Last month, I had the opportunity to travel to Wiesbaden, Germany for work.

I have visited Germany a couple times before, so Germany is not at the top of my travel list. But to go for work? Absolutely. Bonus—it was my first time visiting Wiesbaden. I flew into Frankfurt, which is only a two hour flight from Naples.

Wiesbaden is southwest of Berlin and northwest of Munich, situated on the right bank of the Rhine River at the southern foot of the Taunus Mountains, and located about 30 minutes west of of Frankfurt am Main (which I have previously visited). Wiesbaden on the right bank of the Rhine forms a conurbation with Mainz on the left bank. I opted to stay in Mainz as recommended by a colleague.

Mainz dates back to the 1st century BCE when it was founded as a castrum (military camp) for the Roman Empire. It eventually because the capital of the Roman province of Germainia Superior. The Romans abandoneded the area in the mid 5th cenury CE.

Interestingly, when archeologists were excavating the Roman ruins, they dug further down and discovered remnants of a Celtic settlement that dates back to somewhere between 14 and 9 BCE. According to my walking tour guide who works at the local history museum, archeologists determined the Romans were likely unaware of the Celtic settlement because the Romans built on top of a Celtic burial ground, something the Romans would not have otherwise done.

Today Mainz is famous for being the home of inventor and entrepreneur Johannes Gutenberg, who invented printing with movable type (aka the printing press) during the 15th century. Unfortunately, the Gutenberg Museum was closed for renovations when I was there.

Since I was there for work, I only had the opportunity to explore on Monday afternoon after I arrived and Tuesday and Thursday evening. I left Friday and on Wednesday evening, I attended the optional social event in Wiesbaden.

The historic part of Mainz is not large and was easy to walk. Being right on the river, it’s a popular stopping point for Rhine River tours.

While in Mainz, I had some wonderful meals and delicious wine. Monday lunch was at Wilma Wunder, a fabulous restaurant by the Mainz Cathedral. There I had a delicious lavender lemon lemonade, three spreads (carrot ginger, avocado cream cheese, and beetroot hummus) with freshly baked bread, and a delicious summer salad.

Monday night dinner, I ate at Weinstrube Hottum, where I had a traditional schnitzel with a glass of Rhine Valley white wine. The restaurant seems small, but it had an amazing garden in the back, which is where I sat.

Our social outing was at Chateau Nero, an outside wine bar in Wiesbaden. Located in a large park, it sported some amazing views of the city. Then I also stopped at Diesters, a wine bar in Mainz where I had more delicious spreads and breads along with a grauer burgunder (a light, dry white wine).

I also had to have a traditional German pretzel from Ditsch, a pretzel bakery established in 1919. And it was one fo the best pretzels I’ve ever eaten.

My other big dinner out was Heiliggeist Restaurant I had fresh hot bread and a scrumptious steak with pomme frittes (fries) and another glass of local white wine along with a yummy mixed drink (that I forgot to write down!).

The interesting thing about Heiliggeist is that it was a medieval hospital. Heiliggeist translates to Holy Ghost. The building was built in 1236 and served as a hospital. Medieval hospitals served multiple purposes: housing pilgrims and the homeless, strangers and the poor, the elderly, and also the sick, although the latter likely constituted a minority. Allegedly, the Hospital of the Heiliggeist is where victims of the Black Death—a bubonic plague pandemic that occurred in Europe from 1346 to 1353—were brought.

In 1804, when the area was under French rule, the hospital was closed and subsequently, served various other purposes. It opened as a restaurant in 1863. Although it had a lovely outdoor seating area, I opted to sit inside because who doesn’t want to sit in a building that once housed black death victims.

Overall, a great trip to Wiesbaden and Mainz. I definitely want to go back—I’d really like to do a river cruise down the Rhine.