On to Austria

We left Budapest late Saturday evening and it was our first experience at cruising on a river. We have cruised the oceans many times and I have always found it necessary to medicate myself at least until my baroreceptors got used to the movement, and usually to some degree for the entire cruise. So I was hoping a river cruise wouldn’t require that I be drowsy all the time. To my delight, I could barely feel any movement at all. Our cabin has a small balcony, so I was able to enjoy the sky and the moon passing by, but the trip was totally smooth. There wasn’t much to see other than trees and reflections off the water, so we turned in.

The itinerary had us arriving in Vienna around 7 pm on Sunday, and the only excursion that evening was a Mozart concert, on which we had passed. So because of the time it takes to get to Vienna, we really did very little that day. Except eat. Like all cruises, there is no risk of being hungry, and a huge risk of feeling stuffed all the time. But we spent a quiet day reading and watching the scenery go by. Between Budapest and Vienna, the route is mostly woods, so not the castles on the passing hills from the Viking videos. But as we approached Vienna, we saw more and more small cabins on the water. Whether these were for fishing, hunting or simple vacation cottages, we don’t know, but many of them had solar panels, and a few seemed to have TV reception.

We were very impressed by traveling through the locks. As we stood on our balcony, there was barely 2 inches between our ship and the stone face of the lock. We were told no one would be able to go out on the upper deck as the clearance was so tight that everything on that deck had to be flattened to the floor. When it seemed we were tucked into the lock as close as we could possibly get, the water began to rise until the stone wall was below us. Finally the gate opened and we were back on our way. That is some very capable sailing by the captain!

That evening, we had dinner with two ladies who happened to be from Pittsburgh, where Bob and I spent years. These days, with so many people having markedly differing views, we are careful to keep conversation away from those areas where differences could become explosive, like religion and politics. But as we dug deeper into our conversation with our Pittsburgh friends we all realized we were of one mind so we happily solved all the world’s problems as we enjoyed our dinner. Tonight was Weiner Schnitzel and warm potato salad for me. Bob stayed more traditional with a steak. The food is really quite good and the chef is everywhere—a gregarious guy who really seems to want everyone to enjoy their meals. Beer and wine are free with meals on Viking (although you can certainly pay $350 each for an upgraded bar experience) and there is plenty of self serve fancy coffee and sparkling water. The rooms are cleaned twice daily and the staff are pleasant and nothing is too great to request.

We got up early Sunday to have breakfast and head out to our tour bus toward Vienna. This stop is not as close to the City as Budapest, so you either use the supplied tour busses or navigate the public transportation. It was pretty dismal weather, low 50’s and raining, but there was at least a hope that the sun might peak through later in the morning. Our guide today was Veronica, who was, as has everyone been, well versed in the history and geography of the tour.

Vienna is the capital of Austria and the largest city on the Danube. It was once the largest German-speaking city in the world. Like Hungary, it was, as part of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire one of the most important regions in the world. Also known as the City of Music, Vienna boasts classical giants like Beethoven and Mozart. And because of Sigmund Freud, it is also known as the City of Dreams. There is evidence that Venice was inhabited as early as 500 BC, by the Celts. By 1440 Venice became the resident city of the Habsburg dynasty, who ruled until 1918, when the last Habsburg, Charles I issued a proclamation recognizing Austria’s right to self-determination. In 1919, the new government passed a law banishing any Habsburg from holding any public office forever, and that holds to this day. In Austria, anyone but a Habsburg can run for election to government. The Habsburg were vehement opponents of Naziism and Communism, and played a leading role in the fall of the Iron Curtain and the collapse of the Communist Eastern Bloc. They unfortunately were not so well versed in genetics, however, and intermarried frequently believing this would consolidate their power. This resulted in characteristic facial deformities, such as an enlarged lower jaw and an inability to chew property. The gene pool eventually produced numerous still born infants.

The city center, or Ringstrase, is beautiful, and like many old European cities, has architectural roots in Roman, Medieval and Baroque periods. St. Stephen’s Cathedral is the symbol of Vienna and is breathtaking. It is the tallest church in Austria, begun in the 12th century, and it is amazing to me how it could be built so intricately at that time. It is an active Catholic Church today.

After a bus tour and a more intimate walking tour, we had an hour to ourselves before getting the bus back to the dock. So of course, we chose to go to a Viennese coffee shop. Vienna is a major coffee city, and great coffee houses are everywhere. We passed two of the best, Café Central, and Demel, and the lines wove around the block. We peeked into Café Demel to see the confectioners performing their magic. But we settled for Café Aida, established in 1913. No waiting! We each had a coffee, and I had a Himbeertorte, recommended by the waiter when I told him I didn’t want something too sweet, and Bob ordered the Sachertorte. The Himbeertorte proved to be a raspberry over vanilla cream cake, and the Sachertorte, one of the most famous Viennese culinary specialties is a chocolate cake with a thin layer of apricot jam coated in dark chocolate icing and served with unsweetened whipped cream. They were delicious, and have already contributed to our waistlines.

We wandered around for a while, trying to exercise off a few of the calories, and returned to the doors to St. Stephen’s, where we met our group and our guide. We leave tonight for Wachau, Austria, where we will visit the Melk castle.