29 September - Budapest, Hungary

After travelling all night we had an early breakfast so that we could watch our ship arrive in the beautiful city of Budapest, the capital of Hungary, and our final destination on the Danube. It was a fairly grey and overcast day as we anxiously peered around each bend in the river to catch a glimpse of Budapest, and suddenly there it was. The first major building to greet us was the magnificent Hungarian house of parliament which looks like a palace from a fairy tale.

Then, as we glided slowly down the Danube we were treated to one beautiful building after another.

It was totally silent on the Monarch Baroness as we sailed very slowly into the heart of town, the silence only broken now and then by the commentary of our Cruise Director Jean Pierre who explained what it was we were looking at.

Shortly after, the ship spun on its own axis and we retraced our approach to dock next to many other cruise ships close to the centre of town. A few minutes later we were on our way to the buses for our guided tour of Budapest.

Our tour took us for a panoramic overview of the city before proceeding up to a hill where the church of St Matthias and the former royal palaces are located. The view over Budapest from here was absolutely spectacular and we spent just over an hour looking around and taking photographs. It was very busy - there are lots of tourists around even this late in the season.

We returned to the Baroness just before 1 pm and just in time for lunch. We spend our final evening on the ship here in Budapest and then vacate our cabins in the morning ready for the next cruise from here to Amsterdam. We are booked into a hotel here for three nights, before then flying to Dubai and then home.

28 September - Vienna, Austria

After our first night aboard the Monarch Baroness we woke this morning at our berth just outside Vienna the capital of Austria. This city must be one of the most culturally endowed places in the world. Architecture, sculpture, music, painting have all reached incredible levels as artists from all over the world have made Vienna their home. Museums and concert halls are everywhere, and it seems that it would take months to explore what this city has to offer. We were bussed from our ship this morning and had to negotiate the new modern, and traffic bound Vienna to finally reach the old centre which is resplendent with royal dwellings, museums and grand houses with a mixture of architectural styles reflecting the city's history.

 

When in modern times, excavations began for the city's metro railway system Roman ruins were discovered this display, right in the middle of Vienna shows the remains of walls and drainage systems which are over 2000 years old.

Vienna was for many hundreds of years the capital city of the Austro Hungarian empire, ruled over by the Habsburg dynasty and so the city has a fantastic collection of magnificent palaces which these days are used to house museums.

After coming to power, Hitler quickly annexed Austria and declared it to be part of Germany and there are many historical photographs and films which show him addressing the Austrian people in the square shown above while he was standing on the balcony of the building on the left.

Our tour this morning started with an overview bus tour, which gave us a quick idea of some of the main features of the city, followed by an extensive walking tour, once again with a terrific local guide.

She was very well informed about the history and the architecture of the city.

Following our tours we were then free to wander around and explore the city centre by ourselves. We quickly found a great outdoor cafe to enjoy some of the famous Vienna coffee, apple strudel, zachertort and in my case some Viennese sausage. Later, while walking down some of the very opulent shopping boulevards, we discovered a Maltese church, first established by the Knights of Malta. From the outside the only hint it was Maltese, and a church was a Maltese Cross above the door and a small sign which announced "Maltese Kirche".

On opening the doors which looked very much like the entry to an office or an expensive shop, we found a wonderful and very tranquil little church (John the Baptist) decorated with red and white flags. On reflection Vienna is probably the most beautiful city I have ever visited, and it would be wonderful to come back with sufficient time to explore it and all it has to offer at a more leisurely pace.

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.

26 September - Passau, Germany

We arrived in Passau this morning and woke to a crisp but fine day here on the Danube. We were docked right in the middle of town and at 09:00 were met by our local guides for a walking town of this beautiful city.

The tour focused of course on the old medieval part of the city, and the highlight for us was the Cathedral (St Stephens) which is very beautiful, and also has the largest organ of any church in the world. Each day there is a 30 minute concert performed on this magnificent instrument and we were able to attend - simply amazing. After lunch I went back into town to do some more exploring by myself. Being a medieval town, there are little alleys and stairway everywhere, and often little street pass right under some of the old buildings.

Passau, like most cities in this region is a photographer's paradise. Every few steps presents you with an interesting point of view.

Finally, at dinner time we were off and sailed into the most amazing sunset. 

We learned last night that despite earlier optimism, we will not be able to sail beyond Melk, due to low water levels in the Danube. That means that tomorrow we will travel by bus to the Monarch Baron, a sister ship to continue our travel towards Budapest. Will spend the evening packing.

25 September - Regensburg on the Danube

Our trek across Europe continues and today we reached Regensburg. We received some good news yesterday, there is enough water beyond Regensburg to continue without changing ships. Europe has experience a hot and dry summer and there has not been enough water in some places for navigation, but now it look like we stay with the Monarch Queen all the way.

Regensberg is yet another UNESCO World Heritage listed city here in Bavaria. It escaped bombing in WWII so it retains buildings and structures which date all the way back to the Roman period, nearly 2000 years. Once again our local guide took us around the city and explained the history of the most important buildings including the magnificent cathedral. The weather is getting steadily colder but once again we've escaped in rain, in fact blue skies prevailed today.

24 September - Nuremberg, Germany

When we woke this morning we had arrived in Nuremberg, the second largest city in Bavaria. This is a large modern industrial city but at its heart lies an old medieval city which is either intact from the middle ages or has been restored since WWII. Once again we were transported by buses to town and undertook a 90 minute walking tour led again by an excellent English speaking tour guide. There were several highlight on this tour. One of these was a walk up the hill to view the Nuremberg castle which was interesting in itself but also provided a great overview of the city. To its credit, Nuremberg has not allowed the construction of any building taller than the existing ones, so no skyscrapers. My main interest in Nuremberg though arises from the city's association with the early history of the Nazi party, and the war crimes trials which were held here after WWII ended. From the beginning of the Nazi party initially and the regime after 1933, huge rallies were organised to spread the Nazi message which led to Hitler coming to power in 1933. These rallies were held here in Nuremberg in a large field called the Zeppelin Field. Huge structures were erected to stage the extravaganzas we have all probably seen in historical documentaries.

Our tour included a visit to Zeppelin Field and to my surprise, the central portion of the great stage structure from which Hitler made his speeches, is still there.

The colonnades on either side have long been removed, but the central stand has been maintained. It was quite an sombre experience to stand on this spot which I had expected would have been demolished long ago. In 1945, months after the end of WWII, the leading surviving members of the Nazi regime were tried for war crimes by a tribunal organised by the USA, USSR and Great Britain. This process which has been well documented and recounted in a Hollywood movie starring Alec Baldwin (I think) was carried out in the Palace of Justice. This huge complex is a major court centre still in use today. The room where the Nuremberg trials were held is located in this building.

After visiting these sites and a walk around town we had an hour or so to stroll through a little market happening in the middle of town. We were in Bavaria so a bockwurst and sauerkraut was the way to end our visit to Nuremberg.

23 September - Bamberg, Bavaria, Germany

Once again, we sailed through the nights and occasionally felt a bump as we navigated more locks.
The river we are on at the moment, through the use of locks rises more than 400m to reach a point in the European divide which is the highest point reached by any ship through locks. Late in the morning the Monarch Queen berthed in Bamburg, another major city here in Bavaria.

 

Unlike many other cities in this part of the world, Bamberg was not bombed during WWII, and hence the whole inner city which dates to more than 1000 years ago is UNESCO world heritage listed. We were transported from the ship to the city by buses to met once again by very good English speaking local guides who took us around the main sights and sites on a walking tour.

Once again we were overwhelmed with the beauty of this city and its architecture which spans the whole range from medieval to baroque and to rococo. Although the forecast was for rain today, and we were equipped with our yellow umbrellas, the rain stayed away. As it was Sunday though, there was little opportunity for shopping and we had to be satisfied with a bratwurst from a street vendor and a coffee at the local bakery.

By late afternoon, it was back to the buses and to the Monarch Queen. Tomorrow is another day and our destination is Nuremberg.

22 September - On the Main River in Bavaria

For the past two days we have been sailing through the German state of Bavaria on the river Main. We have left the romantic Rhine behind and we are now on a smaller river with locks every few kilometres. As we travel upstream, the ship is raised progressively to higher levels. I have now lost count of the number of locks we have encountered. In some cases the ship only just fits into the lock and we can open our stateroom window and touch the concrete walls.
Yesterday, our first stop was Miltenberg. We arrived here nearly two hours late due to high traffic levels causing delays at the locks. When we berthed at Miltenberg, it looked like rain and we were all offered umbrellas to go ashore.

At this stage our prospects looked pretty grim, but as we reached the inner city both the wind and rain all but disappeared, and we were able to enjoy our guided walk led by a very good, English speaking local guide. The inner part of this amazing town has a history well in excess of 1000 years, and walking into the main street is a bit like walking into a fairy tale, with castles, crooked narrow streets and crooked little houses.

The whole town is like a living museum. Although our time was limited we were able to have a good look around and I even managed to buy a bavarian snack consisting of a bratwurst in a bun. We also managed to find a little cafe and had great cappuccinos. Our tour continued with a bus ride to the next town called Wertheim, which also immediately makes a visitor feel they have stepped back into medieval times. Despite some sporadic rain we managed to complete our visits to these marvellous towns and arrive back at the ship in time for a somewhat delayed dinner.

This morning we berthed in Wurtzburg, a very large town here in Bavaria, and the site of a 600 year old university. 

The ship just pulled up at the river bank where buses were waiting to take us into the city. Our guided tour took us to the Wurtzburg Residenz castle, which was the seat of one of the powerful Bishops who ruled these areas during the middle ages.

Once again, we were led by an excellent English speaking guide who, as a former architect explained the history and the baroque and rococo features of the amazing building. The building was extensively damaged by allied bombing in WWII, but has been beautifully restored. There are many beautiful rooms featuring wonderful frescoes and tapestries and it is obvious that no expense had been spared. One of the most beautiful rooms was the hall of mirrors. 

As photography is not allowed inside this building, I had to settle for a postcard from the gift shop. Finally, after another wonderful walking tour, we had time to walk back through the town and then along the river bank, where our ship, which sailed after we left it in the morning, was berthed. This whole area is stunningly beautiful and is part of the Southern Franconian wine growing region. All the hills are clad in vineyards and many of the hills have castles or other impressive building on them.

20 September, Koblenz and the Romantic Rhine

We awoke this morning in Koblenz which is a beautiful historic town located on the confluence of the Rhine and the Moselle rivers.

As usual we were greeted by local guides who provided a walking tour of the town. Like many towns in this region it was ruled by the Romans for 400 years, more than 2000 years ago, and there are still remnants of this era to be found.

After the tour, we walked to the point where the two rivers meet, where there is a beautiful park and an enormous statue of Kaiser Wilhelm seated on a horse. This statue is about the size of a three story building.

We departed from Koblenz as we were having lunch, and then spent the whole afternoon sailing down a section of the river called the Romantic Rhine. Here the river runs through a narrow valley and along its length are beautiful vineyards, picturesque villages, and mighty castles. Some of the castles are just ruins but many of them are still occupied.

Throughout the afternoon, the cruise director provided commentary and historical background as this beautiful and unique scenery glided by.

We were extremely fortunate that the weather was great and all the local vegetation was starting to display the autumn colours which in another few weeks will be absolutely spectacular.

This section of the Rhine has been navigable since ancient times, and during the middle ages, the castles were established to support military support for the villages below and the toll stations along the river. Local barons were able to extract a lot of wealth in tolls from the commerce on the river.

A very spectacular day with great scenery and beautiful weather.

The Monarch Queen berthed in Cologne this morning around 5:30 pm. A little while later I woke up and this was the view from our cabin window. We're here all day, with a guided walking tour starting at 09:00. It was quite startling to see the MQ berthed on the Rhine River.

Currently the Rhine water level is running at 1.2m but during the winter it can rise as high as 11m which would put our ship 10m higher than shown here. Our guide today was Ulricha and like all our tour guides she was excellent. Very well informed and spoke perfect English. She took us on a 90 minute tour of this city, which was almost totally destroyed by Allied bombing in WWII.

Like most European cities, Cologne is quite compact and before long we were walking through narrow cobble stoned streets. Cologne dates back to the first century during which time it was under Roman occupation. Caesar spent time here and there are remnants of the Roman occupation everywhere.

The only building in Cologne not totally destroyed was the Cathedral which is very impressive indeed. As you emerge from one of the little narrow side streets into a central square to finally view the Cathedral it is absolutely overwhelming.

The sheer size of the cathedral is most apparent when you go inside. Of all the churches we have visited on our trip, this is the most stupendous. It really is breathtaking.

Right opposite the Cathedral (or Dom as the Germans call it) is a 150 year old cafe serving traditional German pastries and coffee - apple strudel and coffee all around. We headed back into town later in the afternoon for some German beer and wine. We sail at around 9pm tonight.