We happened into the Heileggeist (Holy Ghost) Church in Heidelberg, Germany, just in time for the noonday devotional. What a treat–organ, soloist and the finale of a trumpet playing “Amazing Grace.” While short, the service was heavenly–the music simply wafted and reverberated through the massive interior of this Lutheran Church.

We also took the funicular up the valley hill to the imposing remains of the Prince Elector Schloss (palace) which overlooks the city. The opulence is evident still, and restoration work continues. Impressive views of the Necker Valley spread out before us. The massive stone walls of the palace are filled with statuary. We enjoyed viewing the wine cellar and a massive cask that took 130 oak trees to construct and is capable of holding 58,000 plus gallons of wine! It is the largest wine cask in the world. An ancient staircase is used to access the cask, and we crept along it to see the entire cask.

One of the joys of Germany is the food, and we once again found an authentic restaurant and ate some fantastic cabbage rolls and pumpkin soup. Fall is definitely in the air here as the trees turn more colorful by the day. Kathy and I took a stroll along the river while Allen and Rhonda walked through the Old Town and did some window shopping. WEG