The Danube Valley

One of the earliest routes we had planned before we left London was the highly scenic stretch of the Austrian Danube between the towns of Melk and Krems. Eric had journeyed through here with the family back in '87 and could remember 'lots and lots of castles', but add to that the mighty Danube river, cycle paths and vineyards galore and you have quite an attractive mix really. Plus after years of belting out Strauss's 'Blue Danube Waltz' in the school orchestra, I was dead keen to see if the Danube was really blue...

A boat load of John Deere tractors cruising on the Blue Danube

Room with a view, Grein

Our first stop was a place known as Stift Melk, and despite its name it's a quite a serious place really. It's one massive behemouth of a Benedictine abbey, originating from the 11th century, rebuilt in flamboyant Baroque style following a fire in the 18th century (as the saying goes, if it's Baroque, don't fix it).

Stift Melk

The library. Wow! check out the ceiling!!

As impressive as it really is, a visit through its museum, coupled with the heat, did get quite heavy going at times, with the highly overwhelming religiousness of it all - relics of somebody famous' fingernails and all. The grotesqueness of a skeletonal saint enclosed in a glass case in a side chapel of the cathedral really finished me off and I was keen to move right along down the river before the 'melk' curdled for me any further.

Yes, that really is a skeleton in a glass case

Enlightenment

Krems is a very pretty town half an hours' drive down stream. It is also situated in the heart of the Wachau wine growing region, and was full swing in the middle of its spring wine festival. Every town in the region appears to have a "kellergesser", a street where all the wine growers live, and whose gardens form the actual vineyards as such. In good Wachau tradition, each neighbour takes it in turn to throw open the gates to their backyards and create a mini wine garden, offering the fruits of their labour, coupled with some seriously good home cooked food (if only at 1b Fisherton St!). It was quite an experience to be sitting in someone's backgarden of a late Saturday afternoon and sampling their wares at 80 cents a pop!

A neighbourhood tasting

Hey-diddly-ho neighbour!

As friendly as the locals were, it didn't take long for someone to offer to come and photograph us. In this case it was a very interesting older Austrian gent, whose excitement at finding out our origin led to a story about his former pupil's decision to immigrate to NZ a few decades ago (quite radical I gather from the conversation). Turns out this chap henceforth met and married a Kiwi, and their daughter happens to be none other than Claudia Reigler, our current NZ Olympic representative skier! (gotta love Austrians!).

View from the kellergesser

We had great weather during our time here in this particular bend in the Danube, so that offered us the perfect opportunity to hit the cyclepaths. We headed back up stream past a couple of likewise pretty villages - Durnstein and Spitz, passed ruined castles, wild flowers, the flowing river and more vineyards. Thirsty work indeed!

Cycling past Gruner Vetliners

So privileged to be travelling here alongside yet another mighty and famous European river, and quite exciting to know that we will be hooking up with her again soon - as she journeys through the big smoke of Budapest, and on to create the border between Romania and Bulgaria on her way to the Black Sea...we'll report back on her soon!

Dusk falling on the Danube