Passau, Germany

   Started off overcast, windy and cool but improved immeasurably as the day progressed. First thing this morning was to turn on the pool heater as the grandkids were coming over for lunch and a swim. The water was only 72F this morning!

    Tennis until 10:30 then I stopped by Judy's school to see how she was doing organizing her new classroom. It's a bit of a disaster area at the moment. Natalie and James had been "helping" her but they came home with me. She stayed for another hour and got a few more garbage bags filled. The room has been the domain of a (now retired) Kindergarten teacher who left everything behind. How exasperating!

   Next stop on the Cruise was Passau, our first stop in Germany (Durstein and Melk are actually in Austria) which is on an island between two rivers. We had a walking tour of the town centre including the cathedral. Back to the boat for lunch and we sailed at 3:45.  As soon as we were underway we had a strudel making demonstration by the head chef (the meals were all fabulous) followed by samples. Another fun quiz in the evening which my team won.

Interior of the cathedral - we stayed to hear the choir - wonderful!

Strudel making - he made it look so easy.

Durstein, Melk and the Wachau Valley

   Much cooler today and some rain this afternoon as I walked home from Bridge. I had several good hands and made the contract each time - my partner, Marie, had a Grand Slam - her first ever!

   I had to look in my diary to see where we went after Vienna - it was Durstein, an interesting town in the wine region of Bavaria, and a hike to a ruined castle overlooking the town and the river. After lunch on the boat we arrived at another town in the Wachau valley, Melk, where we visited a monastery. Bus there but we were given the option of walking back through the town, which I did, getting back in time for afternoon tea. As if we don't eat enough during the day! In the evening there was a lecture on the history and origins of wine. The weather was much cooler but still pleasant.

Interior of the church.

Exterior of the church.

View over Durstein to the Danube.

Entrance to the monastery in Melk.

Didn't quite make it all the way up to the ruined castle.

Vienna, Austria

   It has been overcast all day today, but quite warm - mid 20's. Two sets of tennis this morning and my wrist is much improved, almost back to normal. Kathy and I won the first set 6-2 but Cathy and Henry were up 4-3 when we had to vacate the court. I'd had enough anyway and was glad to stop.

   A rain shower later but not much so I was able to cut the rest of the grass this afternoon. The garden is looking very tidy, finally. I have some lamb chops marinating for dinner. It's ages since I had lamb - probably Easter -  but I will have to make my own mint sauce.

   Our next stop on the cruise was Vienna and we needed a bus to take us to the city centre. It was extremely hot again and although I enjoyed the walking tour, I was quite glad to get back to the boat. In the evening we had a demonstration and dance lesson of the Viennese Waltz which was fun. I got to dance with the instructor who really had me floating on air. 

Bratislava, Slovakia

    Overcast but warm for most of the day today. I cut the back grass and got the strimmer working on the borders. That should be it for the next week or two. A swim was called for after I had swept up all the clippings.

  Back to the cruise. After boarding the boat at Budapest and spending the day sight seeing, we set sail for Bratislava, Slovakia. We arrived early next morning  and went on a walking tour of downtown. It was extremely hot so we tried to keep in the shade.