Prague is one of those beautiful old cities in Europe that is steeped in history. It dates back well over a thousand years ago and has been an important cross road in history almost from the beginning.
Nuremberg is one of those cities whose name instantly conjures up images of World War II and the Nazi regime; so much so, that I wasn’t looking forward to visiting this city. I was contemplating doing a side excursion to another city instead. I am grateful that I changed my mind and toured the city of Nuremberg.
Regensburg boasts a colorful history of more than 2,000 years. It is ideally located on the Danube and its stone bridge provided the first stable trade route with Bohemia. This well preserved old town had a tradition of its most wealthy inhabitants trying to out-do the other by building towers.
Weltenburg Abbey is located on the Danube just north of a small town known as Kelheim. Kelheim is situated right where the Main/Danube Canal joins with the Danube making it a vital town along the waterway. Just up river, on the Danube at the entrance of the gorge is the most beautiful Benedictine Abbey. This monastery is the oldest in Bavaria and was founded in 600 AD. Currently there are only 6 monks living there.
We recently returned from a River Cruise on the Danube River with Avalon Waterways. We did a three day pre-trip to Prague and stayed an extra night in Budapest. What a fantastic experience this has been! If you are interested we would love to share our experience and learning's with you.
Passau is a beautiful city of three rivers. The Danube River flows out of the Bavarian forest. The Inn River is glacially fed and flows out of the Alps of Switzerland. And the third river is the Ilz River which flows out of Bohemia.
We took the opportunity in Linz to ride bikes along the Danube. There is a beautiful bike route the runs along the Danube River and passes not just through Linz but all the way to Vienna.
The Wachau Valley is a beautiful stretch of the Danube River that is known for its wine and fortresses. Carved out of the hills by the Danube River, the Wachau Valley is perfectly situated for vineyards.
Melk Abbey is known for its beauty and architecture. Perched on top of a hill overlooking the city of Melk the Abbey provides spectacular views of the city of Melk, the Danube River and surrounding countryside, as well as the Abbey itself. Melk Abbey is a Benedictine Abbey that has been in constant use over hundreds of years.
Vienna is one of those cities whose name alone inspires visions of romance. Like Venice and Rome it has a long storied history fraught with kings, artists, and composers alike. I have to admit what I imagined about Vienna and the realities of Vienna were two completely different things. That is not necessarily a bad thing. After exploring so many old towns full of narrow passages and cobblestone streets it was refreshing to find something different.
