Trier on Friday

On Thursday evening we drove to Bernkassel on the Mosel River, where Steffi has friends that do a bus trip to Paris on Sat.  So we went a day early, to go to the town of Trier in Germany.  The area is German wine country with vineyards on every possible square inch of land, and up some very steep hillsides.   It was a beautiful drive along the Mosel River to Trier, which is the oldest city in Germany, occupied by the Romans since 16 BC, but actually settled by the Asserians as early as 2000BC.  There is a gigantic Roman gate called Porta Nigre, or Black Gate.  It's like a small castle with four floors, and a huge arch entrance, courtyard and galleries.  We climbed to the top floor.  More steps.  The stones are almost black because of its age and the environment discoloration.  We took the double-decker, hop on hop off, bus around the city to get a general impression and see as much as possible, which included a boat ride on the Mossel River.  We went to the amphitheater, built by the Romans for gladitator battles and the traditional Christian fights with lions, who were then eaten by the victors which were always the lions.  Under the amphitheater is a huge cavern, wooden walkways over a lot of water which seeps in.  Very spooky and great at the same time.  On the boat trip, we ate lunch, lovely. Then back into town to see the Church of the Holy Robe, a magnificent building said to contain the relics of the robe worn by Jesus before his death.  The robe is not on display and we couldn't get into the area where it's kept.  But the church is beautiful.  Back to Bernkassel for dinner with our hosts.  Their house was built in the 1700's, three stories high and narrow.  We slept in the attic, more stairs.  But it was wonderful.  The next morning we left with our hosts for Paris.  Photos of Trier in separate blog.