Heidelberg Castle; Heidelberg, Germany 1973

One of my father's favorite stops and the place where he thought we should begin our travel blog, was his visit to Heidelberg, Germany in 1973. Our family and his grandfather was originally from Koblenz Germany which is not far from there. One of the remarkable novelties of this castle is the huge wine barrel which sits in the newer section of the castle. It holds somewhere around 30-50,000 gallons of wine. When my father was there there was a dance floor on top of it. All the growers and vineyard owners in the area had to contribute to the ruler's stash kept in the huge wine barrel. During his visit he was actually served wine from the barrel. After learning of the wine barrel, my father was even more enamored of his German heritage, "I love my people. Now this is real German ingenuity!."

Heidelberg Castle; The Most recent architecture: Heidelberg, Germany: Digital Art Created from 1973 photo

This is a detailed view of the architecture of the newer section of Heidelberg castle, which is one of the few areas not currently in ruins. The castle was added to and destroyed many times over the centuries. This image began as a snapshot taken in 1973 by an instamatic camera by my father; scanned from a 35mm slide at high resolution I created this piece of digital art with it. Reddish sandy tones accentuate the architecture and a digitally storming sky gives this piece a unique feel.

Below the Castle lies the town, which is also home to Heidelberg University. According to my father, legend says dueling scars became fashionable for awhile at this old University. Apparently during a duel, one participant would attempt to strike the cheek of the other with their swords in order to leave a scar from the duel. we see scenes like this in movies . Legend has it that that practice began here.

Heidelberg Germany; View of downtown, 1973

This is a view of Heidelberg Germany in the town near the home of Heidelberg University, taken with an instamatic camera in 1973 by my father and digitally enhanced.

The Castle itself is half ruins. The castle sits on a bluff overlooking the town and records indicate it began construction around 1400, by Palsegrave Rupert III. However, it was destroyed more than once and different owners added things during later periods and rebuilt sections. Different parts of the castle architecture include both Gothic and Renaissance elements.

Heidelberg Castle: View Through The Trees, Heidelberg Germany: Digital Art Created from 1973 photo

This is a view from just outside the castle of Heidelberg. This image began as a snapshot taken in 1973 by an instamatic camera by my father; scanned from a 35mm slide at high resolution I created this piece of digital art with it. Black tree and foliage silhouettes frame the image, digitally embossed. The is sky filled with gray clouds and the castle is done in a smooth sandy tone to illuminate the stone shapes of what is left of the ruins.

In 1764 Lightning struck the castle and much of it burned. This served as inspiration for the dark storm cloud piece of digital art I created using My father's photograph.

Heidelberg Castle: Heidelberg Germany: Digital Art Created from 1973 photo

In 1689 it was destroyed by the French. Here are some of the ruins my father captured back on his trip in 1973.

Inside Heidelberg Castle Ruins, 1973

One of the interesting facts about this castle is there is a stone gate that used to be an entrance to a garden. This gate was built overnight as a surprise birthday present for Elizabeth Stuart, a princess and daughter of James I King of England, and wife of Frederick the V, who later became King of Bohemia. Elizabeth was 19 in 1615 when the archway gate was built.

Elizabeth Gate: Heidelberg Castle, Germany: 1973

The Castle overlooks the small town of Heidelberg, which lies in the Neckar Valley along the banks of the Neckar river.

View of Heidelberg, Germany From the Castle 1973

Heidelberg, Germany: From Neckar River, 1973

Nearby my father took a cruise nearby on the Rhine river, as the Rhine and Neckar join not too far away. This was a half a day trip from Bopart Germany. This is a chronicle of my father's 1973 trip to Europe. Some of the things and facilities mentioned on this trip may no longer exist.

Sources and Further Reading

About.com Germany travel

Gernany Insider Facts

Heidelberg Germany

heidelberg castle, Wikipedia

Elizabeth of Bohemia