The Rivers of Germany

Our river trip from Vienna to Amsterdam has covered nearly a thousand nautical miles on the Danube and Rhine Rivers, which are connected by a man made canal. Some parts of it are very narrow. So narrow, that passing another boat can be a real challenge.

Tourism is a major industry in this section of Europe. River cruising here demands a special type of boat; the most important feature being a collapsible “pilot house” and “viewing deck“. Some of the bridges in the Danube River are so low that a normal ship could never pass underneath without this “special” feature.

We traversed over a hundred locks. Some of the locks and bridges only had (literally) inches to spare. One amusing passage (at least for the passengers) required the Captain to peek up from a “trap door” in the roof of the collapsed bridge. Only his eyes were visible as we “squeaked” underneath a very low bridge.

We arrived in Vienna a few days before the rest of our group. Mostly to hear some of the Classical masterpieces. Many were created here by some of the worlds greatest composers.

Although we only spent a few days in Austria, I found Vienna to be an especially pleasant place because of the music. We attended a concert with an exceptional orchestra and a small string quartet and we were fortunate to stay at a hotel right in the midst of town.

The interesting thing (and a wonderful addition to the orchestra) was an extra drum player. He interacted with the maestro in a humorous way that was very amusing.

We were introduced to “real” coffee and pastries while here. Good coffee is served with a glass of water. A sip of coffee; a sip of water…that’s how it’s done here. Another Viennese specialty is  “Apple strudel”.  HHHmmmmm