Heidelberg, Germany - June 26th

In the morning, we all got up around 9. Even though we had only slept about 6 hours, complimentary breakfast stopped serving at 10, so we climbed out of bed and walked down the hall for bread, an apple, and some milk. I guess some things don’t change around Europe, breakfast being one of them. The shower was out of hot water and we took cold ones, got dressed, and left for the center of town. The town was bustling despite being a Sunday. A band was playing in the square across from which we entered a chapel to hear the gospel singing. We located the castle which used to guard the river that runs through the town. It was a long walk up the side of the mountain the castle sat on but when we reached the top there was an amazing view of the town, river and countryside. We entered the castle where there were exhibits set up which told the history of potion making to modern pharmaceuticals. The castle contained a wide variety of plants, hair, horns, and other ingredients for making cures. The laboratory was filled with mortars and pestles, balances, burners, old school distillers, and crushing machines. Back outside we rounded the castle through the gardens in the back, down the hill to the town. By this point the tiny bread loaf we ate hours earlier was wearing off and we ate kebabs at a place we’d seen the night before. Out of water and needing to rest we traveled back to the hostel. Geoff and Wade took a short nap and then we walked down to the riverside and back towards town. Tons of people were out and about along the river. Biking, playing volleyball and soccer, and riding around in sailboats. In town we found a shop to buy souvenirs and Absinthe. We walked across the old bridge and to a bar to watch the German vs. Canada women’s soccer game. Germany won 2-1 but should’ve made many shots that would have put them a lot further ahead. Back on the main street we had authentic German food consisting of sausage, potatoes, and sauerkraut. The sun was starting to set so we crossed the bridge and walked through the park towards the hostel. On the way, there was a playground with some new toys that were even made for adults. We crossed back over the river to the side our hostel was on and went to our room. Geoffrey and Wade wanted to try their Absinthe so we climbed the scaffolding just outside our window to the top of the roof. After 4 bottles we didn’t feel the hallucinating effects we thought would occur. Instead, we just listened to music and enjoyed the prime view of the town and castle in the distance. Eventually we climbed down and went to bed.