Regensburg.

Regensburg sits where the Regen river meets the Danube, its old town a well-preserved medieval centre. Narrow lanes wind past tall patrician towers built by merchant families who once ran trade routes north and south. The Gothic cathedral of St. Peter rises above the rooftops, its twin spires added in the 19th century. The Stone Bridge, built in the 12th century, carried travelers and goods across the Danube for centuries. Near its foot stands the old sausage kitchen, said to date back to the same era. For centuries, Regensburg governed itself as a free imperial city and later hosted the Perpetual Diet, the permanent assembly of the Holy Roman Empire. The princely Thurn und Taxis family later made the former abbey of St. Emmeram their residence. Today a large student population keeps the old streets lively alongside the stone and brick of empire and trade.