Budapest

 Budapest
Here we are at the end of our cruise.  It has been too short.  Just as we got in the rythmn it was time to end.  We have enjoyed getting to know our cruise companions and will miss them.  We plan to meet Ron and Barbara in Budapest and go to the Gellar spa.  Geoeff and Kay are doing back to back cruises so will be off for more on the Avalon Passion.
It was so nice to have prepaid our tips.  We left extra for Birgit, our maid as she was very sweet and attentive.  I asked for one extra bath towel and some days we had 5 of them. Everyone took very good care of the guests.  Considering they are on the boat for 8 months we only 1/2  day off a week they were in great spirits.
Tony told everyone to be on deck as we sailed into Budapest so we were up extra early.  It was interesting to see what are obviously holiday homes intermingled with beautiful new homes buit for year round living.  But then, we arrived in Budapest.  We cruised past Margaret Island,  a beautiful, traffic free island, under  the Chain Bridge, past the glorious parliament buildings, and the castle high on the hill in Buda and docked near the Lisbeth (or White) bridge.  It was one sight after another.  With Tony narrating we knew where to be looking and that was a good thing as there was  much to see.   After docking we had a bus tour of Budapest which should have got us orientated but it didn't seem  to work for me.  We seemed to go over a bridge and then back over another until I didn't know if I was in Buda or Pest.  Roy said it didn't help him much either but we both had some landmarks and that helped.
We got a walking tour of Buda.  Took pictures of the view from the Fisherman's bastion and toured Mathias church.  This was not, as Roy said, an ABC (another bloody church).  It has almost no gold trimmings but every available space was painted in patterns which in my memory are earthy tones.  The organ music was pleasant to my ears and made it feel like a place to worship.   We even found time on our way back to the bus to pick up an ornament for our travel tree; an egg shaped, hand painted wooden ornament.   Now that we are home and looking at it I fear it probably wasn't hand painted,  oh well!
We are being careful with our purchases in the hope that we can go home with only carry on luggage.  Glass objects purchased in Prague may put that idea out of reach but we will see.
Back on the bus we finished our tour of the city and we're on board for our last lunch.  Lunches are buffet style.  I have been trying  hard to be careful not to gain too much weight  and find buffet meals harder than meals served to me.  It is a bit strange because I can take only what I want but I seem to be better at portion in what is on my plate a day eating only part of it.
After lunch we went out on our own.  We haven't done enough preparation for Budapest so had to sit down and read our trusty Rick Steves book for a bit.  There is much to see so we have to be organized. A plan in place we set off for the Market and walk down Vaci Utca on our way. Though Rick Steve says this street is over rated we enjoyed our stroll where vendors sell ice cream in originally presented displays, side walk cafes abound and a shop with unique hats attract our attention.

Crossing the tram lines and street to the market is interesting.  There are traffic lights that no one heeds and they don't seem to actually work anyway so we finally just cross when it seems safe to do so.  At the market entrance a lady in traditional garb is passing out advertising for something and she let's me take her picture.  Barbara and I discover we took identical pictures.  I wonder how many times a day she is photographed?

The market is huge, and hot.  It covers 3 floors and covers a city block.  It is rated the second best market in the world.  In the basement you can find live fish in tanks, food, kitchen tools and liquor.  The main floor offers mainly food, with fresh food stalls around the perimeter ( the smell of the fruit is tantalizing.  Cherries are in season, blueberries, raspberries,  peaches.  They all smell so good!  The vegetables are equally inviting and artfully displayed.)  Meat vendors are in the next row in facing the fruit and vegetable stalls.  It all looks great too. Oh, to be able to shop here for our food.  It is an intoxicating idea.  Not that we want to live here but it makes the markets we know, including Granville Island look dull.  There are spice vendors and we check out several in search of paprkia. Prices seem the same at them all. I am determined to go back to the first but in the end we just buy at the last one we stop at.  The couple we met from the southern U.S. are looking for paprika as well.  While Liz decided how many bags of parika she needed.Roy showed Bruce the  currency converter on his phone. We had already spent time doing that and will discover, when we get home that we are short a bag.  Did we pay for it?  We will never know.

Parliament 

P

Finished with the main floor we take the stairs to the top level.  This is all clothing, tablecloths, tee shirts, touristy junk and crafts.  We find the first pillow covers we have seen on this trip and buy one.  The stall has hand carved Santas that are beautifully painted but not as well carved.  Both of us think that one would be a nice souvenir but Roy decides  that they are overpriced for the quality of workmanship.

Back to the boat for the last dinner aboard. We dine with our friends and exchange address information.  Barbara and Ron are interested in going to the thermal baths as are we so we agree to do that together while we are in the city.
Roy and I went to the upper deck for a last shipboard drink.  A free one! Mickey  signed us up for the Avalon cruise club and we will have to thank her as it got us extra perks -a fruit basket in our room, a free drink each, Avalon pins.  Nice!  It is pleasant up there. Not many people and the views of the city are pretty.  We opted not to go on the city light tour but that may have been a mistake.  They didn't get back until 11:00 and packing still had to be done so perhaps we don't have many regrets.
Next morning we have breakfast and say goodbye to the crew we have grown to know.  They all seemed to relax after the talent show.  When I comment on this to one of them he said it takes a few days to size up the passengers and decide who they can joke with and who they have to be careful with.  He particularly had a problem with people who are okay with him but complain to someone above him.  They are a nice bunch and seemed willing to chat about themselves, the boat and the passengers interests.  The boat is their home when  they are sailing and they treat it as such.   The captain was usually around and willing to chat and generally made the passengers feel that they were welcome in his home.  Our cruise was seven days.  I think the 10 day version might be a nicer option.
Our taxi picked us up just before 9:00 and drove us to Hotel Palazzo Zichy.  I never, never want to drive in Budapest!   The driver had grown up in that area and told us about shopping on Saturdays with his dad in the Great Market (not a favourite passtime), and where  the bakery that had been when he was a boy, his school and he suggested where to eat that evening. We did eat there and enjoyed it immensely.   The restaurant had a history and I think everyone but us were locals. Roy had a pizza that was tasty and quite spicy and I had a salad that had more prawns than lettuce.  He had beer and for about the first time I only had water.  My stomach was rebelling because I indulged in too much sweet stuff in the afternoon but it was totally worth it! More on that later.

After we checked into the hotel we went to the metro and bought 24 hour tickets at a kiosk.  A young woman was buying a ticket at the same spot and as we were all novices we helped one another.  Roy and I  left her helping the next people in line.  You do meet the nicest people. We took the underground and got more help from two young ladies from Belgium who were on the way to the highly rated zoo, and managed a transfer.  After that we used the underground and mainly the trams all of the time.

Our first destination was the Opera.  We could tour the lobby which is very impressive.  English tours were cancelled that day.  After that we thought we might go to the House of Terror but there were huge line ups and we were booked for the Parliament buildings at 1:00.  We took the subway to the  Parliament buildings and found a place to have lunch.  A nice little sidewalk cafe where we had a beer and a tasty ham and cheese sandwich.   I mention this because it seems to be about the only sandwich filling.  It is usually called toast.  Off for our tour.  Of couse there is airport style screening and what does Roy have in his pocket - his new knife. After a bit of fretting it is our turn go through screening.   They tell him to put his knife in his backpack and all is well.  We enjoyed the tour.  It begins with a climb of a 133 step flight of stairs and then you can view the 96 step grand staircase.  It is quite impressive.  Then on to look up at the dome which is 96 meters tall.  There is a significance to the number 96.  896 is the year the Magyars came to Hungary.  Below the  dome the crown jewels are under 24 hour, armed guard. The guards even have a guard and we are told to stay two meters away from the armed guys. No problem!  The tour finishes with a trip down some secret stairs and then back to the ones we came in on.  The tour over, we caught the tram in front of the Parliament buildings.  The line runs along the river and besides being very scenic is historic.  I believe National Geographic voted it second most beautiful line in the world.  It would be even more beautiful if they washed the windows.

Roy figured out the tram lines and we went on to find The New York  Cafe ...
Marianne told us about The New York cafe and we planned to meet there before we discovered that we would be there on the same date but different months . An old but newly renovated cafe in Budapest.  Wow, what a place!  It is neo Baroque and neo Classical, over the top.  A virtual palace.  We ordered Sacher torte, a chocolate cake with apricot filling and slabs of dark chocolate on each side.  Thats not all - iced cappuccino with raspberry yogurt and whipped cream for our drink.  Yup! A real blowout.  I cannot imagine the calorie count.  Probably a weeks worth.  After our dinning experience we wandered about two of the three floors of opulence and took pictures.

Roy suggested we try to visit the House of Terror now.  Maybe the lines have died down. Off we go first at tram and then the subway.  Everyone had moved on and there are no lines.  We walk straight into the exhibits. I wiĺl quote the brochure for it says it better than I can.
"The  House of Terror is a museum now, but it was a witness to two shamefull tragic periods in Hungary 's 20th century history. It was a house of terror.
In 1944, during the domination of the Hungarian  Arrow Cross party, this building was known as the "house of Loyalty" was the headquarters of the Hungarian Nazis. Then between 1945 and 1956, the notorious communist terror organizations, the AVO and it's successor, the AHV, took up residence here. 60 Andrassay Blvd has become the house of terror and dread. This museum commemorates the victims of terror, but is also a memorial reminding us of the dreadful acts of terror of dictactorships."
The museum depicts the atrocities carried out by both the communist and the Nazi's in this house.  It is horrifying and tragic to learn of the cruelty inflicted in this building. I am brought to tears by pictured and movies of Hungarian people trying to escape the country.  How sad that we cannot learn from the mistakes of the past.


Ron has texted us today to say that they have talked to people on the cruise who felt the thermal baths weren't that clean and the prices are confusing.  We decide to go out for dinner and to a concert at St. Mary's church the next evening.
After a rest we try out the taxi drivers restaurant suggestion this evening. As I have already written, it was a success.

Our room at the Zichy is quiet and we are able to have a good rest.  The room is pretty much like any other but the door to the bathroom is a glass door.  It has art like they put on bus windows, a baroque design, I think.  It didn't offer a lot of privacy.
The breakfast room offered pretty much the same as every other on this trip except they didn't have eggs cooked to order.  They did have a grapefruit juicer which was a novelty the first morning and then we decided that we like the fruit better.  We did have had great breakfasts.  Norwegian smoked salmon was a sure thing every morning.  After my Prague experience I didn't touch it again until the last morning. I have to say it was awesome!
After breakfast on our last day in Budapest we tried to book our concert tickets.  We had to use a computer in the hotel business center in order to print the tickets.   I am still a bit concerned that we couldn't clear the history of our transaction with our credit card number in it.  Got a confirmation saying this was "not the tickets and that it wouldn't be recognized as tickets at the door.  The real tickets would follow in two working days if available". DAMN!  Now what to do.  We texted Ron and Barbara and told the, we would go out for dinner but might not manage the concert.  The front desk gal said she would look into it for us and she did but we found the church ourselves and there was a young man there, I guess taking  reservations and when we told him of our dilemma he opened his note book and there was our name at the top of the list (the only name in fact).

Our day was a bit jumbled.  The tram to the Great Synagogue wasn't running so we walked. It wasn't far. We were using the tram to save time.  When we got there there was no tour til 11:00 and that was 45 minutes away.  Decided to do a self guided tour.  Oops,  there is airport like security and someone has his trusty pocket knife.  Oh well, it turned out that was the least of our worries.  I had on a sleeveless top and Roy was in shorts.  No shoulders, no knees.  No synagogue for us.
We ventured over to Androssy  Street, named after one of Hungary 's greatest statesmen, Count Gyula Androssy.   Jill and Dave had recommended the Book Cafe so we went there for lunch.  Another opulent cafe on the top floor of a book store (much like Chapters).  We should have visited it first as the New York Cafe had spoiled us.  It was pretty special though.
We revisited the Great Market using the subway and tram again.  Darn, we are proud of ourselves!  I should say Roy, as every time he told me the direction we should be going I thought we should go the other but learned early on to be quiet as I discovered I was usually wrong.  I finally figured it out.  Just go opposite to what I thought.

We had missed one whole level of the market sof decider to go  back aND see what welse missued and maybe have another look at the Santas . Live fish swimming in tanks. Other than that it was pretty much the same as the other floors but not as touristy.  We went to the top floor and wound up getting the grandkids each another tee shirt.  We found ones with bicycles for the  boys and what I hope Marlo and Alex and V will like.  No Santa.
Back to the Zichy.  We downed a few bottles of their free water and printed our boarding passes.  The was a lawyer fellow in the business center who set our teeth on edge because he knew that the Hungarian revolution  didn't happen but was just some communists fighting amongst themselves.  Having just come from the House of Terror this was a little hard to swallow. We left him to believe what he wanted but we're very happy to get away from him.   Tickets printed, refreshed and redressed, suitcases packed we set out for the tram to meet Barbara and Ron at the Intercontinental.  It is a much busier lobby than the Intercontinental in Prague.
Their concierge had suggested Cyrano for a place for dinne.  It turned out to be a Michelin star rated restaurant.   It deserved it.  Our first!  The food was exceĺlent. I don't think I have had better.  I could go on but you get the picture.  The bathrooms were quite something too. The walls were all glass. Roy and Barbara both went and came back bemused.  I went and walked right into a mirror. If they did they weren't admitting it.
It was a short walk to St. Ann's church and we were there a few minutes early.  It is a beautiful, small church with an extremely ornate sanctuary.   The priest came in before the concert was to begin and looked disheartened by the poor turn out.  The churches all have concerts to make ends meet.  It might be a good idea for them to put in some more comfortable seating.  Those pews would put a saint off going to  church.  The concert was excellent.  The acoustics were too.  We hear J. Pachelbel's Cannon,Vivaldi's Gloria (Domine  Deus), Albnoni  - Adagio, Schubert  -Ave Maria, Mozart -Church sonate  in D minor, Ave Verum, Alleluia from Exsuitate Vivaldi's Four Seasons and Saint-Saens the Swan.  There were seven strings called The Duna  string Orchestra and a soprano (that we could have done without).
After the concert Ron said we should go for strudel as I had been whining that it had been my goal to have strudel in Hungary and I hadn't  found any.  We went to a place they had found and the apple strudel was divine!  Thanks Ron!
Then it was time to say good bye to them. A sad momment for we truly enjoyed their company and felt a bond with them. It would be nice to maintain that connection.  I rarely feel a mutual bond that strongly.

The next morning we were up at six and breakfast and ready for the airport before  8:00 when the taxi would pick us up.   We had lot's of time to kill so had coffee and I blogged away, then had a muffin and I blogged some more.
We were delighted to find that we were the row behind the ugly seats we had going over.  The people who got them were just as unhappy as we had been only they were luckier than us and had a daytime flight so we're not trying to sleep. We had scads of room!  Still no screen in the back of the seat but we had a window blind and we're away from the bathrooms.
The flight was late getting off the ground so we were late arriving in Toronto. We had to go through customs.  Roy eyes wouldn't scan for the Nexus retinal scan but the lady at the desk stamped our declaration so that helped save time.  Once through customs we had to find the domestic flights. Up one escalator, down another,  up an elevator.  Then we have to go through security and there are about 50 people ahead of us and no Nexus line that we could see.  I asked the security guy if he could let us move up in the line and showed him the departure time on our boarding pass. He said we had lots of time.  Then after a few minutes told us the line was shorter upstairs, we should go there.  The bloody lines were longer.   Eventually we made it through.  Someone along the way suggested our time was out on our watches, and we had an hour. We decided to hurry anyway,  a good thing for as we raced along we both thought, dimly, that we heard Berg paged but didn't ever think it was us. It was. We just made it onto the plane.  In hindsight we wish we had missed it and got the next flight.  Many people had their flights rescheduled but not us to Vancouver.  The plane was spacious, roomy, and clean.  What a treat.  You had to pay for gross food but the plane was clean and big.  Who cared. We arrived in Vancouver and waited for our one checked bag. We had decided to check an tote bag that we brought for that purpose as things the carry on were getting bulky and a bit heavy.  We probably would have been okay but decided to play it safe.  It seems we were supposed to have to have taken it through customs in Toronto and checked through to Vancouver.  We didn't know that so, oops!  The man in Vancouver at the lost luggage was very calm and said that our bag was in Toronto and would be in YVR by morning and would be delivered my afternoon.  Sure enough it was...
So we got home safely, a few of our belongings came a little later but on the whole  it was a very successful journey.  We met the nicest people, had a wonderful cruise even with a glitch because of the high water, our time in Prague and Budapest was well spent and we saw and did lots.  What more can we ask.

MELK/VIENNA
We went for a guided tour of MELK Abbey founded in 1089 and is dedicated to saints Peter and Paul. The tour  is included as arequired most of the tours.  It is a Benedictine Abbey located in the Wachu Valley.  They may have been sworn to poverty but the abbey is lavishly Baroque.  They have a portable altar made of pure ivory.  The library is huge and old.  The bindings all match to fit the Baroque style. They have  85,000 books and 2000 illuminated manuscripts.  We took a bus there and then walked down through the pleasant town.  It was nice to have a walk.
In  the afternoon we sailed through the Wachu Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage site.  There were castles galore.  It was beautiful.

  I went for a tour of the kitchen later in the afternoon.  Wow that kitchen is pretty little yet they manage to feed 168 people 3 meals a day. There are 9 people  cooking and they come  from 7 different countries and there are 10 wait staff.  At times the all have to be in the kitchen (when the meals are ready to go out to the tables).  They have 15 minutes to get the main course plated and ready to be served.  All tables are served at the same time.  That evening we went for the Bistro dinner in the salon.  Only 24 can go to it each evening

.   Barbara and Ron, Jeff and Kay and Roy and I went.  We didn't get to sit together but it was an enjoyable time. They served 8 or 9 different things in small sampler size portions.  It was all good. We were a bit concerned as Barbara and Ron are vegetarian but as usual the crew took care of them.
The crew performed for us this evening.  What a talented crew.  None of them seemed to want a career in music but they were good enough. Everyone was in awe.

Linz, Austria
It does make you think of The Sound of  Music!
We could go to Salzburg,  Cesky Krumlov or stay in Linz. Strangely enough we chose to go to the Czech Republic again.  I had read about Cesky Krumluv  and really wanted to visit it. My wish was granted.  Celtics tribes settled here a century before Christ. Then the Germanic tribes, then the Slavs in the 9th century.  The Rosemberks controlled the city from 1302 up until 1602 and their symbol the rose is easy to find in the town.
The bus trip there was interesting and scenic.  We passed a gingerbread factory (they make it for the Christmas markets),  the gingerbread tastes like Christmas and is very good. We thought about bringing some home but didn't think it would travel well.  Next was a sausage factory, then a 5 star hotel where Hungarian workers can go for a three week treatment if they are ill or injured.  They have treatments each day and must be in bed by 10:00.  If they break curfew and are caught they are sent home and must repay the cost to that date.  They can go for treatments this 3 times in a 5 year period.  Wonder if WCB would do that at home?.
Our route was the scenic road, not the main highway (we came home that way) so we drove through forests and along the river that flows through the town.  It has rapids and calm parts.  There are people canoeing /kayaking along the river in droves.  It is a very popular pastime.  There are camp grounds all along the river that seemed to be full to capacity, also little cabins. It looked  like a nice way to holiday.  The Czechs, Germans, Austrians seem to know how to enjoy their leisure time.  It isn't long ago that they had nothing to enjoy.    Though it looked idyllic not that long ago, before the fall of the iron curtain (1989) there were check points at the border (iron curtain) that sound terrifying to pass through if you were even allowed to cross.


Your passport and papers were turned in at the first check point, then you traveled several miles through no man's land to another check point  where your papers were returned.  This could take a long, nerve wracking time.   A town and pulp mill, built during the Communist regime was a stark reminder that life has been very hard here.  The communist built apartment blocks look more like prisons than homes.  Everywhere we have been the guides tell of the grey , communist builtbuildings, they even painted over existing buildings.  The food lines and shortages.  How school ciriculum was strictly communist.  They had to learn Russian for 8 years and their history classes were all about how the Russians saved them.  There was nothing about the western world.  Our guide in Cesky Krumlov told us that he thought he would never visit Austria.   Cesky Krumlov is in the Czech Republic.
We arrived in the beautiful little town, dominated by a big castle high on the hill above it.  To enter the old town you cross Horni Bridge.  All around are old ornate and colourful buildings. Boater's are floating under the bridge, the water sparkles in the sunlight, music is playing in the background.  It feels like  a good place to spend some time.  We wish we could.

After the scenic bridge we are in the old town.  They did a neat thing with the plaster.  They painted it in layers and achieved the look of brick by scratching an outer layer to reveal the one underneath.  You have to touch it to believe.  The 3d look is that good. The main square is next. Our guide is old enough to remember Soviet occupation well and tells us stories of what it was like for him.  Every guide speaks of the gray buildings.  All colour removed from your life must be very traumatic.  We saw a plague door. A small door within the door that could be opened to check to see if the person on the other side had the plague.   The plague killed all but two residents of a nearby town but didn't devastate Cesky Krumlov and so they built a monument in thanks to God which still stands in the square today. The square has seen much history.  Hitler  celebrated the annexation of the Sudetenland in 1938 here and Russian tanks intimidated the local people who sought freedom in 1968.  It is so peaceful today, may it remain so.
We had lunch at a restaurant recommended by  the guides called 2 Mary's.  It had traditional Czech food. Two couples invited us to join them.  It was lovely sitting  by the river but very hot in the sun.   I had garlic soup, yum and a salad.  Roy had the Czech sampler which had about 8 different small portions of different things.  He said it was very good. Maryann and Michael and Elaine and Bob, all from California were our lunch companions and we walked up to the castle with them afterward.  As we crossed what had been the drawbridge Bob spotted one of the three bears that live in the moat on either side of the bridge.

It was very hot so we wouldn't have been too surprised not to see them at all.  I believe there have been bears there since the 16th century when the Rozemberks added them to  their coat of arms. The views are very dramatic.  We didn't climb the many steps to the tower due to time restraints and the heat nor did we go in the castle. ( You just don't have enough time  to do much except get a overall impression on these tours.  We expected to be able to get off the boat and wander on our own but that was not the case at all.  Perhaps it was because of the high waters or because of tours but it wasn't what we expected.)  Mike, Maryann, Elaine and Bob are very nice people and we really enoyed their company.  We walked up to the top and through the gardens and back to the meeting point in the square. We stopped on the way back to get something for the girls.  Then back through the town to the bus. The bus took a different route back so it was quicker.  Our guide played a piece of classical music that I will buy when we get home.  It is by a Czech and was perfect as we drove through the Czech woods.

When we got back to the boat Michelle, our new friend from Australia wanted to walk into the town square in Linz when we got back to the boat.  It was 34 degrees.  We walked up to a bridge and took a picture of a statue then up into the mainstreet.  There was some sort of street fair going on and there was a large group of cyclists with bikes they had modified and totally changed.   We talked to a fellow who had a bike welded  on top of another bike. He rode the top bike and claimed it was easier than a regular bicycle. The was also an ambulance with it's doors open for display.  Roy is always looking for ambulances to take pictures of for Rose.  He and Michelle were taking pictures of another statue (ABS) so I began taking pictures of it.  One of the paramedics asked if I'd like to sit in it.  I thought he meant the back but no, he put me in the driver's seat and turned the lights on and then got my camera for picture.  I felt pretty important.

Back at the boat we had a much needed shower.  Then off to dinner.
I forgot to mention that the first night on the boat (after I let them fill my wine glass at dinner too many times) Roy and I went up on deck.  It was a beautiful evening and we enjoyed floating along until quite late.  Roy went down to get the camera so he could take pictures of a lock we were about to go through and missed seeing them lower the wheel house as we went under a bridge.  Two younger couples who had too much wine too came along and weren't listening when they were told to sit down.  They were in grave danger of being decked by the bridge.  They got yelled at!  It was idllyic sitting up there  watching the the shore as we floated along.  It will be a beautiful me or of our cruise.  I will remember to say, "that's enough for me thanks" to the waiters at future  meals.

Passau

Thursday, must be Passau
Wow, time is going so quickly 😂.   We couldn't dock in Passau because we were a day early so we are docked 10  minutes away in Lindorff  (I think).  We are shuttled to and from the boat.  They will take us to town for our tour and then bring us back for a Bavarian lunch.
Passau is a picturesque little town at the confluence of the Danube,  Ilz and Inn rivers. Three waters are different colours so you can tell them apart. The Romans built a fortress here in 80AD and we were able to see Roman remains.

  We toured the old town which is quite romantic and  historic, as they all are. We visited we visited St Stephens church and if we want the history we can look it up on the internet. We saw Johann Kepler's house.  He calculated  the eliptical orbits of the planets. Now that's an achievement!

Kepler's house 2nd from right

We could take a bus back to the boat for lunch but we opted to stay in town so after our tour we had lunch in a Italian sidewalk cafe. The waiter was a feisty little Italian guy who thought he could whistle.  He couldn't seem to find the tune but let a pretty girl go by and he could manage a pretty passable wolf whistle.   If the girl was extra hot he rang a bell.  We walked by later but the bell didn't ring??
Now, what to do we have three options.  The Roman Museum? Too far away.  The castle?  Same problem.  Not enough time.  So we are going to the glass museum.  It turns out we need at least an hour to see it all and we don't have that long.  Okay, we will see what we can.  It's 5 or 6 floors in an old castle and each and every one of them has 6, 8 or more rooms.  Sometimes you have to twist and turn to find them all.   Beautiful glass. The oldest at the top level where we are told to start.  There is a problem - we know nothing about glass and almost all descriptions are  in German.  Oh, that's pretty was about the extent of our commentary.   We did find some glass that is like the pitchers my parents we given as a wedding gift and that caused a little excitement.

Ice cream on the way back to the boat made us feel better and cooler.  It was a very hot day.  In the 30's.
Back at the boat we followed what has become our daily routine. Shower, wash out a few things, download pictures and blog if there is time then off to happy hour followed by Tony's Port talk and dinner.  We finished dinner we went to the lounge to hear some rock and roll with Thorsten.  We have made our travel friends and more about them later but for now I will introduce them.   Barbara and Ron from the United States, Kay and Jeff from Sydney, Australia.
Thorsten was singing when we arrived and to my ears, murdering the song.  Somehow our ears became accustomed to his singing and before long we were up dancing - at least Barbara, Roy and I were.  It was lots of fun and by now we know quite a few people. Don and Patricia  (Australia ) dance as though they went to the same school of dance we did and are having as much fun as we are.  Roy and I were the first to actually jive and sort of had the center floor for a bit. It was a bit odd to be watched but fortunately didn't last.  Just as we we leaving a new song began and Barbara wanted to dance again.  I went along but as I got on the floor I realized it wasn't a song I could dance to.  GG was the only other person on the floor. ( Guess  I'd better tell you about GG.  She is 5 foot 8 without her heels and she always wears heels, has a  beautifull statuesque figure, is black,  and has her hair in the finest, teeny tiny braids I have ever seen (and there are lots of them!).  GG also has the most outgoing personality.  She is very thoughtful and kind to everyone.  I became Ms Linda and I am very happy to say that we got on well and I felt she liked me.  GG was travelling with a neighbor who was somewhat handicapped in his mobility and speech but was a very nice fellow and was very protective of GG.  His mother died earlier and GG was looking out for him.  Pretty nice.  GG does Lady GaGa's makeup.  How about that!)
Anyway, I turned to walk off the dance floor and felt hands on my hips, GG is pulling me back on the dance floor and there is no getting out of it. GG, Barbara and I did some sort of dance together with lots of under arm twirls and spins.  It was so much fun!  I don't know what the onlookers thought but at that moment we didn't care.  We were dancing.   There was applause at the end and I'm sure it was for our audacity not our skill. Either way it was okay.
That was our day...

Regensberg

Wednesday
We are docked in Regensburg and our tour is to Weltonberg and the Danube Gorge.  Flood waters had covered the bus parking lot the day before .  Today we got to see them scooping the mud  out of it.  It was a short walk along the Danube to the Abbey.  The Danube is narrow here and the big boats can't  get down it.  The land on either side is now enviormentally protected because of the flooding.  There are a few people still living there and the government buys them out at 80% after a flood but they just use the money to rebuild.  It is a beautiful,  tranquil place.  I can't blame them for wanting to stay. Some of the houses have been torn down and nature has reclaimed the land in a very short time. Flowers remain to show someone lived here.  We saw a huge snail with a pretty shell and spared it's life.  Now that's kind of me because I kill everyone I find at home.
There are seven monks at the abbey and of course they do the all work to run the abbey and some have outside jobs.  Before we entered the abbey church we each were given a beer that was brewed at the abbey.

They have been brewing there since 1050. It  was a dark beer and very tasty. We also got a gigantic German style pretzel  which was great with beer at 10:00 in the morning.  We consumed pretzels and beer and the mosquitos consumed us.
We went for a walk above the Abbey while we waited for our trip our of the church.  The was a chapel but you couldn't get inside.  It was a pretty walk but hazardous with all the mosquitoes.
The Abbey church has a horse on it's altar.   Saint George, the dragon slayer is riding it. There is a dragon on one side of the horse and a princess whose name I can't remember on the other; they represent good and evil.  The dome above the altar was interesting because it looks like a domed roof but it is flat.  It is very convincing.  It would have been interesting to go up and see it up close.

  Our local guide, Enrie was excellent as all the guides have been.  Enrie is a lady, and a long distance runner and looked to be in her 60's.  She was knowledgeable and very humorous. Just slightly irreverent in the church.


Each tour we have a guide on the bus who talks about the area and prepares us for the day.  Then when we get to the sight we get a guide who specializes in that town, church, etc.  It is a good system and seems to work flawlessly.  They have all had good English.  There are 35 Tiwanese people on the cruise.  They have their own tour guides and buses.
Then we had lunch at the oldest sausage place in the town of Regensberg.  Avalon gave every one 15 Euros and a chit for this sausage lunch in compensation for all the changes.  We didn't mind being 30 € ahead or a free lunch but it didn't make up for the time missed.
Anyway that's all water down the river (ha ha).
The sausage house had a large main restaurant that was full so we were directed to the little house.  It must have been the original restaurant. Believe it or not you enter through the kitchen and go into a small dinning room. We sat at a long table for 8.  Kay and Jeff from our cruise (our cruise friends from Sydney ) and we didn't know the others.  Our meal consisted of 5 skinny sausages, sauerkraut, bread and beer.  It was all really good, especially the beer.  I did something I swore I'd never do and took a picture of our meal.  Maybe Roy will post it here.

After lunch we had a guided tour of the old town.  We saw remains of a Roman wall, and had a walk through the old town.  We saw the exterior of St. Peter's cathedral and after the tour went inside on our own.  Impressive and extremely ornate .
The river is still high and there are flood markers are on a lot of buildings indicating the year and water height of each flood.  A little time for a walk on our own and back to the bus.  We did see a knife shop.  They had ever so many knives at good prices but Roy had his knife.