Medieval Beauty

One of our friends, a colleague of D's, is THE person to ask if you want to know where to visit, when and then what to eat. He has been just about everywhere, eaten it all (good, bad and the ugly) and is a brilliant resource when planning side trips. He had recently discovered a fantastic little town just over the Belgian border in Germany and so we booked him for our next available weekend.


So, off we went to Monschau, Germany. Monschau is a picturesque town situated in the hills of the Eifel, a narrow valley of the Rur river (no, I didn't misspell it - the Rur river is a tributary to the Meuse River and runs through Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands). Having escaped the devastation of World War II, it has become a popular tourist attraction because of the old world charm and character eminated from winding, cobblestone streets and quaint houses over 300 years old. The town dates back to 1198 and proved to be fairly highly contested, moving from French to German control multiple times. The ruins of the castle (what medieval town is complete without a castle?) preside on top of the hill overlooking the town and the winding avenues charm one from the beginning. We climbed up the steep hillside (into the Eifel National Park) in order to get a better view of the town and perspective on how horizontal the slope is next to town. (I have delusions of being in good shape until we have such excursions.) It was breathtaking (in several meanings of the word).

All this hard work needed to be rewarded by a fantastic lunch, and we weren't disappointed. We were greeted with a sparsely crowded dining room that was warm and with a beautiful view. We enjoyed our local beer (with a ridiculously perfect head) as we watched the light rain fall into the river as it bubbled through town. We were all three sharers, which was good, since we each ordered different entrees, each swimming in delicious gravy and mushroom sauces, and they all tasted fabulous. Feeling quite satisfied, we wandered around this wonderful town and appreciated the majesty of fall all around us and the sweet decorations displayed by the townspeople. The rain almost gave it a "Brigadoon" unreal like quality. Eventually, we had to leave, but it was with remorse. This was a fantastic place to visit and well worth the drive to get there.