# Mainz Will Be Kinder

- Link: https://thewrongkindofready.com/mainz-will-be-kinder/
- Published: 2026-09-17T08:08:20-07:00
- Author: Caleb

This is post 13 of 21 in the series _“Rediscovery in the Rhineland”_

We came back to Germany with children this time.

The trip was different. We rode cable cars over the Rhine, wandered through castle
markets, chased pigeons, found Roman temples beneath shopping malls, and spent entire
afternoons in places chosen mostly because they were close and good for kids. Corbin
asked to go home almost every day.

The Rhine was still there. The castles were still there. But the people walking 
beside me had changed, and so had I. The journey became less about seeing everything
and more about noticing what happened between the things we had come to see.

  Show all posts in this series

 1.  [One Night along the Rhine](https://thewrongkindofready.com/one-night-along-the-rhine/)
 2.  [The Ball Pit](https://thewrongkindofready.com/the-ball-pit/)
 3.  [The Castle Market](https://thewrongkindofready.com/the-castle-market/)
 4.  [Twin Mothers beneath the Mall](https://thewrongkindofready.com/twin-mothers-beneath-the-mall/)
 5.  [Five Seconds](https://thewrongkindofready.com/five-seconds/)
 6.  [Wait until I Finish Sleeping](https://thewrongkindofready.com/wait-until-i-finish-sleeping/)
 7.  [Chasing Pigeons](https://thewrongkindofready.com/chasing-pigeons/)
 8.  [Zoo Animals](https://thewrongkindofready.com/zoo-animals/)
 9.  [Where’s the Grapes](https://thewrongkindofready.com/wheres-the-grapes/)
 10. [The Photograph](https://thewrongkindofready.com/the-photograph/)
 11. [Where the Rhine and Moselle Met](https://thewrongkindofready.com/where-the-rhine-and-moselle-met/)
 12. [König Calib](https://thewrongkindofready.com/konig-calib/)
 13. Mainz Will Be Kinder
 14. [Blue Stained-glass](https://thewrongkindofready.com/blue/)
 15. [Track 7B](https://thewrongkindofready.com/track-7b/)
 16. A Little Undignified Scheduled for November 10, 2026
 17. The Stones Scheduled for November 18, 2026
 18. A Factory behind Glass Scheduled for November 21, 2026
 19. The Blue-and-white House Scheduled for December 17, 2026
 20. The Furthest Sandy Shore Scheduled for December 18, 2026
 21. Toy Room in the Castle Scheduled for December 22, 2026

The hotel sat a mile away, but the distance felt longer.

Our duffel, overstuffed with both backpacks and extra gear, balanced precariously
on the stroller frame. The weight bowed the frame. The wheels squeaked. We stopped
at nearly every curb to readjust it.

The cobblestones pulled at the stroller wheels.

Still, it rolled.

Corbin and Avery lagged behind, distracted by storefronts and pigeons, while Dani
steered us through the narrow streets.

Then we reached a small square.

An ornate mansion stood across from an abstract fountain.

Dani stopped.

“That’s our hotel.”

It looked far too expensive for us.

I held out a finger.

“What was that thing you told me the reservation?”

She crossed her arms.

“Just go in. I’ll stay here with the kids.”

I shrugged. Then I crossed the square.

~

The mansion’s main doors led into a breezeway, covered yet open at both ends. A 
few steps to the left led to a small side door.

Inside, a middle-aged man sat behind the desk. He looked Middle Eastern and greeted
me with a warm nod.

“Welcome, welcome. You have a reservation?”

I gave him my name.

He typed it into his computer.

“Passports?”

“They’re with my wife. She’s outside.”

He smiled.

“No problem. Please get your passports, then meet me at the gate. It’s to the right.”

I went back outside, retrieved the passports from Dani, and walked over to the gate.

Before he could take them, another guest arrived in a car.

“Excuse me one minute.”

He went to guide her into the parking garage.

I waited.

Once she had parked, he came back, took the passports, and led me inside.

Then he gave me a sideways glance as we walked.

“I see … you have four.”

I nodded.

“I saw you outside. You know, the room is only for three.”

I stopped halfway up the stairs.

“My wife made the reservation.”

“It’s fine.”

He gestured to himself.

“I don’t care. But the room is for three. You won’t be comfortable here. Let me 
show you.”

We started walking again.

At the first landing, he unlocked a door and swung it open.

A single bed filled most of the cramped room.

He looked at me.

“How can you fit here?”

I laughed.

“I don’t know. We’ll manage.”

He waved his hand.

“No. Let me show you another room.”

He led me up another flight of stairs.

The next room was a suite. A king-sized bed took up most of the main bedroom, but
the room itself was twice the size of the first. Along one side was a small kitchen.

He pointed toward an open space along the wall.

“I can bring up two kids’ beds to this room.”

He looked around.

“The room is empty, so why not? I give it to you for the same price.”

Then he paused.

“But my boss, he keeps track of the kids’ beds. So I must charge you for them.”

He thought for a moment.

“This room costs a hundred more per night. But, as I said, same price. How about
fifty for the kids’ beds?”

“Cash?”

“Cash.”

I checked my pockets.

“Let’s do it.”

He nodded and followed me back outside.

Then he looked at our bag as it leaned over the stroller frame.

“Is this yours?”

I nodded.

He grabbed the enormous duffel, slung it over his back, and started toward the stairs.

“Be careful. It’s heavy,” I said.

He waved me off.

When he came back down, he was limping.

“Your bag was so heavy! I think I hurt my leg moving it to your room.”

Dani turned to him.

“I’m sorry. It’s … well, it’s actually two bags strapped together, and—”

He waved it off.

“I’m okay.”

Still, he rubbed his leg.

Then he handed me our room key. It was engraved and cut at strange angles in shining
metal.

“The room will take a time to prepare.”

He pointed down the street.

“If I were you, I would go straight that way to the cathedral. Walk around town 
for a few hours, get dinner, and come back tonight.”

He started toward the desk, then stopped.

“You already survived Cologne. Mainz will be kinder.”

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