because of loose management, this place has become a student paradise. Almost every night, students who visit the prison bring food to eat, drink and have fun. Many students deliberately make small mistakes in order to be locked up. Find a moment of happiness in prison. The prison remained closed until 1914.
When you come to Heidelberg, you must go to the ancient castle on the throne hill on the other side of the Neckar River. The construction of the castle began in the 13th century and was not completed until the 17th century, which took 400 years. After another 400 years, although the old castle has aged and part of it has collapsed, most of it is well preserved, and the hall in the castle can still hold banquets and concerts.
The most eye-catching thing in the castle is the world’s largest wine barrel. Made in 1751, this large wine barrel is 8 meters long, 7 meters high, and has a volume of more than 200,000 liters. It uses 130 huge oak trees and is said to have only been filled twice in history.
Flower city Freiburg
Located at the junction of France, Germany and Switzerland, Freiburg is the warmest city in the southwestern border of Germany. Arriving in Freiburg, it’s like entering a big garden. The whole city is surrounded by colorful and enthusiastic flowers. Walking in the flower street, everyone’s mood will be cheerful, forgetting troubles and unhappiness, as if you have a piece of food in your mouth. Chocolate as smooth as silk, I feel extremely happy from the heart.
Freiburg also has a great scenery, just like Lijiang in Yunnan, the streets and alleys are full of criss-crossing clear springs, the canals are clear, the water is gurgling, and the sound of running water is endless, like a serenade that makes people enchanted one after another. If you accidentally fall into the water, congratulations, you are likely to win the jackpot – according to the local legend, once someone falls into the water, a local beauty will marry you!
Another place that attracts us to stop is the market where booths are set up in squares and streets to sell goods. There are a variety of small commodities, including special cheese at 3,200 euros per kilogram, small ornamental pumpkins at 0.5 euros each, exotic flowers and plants competing for favor, all kinds of fruits and vegetables, jewelry necklaces, porcelain lamps, and Spices and seasonings, there are also small wooden spoons dug out by hand. There are not many customers, most of them are leisurely onlookers, and the stall owner is not in a hurry, does not shout loudly, just waits there quietly.
The winding and quiet alleys, rich and quiet markets make the small town of Freiburg full of poetic charm.
Lake Titisee at dusk
Leaving Freiburg to go to Lake Titisee, the rural scenery on the road is so beautiful that we are often attracted, stop to take pictures, put the beautiful scenery into the camera, and save it for later appreciation.
After walking for a while on the mountain road, there was a small town near Lake Titisee. Almost every household was decorated with clocks and clocks. Clocks of all kinds, big and small, competed with each other. It turns out that this is the town of Titisee Lake, and the local specialty is cuckoo. The bird clock is locally called the cuckoo clock. Every half and hour, the small window on the cuckoo clock will open, and a cuckoo will come out and coo, which is very cute. When I was young, my neighbor’s house was a watchmaker. This kind of cuckoo clock was hung in his house. When I went to his house to play, I just looked forward to the hour. It was so amazing to hear the cuckoo come out of the small window, cuckoo, cuckoo. . Unexpectedly, this time I came to the hometown of cuckoo clocks and saw so many cuckoo clocks.
The world is really wonderful, if you don’t go, you won’t know it.
Arrived at Lake Titisee in the evening and stayed in a caravan camp. The camp is on a hillside, a large green space, with many RVs parked. The camp facilities are relatively complete, with water and electricity piles, toilets, and kitchens. Here we happened to meet a group of Chinese, about a dozen, from different parts of the country. They traveled here in a caravan tour group organized by Mr. Cai, an overseas Chinese in Germany. When they saw us driving a Chinese caravan to Europe, they were all amazed. They asked us questions about self-driving abroad, and we patiently answered them one by one. Some of them said that they would also drive a car with a Chinese license plate in the future. RVs come to Europe.
Mr. Cai has lived in Germany for many years and is a fan of outdoor sports including RV self-driving. In response to the needs of Chinese tourists to travel by RV in Europe, he established a RV travel company to receive domestic tourists. He is very familiar with European RV camps and introduced me a lot of knowledge about European RV travel, which benefited me a lot.
The surrounding environment of Lake Titisee is beautiful. Standing next to the wooden house in the camp, you can see the flat Lake Titisee below. On the green lake, there are several small boats and beautiful villas hidden in the woods. As the sun sets, the sky is getting darker, and Lake Titisee is gradually sinking into the twilight.
