Here are some interesting tidbits shared by local guides while passing time cruising along the picturesque Rhine river cruise.
French Fries are not French!
Although often referred to as French Fries, it was actually from Belgium that these potato sticks began their unstoppable campaign to conquer the culinary world. Back in the 17th century this was very much a dish of the poor who couldn’t afford better. During winter, when fishing was impossible because the Maas was frozen, people chopped potatoes into the shape of sprats and deep-fried them as a filling substitute. In 1802 the American president, Thomas Jefferson, asked for them to be served at dinner in the White House for the first time. Since then, fries have become popular throughout the world and the Belgium National dish even has a museum dedicated to it : Frietmuseum in Bruges While we are at it, let’s give them a shout out for Belgium waffles, invented in Gent Belgium in 1839.
Belgians Love their Beer!
For Belgians, beer brewed in Bruges is not just a thirst quencher but rather something to be savored or even a way of life. Near enough 300 different types of beers from over 178 breweries -ranging from top-fermented strong ales to beers with exotic flavorings including strawberry and wild woodruff – are waiting to be sampled in the city’s many authentic taverns. The traditional brewery and pub, De halve Maan dates back to 1546 and its specialty is Brugser Zot, a top-fermented ale brewed with a special type of yeast.
Next importance accomplishment…Belgian Chocolate Candy
What remarkable effects chocolate is said to have; a source of energy and strength, an aphrodisiac, an anti-depressant. Chocolate was mainly for the wealthy back in the early 1800’s using cocoa beans from Africa. It wasn’t until 1912, that they took off in popularity in Brussels, when Swiss born Jean Neuhaus created the first filled chocolate candies, which he called pralines. While the Neuhaus brand remains a firm favorite of chocolate-lovers, Leonidas, Godiva and Galler are no less popular in the region. The production of chocolate in Belgium is subject to very strict regulations, specifying that only cocoa butter may be used in its making.
How America Got Its Name
America’s name comes from “Freiburg,” Germany. Freiburger cartographer, Martin Waldseemuller, presented a new map of the world on April 25, 1507, showing a previously unknown 4th continent. Waldseemuller gave this new landmass the name “America” in honor of Amerigo Vespucci, a Florentine merchant.
Why do most Rhine bridges look alike?
By the end of the second World war, all 37 bridges over the German Rhine had been destroyed. To create minimum obstruction to river traffic, the idea of having as few supporting piers in the river as possible gave rise to the constructional form called a cable-stayed or guyed bridge. Here, the road crossing the river is suspended using thick iron cables directly attached to a supporting pylon rising as high as 300 feet or more.
Tulla – the man who subdued the Rhine
Johann Gottfried Tulla was an engineer born in the German state of Baden. He straightened and confined the Rhine River within banks between 625 and 820 feet apart, as well as lowering the river-bed and inserting systems of dams and dykes. This meant settlements close to the river were less threatened by flooding, while diseases like malaria were effectively wiped out. Although he is the one that laid out the river engineering project, it was completed in 1879, long after his passing.
The Legend of the Bingen Mouse Tower
As you cruise along the Rhine River, you will see a tower built off the cost. Legend has it that in 1974, there was such a serious famine, that many starved to death. Seeing the plight of the common folk, the archbishop of Mainz said “Gather all of the poor in a barn and will give them food. However, once they were inside, he had the doors bolted and set the building on fire. Hearing the peoples’ screams, the archbishop shouted, “ Listen how the mice are whistling.” After that incident, mice are said to have appeared from everywhere, crawling over him and biting him day and night. To escape them, he constructed the island tower by Bingen in the middle of the Rhine. His plan was doomed to failure, as the mice swam across, climbed up into the tower and ate the archbishop alive – ouch!
