The View from Here and There

I'm not much of a history buff, so I mainly visited the Heidelberg Castle for the views. It was more breathtaking from the outside than from within, and offered incredible panoramic views looking down on the Neckar River Valley beneath it. I took more pictures of the valley than I did the castle. Maybe I liked it so much because it reminded me of my hometown of Cincinnati, which has a strong German heritage.

I enjoyed the view, but then was urged to go higher -- to take a tram to the top of the mountain for even more incredible views. Higher has to be better, right? How could I resist?

So I boarded the incline (which Cincinnati also once had), and rode the rails to the top.

When we got there, we looked down over the side of the mountain, but a gray mist had moved in and made everything hazy. Plus, we were so far away that I couldn't see much detail.

I enjoyed the ride, which was slow and steep, but preferred the lower views from the castle, midpoint on the mountain. It just goes to show that the best views aren't always from the top. A life lesson as well, I think.