Sunday 19th October 2025
Before continuing our journey north, we had a day exploring the nearby city of Trier which is apparently the oldest city in Germany. It was founded by the Romans and there are many remnants of their settlement within the city, including the Porta Nigra gate, the remains of a Roman bath, an amphitheatre and a stone bridge across the Mosel river.
Porta Nigra:
We visited the Porta Nigra first. The four storey building is nearly 2000 years old and at various times has been much larger, having at one time been converted into two churches.
Although we did not visit, we did walk past the Roman bath house and other Roman remains:
Although clearly widened, the Roman stone bridge is still in use across the Mosel river:
The city was clearly very wealthy as there are many large, extremely ornate buildings in the central area.
There is no shortage of churches in the city and I apologise for their inclusion as I tend to cover this subject matter repeatedly. They seem to be everywhere, as does evidence of the devout nature of the inhabitants, which decorates buildings all around the centre. One thing in common is that many of the buildings are huge. …I mean immense! The pictures really cannot do them justice.
Saint Gangolf’s Church:
This church is almost hidden behind the buildings of the Hauptmarkt (city market square). It has a high arched nave with the stonework all painted red and some interesting art, but the main attraction is the aisle ceiling:
Tier Cathedral:
The wealth on display here is astounding.
The wood paneling has very intricate detail with every panel different.
Church of Our Lady:
The Church of Our Lady is right next door to the cathedral and is apparently linked to it. Although a little smaller than the cathedral, it is non-the-less very impressive, especially the decoration on the vaulted ceilings:
Konstantin-Basilika:
Unlike the previous churches, this is a protestant church. Built of brick, it has had many uses over the years from Roman times. It was heavily damaged by bombing in the war.
The sheer size of this place takes your breath away, especially as it appears to be mostly empty space:
Moving on from Trier, we have travelled a little further up the Moselle Valley and are spending the night at a site right next to the river, where we are able to see the barges go past.
That is it for today, hopefully I can avoid so much religious architecture in the coming days. Trier seems to be the most devout of places imaginable. TTFN and see-u-later.
"See-u-Later" 