Rothenburg ob der Tauber

I woke up to non-stop coverage of Hurricane Ike...talked to my family to make sure everything was going ok and headed out for the day.
I wasn't quite sure what to expect from Rothenburg...but people seemed to always have a twinkle in their eye when they talked about it...especially at Christmas time. I woke up feeling a little sick with a terrible sore throat, but wasn't going to let that stop me from running around Germany. I had to take 3 trains to make it to the town and it all went off without a hitch. The last train was a tiny little 2 car shuttle that looked like it was straight out of Disney World and this was the scenery out of the window.
Once I arrived, I had no clue where to go and there was no helpful tourist office. I did see a sign with a person walking, so though ok, what the heck...that must be the way. Luckily, it was. :) There was a beautiful medieval gate that served as entry to the walled town.
I started by scaling the stairs and walking the perimeter, check out the view!
Once the walkway ended, I went down the stairs and walked along a road that opened to an incredible valley. There was one point when I went through this archway and said "whoa" out loud to myself. It was absolutely, perfect.
I walked the town and stopped for a coffee to warm up then took a tour through the Kathe Wolfahrt store. This is the penacle of all Christmas stores. It's crazy! There is a museum dedicated to Christmas and room and rooms of ornaments, decorations, etc. And if all of that's not enough there is another store of hers right across the street!
The chilly air and my cold were really getting to me by this time, so I made my way through a few more streets then back up to the wall to find my way back to the main entrance.
I strolled the wall, enjoying the gorgeous view. Check it out...an actual non-self portrait...I have legs!!!
And on the way to the train passed this beautiful cemetary. Wow.
I made it to the train and picked up a book at one of the stations. It was an absolute hoot! It's called "A Year in the Merde"...about an Englishman's first year in Paris. On the way home, I read and took in the beautiful sunset...what a day. :)