Ship docked at Freudenberg about 2:00pm after sailing all night.

Woke this morning to a cold and wet day.

After breakfast a master glass-blower (Karl Uttig) from Wertheim joined the cruise and gave a presentation and a history lesson of the craft. He is 7th generation glassblower in his family, with a predecessor establishing the industry in Wertheim after escaping from East Berlin in 1949. Karl was entertaining and created some beautiful pieces. He had for sale a range of his creations including Christmas baubles, Galileo thermometers, wine and oil jars, Einstein's heat engines and carved glass items. It was a great presentation. We had the opportunity to visit his shops in Wertheim later in the day and we really enjoyed browsing the hand blown glass products.

As the ship had to travel through locks (a very slow process) we were taken to Wertheim by bus - a trip of about 30 minutes.

Wertheim is a small village untouched by the wars. The town square and the shops around it date to the 14th century. All the buildings around the square and the cobble-stone streets are original. The town was built around the late 700's and currently has a population of about 22,000.

The ruins of the Wertheim Castle built during the 12th century are imposing, perched high on the hill above the town. Since the 30 Years War in the 17th century the castle has fallen into disrepair. Some sections were carefully restored in the late 1900's and are now used as as a pub and a restaurant. We were invited for a drink in one of the highest rooms in the castle, and it was an experience.

Wertheim is a picturesque village worth visiting.

Today's insights:
Einstein was born in Ulm not far from Wertheim.

The US Army had a military post at Wertheim until 1995 and built high-rise accommodation units for soldiers and family on the brow of a hill overlooking the village - a real eye-sore as a backdrop to such a beautiful and ancient village.

The US Corning company has a glass factory producing Pyrex in Wertheim.

The glass-blowing industry's main products include scientific and medical glass instruments and fibre optics. Until the invention of the electronic thermometer almost all of the world's mercury thermometers were made in Wertheim. Trinkets, souvenirs, jewellery and household items are now sideline items for these craftsmen.