A Day trip to Burg Eltz

Burg Eltz is a medieval castle nestled in the hills above the Moselle River between Koblenz and Trier, Germany. It is still owned by a branch of the same family that lived there in the 12th century, 33 generations ago. The Rübenach and Rodendorf families' homes in the castle are open to the public, while the Kempenich branch of the family uses the other third of the castle. The Palace of Bürresheim (Schloss Bürresheim), the Castle of Eltz and the Castle of Lissingen are the only castles on the left bank of the Rhine in Rhineland-Palatinate which have never been destroyed.  (Wikipedia)
We took a day off from school when Karyl was here and went to Burg Eltz Castle. It was a beautiful, crisp and cold October day.  The leaves were in full Autumn Splendor and it was a really fun day!  This Castle is neat because it is nestled in a picturesque Valley.  We love it! 
 

We took a tour through the portion of the castle that is not currently lived in (descendants still live there).  It was pretty fancy in its time with close to 30 bathrooms inside and a heating system.  Lots of trap doors and secret passage ways too, but we didn’t get to explore those. 
   
We ate our picnic lunch by this log before heading down for the tour.  You have to hike down to the castle, but it is worth it because it is so beautiful at this time of year.  WE LOVE YOU GRANDMA!