Dorfy Day Trips: The Kaiser of Koblenz

The Kaiser Wilhelm I statue in Koblenz,
and some dude in white pants. 

Every nation wants you to visit their national monuments. Pay admission and walk to the top of some tower, the tour guide states. Marvel at a gigantic statue of some dear leader, says the travel book. Gape in awe at some building erected in the honour of the fatherland, motherland, the workers, the people, the nation, whoever, whatever, declares the poster.

Germany is one modern exception to this rule. It's a country with very few monuments celebrating itself. The Brandenburg Gate? That was built in the name of peace in the 1770s. The Berlin Victory Column? That was erected by the Prussians, not the glorious German Empire, Reich, or Republic. 

There seems to be few monuments to Germany.

Then there's Koblenz, with its Deutsches Eck (literally meaning German Corner) that sits at the confluence of the Rhine and Moselle Rivers, where a gigantic statue of a long dead German kaiser stands. 

This type of German monumentality is a rare thing, largely because most of this stuff was knocked down during the war – including this statue – and never rebuilt. After the statue in Koblenz was levelled, its stone stump was left to represent a desire to reunite East and West Germany. When they reunited in 1991, the statue was rebuilt.

And yet, for all is big, kingly brashness, the statue is not only off the tourist radar, but isn't the sole "must-see" in Koblenz. The Eck itself has a beautiful view of the meeting rivers and the high hills on the other bank, which are topped with a fortress.

Koblenz's real prize is its pedestrian-only promenade along the Rhine. It's one of the prettiest I have seen along this river. It runs south, with the river on one side and historic buildings (or rebuilt historic buildings) on the other. There is no car traffic, yet plenty of trees and benches and chirping birds and greenery. The restaurants are set far enough back that they don't intrude on the riverside strolling, but still close enough that you can gaze at the river over a cold drink.

All of this shows that maybe it's the little things that make a city worth visiting, and not the monumental things.

The stone relief of the statue's stump.

An Aside about the Hills:

Hungarians love the hills. Travel enough with a Hungarian who lives in the flatlands of the Rhineland, and you will regular hear exclamations whenever hills come into view. This is what happened as we took the train into the hilly terrain around Koblenz.

The city is considered the gateway into the Romantic Rhine, a hilly, windy stretch of the river dotted with vineyards and castles. This has always been on our list for a visit, but we haven't quite gotten around to it yet. The Koblenz day trip has reawakened that desire.