12-Day Reformation

DAY 01: NORTH AMERICA / BERLIN.  Evening departure from North America.  Dinner and breakfast will be served on-board our trans-Atlantic flight to Berlin.

DAY 02: BERLIN.  Upon arrival in Berlin, we are met by our guide and transferred by motor coach to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

DAY 03: BERLIN.  This morning we will have a sightseeing tour of Berlin.  This will include the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, Tiergarden and the Olympic Stadium, the ruins of the Reichstag and the Brandenburg Gate.  This afternoon's sightseeing includes visits to  St. Hedwig's Cathedral, the Soviet War Memorial, St. Mary's Church, the restored  Opera House, the famous 300 foot wide boulevard "Unter Den Linden," Mirienkirche and the Pergamum Museum containing the spectacular  Pergamum Alter and the Ishtar Gate of Ancient Babylon.  Dinner and overnight in our hotel. 

DAY 04: BERLIN / WITTENBERG / LEIPZIG.  Drive this morning to Whittenberg, where the Reformation began.  Here we will see the Castle Church doors where in 1517 Luther nailed 95 thesis's signaling the beginning of the Reformation.  Luther lived in Wittenberg until his death in 1546.  The places of interest we will visit include the Castle Church containing his tomb, the City Church where he regularly preached, the  Luther House, home of his devoted friend and co-worker Phillip Melanchton, author of the Augsburg Confession.  We will also be able to see the various rooms and quarters which Luther used when he was a faculty member.  The original manuscript of "A Mighty Fortress is Our God" is still at  Wittenberg University and also the table on which it was written.  In the late afternoon we depart for Liepzig, where in 1519 Luther debated with Dr. Eck, defender of the Catholic Faith.  Our sightseeing in Leipzig will include  St. Thomas Church where Johannes Sebastian Bach was choirmaster and organist for 26 years and other places of interest.  Dinner and overnight in Leipzig. 

DAY 05: LEIPZIG / HALLE / EISLEBEN / ERFURT / EISENACH / FULDA.  Today we travel via Halle to Eisleben, where Luther was born and died.  We then continue to Erfurt, where we will visit  Erfurt Cathedral, St. Servi Church and the Augustinian Monastery where Luther studied to become a monk and was ordained in 1507.  We will also visit the small cell where as a novice, Luther struggled to find peace with a stern and harsh God.  Then onto Eisenach, where we will visit Wartburg Castle set high in the Thuringian Mountains.  It was here in 1521 that Luther was put into protective custody for ten months, after the emperor condemned him as an outlaw and heretic.  During this time Luther completed his translation of the New Testament into German, a tremendous linguistic task which served as the basis for the New High German.  Luther's room is preserved in its original condition.  This afternoon, we leave Berlin for Fulda for dinner and overnight.

DAY 06: FULDA / ROMANTIC ROAD / AUGSBURG.  This morning we travel from Fulda to join the Romantic Road at Wurzburg and continue via Rothenburg delightfully situated on the River Tauber, Dinkelsbuhl and Nordlingen with its well preserved medieval walls, towers and ramparts.  Then onto Augsburg, where the Confession was signed, for dinner and overnight.

DAY 07: AUGSBURG / BAVARIAN ALPS / LAKE CONSTANCE / ZURICH / VITZNAU.  This morning we drive through the breathtaking scenery of the Bavarian Alps to delightful Kempten and then onto Lake Constance.  We cross into Switzerland and continue to Zurich, the prosperous commercial capital of Switzerland.  Zurich was the city of Zwingli, the most influential figure of the Swiss Reformation and was also a refuge for many English Protestants banished from their country by Queen Mary.  It is believed that Miles Coverdale's first entire translation of the Bible and Apocrypha was published here in 1535.  Our sightseeing will include the  Gross-Muenster Cathedral at Zwingliplatz (Zwingli's Church) and other principal places of interest, before we continue to the delightful lakeside resort of Vitznau on Lake Lucerne for dinner and overnight.

DAY 08:  VITZNAU / INTERLAKEN / LAUSANNE.  This morning, we travel through the Brunig Pass to Interlaken, delightfully situated between the lakes of Thun and Brienze and with a magnificent view of the  Jungfrau Mountain which dominates the village.  Continue to Lausanne on Lake Geneva with its share of historical sights.  We will see the  Bishop's Castle, the cathedral which was originally built in the 12th century,  Chateau St. Marie, the Town Hall, the Church of St. Francois and the ancient monastery.  Lausanne is the seat of the Swiss High Courts of Justice and is world famous as an educational center.  Dinner and overnight at our hotel in Lausanne.

DAY 09: LAUSANNE / GENEVA / LAUSANNE.  Sightseeing of Geneva this morning, a delightful city situated on the banks of Lake Geneva and surrounded by alpine peaks and the slopes of the  Jura Mountains.  It is also called the Peace Capital of the World.  Here we see the Peace Palace built for the Old League of Nations, the World Health Organization and the headquarters of the International Red Cross.  We will also see the  City Hall, where the Red Cross was founded in 1864, the  Grand Rue - oldest street - where Jean Jacques Rousseau was born in 1712.  The winding cobbled streets of Rue Valvin is lined with 18th century patricians homes, including the residence of John Calvin.  The city attracts many scholars and students with its great libraries and its 400 year old university.  The university houses three museums - The Reformation Museum, which we will see, Jean Jacques Rousseau Museum and the National History Museum.  Opposite is the Reformation Monument, which pays tribute to the great religious movement.  Geneva is also of particular significance and rich in Presbyterian Heritage for its deep association with John Calvin, who also founded the university.  He first visited Geneva in 1536 and returned permanently in 1541.  He succeeded in establishing a rigid theocracy in Geneva and this protestant city sheltered many religious refugees from other countries - amongst them John Knox of Scotland.  We will visit the 13th century church where Calvin proclaimed his teaching and John Knox preached as pastor of the English Church in Geneva.  Return to Lausanne for dinner and overnight.

DAY 10: LAUSANNE / BERNE / BASEL / FREIBURG / HEIDELBERG.  Drive this morning to Berne where we will see the  ancient arcaded streets, medieval painted fountains and the gothic  Minister Cathedral as well as the Bear Pit where the bears have amused visitors since 1441.  Continue via the commercial city of Basel and Freiburg in the  Black Forest region of Germany to Heidelberg, delightfully situated on the banks of the River Neckar for dinner and overnight in this area.

DAY 11: HEIDELBERG / WORMS / RHINE CRUISE / HAGUE.  Morning sightseeing of beautiful medieval old Heidelberg will include the university which is the oldest in Germany and is the personification of German culture.  The Red Ox Inn, site of the world famous "Student Prince," still stands.  We will also see the church where almost a century before Luther, Jerome nailed his thesis for church reform and the famous old stone bridge as well as the ruins of the castle in this romantic picture book city.  Continue to Worms, city of  the 1521 Edict, to admire the  magnificent monument to Luther and the Reformation, and also the splendid cathedral.  Worms was the sight of Luther's trial for heresy and a visit is planned to the cathedral where Luther, standing before the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, uttered his faith affirming death defying proclamation:  "Here I stand, I can do no other.  God help me."  We then continue to the River Rhine for a short steamer cruise along this beautiful river past ruined castles, terraced vineyards and riverside villages.  We then rejoin our motor coach and drive across northern Europe to the Hague, famous for many international conferences, for dinner and overnight.

DAY 12: HAGUE / NORTH AMERICA.  This morning we drive directly to Amsterdam Airport for our return flight home to North America at the end of our enjoyable Reformation Tour.