Docking in Nurnberg

[gnome12]

Here we go again on public transit options.

 

There seem to be 3 options all of which entail the 67 bus or a walk.

 

Option 1: Take the U-bahn route U1 in the direction of Langwasser Sud to Frankenstrasse (4 minutes from Hauptbahnhof), and switch to bus 67 in the direction of Furth Hauptbahnhof; get off at Rotterdamer strasse which is where Hafenstrasse crosses the canal. The bus takes about 8 minutes. (You can see the river boats docked right at Hafenstrasse bridge on Google street view.)

 

Option 2: Take the U-bahn route U2 to Rothenbach (end of the line - 10 minutes from Hauptbahnhof), and switch to bus 67 in the direction of Nurnberg Frankenstrasse; get off at Rotterdamer strasse. The bus takes about 11 minutes.

 

Option 3: This is probably not as good, because the S-bahn train probably doesn't run as often as the U-bahn. Take the S-bahn train S-2 in the direction of Roth to Eibach (about 7 minutes). It looks like you then have to walk 4 minutes to Hafenstrasse to catch the 67 bus in the direction of Frankenstrasse. The bus takes about 4 minutes. Or, you could continue your walk by turning left on Hafenstrasse and walk the rest of the way.

 

For a trip from the ship, take whichever direction of the 67 bus comes first; take that one to the U-bahn (either Frankenstrasse or Rothenbach) and then into town.

[Kellie Poodle]

This is my travel journal entry from our Uniworld Budapest to Amsterdam trip on River Princess in October, 2008. I think it describes how Uniworld handles the port.

 

-October 19 Nuremburg

 

We were on the Main-Danube Canal, a man-made canal that was opened in 1992.

 

This morning we entered the last uphill lock. we will be crossing the continental divide, which they call “the water shed” and then we will be with the current, not against it. The scenery is pastoral with broad, gently rolling plains, still green with late autumn, dotted with golden leaves.

 

We had to get under a very narrow bridge and the wheel house disappeared completely into the sun deck. The helmsman stayed in his chair, but the ceiling of the wheel house came down around him leaving a little hole where his head was poking through. I didn't see this but one fellow passenger took photos and I saw them.

 

When we reached the monument to the continental divide, the staff handed out drinks in flutes. Either “blue Danube water” or “orange canal water” The blue water was champaign with blue curaçao and the other drink was orange juice with a dash of grenadine on the bottom.

 

After that we began to enter locks in a different way. Instead of entering the lock and waiting for the water to fill up, we wait until the lock fills up, sail in an then wait for the gate to open.

 

It is all 'downhill” from here. It also marks the halfway point of our trip. That part is a little sad.

 

We were late picking up our seminar speaker but she did a wonderful talk and slide show about the Holy Roman Empire. She also gave us a brief history of Germany and described how anti-Semitism had been in Germany since Medieval times, talking about dress codes for Jews and edicts forbidding Jews and Christians to live in the same areas of the cities. It was about time some tour guide came to terms with it.

 

We had a wonderful Bavarian lunch. Jan wore genuine liederhosen and the waiters had on cute aprons that looked like them. We had suckling pig, three different kinds of sausages, kraut and mashed potato. One of the salads was shredded black radish, something my dad used to love. We also had beer for a small charge.

 

We got off the boat at Roth, our “technical stop” where we boarded the bus for Nuremburg or in German, Nürmburg. We took a ride through the city and stopped at the **** Congress rally place. The big building was never completed. It was all facade and was supposed to be a tribute to Hitler where he'd make a speech once a year and it would be sealed after that. Then we went to a place in the same park where Hitler made speeches with everything staged for propaganda purposes. The place was crumbling and our guide, Peter, a super young man and self-described historian, told us that the deterioration was due to the use of cheap materials.

 

We got off the bus and began our walking tour through the town. We visited the castle which is perched on a high sandstone rock and has several sections. One section was built by the Nürmberg merchants who were, it seems, always at odds with the royalty. This tower section was built in a few months and its purpose was to allow the merchants to peer into the royal part of the castle.

 

Our tour ended in the Hauptmarket, or the big market square which is quite large an cobbled with an ornate Gothic fountain in one corner. There is an iron gate around the fountain and there are a few gold-colored rings in parts of this fence. The local legend says that an apprentice blacksmith put in the rings when his employer forbid his marriage to his daughter, saying that she could only marry a fully trained iron worker, not a mere apprentice. The apprentice made the rings in such a way that one could not see the seams, thus demonstrating his superior skills. Then he left town.

 

The daughter of the smith loved the young apprentice. One day she stood at the gate and twisted one of the gold rings clockwise 3 times and wished he'd come back to town. When she turned around, he was standing there. Visitors twist the rings 3 times clockwise and make a wish. If you twist the rings counterclockwise, you will become pregnant, the legends say. Barry tested this theory. I just made a wish.

 

On the square is a lovely church. We popped in for a visit and read the laminate card in English and saw another ugly part of the city's history.

 

On the spot where the square sits was the old Jewish quarter. It was a swampy area and no one else wanted it, but in 1349, the locals decided it would be a good spot for a market plaza. Since the Jews of the country were under the protection of the Holy Roman Emperor, at that time Charles IV, they appealed to him to move the Jews so that they could have the land. The Emperor couldn't have cared less about Nürmburg's Jews so he gave them permission to do whatever they wanted.

 

On December 5, 1349, over 560 Jews were massacred in Europe's first pogrom. The synagogue was destroyed and the church of Our Lady was raised on the very spot the synagogue had stood.

 

Most of the church was destroyed in WWII bombings (Nürmburg was really trashed by the allies because of its importance to the **** party). When the church was rebuilt after the war, it was recognized as being on the site of the first pogrom. On the altar is a stylized depiction of a torah scroll to commemorate the event and the fact that the site had been first occupied by a synagogue.

 

Speaking of collective conscience, our guide told us that in the 1930's when Hitler rose to power, he was a cult figure. He was a master manipulator of propaganda and many Germans, who were suffering under the strict rules of the Treaty of Versailles, were looking for a way out of the stringent laws imposed upon them because of WWI. Hitler found ways to break these laws and became a national hero. He also gathered in all the children and indoctrinated them into his poisonous thinking. By the time most Germans realized where they were headed, it was too late. Peter quoted a Catholic priest as having said: “when the ****s came for the Communists, I was not a Communist so I did nothing. When they came for the Jews, I was not a Jew, so I did nothing. When they came for me, there was no one left to do anything for me.”

 

After dinner we enjoyed a presentation by two local folks about beer. They gave a great slide presentation (Powerpoint) and we were invited to taste 4 types of local brews. I slept well that night.

[Karen Lynn]

We are going on the Rhine Discovery in May (Uniworld-River Countess) can anyone tell me..If I buy a 'Eurail pass' will I be able to get a train from Nurmeberg to Frankfurt on disembarkation day?

 

Thanks!!!

[gnome12]

We are going on the Rhine Discovery in May (Uniworld-River Countess) can anyone tell me..If I buy a 'Eurail pass' will I be able to get a train from Nurmeberg to Frankfurt on disembarkation day?

 

Thanks!!!

 

I assume that you are talking about the May 14th sailing, and so want to get from Nuremberg to Frankfurt on May 21st. Do you want the airport or the main train station?

 

To main railway station (ICE takes a little over 2 hours):

Every hour on the hour takes 2:04

There is another train at 9:28, 11:28, 13:28 that takes a little longer.

 

To airport (ICE takes 2:22)

Same times, every hour; the airport is obviously past the main station

The 9:28, 11:28 and 13:28 trains are less than 10 minutes longer.

 

The German rail site seems to say that the cost of the trip is only 15 euros, but since you can't book until 92 days in advance I'm not certain of that. Unless you plan to use your Eurrail pass for other travel, I can't see what you would want it for. This is a very short trip, on a very frequent train.

[Karen Lynn]

We would train it to the main station in Frankfurt where we are overnighting.

 

I had thought of getting the Eurail pass because my plans are 'train Munich airport to Munich (city) from Munich to Lucerne via ??? then another train from Lucerne to Basel and then this one from Nuremberg to Frankfurt and the next day to the airport in Frankfurt also. Seemed at a glance that a pass might be the most economical?

 

No?

[gnome12]

I don't think so. The shortest flexi-pass is 3 days I think. The 2 airport trips definitely aren't worth using the pass for, and I doubt that Nuremberg to Frankfurt is either.

 

I suggest you go to www.ricksteves.com and look at his information on rail passes. I think you can find fares there and see whether a pass is worth your while.

[Karen Lynn]

Great idea!! Thanks...:)

[steamboats]

Nomi,

 

Sorry, I´ve been out of town (on a cruise) the last week. Check this map

 

http://www.vgn.de/media/stadtverkehr_nue.pdf

 

which includes all lines (bus, trams, subway, s-bahn).

 

I just realized that it might be easier to take the other direction of bus 67 to Frankenstrasse which is also a subway stop (U1 and U11). This one is also going to Hauptbahnhof. You might get off at Lorenzkirche which is the closest subway stop to the downtown area.

 

This is bus 67 to Frankenstrasse

 

http://www.vgn.de/efa9/efa98/roccas/AHF/000042b2.pdf

 

And this is bus 67 from Frankenstrasse to Rotterdamer Strasse

 

http://www.vgn.de/efa9/efa98/roccas/AHF/00004f93.pdf

 

I´ve checked the English language option but it doesn´t have all features the German one has. You can´t get the timetables I´ve linked to in the English one.

 

steamboats

[gnome12]

Much appreciated!