Had breakfast at the hotel (very good) and headed to the cable car station to be first in line. It didn't open until 20 past 9 so we had to wait a while. It was a beautiful morning and we chatted to some Aussies and Canadians that were on a Scenic river cruise.
We were in the first cable car
. What glorious views. Up over the sloping vineyards, got off and walked to the Niederwald monument. This monument with its statue of "Germania" was built 1877 to 1883. The 38 metre high monument commemorates the Franco-German War of 1870-71 and the reestablishment of the German Empire. It was the basis of modern tourism - first with a rack railway in 1884; and this was replaced by the cable car in 1954.
Then we wandered through the forest, on a dirt narrow road, before arriving at the Seilbahn chairlift. [We took the shorter route when the sign gave an option - one way another 10 minutes and the other way another 20 minutes.] Down on the chairlift to Assmannhausen - so quiet and peaceful with lots of birds singing. This has to rate as one of the best things we did, and it was only €8 each.
We caught the train back to Rudesheim - it took 3 minutes. All very well timed - getting on to the cable car at 9.30 and arriving at Assmannhausen railway station at 10
.45 with 3 minutes to wait for the train. The next train wasn't til 11.48, so if you do the same thing it might be safer to dawdle and go to a lookout or two, and take a better look around Assmannhausen, and then get this later train.
No hiccups on the train travel today. The first train carried on along the north bank of the Rhine and then crossed over to Koblenz. We decided to give the InterCity train a miss and go on the more reliable Regional trains even though we had to change trains at Koeln Messe/Deutz.
There is a lot of work going on around the station at Wuppertal, but once you figured it out it was easy. The Hotel Astor was about a 5 minute walk. We'd come here because we'd seen the suspended monorail on the TV program based on Bradshaw's 1913 travel guide (Great Continental Railway Journeys). The city supplies guests with a free public transport pass so we used it to do the complete journey - took about 1 hr 15 min
. The town was built along the river on both sides - guess that explains why they built the monorail over the river back in 1901.
The suspension monorail
The suspension monorail (the "Schwebebahn") with its swift train service is not only a landmark and historical monument but has been Wuppertal's indispensable means of transport since its inauguration in 1901. It is scarcely troubled by ice and snow. With a top speed of 60 kph, the airy ride from terminus to terminus takes almost 35 minutes. On the 13.3-kilometre-long route there are 20 stations altogether.
The monorail, which winds its way through Wuppertal "like a steely dragon" (in the words of the Wuppertal poet Else Lasker-Schüler), is the prime tourist attraction of the city. It was made world-famous by a young elephant called Tuffi. On July 21st 1950 Tuffi boarded a train as an advertising gimmick for a visit by the Circus Althoff. Whether or not she felt trapped we do not know, but after only a short ride she had had enough. She burst through the side of the carriage and jumped to freedom, landing in the river Wupper. Tuffi bruised her bottom and achieved worldwide fame.
The old part of town is very nice - open with lots of malls. Plenty of shops and cafes; nice to walk around. When the work around the station is finished it should be very welcoming.
The gondola/walk/chair lift at Rudesheim - awesome
Friday, June 26, 2015
Wuppertal, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
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2025-02-08