Melk to Durnstein. This would be another day that the ship sailed from one town to another during the day. Our excursion of choice was to do a bike ride along the river while the ship moved. But we had time in the morning to do a quick walkabout of Melk, with it’s wedding cake of an abbey up on the hill. We didn’t have time to do the Abbey excursion, so we didn’t get to see inside, though we heard it was beautiful.
After a quick bike tutorial, and lunch onboard, we headed off on our 35km bike ride. There were about 40 of us that did the ride through small towns, along the river and through some vineyards. It was beautiful, but we were warned not to take pictures while riding (safety concerns), and we couldn’t really stop enroute because we travelled as a group. We did get a few rest stops along the way, but not the most picturesque of locations.
We arrived in Durnstein later in the afternoon, and had the chance to explore this lovely town on the hill as dusk set in. Scenic° arranges a “Sundowner” event each cruise, and for us, this was in Durnstein. At about 5:00pm we all gathered at a restaurant for drinks and some local entertainment to end our day. Altogether, one of the more memorable days. Both towns were beautiful, the bike ride was fun and the get-together was entertaining and gave us the chance to visit with more of our fellow cruisers. And then, of course, another great dinner onboard to cap it all off.
The Melk Abbey, up on the hill above the town.
The picturesque town of Melk.
The entrance to the abbey. We did go into the courtyard, but didn’t have time to go into the abbey itself - we had to get back to the ship for our bike-riding tour.
The abbey courtyard.
The first pit stop on our bike ride. Scenic° provides these power-assist, collapsible bikes. Took a bit of getting used to, but the power-assist (you still have to keep pedalling) did help going up the few inclines we had.
Don’t remember the name of this little town, but – there was an old castle up the hill. It was a bit odd for the fact it wasn’t on top of the hill, leaving it vulnerable to attach from above.
Our ship sailed passed as we pedalled. We later talked to some people who were sitting in the small heated pool up top, having a drink as they sailed past. We got some fresh air and exercise. I’m not sure who had the better idea.
A section of the Danube that we had just ridden along (on the right-hand side).
The town of Dürnstein, with castle ruins up on the hill. King Richard I of England (the lionheart) was held captive here in 1192.
The very old, very quaint streets of Dürnstein.
We climbed up the hill towards the castle ruins. This is the town of Dürnstein (at least the old part of it) with the spire of the Dürnstein Abbey, rebuilt in 1710 in a Baroque style.
The castle ruins. We didn’t get any closer – we were losing light, and it was going to take another 20 minutes to get back down into town.
We assumed these were just regular garden gnomes, and not statues of some of the past citizens of the town.
The date on this old building was 1437! It’s not a taverne anymore – it is now a clothing store. Too bad – would have been fun to have a beer in a 580 year old pub.
There were a few establishments like this – where they sell wine by the glass, and you just stand around at a table outside, or inside and sip your wine. The area is known for it’s wine and liquors made from fruit, in particular from apricots.
A little something to nibble on (this was for 8 people) while we were entertained at our Scenicº Sundowner event.
A local singer, entertaining us while we sipped and nibbled. He and his accordion playing partner were a lot of fun. After our "Sundowner event", we made our way back to the ship for more food and drink! What a great way to experience these small towns along the Danube.
NEXT: (Day 8) - Vienna, Austria
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Danube River Cruise - Oct 2017