Shonbrunn Palace Entrance

Shonbrunn Palace Facade

Shonbrunn Palace Fountain

Scenic Cruising Sights

Cruise Director Slavka, Concierge Steve and Anton from the front desk.

Dinner with San Diego Friends

The Imperial Schönbrunn Castle, the former summer residence of the Habsburgs, has been compared to the palace at Versailles. At the end of the seventeenth century Emperor Leopold I commissioned the Baroque architect Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach, who had received his training in Rome, to design an imperial hunting lodge for his son, Crown Prince Joseph, later to become Emperor Joseph I. Replacing the chateau de plaisance built on this site for the dowager empress Eleanora of Gonzaga in 1642, it was to grow into a palatial imperial residence over the course of the eighteenth century. The palace today consists of 1,414 rooms, some of which can be rented by locals to live in, while others are part of the museum. The museum rooms are opulently furnished and they allow 11,000 tourists each day to tour the museum.

The palace grounds are extensive with planted beds, grass areas, elaborate fountains, a rose garden, a hedge maze and more. On the day we were at the palace they were preparing the garden for an annual classical music performance where they allow 80,000 residents to attend for free.

After lunch onboard, we spent the remainder of the afternoon sailing towards Budapest, Hungary on the ship’s top deck. We passed Bratislava, Slovakia, along the way, as well as many charming small towns. We enjoyed chatting with fellow passengers as we sailed.

The evening included the captain’s farewell cocktail party and dinner. For dinner we shared a table with our friends Ric and Kevin as well as four fellow guests, three of which reside in San Diego. Three of them are siblings, who grew up in New York, and one of their spouses.

Hungary: Geography & Quick Facts
Entirely landlocked, Hungary is a nation known for its rich, fertile soil, yielding not only centuries-old vineyards, but corn, wheat, barley, oats, and sunflowers (among others). The small nation, roughly the size of Indiana, is mostly low-lying, with its lowest point just two hundred feet above sea level and its highest peak in the Northern Hills only reaching an elevation of 3,000 feet. Bordered by Austria, Serbia & Montenegro, Croatia, Slovenia, Romania, the Ukraine, and Slovakia, Hungary is dotted with well-known lakes, but its most famous body of water is the Danube, which cuts through the nation’s open plains, linking its most historic ports and cities.
Area: 35, 910 square miles
Population: 10, 011,000
Languages: More than 98% Magyar
Capital: Budapest
Ethnic groups: Magyar, Romany, German, Serb, Slovak, Romanian
Religions: Roman Catholic, Calvinist, Lutheran, Greek Catholic, Jewish

Hungary History: Romans, Huns, Bulgarians—everyone desired the fertile land that would one day become Hungary. Inhabited as early as 9 B.C., the Carpathian Basin changed hands from empire to empire until the ninth century, when the Magyars claimed the region as their own, launching the true beginning of Hungarian history.

Within a century, the Christian realm boasted an operating government and a solid military, which backed the creation of a monarchy under King Stephen, who instituted Latin as the official language. More relevant cultural strides came from a later king, Andrew, who established the first constitution in continental Europe, followed by the creation of what would eventually become the Hungarian Parliament in the early 13th century.

Despite this strong leadership, nearly half the population died at the hands of Mongols in the Tatar invasion of 1241. The effect of the lost populace was muted somewhat by an influx of refugees, as King Béla IV allowed Mongol attack survivors from other countries to settle in Hungary permanently. When the Tatars moved on, the King had his men build hundreds of castles and forts so that the country would never again be caught off guard.

Over the centuries, while keeping the Ottomans at bay, Hungary took a bold new step, electing a non-royal to the throne. Unrelated to any member of the dynasty which had ruled for centuries, King Matthias was a scholar who maintained the second largest library in Europe (behind only the Vatican). But he also proved his military prowess, defeating the Ottomans, Germans, and Polish.

After Matthias, things turned bleak, with Ottomans defeating government forces and splitting the land. From the mid-16th century to the end of the 17th, there were three Hungary’s: Habsburg-ruled Royal Hungary, and the two Ottoman territories of Transylvania and Buda. By the 18th century, the region was reunited under Austrian-Habsburg rule, but its character changed again as Slavs, Slovenians, Romanians, and Germans were allowed to settle in the territory as well. These continual additions of ethnically diverse populations came to define Hungary as a “melting pot”—or perhaps goulash—of cultures.

Hungary became a hotbed of populism in the 1820’s when Count István Széchenyi pushed the Emperor to convene the Parliament, which undertook economic reform, including provisions for the needs of the poor. When the Habsburg rulers resisted, the citizenry deposed them, dramatically reshaping the values and identity of their nation. Hungary’s new government enacted the first laws of minority rights in the entire world—a bold move which prompted the Habsburgs to team up with the Russians to crush the revolution and assume power once again.

For 50 years, the nation was ruled as part of the so-called “Dual Monarchy” of Austria-Hungary. During this time, the economy boomed. Buda, the old capital, and bustling Pest, its neighbor across the Danube, officially united into the metropolis of Budapest that we know today. But the First World War took its toll; upon its end, Hungary gained independence from Austria, but lost nearly ¾ of its original territory, leaving more ethnic Hungarians living on non-Hungarian soil than within its reconfigured borders.

The new Hungary remained a Parliamentary Democracy in name, but the encroachment of the Nazis tempered any true freedom. Though Hungary was aligned with the Nazis at the beginning of World War II, the nation secretly tried to surrender to the Allies. When that pact failed and the Germans discovered it, the Nazis took firm control over the Hungarian government. But this did not quell the Hungarian spirit; during this time, thousands of Hungarians hid Jews or helped transport them to freedom. The decade of Soviet Rule after the war proved a brutal period that included a failed uprising in 1956 and massive loss of life. It would be more than 30 years before Communist rule ended after a bloodless political revolution.

Today, Hungary thrives, and its diverse, democracy-loving citizens invite travelers to discover the natural beauty of their land and the many stunning monuments of a truly enduring culture.

St. Stephens Cathedral Details

St. Stephens Cathedral

St. Stephens Cathedral Interior

Liechtenstein City Palace Interior

Liechtenstein City Palace Ceiling Detail

Vienna Cafe Central

Vienna Opera House

Mozart Monument

Hofburg Palace

The morning included a city bus tour of Vienna, (1,750,000 + inhabitants) whose historic center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Following the bus tour, we set out on foot to see St. Stephen’s Cathedral begun in 1137 and re-built multiple times over the years. The church is built in the Romanesque style and is enormous in size with huge arched ceilings, tons of beautiful carved stone figures, fine oil paintings colorful glass windows. The churches organ was undergoing major renovations and so many parts of the church were closed off.

After the cathedral we visited the Liechtenstein City Palace still privately owned by the Liechtenstein family after more than 300 years. Having recently undergone five years of renovation the palace appears in all its former glory. Held to be the first major building of the High Baroque age in Vienna with stucco ceilings, opulent neo-Rococo interiors and original furnishings. A selection of masterpieces from the family’s private art collection are also displayed within the residence. We visited about twelve rooms on the second floor, each more beautiful than the previous. Each was perfectly decorated with intricate parquet floors, upholstered walls, ornate gilded ceilings, fabulous chandeliers and was furnished beautifully.

Vienna is situated in the northeast part of Austria with the Danube running through the northern suburbs of the city. The Ring Strasse is the boundary of the Inner City or Innenstadt, with its fine architecture and many shops and hotels. An atmosphere of elegance and style of bygone eras prevails in this area. Art nouveau buildings line the streets of some suburbs, as Vienna was the birthplace of this then-controversial style.

Vienna contains more than 75 museums, grand palaces, shops, antique markets, international choirs and orchestras, as well as fine restaurants and cozy coffee-houses, which are very much part of Austrian culture. The Habsburgs who ruled the country for six centuries resided in the palatial Hofburg, which houses the Kaiser-Apartments and the Crown Jewels. Unfortunatley, time did not permit us to visit the sight.

With Ric and Kevin, we enjoyed lunch at a local restaurant where we had the pork schnitzel and French fries. We walked the city exploring the beautiful and elegant opera house, museum buildings, parks and monuments around every corner.

Some of our fellow guests took an optional tour with dinner in the Vienna woods, but we stayed onboard and enjoyed dinner as usual. Some professional dancers were brought onboard to provide entertainment and encourage guests to learn contemporary dances you could dance at a Viennese Dance. Not us!

Scenic Cruising to Vienna

Apple Strudel Demonstration

Vienna – Mark, Kent, Kevin and Ric

Vienna Music Hall Exterior

Vienna Music Hall Interior

This morning we enjoyed scenic sailing along the Danube River through the Wachau Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage Landscape area. The Danube is 1,775 miles in length and the most important river in Europe. Once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire, today it flows through ten countries, more than any other river in the world. We sailed through many small towns and villages filled with beautiful little houses, churches and castles and forts perched on the hilltops and enjoyed the commentary provided by the cruise director.

We had a demonstration on apple strudel making by Executive Chef Ketut and Pastry Chef Laszlo. The Viennese made this dish famous with their delicate thin layers of pastry filled with tart apple filling, sometimes with nuts or raisins. The pastry is made with flour with high gluten content, little fat and no sugar. The pastry is rolled out and stretched very thinly to achieve an almost transparent composition. Purists say that it should be so thin that a newspaper can be read through it. After dinner they served the apple strudel for dessert.

The afternoon included an insightful lecture on musical Vienna in anticipation of our exclusive Mozart and Strauss concert at the Kursalon Music Hall. We took a short bus ride to the music hall where we had a glass of champagne before entering the music hall for the performance. Once inside the music hall we were treated to a nine-piece orchestra that performed a variety of Strauss and Mozart pieces. Some of the works were accompanied with an opera singer while others were accompanied with a dance couple. The entire performance lasted about an hour and was absolutely magical.

Back onboard the ship we shared dinner in the dining room with Ric and Kevin and three sisters traveling together. Two of the sisters are from Buffalo, New York while the other is from Los Angeles. They have been a lot of fun all cruise long. After dinner a local dance couple showed us their fancy footwork as they taught the guests some local dances like the Waltz.

Austria: Geography & Quick Facts
Austria is stunningly diverse for its size, from the glaciers and snow-capped peaks of the majestic Alps to the dense evergreen ecosystem of its Bohemian Forest. Landlocked by other countries (Italy, Switzerland, the Principality of Liechtenstein, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Slovenia) Austria nonetheless is defined in many ways by water: its heart is the Danube, which flows eastward, carving territory through granite cliffs and nourishing the soil of the terraced vineyards of the Wachau Valley. The climate, though generally mild and moderate in Vienna, varies from the cooler Alpine region to the warmer eastern plains.
Area: 32,377 square miles
Population: 8,332,000
Languages: German
Capital: Vienna
Ethnic groups: Germans, Turks, Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, and Bosnians are predominant, with Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and Roma minorities.
Religions: Predominantly Catholic, with measurable Lutheran and Muslim populations.

Austria History: Though Austria is smaller than the state of Maine, it has played an outsized role in Europe’s political, cultural, and musical spheres. Its leaders have shaped empires. Elegant cityscapes have graced canvases and the silver screen. And lovers of Strauss have danced all night to the lilting tempo of the waltz.

Austria first declared itself an independent Bavarian kingdom in AD 976, it will forever be associated with rulers who would not appear for another 300 years: the mighty Habsburgs, a dynasty that ruled for 750 years and led Austria to its greatest years of glory. Crafting an empire, the Habsburgs added regions in Spain, the Netherlands, and as far away as Africa to their territory. Holding off the Ottomans and eventually helping defeat Napoleon, Austria established itself as a force to be reckoned with. The wealth of this stunning empire can be seen today in such architectural masterpieces as the 1,400-room Schonbrunn Palace and the elegant palaces and civic buildings along Vienna’s famed Ringstrasse.

Even among the countless powerful Habsburgs, one liege stands out. Franz Josef I, crowned in 1848, ruled for nearly 70 years, a reign which included the establishment of a tandem monarchy with Hungary. While he survived assassination attempts and political in-fighting, cities like Vienna (which became the musical center of the West) blossomed and he remained popular with the general citizenry for the stability he maintained. But he will forever be linked to the tragic events which ended his career and life: upon the assassination of his nephew Franz Ferdinand, Franz Josef declared war on Serbia, setting in the motion the chain of events that became World War I. By its end, not only would the emperor be dead, but the power of the Habsburgs diminished, his family’s rule over Austria forever ended.

While in some parts of the world, the end to one-family rule has occasioned the blossoming of democracy, such was not the case in Austria, where the next 15 years saw an unchecked rise in paramilitary activity and an increasingly authoritarian government so despised by the populace that many cheered on the nation’s annexation by Nazi Germany in 1938. Not all citizens welcomed this alliance, as many Americans recall from The Sound of Music, which showed the love of homeland that caused Captain Von Trapp and his family to flee Austria.

The ensuing terrible events—including the Holocaust—proved the Von Trapps right, and the end of World War II brought no immediate relief, as Austria was kept under occupation by Allied Forces – with many of its manufacturing resources and utilities under Soviet control – for more than a decade. Divided into four sectors administered by British, U.S., French, and Soviet forces (with a central “international” zone), Vienna became synonymous with post-war intrigue, captured in The Third Man, the 1949 film written by Graham Greene and starring Orson Welles. It was not until 1955 that Austria became fully free and independent once again.

The world was reintroduced to the Alpine charms and cultural richness of Austria when the 1964 Olympics were held in Tyrolean Innsbruck. By the time the Olympics returned to Innsbruck in 1976, The Sound of Music had caught the fancy of many Americans with its use of lovely Linz. Austria seemed to show up everywhere in popular culture, from Mozart’s Vienna in Amadeus to the mysterious Melk Abbey in The Name of the Rose. Travelers flocked to Austria, following the banks of the Danube as their route to discovery.

In these post-war decades, the government was led by democratically elected officials working together as coalitions of members from multiple parties. The economy, premised on both capitalist elements and social market values, boomed, and Austrians enjoyed a high standard of living as a result. Though worldwide economic downturns have affected Austria as well, its recession lasted a relatively short period compared to its neighbors, and Austria proudly boasts the lowest unemployment rate of any state in the European Union. From the Rococo palaces of its past to the cosmopolitan cities of its present, Austria once again shines like the crown jewel of Central Europe.

St. Stephen’s Cathedral

St. Stephen’s Cathedral Interior

St. Stephen’s Cathedral Ceiling

Mark and Kent

Ric and Kevin

St. Paul’s Church Interior

Mark, Ric, Kevin & Kent

Mark, Ric, Kevin & Kent

Passau Garden

We took a walking tour of one of Germany’s oldest and most picturesque medieval cities. Passau is set amid wooded hills and cliffs at the eastern edge of Bavaria, near the Austrian border. Ideally located at the confluence of the Inn, Ilz, and Danube rivers, Passau has acquired the nicknames “Venice of Bavaria” and “City of Three Rivers.” With charming cobblestone streets, graceful arcades, and Italian-influenced architecture, the town gives a sense of being more closely allied with northern Italy and the Tyrolean Alps than with cities to the north. Several buildings within the town are of interest, including the gothic Rathaus — with Bavaria’s largest Glockenspiel housed in its tower — and Veste Oberhaus, a towering medieval fortress.

The city’s most renowned site is St. Stephen’s, with its octagonal dome over the intersection of the nave and transept. The interior is mainly baroque, and houses one of the largest pipe organs in the world. The organ consists of five separate organs built in 1928 and housed beneath the octagonal dome. It has 17,974 pipes. Here we enjoyed an organ recital of six pieces of music from Johann Sebastian Bach to Max Reger.

After lunch back onboard, we ventured the short walk back into town where we visited the Glass Museum while Ric, Kevin and others enjoyed another bike tour. This museum is the largest museum on European glass in the world and focuses on the period of 1650 to 1950. The collection contains over 30,000 pieces with only about half of those on display. The museum is housed in a complex of four buildings dating back as far as 600 years. The collection was beautifully presented in glass enclosed cases spread out through four floors of the buildings.

We wandered through town where they have a great number of art shops, souvenir shops, antique shops and clothing stores. Everyone was eating ice cream. Most of the buildings in town are beautifully maintained and the shops are very modern. We stopped in to see the Church of St. Paul where the altars are all painted a rich dark black color contrasting beautifully with the white plaster walls. It is very unusual to see so much black in a church but it was very striking.

There is a section of town that is now a pedestrian only section where many of the modern shops, bars and eating establishments are located. Even here the streets are immaculately clean and the buildings are well maintained with fresh paint.

Our dinner this evening was a five-course wine pairing dinner. The service and food this evening was much better than last evening.

Regensburg Church Facade

Regensburg Church Interior

Regensburg Church Altar

Regensburg Bridge

Regensburg Cuckoo Clock

Regensburg Cuckoo Clocks

Due to the damaged lock near Nuremberg we were bused about 90-minutes from Nuremberg to Regensburg where we would board another boat, the River Splendor, for the continuation of our trip. Regensburg, a city of approximately 130,000, is located in southeastern Germany in the state of Bavaria, at the junction of the Danube and Regen rivers. Regensburg was undamaged by heavy Allied bombing during World War II and is thus one of the best-preserved medieval cities in Germany. Once we arrived in Regensburg we were taken on a guided walking tour of this delightful Bavarian town. We entered the old medieval core of the town by crossing the picturesque 1,000-foot stone bridge with 16 arches crossing the Danube River completed in 1146. It was the only Danube crossing for hundreds of years, and was the starting point of the second and third Crusades.

Among some of the other notable structures are Saint Peter’s Cathedral and the Benedictine Abbey. Saint Peter’s Cathedral is a 13th-century structure, housing a museum of medieval and Renaissance church art. The church is extremely ornate on both the inside and out. The Benedictine Abbey was an important epicenter of European learning. Among its many treasures are over 200,000 books and illuminated manuscripts.

After lunch onboard the boat we walked back into town where we attended a short presentation about the cuckoo clock. These clocks began in the Black Forest (it was so dark in the forest they found the sundial didn’t work well so developed the clock with sound to help tell time) in the 1600’s and have continued to become more decorative as time has gone by. Today the intricate clocks can have intricate carvings, moving parts, up to a dozen songs and many sounds of the cuckoo bird itself. They said that the cuckoo bird found in the Black Forest is known for laying its eggs in another bird’s nest and letting the other bird raise the baby birds. The young birds are also known for throwing the other birds’ eggs out of the nest, giving the baby cuckoo bird chicks more room.

We visited a new museum that had just opened on the waterfront featuring the history of Bavaria from 1800 to the present. The items in the museum were beautifully presented but it was difficult to navigate through the museum. It was a bit like a maze.

Back onboard the ship we unpacked in our new cabin before dinner. After dinner we were entertained by a local brass band of five young folks playing the trumpet, clarinet, bass and baritone. They played and showed us a variety of local songs and dances. They were not particularly good so there was a steady trickle of people leaving the lounge, including us.

Nuremberg Castle

Nuremberg Church Interior

Nuremberg Market Square

Nuremberg Fountain in the town square

We traveled the Main-Danube Canal, which connects the Danube and Main rivers, to get to Nuremberg. Nuremberg is a sizable city with a population of approximately 570,000 people. In 1806, Bavaria acquired control of Nuremberg, and in 1835 it became the final stop on the first German railroad. Today, Nuremberg is a beautiful, bustling city with the old mixing in with the new, but it also has a dark recent past: from 1933 to 1938 it was the site of annual conventions of the National Socialist German Workers (or Nazi) Party. It was at a 1935 meeting that the notorious Nuremberg Laws were put into effect, depriving German Jews of many civil rights. In 1945 and 1946, Nuremberg was the site of the Nuremberg Trials, the War Crimes Tribunal that tried Nazi leaders.

The city is known for its honey, toys, and spice cakes, and it was here that the first pocket watch in the world was made, as well as the first globe made by Mr. Behaim. Nuremberg was a great intellectual center of Europe in the 14th-16th centuries. It had the first railway in Germany, and it hosts the biggest toy fair in the world!

After a guided walking tour of the old town we visited a very large toy museum with over 14,000 square feet of vintage toys. Nuremberg was a famous manufacturing hub of all sorts of toys that were distributed around the world. They made everything from plastic toys to tin toys, train sets to board games, dolls to military figures. It was a very interesting museum.

For lunch we stopped at a local sausage restaurant to try the small finger-sized sausages that are famous in the area. They were served grilled, six, nine or twelve on a plate with mustard and potato salad. Also, on the tables were bread rolls and pretzels. The sausage was very good.

The main market square, known as Hauptmarkt is a large open space in the center of the old town where there were dozens of market stalls set up selling all sorts of fruits and vegetables, food items and sausages. We stopped to taste the local favorite sweet treat, gingerbread cookies. Ours were shaped in the round about four inches in diameter and tapered at the edges. They were very delicious although quite expensive (2.50 Euros each) by our standards.

Nuremberg is also the former home of the greatest Renaissance artist north of the Alps: Albrecht Dürer. He was a painter, printmaker and theorist of the German Renaissance. Durer established his reputation and influence across Europe when he was still in his twenties due to his high-quality wood prints. He lived from 1471 to 1528 and was in communication with arts greats like Raphael, Giovanni Bellini and Leonardo da Vinci.

After returning to the boat we attended a lecture on the Main-Danube Canal where we heard about the long history of connecting the Main and Danube rivers allowing for access from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. The canal supported trade and has only been completed since 1992. While they anticipated more commercial traffic, river cruises are the largest users of the canal.

Tonight, we had dinner with Frank and Mona, from Hawaii. They joined Ric, Kevin and us and shared some of their travel and life stories.

Bamberg’s Little Venice

St. Peter & St. George Cathedral

Madonna and Child

Bamberg Pub

Bamburg Town Hall

Building Ornamentation

The morning included scenic cruising and a lecture on the region of Bavaria by Dr. Markus Urban. Markus gave us the brief history of the region of Bavaria over the last century. We transited several more locks as we have a total of 66 locks to pass through before we arrive in Budapest. We also learned that one of the locks near Nuremburg has been damaged and will take another week to repair. During the repair period no vessels will be able to transit the lock. The plans are that we will go right up to the lock and then transfer to another Vantage ship that will be on the other side of the lock. The guests on the other ship will move into our ship and we will each continue our journeys. The only downside is that we must all pack and unpack on the new ship. This is expected to take place on Friday.

Later in the morning we were treated to a lecture and demonstration on glass blowing by Karl Ittig. He comes from a family that has been in the glass business for several generations. He is a friend of Dale Chihuly, the famous U.S. glass blower and artist and he teaches at the artist’s glass blowing school called Pilchuck Glass School near Stanwood, Washington. They manufacture all types of blown glass from napkin rings to olive oil and vinegar bottles and glass bowls to tree ornaments.

In the afternoon we arrived at the town of Hassfurt where we departed the ship and boarded buses for a 30-minute drive to the town of Bamberg. We took a walking tour of the historic town center. Bamberg’s German architecture dates from the 15th through the 17th centuries, as well as having an 11th-century Cathedral of St. Peter and St. George. The cathedral features four towers and contains the tombs of Pope Clemence II and the tomb of Emperor Heinrich II and his wife Cunigunde. There is a beautiful rose garden with a view of the old town, the tanners’ cottages by the old canal, the mill district and the fisherman’s village known as Little Venice. The city has a population of 70,700 and Bamberg’s industry includes beer as well as textiles and leather goods. Bamberg was ruled by prince-bishops from the 13th century until 1801 and annexed by Bavaria in 1802. It was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.

After some free time to explore Bamberg and have coffee and pastries, we were transferred back to the boat which had transited the river to the town of Bamberg. We stopped into a famous pub where they brew a beer which smells and tastes like smoked bacon. Those who tried it were not impressed. Back onboard our boat we enjoyed another nice dinner in the dining room with Ric and Kevin before beginning our packing and retiring for the night.

Wurzburg Church

Rothenburg City Gate

Rothenburg Garden

Rothenburg Half-Timber Houses

Rothenburg Church

Würzburg Residence Overview

Würzburg Residence Close Up

Schneeball Pastry

Würzburg, located in the state of Bavaria on the Main River, is the commercial center of an agricultural region most noted for its vineyards. The city is a leading producer of wine and beer and has a population of about 125,000.

In the morning we visited a medieval town called Rothenburg Ob der Tauber. This exquisite town is the highlight of the northern stretch of the Romantic Road. This meandering route connects southern Germany’s most charming medieval towns and villages. The architecture we saw here was literally the stuff of fairytales, since many of the most familiar tales and legends originated in these ancient towns, hills and valleys. Rothenburg Ob der Tauber is a substantial town that first came to prosperity in the 13th century. It is surrounded by a massive wall and intercut with cobbled lanes that lead from one charming view to another. The Market Platz, or Market Square, is fronted by a handsome Renaissance Town Hall of buff-colored stone. The interior of the Jakobskirche, (Church of St. Jacob), glows in the light pouring through magnificent stained-glass windows. It’s crowning glory is a soaring wood-carved altar piece depicting the Last Supper. We enjoyed walking around Rothenburg Ob der Tauber, taking in the medieval houses, the churches, and the public buildings with their squat cupolas, and pausing to admire magnificent views across the valley of the Tauber River.

Also, in Rothenburg Ob der Tauber is the Kathe Wohlfahrt year-round Christmas Village. This enormous holiday shop includes all types of holiday decorations from tree ornaments to cuckoo clocks and religious crèches to table linens. Within this store was a very interesting Christmas Museum where you can see the history of Christmas and its decorations. The museum has a large collection of beautifully decorated trees, tree stands, nut crackers, St. Nicholas’, glass cases of ornaments created through the years and more.

While in town we tried one of the local favorite treats called a Schneeball. This hard, crusty pastry is made from a shortbread like pastry and covered in chocolate, cinnamon, Hazel Nuts or Pistachio Nuts.

In the afternoon we visited Würzburg’s uncontested highlight, the Residence and Court Garden. This fabulously ornate palace took 24 years to construct between 1720 and 1744 and was built to house the region’s powerful prince-bishops. Once the construction was complete it took another 36 years to complete the interior. In addition to being one of Europe’s finest baroque structures, it houses a grand staircase that splits into two staircases as it rises above the main entranceway. The vaulted ceiling over the staircase includes one of the largest frescoes ever created. Measuring more than 60 by 95 feet and created by Venetian artist Giovanni Battista Tiepolo it soars overhead in a dazzling display.

Deservedly, this amazing edifice has been named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There are over 40 palace rooms open to the public although we did not have the opportunity to visit all of them. Most are ornately decorated with gold, tapestries, paintings and furniture from the Tuscan period. Unfortunately, photos are not allowed so I do not have any photos to share. We could have spent considerably more time exploring but that was not possible.

Our tour included a visit to the former Prince-Bishop’s wine cellar for a tasting with the sommelier. The cellar is filled with large wooden barrels and meanders from room to room under the palace, lit only by candlelight. The Staatlicher Hofkeller winery (since 1128) produces some 500,000 gallons of wine annually and most of it is consumed locally. We tasted four white wines including a Riesling and a dessert wine.

The city of Wurzburg is also noted as the home of the Nobel Prize-winning scientist Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen, who discovered Xrays in 1895. Architectural landmarks include a Romanesque cathedral, rebuilt after World War II; a 15th-century stone bridge spanning the Main; and the Marienberg fortress, which houses a museum with an extensive collection of Tilman Reimenschneider’s sculptures.

Back onboard our ship there was a lecture titled “Germany in the 21st Century: Changes and Challenges.”

For dinner we chose to try the small casual dining room at the rear of the ship where each day they prepare a light lunch and dinner. If you decide to dine in this dining room called the Cotton Club Lounge you need to make a reservation as it can only accommodate about 30 guests.

Half-Timbered Buildings

More Half-Timbered Buildings

Holocaust Plaques

Piano Museum Residence

Michael Gunther

Franck House

Unique Tree

On this day we docked in the charming small village of Wertheim with 24,000 inhabitants and took a short walking tour of the village. It was a national religious holiday for Pentecost so most of the retail shops were closed and only some of the food service shops were open. Many Christians in Germany observe the second day of Pentecost, on the day after Pentecost (Called Whitsunday). Pentecost commemorates the Holy Ghost’s descent on Jesus Christ’s disciples, according to the Bible. The village contained many half-timber homes beautifully painted and maintained. The cobblestone streets were clean and flowers could be found around every corner and in every window box. We visited the interior of the main church where the organist was practicing the organ. In this town as well as many others we see brass plaques in the cobblestone streets outside of buildings indicating where Jewish people killed in the holocaust lived.

After our short tour we headed to a small neighboring village called Triefenstein where we visited the largest private collection of rare 16th and 17th century pianos that are also in working condition. The collection is owned and maintained by Michael Gunther in his large private residence. He walked us through the progression of the first piano-style instrument, the harpsicord, that progressed to the current day piano. Michael is also an accomplished musician who played four of the instruments for us to hear the progression of the instruments. Very interesting.

For lunch we headed to the village of Marktheidenfeld where we enjoyed a barbecue lunch with some traditional live music in a large indoor structure resembling a country barn. They served up traditional German food like Bratwurst, sausages, pork, chicken, potato salad, a green salad, bean salad, cucumber salad and bottomless glasses of beer, wine and soft drinks. A couple of musicians playing the accordion and guitar sang both local German songs as well as a variety of American songs.

After lunch we were transported back to our ship which had transited the river to the town of Marktheidenfeld. This quaint town has a population of about 11,000 inhabitants.

We toured the Franck-Haus built in 1745, known as the home of wine merchant and salesman Franz Valentin Franck. They believe that Franck was the inventor of the first sparkling wine. The home has been beautifully restored and the main ballroom has been restored with ornate ceiling frescos. The residence is used today to house changing art exhibitions and also includes a coffee house.

There are some interesting ladies touring with us. One is 90 years old and is originally from Europe. She walks, dances and is a role model for us all. Another lady is traveling with her husband. However, she has Alzheimer’s and always has a smile, although we’re not sure she knows what is going on. There are three sisters from Buffalo, traveling with our group. They all appeared the first day with miniature crowns…indicating how they wanted to be treated…..they are a hoot. There are other gay and lesbian people traveling with us also.

Dinner in the dining room on this night included a wine pairing menu where they featured three different wines. The food has been acceptable but somethings have been excellent while others are not very good. That has been a bit disappointing.

Heidelberg Castle

Heidelberg Castle Ruins

Heidelberg View from the Castle

Heidelberg Kent & Mark

Heidelberg Library

Heidelberg Church

Ascaffenberg Residence

This morning we disembarked our ship in Frankfurt for a full day to Heidelberg, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Heidelberg most likely gets its name from two words “Heide” meaning pagan and “Berg” meaning mountain, relating to a nearby prehistoric pagan mountain sanctuary. Located in southwestern Germany on the Neckar River, Heidelberg has a population of about 160,000 inhabitants. Heidelberg is home to Germany’s oldest college, Heidelberg University and the 15th-Century Heidelberg Castle. Historic Heidelberg dates back to the 12th century and boasts not only history, but also a tranquil riverside setting. Today, it is a beautifully preserved medieval town that has been called the epitome of romantic Germany. Because Heidelberg escaped damage throughout World War II, many of the buildings in the Old Town are intact and are noteworthy examples of 13th-to 17th- century baroque architecture. Heidelberg is both a popular tourist destination and an educational and research center — home to the Institute of Nuclear Physics, Medical Research, Astronomy, and Foreign Public Law. The town’s many students lend a young face to an old town.

The castle is one of the most famous European castles, an imposing Gothic-Renaissance ruin of red sandstone that illustrates the history of Germany. The earliest castle structure was built before 1214 and later expanded into two castles around 1294. In 1537, a lightning bolt destroyed the upper castle. The present structures had been expanded by 1650, before damage by later wars and fires. In 1764, another lightning bolt caused a fire that destroyed some rebuilt sections. The castle has only been partially rebuilt since its demolition in the 17th and 18th centuries. What remains today is well preserved and quite beautiful as are the views from the castle overlooking the river, town and surrounding countryside. Inside the castle we visited the largest wooden wine barrel in the world that can hold 58,000 gallons of wine. Unfortunately, it was empty!

After visiting the castle, we rode a funicular from the castle to the town center where we took a walking tour of some of the highlights before enjoying lunch at a local restaurant. For lunch we were served a baked burrito-like rolled noodle tortilla filled with spinach, pork, broccoli and cheese. This was served with a potato salad, green salad, fresh bread and pudding for dessert.

Heidelberg is located in one of the warmest regions of Germany making it a place where almond and fig trees flourish along with olive trees. Rose-ringed parakeets and a wild population of Siberian swan geese can be seen on the islands of the Neckar River.

In 1938 the Nazi’s burned down two synagogues at two locations in the city and began deporting 150 Jews to Dachau concentration camp. In 1940 another 281 Jews were sent to Camp Gurs concentration camp in France.

Today, Heidelberg is filled with tourists enjoying the many restaurants, shopping at the many souvenir shops as well as visiting the many gorgeous churches and the castle atop the hill. The architecture of the buildings is quaint and charming, flower boxes are found at many windows and the cobblestone streets are filled with outdoor dining options.

While we were at Heidelberg the ship transited the river to the town of Aschaffenburg where we re-boarded the boat.

After dinner with Ric and Kevin, we enjoyed a local violin/cello entertainment group called the 4 Virtuosos (La Finesse) in the Blue Note Lounge onboard.