A Short Visit in Regensburg

 We had already been warned that it might take longer to get to Regensburg that originally planned, as the stretch of the Danube between Passau and Regensburg is the most volatile as far as water levels go. The expected heat wave had arrived, and that can mean a drop in water levels of around 18cm in a 12 hour period. That doesn't sound like much, but when you consider that the Danube is only about 3 metres deep here, and most river ships sit about 1 1/2 metres in the water, it can make a huge difference.

So to keep everyone occupied, we were give more food!! Our culinary team came up with a German Brunch that included items like Bratwurst, cheese-filled Käse Krainer sausages, Sauerkraut, Potato Salad, Fried Potatoes, and even Pork Tartare, which we've only seen in northern Germany. It certainly was delicious.

The German Brunch onboard before
arriving at Regensburg

Regensburg has a long history as it was established by the Romans to protect their lands along the Danube River. The Stone Bridge was built in the 12th century, at the time of the Crusades then an amazing feat, and was, until the 1930s, the only permanent bridge across the Danube. Now there are almost too many to count!

The famous Stone Bridge

This Villa was the summer residence of Bavarian King Maximillian II
in the mid 1800s. The park around it is open
for the community

The arch at the city gate leading from the Stone Bridge

As we wandered through town on the tour, we passed the Town Hall, where we had eaten lunch on our previous visit a number of years ago. The Ratskeller looked like it was closed up. We're batting 0 so far on things we wanted to do again in the places we visit.

The Regensburger Dom, under restoration
like so much else

Our stay in Regensburg was quite short as we had a long journey to reach Nürnberg on time. We would be moving into the Main-Danube Canal later in the afternoon.

In the canal. There is no water flow here, since it is all man-made, so
it makes for fantastic picture-taking.

The sundeck was closed due to low bridges - and the wheelhouse
could be lowered even farther

Brunn Castle - definitely impenetrable from the river

It seemed the whole community was out celebrating in...

...the town of Eggersberg

It's supposed to be really steamy in Nürnberg tomorrow. We'll see how we all make out on the tour. A lot of our fellow guests from southern areas came prepared for cooler weather, but not 38C (99F), so we've been hearing a lot about the heat. Fortunately, it's predicted to be a one-day wonder, but we all know how trustworthy weather forecasts are.....

Passau, Town of Three Rivers

 In the morning we dropped off the people heading for Salzburg in the town of Aschach before continuing on to Passau. Our first impression for Aschach was that it looked like a child's perfectly completed colouring book.

On the way to Passau, we traveled through a winding area of the Danube known as the Schlögener Schlinge. It is a beautiful part of the river that includes a number of small villages and many campgrounds, most of which were quite busy now that summer is beginning

The area is dotted with fortresses and castles as the Danube was the northern border of the Roman Empire, and since that time many successive empires used them as the first line of defence.

We're not sure why someone placed these figures, made from what, we don't know, around their lot, but they sure look interesting from the water.

We arrived at Passau in the early afternoon, but had to leave by 4 p.m. Rather than take the walking tour, which would have been similar to one we had done before, we elected to walk around town on our own, and maybe sit down to have a beer at the Ratskeller outside the Town Hall.

This little 'stream' is actually the Ilz River,
where it flows into the Danube

The Cathedral of Passau. We went to an 
organ recital there the last time we were here.

The Jesuit Church

On the river at sunset

It looks like most of this little town was gathered on the
beach. It was a lovely evening

As you can see, there are no beer-drinking photos from our time in Passau. We had sat down at the Ratskeller for Monica to have that once per trip Weissbier, but after almost 10 minutes of being ignored by the serving staff, we gave up and went back to the ship instead.

This cruise has so far been very picturesque, and we have lots of daylight sailing time. This is different from most other cruises, but it also means that we have less time in the port towns, which isn't so great, especially as we want to experience a bit more of each place. At least it means we can keep the blog more or less up to date!

Two Towns in One Day

Almost without exception, river ships will visit Dürnstein and Melk in the same day. They aren't that far apart, and neither town is very big. Dürnstein's draw is its totally picturesque nature, and Melk's big draw is the Benedictine Abbey.

We arrived at Dürnstein at 8:00 a.m. and were set to leave, a few guests short, at 10:30. Those intrepid folks had opted to do a bike ride between the two stops. We had done that in 2012 and gotten rained all over, so we decided to sail instead.

We had heard that the shops would probably be closed (oh, no!) because it was the religious Feast of Corpus Christi holiday, and, of course, this part of Austria, like Bavaria, is heavily Catholic. What we weren't prepared for was how the town itself was 'dressed up' for the occasion. The main street in the old town was covered with grass and there were small tree branches along every wall. There were also 4 river ships docked, so, perhaps they got special dispensation from the Abbey for the shops to open, as many of them were.

Dürnstein's other claim to fame is that Richard the Lionheart was imprisoned in the castle behind the town for 14 months. After the Crusades, Richard was making his way back to England, but had to go through hostile Austria to get there. In disguise, he had been quite successful until he paid for a meal using a coin that someone recognized as foreign. He was arrested and held at Dürnstein until his mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine, raised the ridiculous ransom of 100,000 pounds of silver, for his release.

Our ship docked at Dürnstein

The town looks even prettier with the rushes
and branches decorating it

Just one of the local ladies dressed for
the religious holiday

In the courtyard of the Town Hall

Vestiges of the castle wall show up in
the strangest places...

This spot is the 'Malerwinkel', or
Artist's Corner, for obvious reasons

A view of the town and
castle from the vineyards next
door

View of the abbey and the castle ruins
as we sailed away

 

This statue of Richard the Lionheart is
no more than a kilometer outside the
town

Vineyards along the valley

The town of Weissenkirchen. This church
has been rebuilt about 4 times in its history.

Another church dating back to the 1400s

Another gorgeous vista along the Wachau Valley

After our couple of hours sailing along the beautiful Wachau Valley, we arrived at Melk and headed up to the Abbey for our tour. As always, there are no photos allowed inside the buildings. The museum at the Abbey is very interesting, giving an idea of the history, from its establishment in 1089 until now. It is still a working Abbey, with 24 monks currently in residence.

Other than the church, the most impressive rooms are the main dining room, where Imperial visitors were welcomed by the Abbott, and the library, with over 100,000 volumes in its shelves. 

Melk Abbey's main courtyard

The Abbey Church is beautiful inside

The Abbey overlooks the Danube from
high on a hill. Stormy weather on the
way in the distance.

After the tour we opted to walk back to the ship, hoping to beat the rain. It only took 15 minutes, and we had a quick look at the town of Melk. Again, it is a place worth a bit of a longer look, but none of the ships seem to stay very long after the Abbey tours are done.

The town of Melk. Very pretty, and
dominated by the Abbey complex.

The Abbey from below. Very impressive

There is a second, casual, dining option, Arthur's, at the
aft of the ship. We had dinner there instead, and this
platter was Monica's appetizer! Delicious, but with
a couple of rolls, it would make a great lunch for 2.

One of the towns we sailed past at sunset.