Rhine River Cruise – Samantha Brown’s Places to Love FULL 4K EPISODE

Rhine River Cruise – Samantha Brown’s Places to Love FULL 4K EPISODE

-I’ve been traveling all over
the world for two decades, and I’m finally doing something
that I have wanted to do. It’s been on my bucket list
for, like, 30 years, and that is to take a tour
through Europe on a river. 10 days, 4 countries, 2 rivers. I want castles,
I want cathedrals, I want burgs, I want bourgs,
I want gelato in every stop. I want to see statues
that I have no idea who that person is,
but wow, that’s amazing. And I want vistas, I want churches where
the bells ring all the time. I want perfect little ferries
that go into my shot. I want to drain my battery
taking every little picture of every sweeping view. [ Sighs ] It’s good to be back in Europe. Hi, I’m Samantha Brown, and I have been
traveling the globe for 25 years. Here’s a great episode of my
Emmy-award winning travel series, Places to Love. Like and subscribe to join
me on my adventures! Okay, let’s go! -I’m taking an epic journey
along the Rhine River, enjoying an original road
trip of sorts through Europe, touching four countries and about 1,000 years
of history. I’ll be highlighting
several cities along the river
in France and Germany, but my first stop,
the enchanting city of Freiburg, is actually away from the Rhine
and enjoys a unique distinction that makes it the envy
of an entire country. So, Peter, this is the sunniest
city in Germany? -Yes.
-The story checks out. -Like we have today.
That’s true. -It’s very sunny.
Oh, this is lovely. How long has this market
been here? -On the cathedral square
since about 200 years, so… -Which makes it
quite new in these parts. -Yes, but the market
was in Freiburg since the foundation
of the city. -Which is when? -It was at the end
of the 11th Century, and since these days, Freiburg
had the function of a market. -My goodness. So, Freiburg,
you have a commerce, you have a university,
and you also have a cathedral. [ Bell tolling ] How old is the cathedral? -The first building was made
at the end of the 11th, beginning of the 12th Century, and it lasted almost 300 years
to build it. But it was not built
as a cathedral, in fact. It was built as a normal
parish church, so it was paid by the citizen,
not by a bishop. -You know, I always think
that I should always invest in a European
scaffolding company, because there ain’t a cathedral
in Europe that isn’t wrapped around it. Obviously, they’re doing
some construction here, but these are old and they need
a lot of love and care. ♪♪♪ Freiburg is situated
right on the edge of the famous
Black Forest of Germany, but I heard
there was a new cake in town. -Oh, there’s
Stefan’s Kasekuchen, which is such a wonderful thing. -It’s what?
-Stefan’s Kasekuchen — Stefan’s cheesecake. -Ah!
Stefan. Kasekuchen.
I get it. I’m learning German one pastry
at a time. So, you started up in the
Black Forest in the mountains? -Yeah.
No cars. Just bikes.
-And hikers. -And hikers, yes.
-And they want cheesecake ’cause they’re hungry. -They are burned out
and they like a little bit fat, calories, yes, and so —
-So your cheesecake has a little more fat
and a little more calories? -Yes, it is. -So, most people, like myself,
traveling to the Black Forest area
come here for Black Forest cake. -Yeah.
-Right? That’s what you’re known for. This is something new. -This is our Black Forest cake.
-This is your — I want to try the official
Black Forest cheesecake. -Huh?
-So good. -Fluffy.
-Stefan, excellent. -Do you feel the calories?
-I feel — I feel the calories. And there’s nothing wrong
with that. There’s a lot of love here. ♪♪♪ My next stop is on the Rhine —
Strasbourg, France. The seventh largest city
in France began as a Roman camp in the 1st Century AD, and parts of this city look like
time stopped around the 16th, which makes it a perfect
backdrop to act out my inner future
and unsuspecting princess. So, this is every traveler’s
dream of a storybook village. I feel like right now
that I should be more sashaying down the street
while holding a basket, right, and singing,
and then all the villagers come out of their shops
and the keepers and the bakers and the butchers
to greet me in song. Anyone? Anyone? You up there? No. Guess I’ll just walk. I may have been sashaying
through Petite France, but a few blocks away is something
that isn’t petite in the least. [ Bells tolling ] Another day, another country,
another cathedral. When it comes to cathedrals,
Europe does not disappoint, and no wonder
we love them so, okay? They are just marvels
of architecture and creativity, and of course,
then the center of the city just sort of built up
all around it and we’re all sort of drawn
to this heart of the city. All the scaffolding does make
you wonder what are they doing? -Okay, so you saw the
scaffolding on the cathedral, and right now, we are in charge of a complete restoration
of this facade. -The entire facade. -Right now here, we are
in the cathedral workshop. We have stone masons,
stone carvers doing exact copies to preserve,
restore the cathedral. -And this workshop is actually
as old as the cathedral itself, dating from the 1300s. -Everything is done by hand. Even if we try to, we have
all the modern technologies, but we take really care to use
the old handcraft build skills. -So, these are
the stone carvers? -Yes, and he’s replacing
one part of this balustrade you just saw on the plan,
which was marked in red, and exactly the piece
you see behind, which he’s doing the exact copy. -Are you just using your eye? -[ Speaking French ] -Ah, okay. What is the most difficult stone
to reproduce? Is it a spire?
Is it the balustrade? -[ Speaking French ] -I think we really like
the variety, to not always do the exactly
same pieces all the time — statues, balustrade, pinnacles. I think they like the changes
sometimes, not always repeat the same,
do the same things. -In the building of cathedrals,
they take 300, 400, 500 years. Do they have a deadline? -The work on the cathedral
is always going on. It will never finish. You always have to do
a conservation work to maintain the cathedral
in the best way. Once you’re around,
you have to start again. -Start all over again? [ Laughing ] You have a job for life. Because the Rhine serves
as part of the border between Germany and France, I started my tour
to its east in Germany, then to the west in France, and now I’m back
in Germany again. The little jewel of a city,
Heidelberg, is nestled
along the Neckar River amidst thickly wooded mountains. And while it doesn’t have
a cathedral, it does have another
European superstar — a castle. So, Klaus, I’ve seen
a few castles in my time, but none where I can look
at the anatomy of a castle. I mean, we’re really
looking into it. -This is because
Heidelberg Castle is not a castle in the proper
sense, but a ruin, yeah? The Heidelberg Castle did not
become famous as a castle, but as a ruin
in the 19th Century. -Why is that?
Just romance? -Right.
The time of the Romantics. This was already sold
to a wreckage company beginning of the 19th Century
to pull it completely down. -Sold to a wreck–
They were gonna sell this? -They had sold this, but there was a small group
of men in Heidelberg — professors,
artists of all kind — and they thought
about these ruins as a symbol, being a symbol for the golden
days of German history, and they fought
for the maintenance of it, and after a long quarrel
with the government, they finally succeeded
in persuading them yes, it’s worth keeping those ruins,
fortunately for us today. It’s the main tourist
attraction, not only in Heidelberg, but in the whole of Germany
and maybe even in Europe. -The outside is impressive
as a ruin, but the inside
is in phenomenal shape. Wow! You have no idea
that this is inside of that. Wow!
-There are several palaces — different times,
different styles, as you can easily see. And that was built by a man
called Frederick — the man with the sword
in his hand. -Oh. -That’s Frederick IV
of the Palatine, the guy who built this building. -And what was his stature? Was he a prince?
Was he a duke? -He was a prince,
he was a prince, and he was an important prince
in the German Empire. He had three hobbies —
he liked hunting, he liked ladies,
and he liked drinking. He died 35 years old
of cirrhosis of the liver. -How would you know it?
-They cut him open. It was the first autopsy
done here. They were curious. He died so young,
so they cut him open, didn’t find a liver,
then they knew. Yeah. -You might have
a liver problem, too, if you lived in a castle
that had this. This is the largest wine barrel
in Germany, and it held
50,000 gallons of wine. Red, white, it didn’t matter. And up at the top,
that wasn’t a balcony. That was a dance floor
for all the parties. Heidelberg is a college town and is home to Germany’s oldest
university established in 1386. But behind this gentile facade is one of the school’s
most notorious dwellings. This is a very
strange place, Klaus. Klaus asked me if I had any idea
where I was, and the only thing that came
to mind was an old fraternity. I wasn’t that far off. -These are five prison cells
exclusively only for students. This is the historical student
prison of Heidelberg. -But I’m looking at the
cells/”rooms” right now and they’re spacious. They’re nice, right? This wasn’t my dorm room
when I went to college. This is maybe
three times the size. -These boys were not
poor students. -And these silhouettes here,
what are they? -These were the students
who were in there, and they used the —
how you say that — the sort of candles.
-Okay. -They painted or they draw. -So they basically put
their own mugshot on the wall? -That’s right.
-Okay. -And they were proud
to be a prisoner. In those days in the late
19th Century, it was a must
for every student who studied
at Heidelberg University to spend at least
a couple of days in this prison. -It was bragging rights. So, I’m a student at
Heidelberg University, and I maybe drink
a little too heavily. -And you were caught, yeah.
-Maybe I picked on a cop, and then I was brought here. -Right.
-But I could still go to my lectures during the day.
-Yes, you could. -But then at night,
I’d have to return here. -You had to return in here,
that’s right. Nice. -But that’s what this
reminds me of. This reminds me
of a fraternity house. -Typical for the time,
that’s right. -Basically, students haven’t
changed in their behavior. -No, they are —
It has never changed. It’s a never-ending story,
student life. -Well, the Rhine has now brought
me to the German city of Mainz. I wanted to come to a place
that was a lot more laid back, still had a lot to do
for the traveler, but there’s always
a seat at the cafe, there’s never a massive line
to get a gelato, and as you can see,
you still get all that you want
in a European city. You’ve got
the half-timbered homes, it has the cobblestones,
and look at this. It even has — voilà —
a cathedral! But Mainz also has an especially
impressive claim to fame. It’s the birthplace
of Johannes Gutenberg, inventor of the printing press. The Gutenberg Museum here
celebrates printing of all sorts along
with their most famous local, who created a machine that
literally changed the world. It’s at the museum
where you will learn that Gutenberg’s printing press
wasn’t his greatest invention. -The greatest invention
was the making of letters. -Mm-hmm.
-Without this, making — fast way of making any kind
of absolutely identical letters, book printing never
would have taken place. -It was this invention
of Gutenberg’s that was so groundbreaking —
a mold device that enabled him to quickly create
thousands of individual letters using a molten metal formula
that hardened in a second. -So, I open the hand mold,
and out comes one character. -The letters would then be lined
up into words and sentences, and every “A,”
every capital “W,” every comma would be identical
and consistent. So, here we have a text.
-Yeah. -Can I try the roller?
-Sure. -This particular page will use
three colors of ink, so they’re all
applied separately, and then the blocks are assembled
into the intended design. -For printing, you need paper.
-Yes. -At the Gutenberg Museum,
these hands-on presentations give you a sense of the real
work that had to be done. -And we both push.
Very good. So, now I bring us
the handle around here. -Uh-huh.
-You put both hands on it. I count one, two, and three, and then we pull as hard
as we can. -Pull?
Okay. -Yeah.
One, two, and three. Bravo.
-Okay. -So, now we pull
the sledge back. We listen to the printer’s kiss. When the paper
comes off the color, it makes… a smack.
-A smooch. -Yeah. Voilà. We now have a facsimile
of the Gospel of John. It’s in Latin —
“In the beginning was the Word.” So imagine, for printing
one bible, this procedure
we just made together was necessary 1,282 times. -My gosh. Next morning, I’m up bright
and early to disembark in one of the most prominent
cities in German wine country — Rudesheim am Rhein. The city has an old-world charm
that draws visitors from all around the world, but it’s especially attractive
when you see it from above. Yep.
Guess what I’m about to do. Drink some wine. This is the famous Rhine Valley
where the Riesling is grown. You see rows and rows
of grapevines, and it’s actually
one of my favorite wines, but one that I have
a lot of questions about, so I’m glad
that I am in its home because I’m ready to drink and know a little bit
about one of my favorite wines. How long have they been
growing wine on these slopes? -On these slopes, since 912. -No.
-Yes. Okay, some of the grapes
are not so old, but maybe for farmers,
this is poor soil, but for wine growth, one of
the best soils you can get here. -And they’ve known that
for over 1,100 years? Incredible. And how long has your family in
particular been growing wine? -So, we do
produce wines in 1647. -Oh, my goodness. -So, we look not as old
like this, but — -You’re 400 years old
and you look fantastic, Adolf. It’s the wine, right? -It’s the wine, yeah.
It’s the Riesling. -It’s the Riesling, and that’s
what these grapes are, Riesling? All of it is Riesling? -A good 80% of this district. We do 15% of a craft grape
called Muller-Thurgau, and the final 5% of productions
is red wine. -Mm-hmm. -In the French language,
called pinot noir. -Oh, yes, of course. -In the German language,
called Blauer Spatburgunder. -I’m not even gonna try that.
Pinot noir it is. -Okay.
Let me offer two glasses. -Two glasses of Riesling
and I’ll be able to pronounce
pinot noir in German. -Without accent. -So, Adolf, you have spoiled me for every single view
for the rest of my life. -I hope so. -And the hanging grapes —
nice touch. -I prepared a little wine
tasting for you. I think we should have
a Riesling, and it’s a fruity wine, and I think it’s a nice,
pleasant wine. It’s not too sweet, not too dry. -Oh.
-Have a swivel and drink it. -I waited on tables
for 10 years, and Riesling was the grape
that confused me the most. You could have a Riesling
that was very sweet, you could have a Riesling
that was very dry, and the people
who wanted the dry Riesling did not want the sweet, and the people who want
the sweet do not want the dry. How would you describe your wine
and inform the wine drinker so they know
what they’re getting? -I would say have a taste
of three different types. I choose you three wines
or two wines or four wines, and you taste the wine, and then when you’re tasting,
we talk about the wine. -Okay. So, I guess the answer is you
just have to come to the Rhine Valley
for a wine tasting. -May we have a second wine?
-Absolutely. -Yeah.
-And now for a wine I thought I knew well,
but not like this. -It’s a white harvest. It’s not a rosé. It’s like in America,
got the blush. This is a pinot noir grape.
-Mm-hmm. -And this is a wine
you drink young, early. -Oh, wow. -But you drink this
on a hot day like today. -This is perfect.
This is this day. To me, this is the summer day
in Germany overlooking the Rhine
right there in a glass. My third sample
was a traditional pinot noir, which meant it was time. I’ve had a substantial amount
of wine right now, so I feel like
my palate is loose. -Blauer Spatburgunder.
-Oh! I thought reading it
would make it easier. It hasn’t. -Blauer Spatburgunder.
“Blau.” -“Blau.”
-Blue. -Blue.
-“Spat” means “late.” -Mm-hmm.
-And Burgundy — “Burgund” — is the part
where they came from. Blauer Spatburgunder. -Blauer Spatburgunder.
-Yeah, perfect. It helps, you see? -It does. I look at all these wine glasses
and I think, “I’ve had
a very productive day.” -Okay, I hope so.
Cheers. -Prosterchen.
-Prosterchen. Cheers. -So, I’m now making my way
through the Rhine Gorge, which is known
as the most spectacular part of the River Rhine, mainly because on either bank,
there are some 40 castles, fortresses, ruins, each with
its own story and history, and it’s here you really get
a sense that being on the Rhine, it’s like you’re taking part
in a road trip that has gone on
since prehistoric times, but when you enter the gorge is when you enter the land
of myths and legends. And it’s where you really get
a sense of the world history that came out
of this small stretch. You also become something
you never thought was possible —
a castle snob. Like, that one is gorgeous,
but this one, eh, I don’t know. It’s okay. But they probably could’ve
unfairly taxed goods on the Rhine a little more. A lot of wine is grown
along the Rhine, and I drank a lot of it, but when I got to
the great city of Cologne, it was time for a change. -Prost.
-My introduction to this city is a beer
that is unique to it — Kolsch. -It’s a pretty light beer,
refreshing. -Oh, boy, this is
a perfect beer for summer. -Yeah. -And this can’t be really
enjoyed in any other part of Germany than here in Cologne. This is so typical of Cologne. -You can’t brew Kolsch
outside of Cologne. I mean, you could try,
but people wouldn’t accept it. -So, you don’t drink,
like, an IPA. You don’t drink lagers. It’s only Kolsch.
-Yes. Kolsch is the standard.
It’s like water. You always have Kolsch,
and then you can go also for other drinks,
but always the base is Kolsch. There’s nothing else. -They serve the beer in a very different type of tray.
-Yeah. -And it comes in a very
different type of glass. -Usually when it’s crowded,
the kobes — you call the guy kobes. It’s a specific term
for the guy serving Kolsch. -The waiter?
-Yeah, the waiter. Kobes. -Kobes.
-Kobes. So, he will walk around
during the whole evening and just put the Kolsch
on those places where you can see
an empty glass of Kolsch. So, if you don’t stop him
with doing — putting the — -The coaster.
-Yes, yes, the coaster on top of the glass,
he will continuously serve you the Kolsch
the whole evening long. -So, if I’m done drinking,
put this on. -Otherwise, you will get Kolsch. -A lot of Kolsch.
-Right. -And I won’t be able to find
my way back to the Rhine. -I don’t know why the Cologne
beer is so light and fruity and tastes different
than other beers, but I think it just represents
the way we are and we live here in Cologne. This lightness, easy going,
it’s just who we are and how we are in Cologne. -Is this beef tartare?
-Yes. -It’s like raw hamburger… -Yes.
-…and onions on a roll. -Yes.
-Wow. -You shouldn’t eat it
before you have a first date or try to impress someone. -Here we go. I love this.
-Yeah. -This is my childhood, ’cause when I was young growing
up and the hamburger meat was really good,
I used to eat it raw. -Oh, nice.
-All the time. -So, this reminds you
of your childhood. -Reminds me of my childhood,
absolutely. This doesn’t. Now I’m glad I’m an adult. So, what do you think
Cologne is most known for — its cathedral or the Kolsch? -Its cathedral. [ Bells tolling ] -So, Gol, you were born
and raised here in Cologne. -That’s right. I’m straight out
of Cologne city. -How many field trips were
you taken on to the cathedral? -Oh, my God,
I can’t count them anymore. I think there were,
like, 5 to 10. I was so bored. I just tried to keep it
out of my head how many times I went here, but it’s beautiful. It’s good to be here
at least once. -It’s interesting that,
you know, this was built in, what, the 12th —
Oh, come on, tell me. Come on.
-1200 — No, not 1200. -10 field trips, Gol. 10 field trips.
When was it built? -1248.
-Okay. So, 1248, and it’s still the most
dominant building in this city. -Just look at it. If you go through the details
and you watch the details, you can’t believe that
it’s built so many years ago. Whenever I’m coming home
from abroad, I always see it from far away. Even if I’m 50 kilometers away,
you can see the skyline from Cologne
and the iconic shape. You always see the cathedral,
you know you are home. -The Rhine River stretches over
700 miles and flows through six countries, but it’s more than
a watery timeline of the past. Its slow and steadfast current
allows you to travel with purpose
through a continent’s heart and its many cultures, to have encounters both planned
and chanced with the people who live along one of Europe’s
most powerful and storied waterways. People who create stories
of their own and pass them along to you. -Three.
Bravo. -Okay. And though it’s just a glimpse
of their life and history, they leave more
than an impression, but a permanent mark. When you can walk through
400 years of a single family’s hard work
and taste it… Oh. …when you learn
that the saints and the gargoyles
are still being cared for, when you get to feel
the romance, taste the calories, and princess your way
through an enchanting village, that is when we share
a love of travel, and that’s why a trip
on the Rhine is filled with places to love. Hey, thanks for watching this episode
of Places to Love! What was your favorite scene? Be sure to leave a comment! Now, for a full itinerary of this episode click here! It is a great travel planning tool. And here if you want to watch
more full episodes And, of course, subscribe
to my channel to see new episodes as they
are released. Hope to see you out there!

Travel Itinerary for This Episode: https://samantha-brown.com/episodes/season-2-2/rhine-river-cruise/

For over 20 years, I’ve traveled the world professionally. As any traveler knows, the more places you see, the more you want to see. Though I’ve checked many adventures off my bucket list, one alluded me until last summer: a European riverboat cruise. I enjoyed exploring the Rhine River with AmaWaterways, touching four countries and about 1,000 years of history. Castles, cathedrals, ‘bourgs and ‘bergs, this was an adventure of a lifetime. You can easily see why the Rhine River is a place to love.

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Chapters
0:00 Cold Open
0:56 Freiburg Market & Cathedral
2:44 Stefans Käsekuchen
4:08 Strasbourg Cathedral
7:40 Heidelberg Castle
10:10 Studentenkarzer
11:55 Gutenberg Museum
14:41 Weingut Adolf Störzel
18:38 Rhine River Gorge
19:36 Brewery Päffgen GmbH & Co.
22:02 Cologne Cathedral
23:12 Outro

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