I Want to Ride My Bicycle (Dürnstein to Melk)

Cruising along the River Danube is a very pleasant way to travel and this morning, dear reader, we awoke and watched some picturesque villages drift past us. We enjoyed Vienna very much and it is on the General Douglas MacArthur list. You remember, "We will return". After the obligatory breakfast, we walked into the delightful little town of Dürnstein for a gentle start to the day.

The view from the cabin

Above the cluster of houses on a rocky outcrop is a remnant castle that gives the village its name. You are able to climb up to the ruin but we opted not to as the path is very slippery and steep. Instead, following a self-guided tour map, we wandered the cobblestoned streets and checked out the souvenir shops. 

The church tower

There were a number of ships in today and it was quite crowded in parts. Many shops sold a local version of schnapps although we decided not to partake due to the early hour of the day.

Flood levels - not a concern this year

The sneaky way into town

Like many towns of its day, Dürnstein originally had a town wall. The remnant is still visible at both ends of the main street. One end near the church, the other near the hangman's house. He wasn't allowed to live within the town centre. Curious. It's Ok to have someone do your dirty work for you, but we don't want to see him. Today, that residence is adorned with a large crucifix.

The remnant town wall and hangman's house.

The church is very small and ancient. I'm uncertain if it is still in use, as there was no furniture inside. The cemetery surrounding it certainly is and it is very pretty and well tended. The flowers planted on the graves were all in colourful bloom. 

Words not usually seen together: a pretty cemetery

Minimalist

Underneath the church is, well, an ossuary. Maybe. We've visited an ossuary in Italy, but the bones there were arranged and presented in a purposeful way. This one looks like a cavern of bones being tended by a teenager. Well, at least that is how I remember a teenager's room. I have photographic evidence but I don't wish to embarrass the favourite child.

Please tidy your ossuary.

The walk back to the ship was very pleasant although the view across the river demonstrated the European penchant for mobile home holidays which is not something we share. Back on board I changed into my bike gear in preparation for the much anticipated bike ride. In reality, dear reader, I put my knicks on under my shorts and swapped my T-shirt for my South Sydney jersey. It is essential that the 'random Souths guy' turn up in peoples' photos at some stage.

Random Souths guy - from a distance

The peloton

Now my dear reader, you know me, you know I love my bike. Probably a little too much. And, yes, I miss my bike. With that, we arrive a today's title, from 1978 and that brilliant band Queen. Anyway, I was extremely keen to go for the ride to Melk and 34 km along the banks of the Danube seemed like a dream. Until I saw the bike. It was described as a 'ladies bike' by one of my fellow riders. I demurred and suggested it needed a basket, bread stick and small dog to fill that brief. It had a seat that could accommodate the widest derrière, seven (mostly) unnecessary gears - not that they all worked, and it weighed more than my last three road bikes put together. It was a delightful ride that would have been elevated, significantly, if we'd had a better standard of bike. No, I don't mean like my bike, we saw plenty of other bikes from other ships that were superior to ours.

Leaving Dürnstein

There were a couple of different bike paths, one that stayed on the river and the other that was a little higher. As the song goes, we took the high road and meandered through beautiful villages and vineyards. It was picture postcard stuff, houses with flower boxes, historic churches, little pubs and restaurants populated by locals, tourists and people on bike rides. Sadly, we had a deadline and were unable to stop and enjoy the local hospitality and sunshine.

At about the 20km mark, we separated into two groups, the fast and superfast. This was a good thing because some of us were keen to push the legs a little harder. Shortly after we returned to the major cycleway and came across a 'bike stop'. It had a map of the cycleway with distances marked, a fresh water station and a repair station complete with tools. If only Australia could embrace cycle tourism. Sigh.

The final stretch was across the top of a lock and then down to the ship. One of the riders (I'm looking at you Peter) called for a sprint home. A little too early in my opinion, not that I would have been competitive in that company. Fourth place was a respectable finish.

You may be wondering, dear reader, how my epic cycling tour was captured, especially since I managed to forget to turn on my Garmin to record the ride along the Danube? Strangely, Jayne declined to accompany us on the bikes which freed her up to position herself on the ship deck to take random shots of the peloton as we periodically appeared on  the river banks.

Jayne also captured the sights of the postcard Wachau Valley as the ship raced us to our next docking point. 

The ship was still docking as we arrived so we had time to cool down. Once the gangway was down it was a quick towel down and then on to the next excursion - Melk Abbey.

The Abbey entrance

The Abbey, accommodating arguably the most prominent Benedictine monastery, dominates the Melk landscape. The Abbey has been home to the monks since 1089 and the complex has progressively been renovated and developed over the centuries so that it now houses a school for 900 pupils, a historic library, various Baroque buildings, cafés and gardens.

The courtyard

We joined a guided tour of the museum, the staterooms and the library before we were left to wander inside the Abbey itself. The defining feature of this church is the display of large gold statues of the various saints, around the interior. While statues are always part of the deal, they generally are not totally gold so this was a notable departure from the norm. Sorry, photography not permitted inside the main buildings.

The Abbey church

The view from the Abbey wall

After the tour, we returned to the ship for a port talk that confirmed that we will have to do a ship swap in 2 days time, due to the low water levels. The logistics around this will require an alteration the published programme of stops and activities and we will have to pack up our luggage ready for it to be transferred to an identical sister ship to continue our journey towards Amsterdam on the other side of the unnavigable stretch of the river. Not ideal but really a first world problem in the grand scheme of things. 

Low water level

We will hear more about this in the next couple of days but for now, tomorrow is as arranged, with a tour of Salzburg and all things Von Trapp!!!!!

Tomorrow hills are alive ...