27 September - Melk, Austria

Today was the dreaded day when the Monarch Queen reached a section of the Danube which was too shallow to navigate. On the other side of the section of the river was the Monarch Baroness, our sister ship. So began a complex operation where the entire group of passengers in each ship was exchanged with the other. We had to have our bags packed and tagged and outside our rooms at 9:00 and at 9:15 we boarded the buses for the three hour drive to Melk in Austria. All our luggage was collected and moved for us, and presumably the same happened at the other end. Three hours later, including a much needed toilet stop about halfway, we arrived in Melk to find the Monarch Baroness waiting for us.

After a quick soup and sandwich lunch we then embarked on a bus tour to a fantastic historic monastery located here in Melk. This incredible complex which dates back 1000 years is a Benedictine Abbey which at one time housed up to 100 monks. Today that number is down to 28, and most of the Abbey is now given over to a prestigious private school (100 Euro/mth, Austria is a country which values education)and a fantastic museum.

It is a veritable treasure house of priceless artefacts and at one time the abby owned the Gutenberg Bible which was the first book ever printed on the Gutenberg press - today a priceless arifact. Hundreds of years ago the monks sold it to pay for the repair to the roof of the monastery and church.

Located in the middle of the monastery is a wonderful church, once again laden with priceless frescoes, paintings and artefacts.

Every room in this building is a priceless monument to the Baroque period and the art of fresco.

One of the most interesting aspects of the abbey is its library which also dates back almost 900 years. It occupies floor after floor of some 70,000 leather-bound volumes and is still an active library today. A stunningly beautiful room.

After this all too brief visit to the Melk Abbey it was time to return to the ship for a brief rest, and then our first dinner aboard the Monarch Baroness. When we returned to the ship all our bags had been transported from the Monarch Queen and placed in our cabin - an incredible operation.