Follow Ed Heimel and Chris Klejbuk as we explore the USA and Canada. Trips began in 2013. See sidebar. Since Jan. 2013, over 220,000 miles traveled and 1100 days on the road. Over 700 blog posts written. 2023-We are closing in on 350th National Park unit. Photo below is Pacific Ocean by Big Sur, CA
Today is our last day. A full day in Budapest followed by a 3:15 AM departure from the Magni on Sunday morning. In order to see the much hyped Budapest skyline, we were up by 6 AM-and greeted by fog. Luckily we did not arrive at Budapest until 8 AM and the fog had lifted.
We found this orientation tour the best of the group. It included driving extensive portions of the historic districts, Freedom Square, and of course finished with a church.
Both the west (Buda) side and the east (Pest) side of the Danube had beautiful structures to gaze upon. We took our fill of photos from the ship before disembarking for a three hour combined driving and walking tour of Budapest.
There had been discussion of which city we would enjoy the most, Vienna or Budapest. Our vote would be for Budapest.
Similar to our other tours, our guide informed us of the history of Hungary and making the formerly two cities of Buda and Pest the new capital of Budapest . Both former cities are attractive, lively, and undergoing many improvements to infrastructure and buildings.
Central Market
After lunch we visited the Central Market, to us a super sized Reading Terminal in Philadelphia. Food stalls were jammed and the marketing of fresh food, souvenirs, and Hungarian made products went on fast and furious. We succumbed and purchased some postcards and a Christmas ornament for a ridiculously low price.
Central Market
We wrapped up the trip with a group toast in the lounge, an excellent meal, and gazing at the skyline as it was lit at night.
Thursday and Friday September 22-23 we were in Vienna, Austria. The morning excursion was a combination bus and walking tour that provided an orientation to Vienna.
The tour guide gave a history of Austria with a heavy focus on the Hapsburg dynasty and WWII. All of our tours have been quite candid about the horrors committed during WWII especially against the Jewish community in each town.
Vienna is a major metropolitan area with a high density, unlike much of the U. S. This density produces a vibrant active street scene with little car parking for the mass of 5-7 story buildings lining the roads. The architectural styles are quite attractive and pleasing to the eye.
Of course the palace and surrounding historical buildings of the Hapsburg dynasty are overwhelming. The opulence and massive structures draw your eyes in 360 degrees to try to absorb it all. One tour only gives you an overview, it was impossible to fully grasp the background and function of each building.
Our tour took us around the magnificent Hapsburg Palace, the winter home of the Hapsburg and inside St. Stephen’s Cathedral. We were able to get a brief glimpse of the Spanish Riding School and its Lipizzaner horses which are inside the palace grounds.
The Magni was docked on the Danube in Vienna, downtown but not next to the palace and museum area. In the afternoon we walked along the Danube admiring the view and amazed at the number of cruise ships present. Viking alone had six.
The Hapsburgs had a winter palace which we saw Thursday. On Friday we drove to their summer palace, Schonbrunn Palace. When the Hapsburg’s gave up the throne after WWI, the palaces became the property of the state. We only saw about 20 of the over 1400 rooms and got a glimpse of the huge gardens with its flowers, woods, lawns, sculptures and fountains. No pictures inside of course. The zoo and maze were another portion of the grounds we did not even consider trying to see. When you are on a tour, you follow their schedule.
Back side of Schonbrunn Palace
We returned to our ship for a late lunch since one of the passengers got lost and we left without him after waiting an extra 15-20 minutes. His wife and another couple stayed behind and were able to locate him and make it back to the ship before departure.
As we cruised to Budapest, we went through another lock on the Danube. This time it was daylight and I took a few pictures. The lock had two chambers, each holding two cruise ships, one lock had two ships coming up the Danube while our lock held another Viking longship also headed got Budapest. It was a little tight but both ships fit in the one lock chamber.
In Passau at the start of the day, cold, cloudy and a little drizzly
Tuesday and Wednesday we were in Passau Germany and Melk Austria
Passau is a town of about 50,000 people of whom about 12,000 are university students. The town has three rivers converging here and the old town area frequently experiences flooding. In 1662 Passau was destroyed by fire so there are no buildings that predate that time currently in existence.
The artist walk in Passau is clearly visible
As one would expect there is both a fortress and a major cathedral here. Our tour took us through old town, along the river, and finished at the Cathedral. The cathedral organ has 17,994 pipes, the most of any Catholic cathedral. The frescoes are undergoing a five year restoration process.
The fortress (top) and the cathedral
After the tour we visited the Passau Glass Museum, a real surprise. The museum has over 30,000 pieces of glass made in Europe between 1650 and 1950. It has the largest collection of European glass in the world. The museum is housed in an old hotel and spreads over five floors of large rooms and small, almost hidden alcoves.
The afternoon was unscheduled with some people taking an optional side trip to Salzburg-which was rained on heavily.
Melk Abbey
That evening we resumed cruising and Wednesday morning we docked at Melk Austria to visit Melk Abbey. Pictures are not allowed inside but it is an extensive building complex for a Benedictine abbey that has reached out to its local community to educate students and staff parishes. Monastic, cloistered abbeys were shuttered by Emperor Frank Joseph. The interior has amazing frescoes and paintings. The library here has over 160,000 volumes representing a trove of ancient works that have been kept safe for hundreds of years.
Wuchau Valley
In the afternoon the ship cruised the Wachau Valley of the Danube, a grand vista of river, bluffs, small towns, and castle ruins.
Regensburg was our touring destination Monday afternoon the 19th. Founded as a Roman camp in 179 AD, and not suffering serious destruction throughout its history, Regensburg has a wealth of varying architectural styles. Even the cobblestones are old, many going back hundreds of years.
The cobblestones on the right are relatively new, on the left are hundreds of years old
Just prior to Regensburg, we ended our time on the Rhine Main Danube canal and were now strictly on the Danube River. Our ship docked on the waterfront and we walked to the old city. As we were frequently told, ‘Blue Danube’ could easily refer to the idea of blue meaning drunk in German or from the reflection of the blue sky on a clear summer day. The water itself looks more greenish.
Quiet streets and alleys contrast with busy ones
The city is another university town and our walking tour went past portions of the city which were lively and some more deserted. I thought the cathedral here, St. Peter’s, was one of the more attractive ones, Many of these cathedrals are now owned by the state as maintenance costs are exorbitant. It seems that you will always find scaffolding around them since repairs take so long that by the time they finished it is time to start again.
St. Peter’s Cathedral in Regensburg
There was no opportunity to visit museums since Monday is the normal day for all of them to be closed. Instead we did some more walking and then returned to the ship for another excellent meal.
At the end of the day the sun came out and the temperature hit the mid 50s
Working on the blog in our stateroom on the Viking Magni
Sunday September 18th we were in Nuremberg Germany. We left the ship early and took motor coaches to the old town. The route took us past several of the areas and stadiums used for Nazi rallies. While riding, our tour guide discussed the history of the town, particularly its role during the Nazi period. At the end of WWII, the town officials did not surrender so additional and unnecessary destruction of the town occurred.
Nuremberg’s origins go back over 1,000 years and portions of the walls that defended the town are still visible. We toured parts of the Imperial castle with its grand views over the city. It was challenging to walk over wet cobblestones on a steep pitch up to the castle.
Leaving the castle we went down to the main market square which was busy with tents selling food and trinkets. The rest of the old town was less busy, it was Sunday morning and most stores were closed. At one side of the main market square was the Church of Our Lady with its clock tower, built in 1509. We were just in time to see its once daily (at noon) movement of seven Imperial Electors filing past the Emperor.
After returning to the ship and lunch, we had an hour presentation about the history of Bavaria. During the afternoon and evening, our cruise went through the tallest locks on the canal. At 81 feet deep, this series of three locks brought us to the highest point on the trip; after which we travel downhill.
In the main market square in Nuremberg with Church of Our Lady in the background
On our way to Nuremberg via the Rhine Main Danube canal
During the last two days we visited two towns, similar yet different to the casual observer. Wurzberg population about 100,000 plus 30,000 students and Bamberg, population about 70,000 plus 15,000 students. Wurzberg was about 90% destroyed during WWII and thus we were viewing buildings reconstructed after the war to their previous splendor. Bamberg was only about 5% destroyed and thus we were viewing buildings as originally constructed hundreds or even a thousand years ago.
First off we need to discuss a difference unknown to me previously and hopefully I can explain it correctly. Bavaria is the largest state in Germany. Franconia is a part or region of Bavaria. People in Franconia, including the towns of Würzburg, Bamberg, and Nürnberg, tend to see themselves more as Franconian then as Bavarian, even though they are technically within the Bavarian political boundary. This attitude colors the culture and traditions of this northern section of Bavaria.
Wurzburg came first and we toured here on Friday September 16. Coach buses brought us the short ride from the harbor to the start of our tour. The primary highlight of Würzburg is the bishop residence, a stunning re-creation of the former residence of the Wurzburg prince – Bishop that was built between 1719 and 1745. Unfortunately, photos are not allowed inside and we did not find postcards of the stunning art and decorations within this building. We did purchase a book but none of the pictures inside showed the entire fresco.
The front of the Bishop’s Residence in Wurzburg
The building has a grand staircase leading to a second floor area with a huge frescoed covering on all four walls. It is the largest fresco painting of one continuous piece. Next comes the White hall, an impressive room decorated with a new form of stucco ornamentation in white on a gray background.
This all leads into the Wurzberg Imperial hall. The room is highlighted by a vaulted ceiling combining aspects of the stucco ornamentation in the white hall and the colorful fresco painting at the top of the grand staircase. From there you are led into a series of rooms that are simply over the top. Gold mirrors, statuary, paintings, each room has a special focus that just makes you say wow.
Street scenes from Wurzburg
After a walking tour of downtown, old town Würzburg, reconstructed though, we had about 45 minutes on our own. Not enough time to hit a museum but enough time to walk around and enjoy the market stalls and busy activity in the city. Wurzberg came across as a very interesting town and one that, if we were to travel in Europe on our own, we would probably revisit.
From Würzburg, we continued on the Main river to Bamberg. We cruise through the night, with one of the locks on the Main river being 60 foot tall and taking us approximately 35 minutes from start to finish traversing the lock.
Our walking tour in Bamberg begins after lunch as we leave the boat and head to the downtown area. Bamberg had no major industrial or manufacturing significance at the time of World War II and thus very little of the town was destroyed. We were looking at original buildings throughout the city.
The old town hall, or Rathaus, is a beautiful landmark located on a bridge crossing a narrow river through the city. In Germany, couples must be at least married at the City Hall, although they can have church and other ceremonial weddings also. Both in Wurzberg and in Bamberg we noticed couples walking down the street with the bride in her white gown with cheers and cat calls from the beer drinkers lining the streets.
Rathaus in BambergBride and groom walking down a street in Bamberg Bamberg Cathedral
In Bamberg, we visited another of the many cathedrals which are signature structures throughout Germany. This cathedral is unique in that it has both an emperor and a pope buried in the church.
Architecture in Bamberg is a combination of Gothic, baroque, and Romanesque. Of course, most towns in Germany have their own specialty, locally brewed beer. In Bamberg, it’s a smoky beer with a flavor described as a cross between bacon and old burnt ashes. Since we don’t drink beer, we have been unable to provide you with any definitive flavor evaluation.
Rose garden at the New Residence in Bamberg
As the afternoon ends in Bamberg, we walk to our Viking longship and continue our overnight cruising to Nuremberg.
On the Main River heading toward Wurzberg, Germany
September 16, 2022
View of the inner lock wall from our state room balcony
First off, I need to make a correction. We did not begin traveling on the Canal as I indicated on the closing of the last post. We travel on the Main River prior to reaching the Rhine Main Danube canal. There are also numerous locks on the Main River, the first one we entered around midnight Wednesday night. There was a four hour delay in getting through that lock due to heavy commercial traffic.
While dictating this on Friday morning, we are still on the Main River. We are also still going through locks. One major difference between the Rhine and the Main Rivers is the presence of birds and wild fowl. A second difference is the decrease in the overall number of commercial shipping, despite the comment about the backlog at the first lock.
The Main River has 31 locks ranging between nine and 25 feet in depth. There will be 16 locks on the canal ranging in depth from 17 to 81 feet. Even though a number of them will be traversed during the nighttime hours, we will have sent more than our share of locks by the time the trip is over.
So, back to Thursday, September 15. We were scheduled to cruise all morning and part of the early afternoon. A glass blowing demonstration was scheduled for the morning. However, the artist was ill. Our Program Director stepped up to the plate and gave an hour and a quarter presentation on Viking longships and the lock and dam system we are experiencing. Frankly, we found his presentation more informative and enjoyable than a glass blowing demonstration would likely to have been.
Our primary shore excursion on Thursday was a visit to the small town of Miltenberg. The ship docked downtown and then we walked a few short blocks to the main street area. Miltenburg has a small main street but it has a still well preserved architecture of the traditional half timbered buildings that people associate with Germany and particularly Bavaria. It was difficult to not continue taking pictures of almost every building in town.
This is the way the shore excursion is described by Viking: take in the fairy-tale charms of Miltenburg by foot, the most intimate way to get to know one of Germany’s most delightful riverside towns. Begin your tour in the old town, following the cobblestone streets past medieval houses fronted with flower bedecked balconies. The town square, lined with half timbered facades, is one of the most picturesque in all of Germany, laid out on a narrow strip of land between the hills and manicured banks of the Main River. Nearby, the handsome and richly hued hotel Zum Riesen, Inn of the Giant, Germany’s oldest Inn, is a Renaissance treasure; it first opened its doors as a hotel in 1411 has been open ever since. You will also see the Mainz and Wirzburg town gates and catch a glimpse of Miltenberg Castle, built in the 13th and 14th centuries, high over the roofs of Miltenberg.
There was only about 1/2 hour between the end of the guided tour and the time to get on the buses for the short transfer to the ship. Once again, the ship proceeded further down the river while we were in town in order to keep on schedule since the buses travel more quickly.
This section of our trip focuses on castles, churches, and cruising. We have left the Netherlands and for two days have been on the Rhine River. This afternoon we passed through Kaub Germany with 20 centimeters of water between the riverbed and the bottom of the ship.
Sandbars on the Rhine
Kaub has historically been the location of greatest concern during periods of drought and low river levels. We saw sandbars in the river several times. I noticed that like the Mississippi River in the late 1800s , the Rhine in the Kaub area utilizes rock/stone structures in the river to force the current into the main channel. Yet in the famous Lorelei area, the river narrows considerably and deepens dramatically.
Yesterday, Tuesday, we stopped in Cologne Germany. In order to keep to a schedule, the ship stops prior to the city. Passengers then board buses for a 20-30 minute ride into Cologne. We spend several hours in Cologne while the ship continues at its slower speed and arrives in Cologne later. Archaeologists have a field day here as the city is built on top of ancient Roman walls, fortifications.and structures.
Part of an ancient Roman wall in downtown Cologne Cologne Cathedral
Chris and I went on the walking tour of Cologne where its Cathedral is the primary point of interest. The Cathedral was spared the level of massive destruction levied on the city during WWII. After the war, the reconstruction style was “concrete blah” (my words). Thus this bustling, modern city is not much to look at. The two museums that were on our personal list to visit were not open. We passed on the opportunity to sample the local beers and took a nap during the afternoon.
During the night and early morning hours we continued cruising. Our next stop was Marksburg Castle, one of the best preserved castles in Germany. Its fortifications protected it for hundreds of years and its lack of strategic significance spared it during WWII. Portions of the castle date back over 600 years.
Marksburg castle
Then, the Middle Rhine castles. We took up seats on the sun deck and admired the castles sprinkled among the bluffs, vineyards, and small towns. Cloudy skies and then rain could not eliminate the amazement one feels going through this stretch of river and thinking what it must have been like living here in a previous time.
The day ended as we left the Rhine River and began our journey on the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal.
On the Rhine River north of Cologne Germany. September 13
Monday morning on our way to Kinderdijk
Sunday September 11 we continued our pre-cruise explorations of Amsterdam. Today we participated in another of Viking’s guided tours where we just had to show up. The focus was on the Golden Age of Amsterdam when it was a leading exploration country and becoming wealthy through colonization activities around the world.
It covered two of the high priority activities Chris and I had identified; a canal boat tour and one of the top art museums in the world, the Rijksmuseum. It would also include lunch with Dutch food and a tour of a high end canal house. By the end of the day we would be exhausted.
Rijksmuseum
Viking arranged for our group to be transported to the Rijksmuseum where we and people from two other tours were divided into two groups of 12. Our guide led us on a two hour discovery of art by grand Dutch artists active during this time. One could probably spend days here but the presentation was a solid and interesting introduction into the topic.
A 90 minute canal tour followed.This was satisfactory but not great. The second tour guide gave the presentation and he was a bit rusty after working less during the past Covid period. Plus, we were starting to hear repeats of historical tidbits. However the day was sunny and warm so the canal tour was quite relaxing.
Leaving the tour boat we were thrust into the hustle and bustle of busy Amsterdam with pedestrians and bicyclists jostling for space. The group managed to make it safely to our lunch spot, the Blue Hollander, where we had stamppot and poffertjes.
Our last stop was at the Van Loon Museum where we toured the inside of a traditional canal house of a wealthy Amsterdammer. Frankly by this time we were tired and seeing how the wealthy lived was not terribly exciting. Finally getting to our ship was.
Viking provided a driver to get us to the Magni, our home ship for the next two weeks. Boy, I don’t want to drive in Amsterdam and not even sure I want to ride again in the Old Town area. I am not sure how the driver missed hitting multiple bicyclists on those narrow roads.
The Magni at Kinderdijk
The Viking longship Magni and its staff are all that we expected and more. While the room is small, it is well laid out and furnished, and even had a wonderful bouquet of flowers ( provided by Deb, Rebecca, Sarah, and Sarah). It Is cleaned or freshened several times a day. The food is excellent with a wide variety of options. Staff is friendly and helpful.
Our first expedition on Monday was to Kinderdijk; this is a UNESCO world heritage site. In this location, the Dutch people over 1000 years ago began their process of using windmills and dikes to reclaim and protect land from the sea.
Our tour guide has been living in this area for almost 50 years, but of course he’s not considered a native by the natives. However, he had wonderful knowledge and presentation style to explain the history of the Netherlands, the culture of the area, and the workings of the windmill system. Of course, modern technology has replaced the day-to-day operation of the old pumping system using windmills.
This shore excursion only lasted two hours and was on flat land with smooth pavement. Besides being a interesting sight to see, Kinderdijk provides an easy introduction to the guide system, checking in and off of the ship, and the use of the individualized speaker system that each person uses to hear the tour guide.
The Netherlands is flat. No news there. Scenery has rotated from the dikes, industrial and urban areas, a bit of small towns, and some shoreline scenes with some farm animals that are pleasant but not overwhelming.
I have been particularly interested in observing the commercial shipping along the rivers. So far, most of the boats have been much smaller than the 15 unit barges and tows we see on the upper Mississippi. Our Tour Director explained to me that the single barges with pushing boat are usually owned by a family. The family lives on the boat and you will frequently see gardens and cars parked on top of it. We have not yet experienced any of the locks.
Monday afternoon we had time to sit on the top deck, or on the veranda attached to our room, and watch the boats and scenery go by. We found it very relaxing.
As promised, these blog postings are a little lighter on writing from my past blogs. No descriptions of the dike system or the length of the rivers. That information you can look up yourself if interested.
Our view at breakfast of one of the many river cruise ships.
What a fantastic day we had! Initial thoughts were for a rainy day with a Viking provided walking tour in the morning, lunch of local Dutch food on our own and finally a tour of the Anne Frank House.
Well initially a rainy night gave way to morning clouds with sun and a few clouds in the afternoon. The lack of rain was totally unexpected, even our tour guide was predicting afternoon showers. Temps maybe hit 70, just glorious.
Part of the lock, dike and sluice system and a very narrow house seen on our morning orientation walk.
The two hour walk with a Viking guide exceeded expectations. John had dry humor with extensive historical knowledge of Amsterdam and the US. Throw in references to art and current cultural trends and it was a joy to listen to him and learn so much about Amsterdam. There were only 11 of us on the tour and the Viking provided earphones made walking and listening a breeze.
Chris had researched a local restaurant specializing in Dutch food. It was not far from the Anne Frank house but did not open until 1 PM. 90 minutes after our tour ended. Mom To fill the gap we had found two interesting (out of more than 50) museums. We chose the Museum of the Canal.
Views from the Museum of the Canal.
Another gem. Opened only about 10 years it provided a thorough explanation of Amsterdam’s history, focusing on the development of the canals and their impact on the city’s growth. Done through an interactive presentation with earphones tuned to your language, it was another winner.
We walked to our lunch establishment to find a notice it was closed today, no explanation. Around the corner was a small mom and pop bakery also serving take out sandwiches. We ordered two and with two Cokes we sat on a bench and ate watching the world go by.
Westerkerk
100 feet away from us was Westerkerk, the oldest continually operating Protestant church in the Netherlands. It was open and free today so we enjoyed examining it.
Picture on left of Anne Frank House, the brick one. Picture on right shows how the house was separated from the front half allowing it to escape detection – for awhile.
Our tour of the Anne Frank House was at 3:15 and included a 30 minute talk by a guide before we joined others to tour the house. Not wonderful but moving.
We spent a total of 9.5 hours exploring the city today. Throughout that time we marveled at the bikes, the boats, and the buildings. Bikes are everywhere in the central core. They ride with impunity basking in their moral and legal right of way. Canal cruise boats navigate the canals with moored house boats complementing the nautical perspective. But everywhere are the buildings, magnificent and a marvel of artistic differences. It was hard to limit my picture taking.
Chris Klejbuk and Ed Heimel travel adventure 
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