Wheat beer and medieval life

Monday, 19 May 2014

We wake up to find that we are now berthed in Regensberg, home of famous sausages (as is every town in Germany, we find), sweet mustard, and the cranky Pope Benedict, who taught at the university here for many years. A wonderful morning tour takes us through the Medieval city, party enclosed by an ancient Roman wall. We see the tall towers of the city, erected by wealthy merchants who competed with each other to build the biggest and most elaborate towers. We also learn about the dark side of Regensberg .... like many cities in Germany in the Middle Ages, the substantial Jewish population were traders and bankers, and eventually held enormous amounts of debt from other citizens, nobility, the Catholic Bishop, and even governments. At some point, the city council decided to eliminate their debts by expelling the Jews, much as Ferdinand and Isabella did in Spain, confiscating their property, razing the entire Jewish quarter and even desecrating the graves.  The somber memorial is in the square created after the destruction of the Jewish quarter which was never rebuilt, and it outlines the foundation and walls of the old synagogue there. There were indeed precedents for Hitler.

In the afternoon we go to visit the Scheider Weisse brewery, the oldest (non-monastery) brewery in Europe, founded around 950, which specializes in wheat beer (a rarity because what was more highly valued for making bread then for beer).

 After a nice sample of the dark beer and a bretzl, we take 45-minute boat ride up the part of the Danube which is a protected nature area. Even the boat must have a very quiet motor to not disturb the setting, and I can hear birds and even crickets along the way. The tall limestone walls frame the river gorge, and we end our journey at the Weltenberg Abbey, a Benedictine abbey which boasts the oldest monastic brewery in Europe. Even more, the abbey has a spectacular Baroque church, a fantasy of gold and terracotta figures set against green background, with a giant St. George and the Dragon on the top of the altar (the crucifix if fairly small).

When we walk from the rather plain exterior into the an interior which can only be described as a riot of Baroque decor, it is truly as if the sun suddenly broke through the clouds and everything is gleaming.   After almost everyone leaves, I sneak a moment to sing, in this case the "Quia respexit" from the Bach Magnificat, which I thought would be appropriate in a Baroque church.

After we return to the ship, Barney and I take off on our own to explore the city a bit more before dinner ... during the day the old city was filed with tour groups, but now, at 6:30pm, it is filled with people coming home from work, parents bringing children home for dinner, everyday life. It's asparagus night on the boat, in homage to the season for green and white asparagus, and since Barney does not care for either one, I get lots of extra. This evening, a trio of singers plus accompanist perform a series of Mozart arias and duets, plus some piece from the Sound of Music, to enthusiastic applause. I realize I know most of the lyrics (except the Don Giovanni aria), and when the mezzo sings "Voi che sapete" I can only think of Madeleine singing that song. We depart Regensberg, going under some very low bridges, on our way to Passau and the largest pipe organ in Europe (18,000 pipes). If you know Barney well, you know that this is an exciting prospect for him.