marking for later comment

So my partner and I dicussed our options and decided to change our trip. We felt it would take up too much of our time going to Pisa, Italy. Instead we will be taking the train from Paris to Amsterdam and spending a 2 or 3 days there before heading to Frankfurt Germany (by train). Pick a car and do the loop around Germany. We have about a week to tour Germany. We pretty much know what we want to do in Germany but does anyone have any suggestions? And any suggestions on what to see and do in Amsterdam?

In Amsterdam it is last call for foreigners in the city's iconic and infamous coffeeshops - so if that interests you at all take advantage of that.

You say you pretty much have Germany figured out - so what are your ideas on areas so others could better comment - there are so many neat areas - Bavaria and its castles - the Rhine and Mosel valleys and their castles and gorgeous river valleys dotted by pastel-hued wine towns - the Black Forest, etc. Germany is a fairly big country so I would hew in on one region for time so short.

Why last call for foreigners in coffeeshops? What is changing? I think I know what you mean. Why is it changing?

We usually start off in Heidelburg, I doubt we will see the castle again. This time we are going to follow the Rhine and visit some wine vineyards, which we did not last time. Visit Titisee again. We did a day trip and I don't think we spent enough time there. Went through the beautiful Black Forest and stayed in Freiburg with the unique Bächle, little streams sunken into the pavement on most streets. We want to visit the east side of Germany which we did not get to last time. Any interesting places that you would suggest? Any towns that you would suggest staying in and not just passing through?

I think the Mosel Valley is about as cute an area to drive in as any in Europe - a deep deep valley thru which the sinuous Mosel twists and turns - cute little towns interrupt the vineyards carpeting any southward facing slope - wine festivals galore - Cochem, Bernkastle and Traben-Traben are some gems - Trier is one of the most historic cities in Europe - once the capital of the Western Holy Roman Empire it has Roman ruins and even Roman edifices lie a former Temple now a basilica and the Porta Negra - intact city gate once the gateway to the eastern part of the Holy Roman Empire. and there is also the Karl-Marx Haus to boot - Marx having been born here. Trier is close to Luxembourg, one of the prettiest rural landscapes I have seen - angle up thru Clairvaux and its great castle towards Maastricht, another gem IMO to Amsterdamned.

the Center-Right Dutch government is Hell-bent on closing coffeeshops to non-Dutch residents but apparently not in Amsterdam before the end of 2012 - to abate an influx of German, French and British lager louts the country just does not want hanging around. So the chance to buy cannabis de-factolly legally from a posted menu just like coffee for foreigner seems doomed to end - though I cannot really fathom this happening in Amsterdamned, damned, damned, damn!

Thank you PalenQ. I looked up info on the Mosel area and we definately will visit, it is beautiful! I have not researched the other areas....have to work to pay for the trip! :) Will try and do that tonight. Thanks again!

thank you! And IMO Cochem makes a perfect base for the Mosel - a cute wine town on a pretty part of the Mosel with vineyards all around and the castle of your dreams popping out of the town center - lots of cozy guesthouses to stay in - great rail and boat links if not into driving for a day - a boat ride to Beilstein covers an unbelievably cute part of the Mosel - or if energetic rent a bike in Cochem at the train station or other places and ride on riverside bike paths to Moselkern to visit the famous Burg Eltz castle or upstream to Beilstein, etc.

Cochem is the type of town many dream about staying in but never do, gravitating to much bigger and more famous tourist cities.