Where Main and Rhine Meet

I awoke to the sound of gentle rain pattering against my window and realized that I needed an activity today that involved some being in doors.  Readers of this blog know how I love wandering through parks and woodland, but these are best left to days when thunderstorms are not part of the forecast. After making and discarding several plans, I settled on going to Mainz.

Like many very old towns in Southern Germany, Mainz was a Roman foundation and then became one of most important bishoprics in the Holy Roman Empire.  Its location at the confluence of the Main and Rhine Rivers insures that the city remains an important one.

I got my ticket making Sure this time, I had the correct date on it and took the train through the light rain.  It dripped all day, but I came equipped with my stout shoes and umbrella, and it's good I had both. I saw signs for my destinations, but I had long walk--longer in fact than it needed to be, but I had no city map and had to rely on the signage. But I ended up by the river (Rhine) and could see no sign of anything resembling the historic center.  I did come across the Natural History Museum.  I did not wish to visit it, but it occurred to me I could get directions from folks used to dealing with visitors.

And as usual, I was met with great kindness.  The ladies at the ticket desk dug up a city map for me and drew me a route.  I wandered through the pedestrian zone and suddenly emerged on a square where a market was taking place.

A market!  Even in the drizzle and with no idea where I was, my heart rose and I walked through admiring the stands of beautiful fruit, vegetables, and flowers.  Inevitably there were also sausage stands.

Then my eyes alighted on one of my targets--the Gutenberg Museum.  Mainz was the scene of one of the most significant technological revolutions in history--the European invention of moveable type--which fueled the Protestant Reformation and the Scientific Revolution among other things.  The museum has a wonderful collection of early printed books, many with marvelous illustrations.  The crown jewel is, of course, the Gutenberg Bible--the forty-two lines (per page) that changed the world.  Exhibits explained the different printing surfaces used parchment and paper for example and also explained how inks were made and the different requirements of manuscript and print.  Historic presses from different eras were also on display.

Then I visited Mainz Cathedral, Dom St. Martin, a magnificent Romanesque church in a beautifully harmonious design and containing a lot of wonderful carvings from various periods.  St. Martin lacks the heaviness often found in the Romanesque and seems to soar almost like Gothic.

I then made my way to the Landesmuseum.  Some of the Roman artifacts found in the city are there and there are very nice collections of Early and Late Medieval sculptures, Late Medieval Painting--panels portraying the life of the Virgin Mary are the highlight--and some Dutch painting.

What blew me away was the Jugendstil.  The furniture and other decorations were exquisite, but the glass work was beautiful beyond belief.  Don't miss it!

By that time I was worn out, so I made my way back home in the rain.  Dinner consisted of salad, Rinderwurst--has nothing to do with the river, it's beef sausage and wonderfully tasty.  And beer.  I tried a local brew called Bitburger a little fearful that it would not be as good as that in Bavaria.  I needn't have worried. It was the perfect accompaniment to the sausage and most refreshing to the spirit.