Schaffhausen

Today we took a day trip across Switzerland to the town of Schaffhausen, which is along the Rhine near Germany. The town definitely has a German feel and is known for its architecture (much of it Renaissance era), which is interesting and unique.

There is also a very large castle, the Munot, which is up in the hills above Schaffhausen and dates back to the Reformation. From the top there are great views of both the town and the Rhine; from the inside, the views of the internal architecture are quite impressive as well.

From Schaffhausen we also walked downriver along the Rhine to the Rheinfall, which is Europe’s largest waterfall. The walk along the river provides nice views, but the waterfall itself is definitely the highlight. While the waterfall itself is not very tall, the fall’s width coupled with the speed at which the water passes down it are what truly made it impressive.

For those who are somewhat adventurous (and don’t mind the tourist element) you can actually take a boat out to a rock formation in the middle of the waterfall. Erin and I decided to skip this part, though, as we preferred the view from afar where we didn’t have to deal with the crowds.