2014-7 Wachau Valley, Austria
Hello All,
Our ship departed Vienna, Austria, in the wee hours of the morning and cruised throughout the night.
Austria is located in central Europe. It is landlocked and bordered by eight countries: Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Italy, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Germany. It covers around 32,000 square miles, making it slightly smaller than Maine and slightly larger than Scotland.
After breakfast the next morning we went topside and enjoyed the peaceful stretch of the Danube between Krems and Melk, Austria, known locally as “the Wachau.” Both banks are dotted with ruined castles and medieval towns and are lined with terraced vineyards.
Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000, the Wachau Valley is described as “…an outstanding example of a riverine landscape.” Noted for its cultural importance as well as its physical beauty, UNESCO says, “The architecture, the human settlements, and the agricultural use of the land in the Wachau vividly illustrate a basically medieval landscape which has evolved organically and harmoniously over time.”
In short it is where history, culture and sheer beauty combine to create beautiful peaceful landscapes. Here are a few shots of the lovely small villages scattered along the river with their many church spires.
Our ship departed Vienna, Austria, in the wee hours of the morning and cruised throughout the night.
Austria is located in central Europe. It is landlocked and bordered by eight countries: Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Italy, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Germany. It covers around 32,000 square miles, making it slightly smaller than Maine and slightly larger than Scotland.
After breakfast the next morning we went topside and enjoyed the peaceful stretch of the Danube between Krems and Melk, Austria, known locally as “the Wachau.” Both banks are dotted with ruined castles and medieval towns and are lined with terraced vineyards.
Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000, the Wachau Valley is described as “…an outstanding example of a riverine landscape.” Noted for its cultural importance as well as its physical beauty, UNESCO says, “The architecture, the human settlements, and the agricultural use of the land in the Wachau vividly illustrate a basically medieval landscape which has evolved organically and harmoniously over time.”
In short it is where history, culture and sheer beauty combine to create beautiful peaceful landscapes. Here are a few shots of the lovely small villages scattered along the river with their many church spires.
We love the bold bright colors
used on many buildings.
Can you imagine eating
breakfast under the awnings of this hotel watching the boat traffic on the Danube?
Note the cyclist riding the bike path along the river. Wow, that would be a
great way to tour Europe.
As you can see the village of
Krems is surrounded by vineyards.
We passed many castles and
castle ruins. The following photos are of Schonbuhel Castle. This castle’s
origin dates from the early 12th century and was the property of the Bishops of
Passau. The castle is known as the "Watchman of the Wachau."
We cruised by village after
village in this peaceful valley. What a wonderful way to spend a morning just
relaxing and taking it all in.
This is the village of Spitz.
Situated on a curve in the
Danube, is the pretty town of Durnstein. It’s famous for its beautiful
buildings and for the castle ruins high on the hill above town. The castle is
where Richard the Lionhearted was once imprisoned.
As we approached the small
town of Melk we could see the massive baroque Benedictine monastery named “Melk
Abbey” perched on the hill above. After our ship docked at Melk we walked to a
bus that took us to the abbey. Here’s a shot looking back at our ship at the
dock.
Melk Abbey was founded in 1089
when Leopold II, Margrave of Austria gave one of his castles to Benedictine
monks from Lambach Abbey. A monastic school was later founded here in the 12th
century and today's abbey was built between 1702 and 1736. At more than 1,000
years of age Melk Abbey is almost as old as Austria itself.
There is no way of taking a photo to demonstrate how large the abbey is. The exception would be an aerial shot from an aircraft or drone—which we had neither!
In brief, the abbey contains a school for 900 students, housing, church, grand halls, museum, library, courtyards and gardens. There are about two dozen Benedictine monks that can be seen strolling around the grounds in their black robes.
Visitors flock to the main library, world famous for its 16,000 ancient leather-bound books (many of them over 500 years old) and around 80,000 medieval manuscripts. This was the one place within the abbey where photography was not allowed—we respected their wishes.
Here are a few shots from other areas within the abbey. This photo was taken within a courtyard of the abbey as we were preparing to enter this building.
There is no way of taking a photo to demonstrate how large the abbey is. The exception would be an aerial shot from an aircraft or drone—which we had neither!
In brief, the abbey contains a school for 900 students, housing, church, grand halls, museum, library, courtyards and gardens. There are about two dozen Benedictine monks that can be seen strolling around the grounds in their black robes.
Visitors flock to the main library, world famous for its 16,000 ancient leather-bound books (many of them over 500 years old) and around 80,000 medieval manuscripts. This was the one place within the abbey where photography was not allowed—we respected their wishes.
Here are a few shots from other areas within the abbey. This photo was taken within a courtyard of the abbey as we were preparing to enter this building.
Frescos on the ceilings of
rooms within the abbey were stunning!
These next couple of photo’s, were taken from
within the museum.
This is the Marble Hall. It
was quite striking.
Here we are within the abbey church.
Its jaw-dropping interior is a baroque extravaganza with magnificent frescoes.
This shot is of the front of
the abbey church showing its twin spires.
From the large courtyard in
front of the abbey church was a lovely view of the town of Melk below.
Back onboard our ship departed
for Passau, Germany. Passau is a town in Lower Bavaria. It is also known as the
Dreiflüssestadt or "City of Three Rivers," because the Danube is
joined at Passau by the Inn River from the south and the Ilz River from the
north.
Until next time,
Dave & Barb
The Traveling Browns
Until next time,
Dave & Barb
The Traveling Browns