Morning we arrived in Melk, and moored near another Viking cruise ship, so we crossed over their ship to get to the dock. A short ride brought us to the spectacular the Abbey of Melk, a Baroque triumph of architecture and decoration.
Many kings and queens stayed here on their way from Vienna to other places, as it lies about one day's journey from Vienna. One of the coolest parts was the library, a three-story extravaganza of leather-bound books and gold trim, which unfortunately we're not allowed to take photos of,
but here is what it looks like:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Melk_-_Abbey_-_Library.jpg
and the most amazing thing is that there are about 99 more library rooms in this massive abbey, housing about 100,000 volumes and 2,000 manuscripts. I could move in right now.
We then go through the lovely gardens, which from the map look large like Versailles, but in reality are small and sweet and very walkable. I am quite taken with a nice hillside herb garden, saying to Barney, "that's what I want for our yard." He reminds me that we do not have a hillside, alas.
But it is extremely quiet, amazing how much sound trees and shrubs absorb. Together we walk down through the small town, where it is market day, and Barney got involved in conversation with one stall holder and we ended up with some nice plum brandy, or as it is called in Eastern Europe, slivovitz. I remember that every September when I was a child we'd make this, from prune plums available at only that time of year, vodka and sugar, and let it ferment until Christmas. One year my Grandpa Norman got quite drunk on this and started telling us stories that none of us had ever heard, about his childhood, the dogs they had, working in the steel factory at age 11 (where his lost an eye, thereafter he had a glass eye and could never drive a car, but he had a long career as a carpenter and house painter). I think my mother recorded part of this on her cassette tape recorder, and there is
probably a copy somewhere in the boxes of stuff I brought home after she passed away. We had a lovely walk back through some quiet woods brought us back to the ship.
After lunch, the afternoon included a lovely trip through the Wachau Valley, with views of the tall terraced vineyards and the town of Durnstein, in whose castle Richard the Lion Heart was kept prisoner for a few years after a crusade.
With the steep, green walls of the valley surrounding us, warm weather and a brisk wind, we spend the afternoon enjoying the beautiful views and weather. it has been unseasonably warm this past winter, little snow and an early dry spring, so the ski industry had a bad year and there are concerns about the vineyards as well. More climate change. We pass under several low bridges where, on the top deck, we're literally told to stay low and not stand up. Time to get a tour of the wheelhouse, which Barney has eagerly awaited.
This evening we're going to Vienna for a concert of Mozart and Strauss, with my cousin Chris and his son Thomas. It was very well done, with a quite good soprano and a good baritone, a wonderful orchestra with an outstanding clarinetist who did a movement of the Mozart concerto, and two ballet dancers who danced to various pieces in an impossibly small area (I think I saw the conductor lean in once or twice as she was being spun around). The Hofberg Palace is a stunning sight at night, and I know we'll see it tomorrow in the daylight.
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