After breakfast, I took some pictures of Passau, Germany from the sun deck. There are some uniquely colored homes across the river and a pink church on our side of the river. I hope we have time to visit Passau when we return to the ship this afternoon.
Mom, Aunt Peggy and I opted to go to Český Krumlov in the Czech Republic. Dad stayed behind to do the walking tour of Passau, Germany instead.
We were bused about 100 minutes away on a ride through the Black Forest of Bavaria and across the border into the Czech Republic. It was a pretty drive. There are no more border crossings under the EU, but along the way, we did pass the former border crossing zone.
Our first stop at Český Krumlov was a mass exodus to the bathrooms. Again, this would make another interesting entry into Tineke’s restroom break book that she is talking about writing! HA! All the men were done in like 10 minutes, but there was still a line of like 50 women yet, and so Sandor stood guard at the door while some of the women used the men’s facilities.
Silva, our local guide, gave a wonderful walking tour of the city. We learned a great deal about the history of the town, the castle fortress that dominates the city, and the changes made to the country since Czechoslovakia was split into 2 parts: the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
We walked across the Vltava River and into the town center. It was charming! We learned that many of the buildings had been painted with brick lines or other decorations rather than add the actual details. So the buildings had the appearance of splendor, but then when you got closer to them, you realized that the decoration was just painted on the structure.
We walked to a lookout area, which gave superb views of the castle and all of the buildings below.
We had lunch at the Old Inn Restaurant, which was excellent. Dick and I went outside to take some pictures during lunch, and we spotted Sandor, Tineke and Lubo eating out on the deck. So I asked for their picture, and then I gave Sandor a hard time…”Do you never smile or what?” He just stared back.
After lunch, we had some free time to explore or shop on our own. Aunt Peggy opted to go shopping, and Mom and I headed off to the castle. There is an official castle tour that you can take, I think. At least, I saw pictures of some of the rooms you can walk through, etc. But Mom and I didn’t have all that much time, and so we opted to just walk up the 200+ steps to the top and take pictures of the view below. It was quite a hike up there, but we loved it all. The view of the village below was well worth the extra steps. It was spectacular!
Soon we were all packed back into our buses and our way back to Passau. Once we got back to the ship, Dad was waiting for us and was up for more walking, and so the 4 of us along with Susan, Dick and Audrey headed into Passau to explore the city. We wound up touring 2 churches on our own.
We thought we were at St. Stephen’s Cathedral, but we soon learned that we were in St. Paul’s Cathedral instead. HA! The walls were almost a dusty pink, and the light was really good. The altar was magnificent, and we loved the church, but it was quite clear that this wasn’t the one we had been told about. The organ was not that big and certainly not the famous one we had heard about.
So we set off to find St. Stephen’s Cathedral, which has the world’s largest pipe organ. We found it. The outside was under construction (as were so many churches in Europe on our trip), but one look inside the church, and I was mesmerized. The amazing frescoes on the ceiling set it apart. It was gorgeous, and the pipe organ was massive! It was hard to take it all in. I didn’t want to leave. This might just be my favorite church so far!!
Walking in Passau was fun. Part of the city is on a hill, and so you often need to go up or down the hill to get from point A to B. We happened to find one souvenir shop still open, and there Aunt Peggy finally found the unique gift she had been searching for. WHEW!
We hurried back from the shop to the ship for dinner. “Hansi” the one man band came on board in Passau for our evening entertainment. He was jovial and good fun. He had the most unusual moustache. It was unbelievably HUGE! I think it really must be his beard, and that he just curls it up special as a performer or something. He acted as if he didn’t know much English, but my guess is that he knew more than he let on. J
He had members of the audience help him perform with his band, and it was hysterical. I was just glad that I didn’t get volunteered. AHEM!
Favorite Thing or Funny Moment
- Me: The view from the castle of Český Krumlov below was magnificent!
- FEELING: Amused!
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