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30.3.60

Dear Folks,

Another three full days have gone by since I wrote from Mainz, and
in three more we'll be back in Beutelsbach! It's been quite a trip, very
interesting and much fun, but we'll both be glad to get back to the Burg and
see everyone again, and to return to hot showers, really clean clothes, 3 hot
meals a day (though our cold ones have been terrific and fun too!), etc.
We're staying tonight at the hostel in Eberbach, between Heidelberg and
Heilbronn on the Neckar river. The ride along the Neckar is the last leg of
our journey - taking us as far as Ludwigburg (near Stuttgart) for Friday
night, from where we'll ride to Beutelsbach Saturday morning; probably
stay with the Krauters Saturday night, since the Burg isn't open until
Sunday night.

Monday was a magnificent day, much more interesting than we had expected.
In the first place it was warm and sunny, so that by 9:30 we had our
jackets off, and spent the rest of the day in our shirtsleeves - spring weather
for sure! The countryside between Mainz and Worms is almost completely flat,
much like San Joaquin valley except that it is much greener here. Mostly
large farm lands, lots of truck crops. We followed along the Rhine to Oppenheim,
there took a short break to walk through the side streets. Here we left the river,
following the highway straight-as-an-arrow southward for Worms, where the
Rhine comes back to meet it. With the help of a nice tailwind we covered the
whole 50 km to Worms in 2 1/2 hours, arriving at noon. We bought some supplies,
found a small park for lunch, then stretched out on the grass in the sunshine for
a 45 minute doze - ah the lazy life of a traveling student. Fully relaxed and
refreshed, we set out to see a little of the city - Worms is the oldest in Germany,
dating from sometime before the Roman occupation of the area about the time
of Christ. It has been a royal city and a Bishop's seat, has a long and rich
history. But of course most of this cannot be seen in architecture, etc., so its
visual impact is something less than its historical significance. We saw a fine
monument to Martin Luther and his fellow battlers in the Reformation (remember
his trial took place in Worms) - sculptures of the main leaders, with the pedestals
containing the seals of several German cities, scenes from Luther's life and some
of his most remembered sayings. Also nearby are ruins of the old Roman
walls of the city, and very close to these the city's cathedral. This last was
unfortunately badly damaged in the many wars of the last 200 years, but it is
now quite well restored. Especially from the outside it is very beautiful, in
particular the sculptured figures at the sides and above the main entrance -
gothic period and very striking, reminded me of those on the Frauenkirche in
Nurembourg (which are even better). Inside, the cathedral is sort of a cluttered
display of the salvaged sculptures of the original church (dating from about 1000)
too crowded to appeal to my simpler tastes. The altar is especially ornate, in
gold, high Baroque.

Having seen the most interesting part of Worms by about 4:15, and having