Some days since our last blog entry. We have seen so much in that time it is begining to blur together.We have been sailing on the Danube for the last 4 or 5 days. We have seen so much historic stuff that it feels common place. Our daily tours always include a castle & ABC (Another Beautiful Cathedral) as our tour director calls them. All are incredible & amazingly clear for their age many around 600 years old or older. Apparently the method of painting them into wet plaster allowed the colours to soak in & last a long time. The massive cathedrals often took up to 600 years to build except the quick one they knocked up in Passau which only took 300 years.
A big highlight of the trip was attending a night concert in the beautiful city of Vienna, where we watched Viennese ballet, opera & orchestral music (Motzart & Bach), all in a lovely old building. It may sound boring, but it was really exciting watching & listening live.
As all the historic features are starting to blur together & we are finding the beauty of the country side even more interesting. The trip through the Bahau Valley was at least as nice, or better than the Rhine Valley & the confluence of the 3 rivers, Danube, Inn & Ils was stunning. I won't go on about the many individual ports we have visited. The pics will be enough.
Boat life is GREAT ! I don't want to get off. Unfortunately that is exactly what is going to happen the day after tomorrow. Then we start our week long nostalgic trip into the Austrian village where my family originates from. I am quite excited about this, but will miss the pampered life on the ship.
Tomorrow we sail for Budapest.
A big highlight of the trip was attending a night concert in the beautiful city of Vienna, where we watched Viennese ballet, opera & orchestral music (Motzart & Bach), all in a lovely old building. It may sound boring, but it was really exciting watching & listening live.
As all the historic features are starting to blur together & we are finding the beauty of the country side even more interesting. The trip through the Bahau Valley was at least as nice, or better than the Rhine Valley & the confluence of the 3 rivers, Danube, Inn & Ils was stunning. I won't go on about the many individual ports we have visited. The pics will be enough.
Boat life is GREAT ! I don't want to get off. Unfortunately that is exactly what is going to happen the day after tomorrow. Then we start our week long nostalgic trip into the Austrian village where my family originates from. I am quite excited about this, but will miss the pampered life on the ship.
Tomorrow we sail for Budapest.
Looking at the ceiling in the Abbey stairwell at Melk.
Yvonne on the banks of the Inn at Passau, Bavaria. This river has some significance in our family.
On the Danube river, approaching the bridge that separates Bavaria Germany from Austria.
Ducking our heads beneath a very low bridge on the Danube. The umbrellas & shade roofs come down while the wheelhouse is on a hydraulic scissor lift & disappears into the deck. (centre of picture).
This is a regular occurence.
Passing one of many castles in the Bahau Valley.
Riverside village, Bahau Valley.
Abbey for the monks in Melk. Still in use.
The very popular Maria Theresa who ruled the area who had 16 children & about 50 castles.
This bone carved portable altar in the Abbey dates back to a couple of hundred years after Christ.
Another well decorated room in the Abbey.
Same room with the boss in the foreground.
The monks minimalist chapel.
Another castle in Bahau Valley.
One of many passing barges.
Mountain top castle Bahau Valley.
Passing one of our sister ships going the other way
Bahau Valley
Old & new (relatively speaking), Bahau Valley
The lovely streets of Vienna.
Vienna.
3 identical Viking ships tied up in Vienna. (Ours is the middle one)
A flying saucer restaurant atop a bridge in the previously communist 'Bratislava' in Slovakia.
City centre 'Bratislava'. Yes the fountain is over 500 years old. Europe is stuffed full of old crap.
One of the many strange statues in Bratislava.
Note the black circle on the left side of the pointed window.\. This is a cannon ball embedded in the wall from an invasion by Napolean. There are several of these in various buildings around town & were left in after the battle as anyone who could prove they were effected by Napoleans' attack were exempt from local taxes for 18 months. They remain to this day.
This huge painting (about 30 feet high) is in one of the ABCs' & is of course very old & depicts a scene of some dude with his head chopped off & placed on a platter on the womans lap.
There are many of these violent paintings in the churches, depicting all sorts of violent scenes.
Interior of ABC.
