Pink Sneakers on the Go: Next stop! Würzburg . The castles, baroque statues and vineyards we never had a chance to see.

Next stop! Würzburg . The castles, baroque statues and vineyards we never had a chance to see.

Posted by Nora K ,

You know that it’s going to be an extraordinarily long day when you inadvertently hop on the wrong train, disembark in a strange town and end up squandering the remainder of the afternoon away miles off the beaten track. Nothing like hoisting and hauling your cumbersome baggage up and down dozens of stairs – all the while enduring countless stares – as you frantically race up and down and all along the station in search of some helpful information. And just where oh where is that dratted kiosk located? Of course. Conveniently situated at the farthest corner of the edifice, tucked away in some secret location, where only the locals know to go.

So, let me not bore you with mundane details of Schlepping on the Go, and get right to the point of how best to whittle your time away whilst stuck at track level with no place to go. After all, an unplanned sojourn via detours and roadblocks should be part of the course for any serious globetrotter on the Go. Why put up with ho-hum routine when you can instead experience the far from ordinary – a holiday that’s clearly gone off the rails, not to mention the charts. Charts? There are charts? More on that later…

So, there we were. The cuckoo from the choo choo and Travel Bud Oz contemplating our next plan of action on how to get back on track to Stuttgart. Problem being, the next train was not scheduled to depart for at least two hours, leaving us trapped (and there’s always a trap!) in the train station somewhere in Bavaria. Würzburg, to be exact. A picturesque German town and the perfect place to sojourn, dine and explore – but alas, we were only passing through, with nary a smidgen of time to stop and review.

Nestled in a basin along the river Main, this baroque influenced town offers UNESCO World Heritage sights, French-themed gardens and countless palaces, to name just a few. The list of places to visit are endless, so here’s a run-down of all that I never got to see or do.

A must-see is the Residenz, the Palace of the Prince-Bishops.
Hofgarten - The impeccably manicured French-themed gardens located on the grounds of the Residenz.
Marienberg Fortress - Positioned high above the banks of the river.
Kapelle Würzburg - a Russian Orthodox style chapel in the woods.
Alte Mainbrucke or Old Main Bridge - Baroque statue lined bridge which connects the old city to the left bank.

Did I mention that Würzburg is also the starting point for many of the romantic road excursions that trail along the river Main? Had I known that we were knee-deep in wine country, I would have high-tailed it lickety-split to a vineyard and delayed my impending trip to Stuttgart by a day or two. The tempting thought of jumping ship and scampering off along paths unknown on an impromptu wine tour sampling Chardonnay was but a fleeting idea, best saved for another holiday detour.

So, scrapping that plan, we had more urgent tasks at hand, such as squandering the remainder of the afternoon away, languishing at track level for Train #02!

Next stop! Stuttgart (we can only hope!).