Paris & Christmas Markets of Europe

Amsterdam: A good time! That’s what you’ll have in this beautiful capital of the Netherlands, which feels at once like a 17-century city and a bustling modern metropolis. Famous for its canals and extraordinary museums, Amsterdam is also an intimate city with strangely alluring streets and squares.

Founded in 902, Bamberg remains a medieval-looking city known for its symphony orchestra and specialty “smoke” beer. Bamberg was also the first site in Germany of lithographic printing featuring movable type.

The city’s winding streets are filled with baroque patrician houses as well as the breathtaking 11th century cathedral of Holy Roman Emperor Heinrich II, which houses his tomb as well as that of Pope Clement II. Tour the 16th century Alt Residenz (Old Residence) and the 17th century Neue Residenz (New Residence), both of which were bishop’s houses.

Located on both sides of the Rhine river, Cologne (German: Köln) is the fourth most populous city in Germany. Cologne’s great Gothic Cathedral is a magnificent reminder of man’s ability to create exquisite art from stone. Its lacy twin spires and wonderful stained glass never fail to impress. Miraculously, the Cathedral escaped wartime destruction, unlike most of the city. The Old Town attracts visitors with excellent restaurants, lively taverns, bars and boutiques. The pedestrian-only Hohe-Strasse is a shopper’s paradise, and Eau de Cologne toilet water, trademarked 4711 (the former address), is world famous.

As the French capital, Paris is the commercial, financial, and industrial focus of France, a major transportation hub, and a cultural and intellectual center of international renown. A beautiful city in which tourism is the main industry, Paris is cut by the Seine River. On its stately, formal right (northern) bank are many of the most fashionable streets and shops, and such landmarks as the Arc de Triomphe, Place de la Concorde, Louvre, and Sacré Coeur.

The left bank houses governmental offices and is the site of much of the city’s intellectual life. It is known for its old Latin Quarter and for such landmarks as the Sorbonne, the Luxembourg Palace, the Panthéon, and the modern Pompidou Center (see Beaubourg). The historic core of Paris is the Île de la Cité, a small island occupied in part by the Palais de Justice and the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris. Above the city rises the Eiffel Tower. Paris is divided into 20 arrondissements (boroughs) and governed by a mayor.

A fishing village when it was conquered (52 B.C.) by Caesar, it became an important Roman town. It was a Merovingian capital in the 5th cent. and became the national capital with the accession (987) of Hugh Capet, count of Paris. It flowered as the center of medieval commerce and scholasticism but suffered severely during the Hundred Years War. Paris consistently displayed a rebellious and independent spirit, as in its resistance to Henry IV (1589-93); the first Fronde (1648-49); the revolutions of 1789, 1830, and 1848; and the Commune of Paris (1871). During World War II it was occupied (1940-44) by the Germans but was relatively undamaged.

Human settlements have existed here at the confluence of the Danube, Inn and Ilz rivers ever since prehistoric times. In this millennium the city was considerably enlarged by the prince bishops of Passau, who made it their royal residence and capital of the largest Danube diocese. The wonderful Baroque buildings that dominate the city today were built after the great fire of 1662. One of the most striking is cathedral of St. Stephan, which boasts the world’s biggest church organ. One of the best ways to enjoy the magic of Passau is with a sightseeing tour by ship.

Rüdesheim is a small, very quaint “Bavarian” village in Germany on the Rhine River. Points of interest include the Asbach Brandy Distillery, Cable-car to Niederwald Monument, Medieval Museum of Torture, a Falconry and many wine festivals throughout the year.

Intersecting trade routes, a favorable climate, fertile soil and a primary waterway brought wealth to Würzburg from the early Middle Ages. Symbols of this wealth-and the artistry it bought-are what still attract visitors: the massive, medieval Fortress Marienberg that towers over the city; the Residenz, arguably the most ornate Baroque palace in Germany; St. Kilian’s Cathedral, with its Romanesque exterior and splendidly Rococo interior; and Neumünster Church.

Today, Würzburg, the northern terminus of the Romantic Road, is a surprisingly cosmopolitan Bavarian city filled with architectural and artistic treasures-and exquisite Franconian wine.

Those who make the trip to Würzburg are generally surprised by its warmth, charm and extensive variety of art, architecture and culture. Würzburg’s prime location on the Main makes for delightful strolls along the promenade, and riverfront cafes overflow in good weather. Sightseeing boats offer sightseeing excursions and trips to neighboring villages, and passenger ships plying the Rhine, Main and Danube make the city a prime stop.

Würzburg lies in the heart of Franconian Wine Region, and wine and wine-making are central to life in Würzburg. In autumn, the hills surrounding Würzburg and throughout Franconia are dotted with grape pickers, who fill baskets and dump them into waiting trailers.