Day 4 Melk and Linz
Wednesday, September 2 Mostly Sunny 25C/77F Chance of Rain 30%
Today was our visit to the Melk Abbey. Buses were provided to the Abbey. We were told ahead of time that there were 64 outside steps to the Abbey. There was an elevator available for those who needed it as long as you let the program director or program managers know ahead of time. Once in the Abbey there were a number of staircases to be climbed. Again, an elevator was available for those who needed it.

We met our guide Wolfgang in the Abbey courtyard. Although he had just graduated from high school the year before, he was one of the best guides we had. We think that he was a product of the abbey school. One of the things that surprised us was that the students in the school must study religion, but they can chose Protestantism, Catholicism or Islam.

This Benedictine abbey at the beginning of the Wachau Valley is absolutely gorgeous and houses an amazing collection of artifacts and books. The chapel is gorgeous. The abbey is considered one of the most important baroque style buildings in Europe. The views down into the valley are also spectacular.

After the tour we were given the choice of either using a short cut from the abbey and then taking a “short walk” through town or taking a bus back to the ship. We opted for the walk through town. First we had to walk down more steps in the short cut to get into the middle of town. The walk through the town was short and downhill on cobblestones; however, the walk back to the ship after we left town was probably about 2 miles of walking on the flat. So much for a short walk!

We set sail for Linz at 12 noon. The afternoon was spent sailing. Paul and I had signed up for the wine tasting that was offered at noon. It was run by the Maître d’Hotel, Zoltan, He made it fun rather than so deadly serious as wine tastings often tend to be.

He started by saying the first thing he was serving was not part of the tasting. He went on to say that Austrians love to mix things. The first item was a shot glass with white wine and a mystery ingredient. He asked us to guess what it was. I knew immediately that it was white wine with sparkling mineral water. The next was a shot glass with red wine and a mystery ingredient. We all agreed that the taste was familiar, but no one could place the taste. It turned out to be red wine and Coca Cola. It sounds awful, but was surprisingly good.

The actual wines were Austrian wines from the Wachau Valley that we were sailing through. The vineyards are small producers and the wines are not generally available in the states. We tasted a Riesling which was quite dry because he wanted people to know that all Rieslings are not sweet. We also tasted another white wine and a varietal red wine.

We had a late lunch at 1 PM today. At 2:30 all of us but Paul went to an on-board German lesson. It was a good refresher for me. I know a little German, not as much as I used to, which came in handy, but was also frustrating because I couldn’t remember as much as I thought I should. After that was the daily Tea Time followed by a lecture on Mozart by Erika, one of the Program Managers. We opted not to attend because we are pretty well versed on the subject.

At 5:30 Austrian Winzer Jause’n (typical Bavarian snacks) followed by the usual cocktail hour and our Daily Briefing for Passau.

We arrived in Linz around 8 PM. After the Sailor’s Dinner, we went for an evening stroll in Linz with Michael, one of the program managers. After he left us, the six of us walked a little more then headed back to the ship. One of the differences in this cruise and those on a large ship is that the crew recognize their passengers even off the ship. We ran into a couple of crew members that obviously knew us.

Day 5 Passau
Thursday, September 3 Chance of Rain 20C/68F Chance of Rain50%
Today it was hot and humid and went from rain to sun to rain. We were docked directly across from the Passau castle. One interesting feature was the date on the castle. It was built in 1499, but the four was not the one that we know, but 1/2 an 8 that is turned slightly counter clockwise.

Before embarking on our tour there was a talk on the European Union given by Michael one of the program managers.

Our walking tour started at 10 AM. Our guide gave each of us a very nice city map that came in handy; although, finding the way back to the ship was easy. You just headed down hill toward river.

After our walking tour we went back to St. Stephan’s Cathedral for an organ concert. The organ is one of the world’s largest church organs. Fortunately, our guide had pointed out the various locations of the pipes and recommended that we sit in the middle of the church. It was really surround sound. The power of the organ was stunning.

We went back to the ship for lunch then headed back to the town for taking photos and just exploring. We got back to the ship right before the skies opened up around 4 PM. We left Passau at 5 PM in pouring rain.

Tonight was the reception for former cruisers who are automatically made a member of the Viking Explorers after one cruise. The reception was to be held in the lounge during cocktail hour. We wondered how they would do that because that is the only place passengers could congregate for various things.

Fifteen chairs were set up in a circle at the bow end of the lounge behind Otto and the “stage.” There were several of the small round lounge table covered with table clothes, with flowers and bowls of chips and peanuts. A waiter came around to take drink orders and hor d’oeveres were served. The captain, the hotel manager, and the program director came in and walked around and shook everyone’s hand. We were all expecting a sales pitch. There was none. It was simply drinks and conversation. During the reception we were in a lock, and we could see that it was absolutely pouring.

I happened to be sitting next to a couple from Great Britain. We talked mostly about our homes and places we’d traveled. It was interesting because they had been to some places we plan to go, and we had been to some places they plan to go.

After everyone had had drinks and hor d’oeveres the waiter came back and passed around shot glasses of something. We were not sure what, but it was very potent. A toast was given and the six couples clinked glasses with the crew members that were at the reception.

Dinner tonight was an International Dinner. After dinner we had a brief presentation on future cruises. Vodka shots and eggrolls were served to anyone that wanted them. The rest of the evening was music by Otto. Some couples made use of the stage for a dance floor.

During our Daily Briefing we were told that there was a Plan A and a Plan B for Regensburg because the Danube was the lowest it has been in 50 years. Plan A meant we would dock in Regensburg as originally scheduled. However, if the river was too low to dock, then we would go on to Straubing and then be bussed back to Regensburg. There would be an announcement by 7:30 AM the next morning. The times for our tours would also be adjusted in Plan B