The Cruise

Well I am sorry that this has taken so long to put to blog, but I was unable to get onto the site from the boat and never had any time to do anything when in port.So Tom just to put your mind at rest, thank you, I will stay up all night to get it done.We have had a great 2 weeks, have seen so much that its all a bit of a blur now. The boat was fantastic, it was like staying in a 5 star hotel, staff looked after us never had to do anything for ourselves. Had people from The States (and they were all very nice), Canada, UK, NZ and Australia.Stopped at; Amsterdam, Cologne, Rudesheim, Miltenberg, Wurzburg, Bamberg, Nuremberg, Regensburg, Passau, Linz, Melk, Durnstein, Vienna, Bratislava and the last stop of Budapest.We have seen so many Castles, Cathedrals and old buildings to last us a very long time, I am sure after you have seen all the photo's you may feel the same way. We really have no idea of the history and what these countries had to endure. Places like Cologne can trace history back to 50AD we have no idea, and the Roman road network is still reflected to this very day in the layout of the city streets. The Gothic Church has a foundations tone that was laid on 15th August 1248, was not completed till 1880.The Rhine Valley is called the romantic river and you can see why, great mountains on each side, with vineyards over most of the land and then these picturesque little towns along the river. Every town will have a castle over looking the town.Miltenberg has the oldest Princes Tavern in Germany and the town is known for its witch trials which took place in front of the tavern. They also have 10 beers that are made locally.Wurzburg is surrounded by hillsides and vineyards. They have a medieval fortress which dominates the skyline over looking the old town. The town has been traced back to 650AD.Bamberg locals like to say that their city spreads across seven hills like Rome, has a network of waterways like Venice, and has and old city which is at least as beautiful as Prague. The city was first settled in 1000BC. They are also known for their beer and one called "Rauchbier" which is a smoked beer and we are told is a must to try. Bamberg was a nice little town, population 70,000, I would have liked to spend more time there.Nuremberg - well we all know about the Nuremberg Trials, it also has the Castle over looking the town, the old city wall has been left in place and only some parts of it have been removed to make way for roads. The old city has many wine cellars under the houses and road system. The old city was reduced to rubble in 1945 as a result of allied air raids. The town is known for its Gingerbread, its toys and the Christmas markets.Regensburg was repeatedly bombed in World War II but sustained little damage and most of its medieval buildings survived. The city has a great industrial and commercial center, a road and rail junction and all this is helped by busy port area of the Danube. The river and canal system is the most economical way to transport materials for industry. Some of this is because the transport trucks are not allowed to work on Sunday, so they can not drive the roads on Sunday but the barges are allowed to work 7 days a week and 24 hours a day. Sunday is a day for families in Germany, you will find that most shops do not open.Passau is surrounded by 3 rivers, Danube, Inn and Liz rivers and its on the border of Austria. Passau was an important medieval trade and shipping centre. The Inn salt trade and the making of swords were traditional for this area. It has 5 breweries, they also manufacture optical instruments, textiles and tabacco. We were told that Passau is as good a Salzburg and those that had been to Salzburg before would agree.Vienna was a delight to visit so much to see and do and the classical concert was a pleasure. What excitement arriving in Vienna. We have docked a fair way out of town so we have to rely on transport to get into town. We took a sightseeing trip into town and drove past a number of places of interest; State Opera, Parliament House, National Theatre, City Hall, Vienna International Centre and then the walk around St Stephen’s Cathedral. We then had about 1 hour free time and it was back to the boat.Bratislava was a big surprise, I did not expect this city to be so modern and it is becoming quite the cultural centre. The city is dominated by its enormous castle, the castle was the residence of the Austrian royal family until it was destroyed by fire in 1811. Budapest is just like all the other cities we have seen but on a bigger scale, you can tell that we have seen and visited far too many castles, cathedrals and Abbeys.We are off the boat now and leave for Prague tomorrow, we are told that Prague has heaps to offer.Well I hope this keeps you up today on our travels and you enjoy the pictures.