Garth Brooks!

Judy, Mel and I had a fun sister's night at the Garth Brooks concert in Grand Rapids on Sunday night.
An awesome concert - Trisha Yearwood sang four songs, they sang a duet and Garth played all his "oldies!" It ended with about a 45 minute encore!

Welcome Home!

Thanks to Judy for the taxi service back and forth to the airport! We arrived in Detroit about 6 pm last evening, had dinner on the way home and went to bed as soon as we got here! Felt like 2 am to us! So good to sleep in our own bed but wide awake around 4 am!

We are spending the day getting our body clocks back to Michigan time, unpacking, doing the laundry and making a grocery list. Guess, I need to start cooking again too!

Roger has been on the phone with Comcast most of the morning! A great way to replace relaxation with frustration!

Back to "real" life!

Budapest - Day 2

We disembarked from our ship this morning and took a taxi to the Hilton Hotel in Buda - with a beautiful view of the Danube out our big window. So glad we decided to stay an extra day and explore my favorite city of the tour!

Buda

The "Chain Bridge" between Buda and Pest

The tile roofs are gorgeous!

There is a memorial to the Jewish people who were killed during World War II on the banks of the Danube near where our ship docked. It is one of the most moving memorials I have ever seen - no explanation needed - just a grouping of bronzed shoes, men's, women's and children's along the river where they were shot and dumped into the river.

Jewish Memorial in Pest

We spent the day walking all around the quaint area near our hotel - cobblestone streets, beautiful old homes, cafe's and churches. We had lunch at a fun outdoor cafe and a delicious dinner at a small bistro. Then we walked it all again at night!

A sauerkraut sausage in a bun for lunch! Rinsed down with a beer of course!

The "last supper"

We toured a hospital built in a bunker under Buda during World War II and then later used as a safe zone by the Revolutionists fighting the Communists in 1956. An amazing museum. It is hard to imagine seeing Roman ruins in one area and then think of them fighting Communism in the same area in our lifetime.

Roman ruins near the bunker hospital

This cruise has been a trip of a lifetime and we are glad we shared it with our good friends, Mike and Lorraine Lynch - thanks for the memories!

Fisherman's Bastion in Buda

Fisherman's Bastion at night

The Parliament building in Pest

Mathias Cathedral, near our hotel in Buda

Budapest

It was a beautiful day as we sailed into the port of Budapest. We were scheduled to dock at 7 am so I got up early to see the city as we arrived but, the ship was delayed in one of the locks during the night so we didn't  arrive until 10 am. Actually, it was a blessing in disguise because we sat up on the top deck with our coffee and enjoyed the scenery as we cruised down the Danube for the last time.

Buda is on the south side of the Danube and Pest (pronounced Pesht) is on the north. Buda is considered the "old town" while Pest is known as the busy, active "newer" city. Both are wonderful.
We enjoyed a bus and walking tour this morning and then we walked around Pest this afternoon.

The second largest Jewish Synagogue in the world is in Pest (the largest is in Manhattan) and has a lovely "Tree of Life" sculpture that looks like a weeping willow - the leaves at the ends of the branches are engraved with holocaust victims. The city streets are lined with shops and cafes and of course, as with all these European cities, there are huge government palaces and gorgeous cathedrals. Unfortunately, the other thing the cities all have in common is the destruction caused by World War II. It is amazing how well they have recovered and reconstructed but, damages are still evident.

The Mathias Cathedral in Buda is different in that it isn't decorated with marble and gold but, is painted throughout the interior and is named for a beloved king not a saint.

Thermal baths are very popular here and the main spa is located in a gorgeous old building. We did not bring bathing suits so we didn't pay to go inside.

Vienna - Day 2

I snapped a couple pictures of the Lipizzaner stallions, at the Spanish Riding School, before they announced no photos please! We watched them practicing (in the stable with chandeliers and classical music playing!) but they only do their full performances on the week-ends. They are born black and then gradually turn gray and then white - just like us! - only they do it in about 8 years!

Spanish Riding School

The dome of the Spanish Riding School

We spent the rest of the day wandering around Vienna. It doesn't take long for one of the cafes to lure us in for cappuccinos and pastries, where we sit and people watch! Shopping was limited because all the stores in the main square are "high end!" We had lunch at a fantastic Greek sandwich stand in the local food marketplace. I bought a bag with a picture by the famous Vienna artist Gustav Klimt who is known for his work using gold leaf.

Vienna

Our first day in Vienna started out with a bus tour followed by a walking tour to St. Stephens Cathedral – another church covered in scaffolding! I remarked that even though everything seems to be in some stage of repair, we never see anyone on the platforms working! The churches need money to pay for restorations so they sell advertisements on banners strung across the scaffolding. Our tour guide said last year there was a lingerie model in bikini pants and a bra out in front of St. Stephens until the locals protested!

Vienna is the largest city in Austria, about 1.8 million people, including the many university students. In 1515 it was the home of the Hapsburg family that ruled Austria  until 1918. To insure their continued reign they supported inbreeding with various family members until this plan resulted in various genetic defects that eventually ended their reign!  All the wealthy people wanted to be near the “court” so they built their own palaces nearby. Now Vienna has 800 of these old “homes” that are housing department stores, restaurants, museums, libraries and apartments. Here is a picture of a lovely old baroque building whose street level houses a McDonalds!

There are horse drawn carriages giving tour rides and vendors dressed in “Mozart” type clothing selling tickets to the classical music concerts.

Germany is home of the “biergartens” and Vienna is home of the “coffee houses.” Of course you can’t resist one of the scrumptious pastries to go with your cappuccino! We had lunch in a lovely old cafe but we never know exactly what we are ordering and it’s never what we expected – but, so far all has been good!

The weather was lovely this afternoon so we took advantage of it and just walked through beautiful gardens (there are many acres of “green space” in Vienna) and past many impressive buildings. We even figured out the subway system and got back to the ship!

We have enjoyed meeting so many different couples at dinner - each with their own unique story. Everyone is intrigued by our life style!

All the spirea bushes remind me of my grandparents home.
There was a hedge of them between us and Greiners

Melk and Krem, Austria

The Melk Abbey, a huge Benedictine monastery from the 17th century, looms over the small town of Melk. In those days the churches were made to "impress" and this one certainly accomplishes that goal! The public rooms are filled with paintings, jeweled religious artifacts, intricate robes worn to say Mass and fine furniture. It was financed by taxes paid by the poor tenants! But, many of the treasures were gifts from visiting royalty.

We visited on a Sunday morning while Mass was being said in the main chapel and heard this beautiful soprano voice singing the hymns - can't imagine what they do for Christmas or Easter!

We walked through the town on the way back to the ship and stopped in a small shop for a cappuccino and ended up buying apricot liqueur and candy too!

The ship was in Melk only for the morning and then we went on to Krem. There was a May Day celebration there with people in typical Austrian costumes dancing in the town square near the May Pole. A little beer drinking going on too!!

The wisteria and lilacs are beautiful!

The trip down the Danube was beautiful - more hills than we have seen previously - remember, they are "alive with the sound of music!" -  covered with vineyards. Castles were around every corner!

The chef made us a traditional Austrian meal with sausage, cheese, dumplings, schnitzel, roast ham and pork. An accordion player and his son, with his guitar, serenaded us during dinner. Don't think I have ever hear "New York, New York" played on an accordion before!!