Vienna

The bicycle part of my trip is at an end.  It went so quickly like a bat of an eye.  The weather could not have been more perfect.  Sunny days with light winds and warm temperatures.  Fruit trees and vineyards were heavy with grapes, pears and apples.  Our leaders gave wonderful support and supplied snacks including fresh fruit twice a day.  Yesterday I rode 37 miles along the Danube River in addition to climbing the stairs to tour the Melk Benedictine Cathedral and monastery.  In the evening we had a fairwell dinner in a restaurant that had once been a wine pressing room.  This is the wine area of Austria called Wachau Valley.  We sampled some great local products.  Sunday we rode a boat on the Danube beginning in fog but clearing as we progressed to disembark and ride the bike paths alongside for 29 miles before boarding a bus to Weisskirken where we stayed in a historic inn from 1513.  Our room was on the 3rd floor, no elevator!  It was a charming place with a great breakfast.

There is much more to tell but I just wanted to give a bit of the flavor. (Just remembered yesterday in the distance at Durnstein after crossing the Danube in a very small ferry we could see the ruins of the castle where Richard the Lionhearted was imprisoned.  It was destroyed by invading Swedes at the end of the 30 years war for you history buffs.)

Today we went to the Sachre Cafe for the famous sachre tort and cafe and also had wonderful potato soup.  Tonight several of us will go to a music performance at the Hofburg Palace.  They will depart for US tomorrow and I will move from this 4 star hotel Stephanie to my one star Rick Steves recommended Pension Hargita.  I have a 72 hour transit pass and plan to make lot of use of it in the next few days.  Friday I take the train to Germany to visit friends the Lells (see October 2008 blog for the previous visit) until Monday when I will return to Vienna for my flight home early Tuesday.  Weather today still very warm though more windy.  No rain the whole trip so far.  Unbelievable.  Photos to follow on my return.

Passau Germany

Internet cafe late Saturday afternoon after a fantastic day.  We are having beautiful weather.  Passau is at the confluence of the Danube, Ilk and Inn Rivers.  Today we did a 22 mile bike ride along the bike paths bordering the Inn going on the German side and returning on the Austrian side.  There were some hills which are still a struggle for me but over all it was a wonderful ride.  We have great leaders and one of them cooked bratwurst for our picnic lunch along the river bank.  The group of 20 includes 6 Canadians, a couple from Iowa, a woman from Minnesota among others.  Tomorrow we will have a 2 hour boat ride on the Danube before beginning to bike on the path to Vienna that goes along the Danube.  Ceskz Krumlov in Czech Republic was a very interesting town though challenging bike rides.  Hotels have been wonderful as well as the food.  Good thing Iäm getting exercise!

Prague Czech Republic

This is being written after a long day and very little sleep. Please excuse any mistakes or craziness.  My transportation went well with my experiment of public transit to Miami airport via the Tri Rail.  My Lufthansa flight to Frankfurt was a bit bumpy and I had a snorer near by with it seemed a case of sleep apnea. The seats were three across and I had an aisle but the poor young man in the middle with long legs was poured into his seat.  All in all there wasn't much sleep.

My transfer in Frankfurt was arduous and the flight here arrived a bit late but the good news is that my luggage arrived and the tour rep met me at the airport.  She did a very thorough job of introducing me to my Prague map and assisting me with my plans for the next few hours.  I walked the streets for about 3 hours touring along the river with many boats out on the beautiful and very warm day.  I also saw the famous astronomical clock strike noon along with many many other tourists in the old town section.  I mostly just savored the day and the sights.  I couldn't light on anything or anywhere for lunch.  I'm a bit stymed by the 16.50 K currency is a US  dollar.  Seeing a lunch item priced at 75 or 105 takes my appetite away.  On the way back from the hotel I found a grocery store.  For less than 25 I had a banana, yogurt drink, and a multigrain roll with my cheese from breakfast.  It hit the spot.

I returned to the hotel to welcome roommate and biking friend Judy and she and I set out for 3 more hours of walking in the Castle area.  We saw many venues for concerts tonight and really wanted to go but our feet are finished and we need an early quit. We must be in the lobby by 8:30 to depart for our next destination Cesky Krumlov in the SW area of the country.

We enjoyed a good dinner at a small local establishment in the neighborhood of our hotel.  We were joined by Jan from Minnesota who will be part of our biking group.  She and I had very good goulash with potato dumplings (shades of Tony Kesman dinners) and Judy had a sausage with a salty pancake, better known as a crepe filled with spinach and mozarrella.

So ends two days rolled into one.  A good start I think.

Europe Fall '09

In twenty four hours I'll be over the Atlantic off on another adventure.  This time the old lady will be in The Czech Republic, Austria and Germany.  Transportation will include trains, boats, and bicycles as well as a lot of shoe leather (rubber).  My hotel roomate will be another Judy this one from Maryland who joined me last year for the trip from Amsterdam to Bruges.

Weather forcasts sound very positive (over 70 in the daytime!).It's been a hectic "turn around" from my Alaska trip and on my return I'll have to get on top of a lot of things.  The good news is that we haven't had to prepare for storms and hopefully that will hold true in my absence.

I've been riding my bicycle at least 3 times a week but only up to 15 miles at a time.  Hopefully I'll be ready for longer rides and the hills as opposed to "Florida's False Flats".

I make blog entries from time to time to log in my progress.  Na shledanou (nah SKLEM dah now) Goodbye in Czech