Germany > The Basilica of Mainz

Today, on our way back home, we are heading to Mainz. We leave Italy and drive via Austria to Germany. But first, we enjoy a nice breakfast. We walk into the breakfast room just before eight o’clock. The last items are being placed on the buffet. While we receive our coffee and a tray of bread rolls, the other guests arrive. There are five tables set. Funny enough, all the guests show up within a five-minute span. The landlady is kept busy. Once everyone has been served breakfast, we settle the bill with her — in cash. At exactly half past eight, we drive away from Gasthof Mittermühl. We haven’t left this early before. We drive out of the Val di Funes valley. Here begins the toll road to the Brenner Pass. There is a lot of truck traffic heading toward Austria. The road winds gradually upward. The trucks crawl along the right-hand lane. Before we really notice, we are in Austria. The Brenner Pass is the lowest pass through the Alps. We follow the route to Innsbruck. Just before Innsbruck, we have to pay a toll. It’s unclear whether this toll is also covered by an Austrian toll vignette. The attendant tells us it is an extra toll of €10.50. No way around it. From Innsbruck, we head west toward the Fern Pass, a notorious bottleneck for car traffic. To our relief, traffic flows reasonably well, without major jams. Just after ten o’clock, we reach the German border. All vehicles are diverted off the road. The police are conducting random checks. We are allowed to continue. We make good progress toward Ulm. Around two o’clock, on the A8 near Pforzheim, signs warn of traffic jams ahead. Not long after, we hit a major jam. A sign announces that four kilometres ahead, the road will narrow from three to two lanes. We creep along. After half an hour’s delay, we reach the bottleneck. But this is not yet the end of the slowdown. A little further on, a broken-down truck blocks part of the road, forcing all traffic into a single lane.

Germany - The halftimbered houses in the old center of Mainz

By coincidence, a truck has also broken down on the opposite carriageway, causing kilometres of backup there too. Once past our delays, we make quick progress to Mainz. At a quarter to four, we drive into the parking garage of the IBIS hotel, in the city centre. The receptionist explains that it is only a few minutes’ walk to the historic centre and Mainz Cathedral. We take his advice. We pass the Augustinerkirche. Inside, the church is decorated in Baroque style — very beautiful. The church stands at the entrance to the old town. The old town has narrow streets and traditional German half-timbered houses. The atmosphere is lively. On the Market Square, St. Martin’s Cathedral dominates the scene. From here, the massive scale of the church is striking. Inside, however, the basilica is a bit of a letdown. Its Romanesque architecture, dating from 975, makes the interior dark and sombre.

Germany - Romanesque cathedral with a baroque spire and cloisters

In the 11th century, the church was destroyed twice by fire and restored each time. We stroll through the adjacent cloister. We skip the monastery museum, which is only open for another fifteen minutes. Passing the Gutenberg Museum, we walk to the banks of the Rhine. The wide river cuts the city in two. We follow the riverbank past the town hall, the Rheingoldhalle, and the Kurfürstliches Schloss. From here, we return to the Altstadt. On a terrace, we order drinks. The weather in Mainz is also lovely — the temperature is still around 28°C. When paying, we discover we cannot use our bank card — cash only. We have exactly €2.40 on us, not enough for two drinks. Strange that this still happens. A cash machine across the street solves the problem. We end our walking tour of Mainz with a meal on a terrace in the Market Square, dining with a view of the impressive basilica. When paying, the same issue arises — cash only. The waitress apologises, saying the card machine is broken. Luckily, we had withdrawn some extra cash earlier.