Back to the future

Its so nice staying in a local building with windows that you can open for a fresh (and brisk) breeze! None of this 'locked-in-a-hotel-airconditioned-room-that-could-be-anywhere-in-the-world' if we can help it!

We wake with the city waking around us. The sounds of everyday life - a garbage truck, cars rushing on the cobblestoned street below. The building door shutting and a car starting - oh damn, he has forgotten something and rushes back inside briefly. And as we have our breakfast, a local resident is raking the leaves up from the lawn below our balcony. No matter where we are, life progresses just the same. Reassuring really!

First on the agenda this morning is a stroll through the Old Town. Once we manage to just drive into an empty parking space (thank you Frances), we first visit what is locally called 'the Parish Church'. Its full name is Kościół Farny Sw. Stanisława Biskupa (Parish Church of St Stanislaus) and it is known as one of Poznań's most impressive historic monuments. It was created as a Jesuit temple in the 17th century and has works of art by the best roman baroque artists. What is surprising is the interior space that although surrounded by typical heavy baroque works, retains its openness and airiness. And the colour is warmer than we have found in most of the baroque churches we have seen thus far - pinks and rich browns. And never ever believe it when a local tells you that their city is not a tourist destination - just as we arrive at the church, not one but two tour groups also arrive - one French, one German, with their respective guides trying hard to be heard over each other. And there are lots of smaller family groups too. And lots of locals inside, in reflective prayer. Yes, Poland is safely and staunchly Catholic.

Next it was over to the market square. Now this is one really big square - but with a bit of a difference - there are a series of buildings in the centre of it! Right in the centre is the Town Hall with a highly decorated facade and a magnificent clock tower. We are told that there is a great show at 12 noon daily once the clock has struck, so we will be back to have a look. Around the perimeter of the square today you find cafe after restaurant after bar. All have tables under large market umbrellas set outside their shops so that the square is ringed by people at tables looking inward to the people in the square. Many of these buildings are covered with intricate sgraffito and many too have fancy shingles hanging from their walls. We have enough photos of shingles to dedicate a whole book to them!

Beside the City Hall there are a couple of other buildings in the square centre. One must have once been the market hall as it is surrounded by an arched arcade. Maybe the buildings above these once housed the merchants. Michael demonstrates just how narrow some of these houses are. Bit too cramped for my liking I must admit!

And the Square is filled with statues and monuments - there are five fountains that house major statues - most of them from the classics. There are even elaborate statues on the top of the City Hall and a couple of the other buildings facing in to the Square.

So we wander, gazing into the shops and marvelling at the work of artisan craftspeople of days past. There is a Military Weapon Museum in one of the buildings in the centre of the square too. Unfortunately its not open today (whew I silently breathe!) so Michael must be content to look at the display boards set up that focuses on the Polish Independence Day declared in 1919 as an aspiration for Polish independence from Prussia at the time. The parade of the army camped nearby must have been stirring to say the least which was followed by a huge field Mass. The dislay also shows people of note from the Poznań area. As we walk back around to the face of the City Hall, we see one of those moments that belongs in some old slapstick movie - there is this building that is being renovated and on the scaffolding on four levels there are four workers, each identically dressed in dark blue overalls and bright yellow safety helmet. They all stand directly above one another, leaning on the railings, looking down. Ah, its ok - they are passing further scaffolding materials up each level to the top - but gee, it looked so funny!

Its now 11:40 am and if there was a single tourist in Poznań today, then they have all made a bee-line for the Square outside the Town Hall. Now, the show isn't until 12 noon, but no-one wants to be late! There are those French and German groups and they are joined by a smaller Japanese group, there are mums and dads with their kids, there are young lovers, and older couples too. The place heaves with people. Right on the stroke of twelve, everyone looks skyward to the set of doors just above the clock face. And once the bells have tolled the magical hour, those little doors open and two bucks (male goats) emerge slowly from their housing until they are fully on show, at which point they turn to face each other and promptly begin to butt heads - twelve times exactly! They then recede back into the safety of their little enclosure and just as quickly as it congregated, the crowd heads off to other places.

And then there is the guy who is just hanging around! From a huge bra!! I think it must have something to do with advertising the fact that the band Radiohead are coming to a festival in Poznań in a few weeks as it hangs between two posters. Hmm local curiosity I hope - doesn't do much for me, but as you can imagine it got Michael laughing!

Next, we are off to Biskupin - a drive of about 100 kms to the north-east. Both Chris and Gosia have told us that this is somewhere really worth a visit. And they were very right. We program Kate to take us off the motorways and so get to see a bit more of rural Poland. This is open wide and flat country and the farmers are busy harvesting and baling hay, ploughing the land and applying that stinking liquid fertilizer from the back of tankers pulled by tractors. And the towns we pass still exhibit the influence of the former socialist government in the form of those drab apartment blocks.
Once we arrive at Biskupin and park the car where the lass taking the money spoke no English, and us no Polish (it's OK, a hand holding up 5 fingers is easily interpreted correctly as 5 złoty), we decide to eat before exploring. Again, it was all dutch to us all, but shaslick is the same in both languages and they were good. Very delicious!

Now, Biskupin is one of those treasures that would have been lost for all time were it not for the keen eye and keener will of a local person. This is the recreation of an old settlement - a very old settlement. Discovered in 1939 by a local teacher who wondered what a regular line of poles sticking out of the marshes could be, Biskupin recalls the human habitation on this small peninsula that juts out into a lake system that dates back ten thousand years with the remains of a deer hunter's camp. Then there is a Neolithic Age house belonging to the first farmers - complete with a nearby inhumation burial, and an Early Bronze Age Kraal - a large settlement surrounded by a series of ditches. All these hae remnants remaining.

But by far the most significant site is a settlement from the early iron age. Fortifications, roads and buildings were incredibly well preserved in a form of peat which slowly built up over the settlement once the humans had left. It allowed for an amazingly accurate recreation of the a portion of the settlement to be done. After a range of dating tests over a period of seventy years, this settlement has been conclusively dated. The oak timber for the buildings was cut down between 747 and 722 BC but over half the trees were felled in the course of one winter - 738-737 BC! So yes, it is old.

The iPod audio guide is excellent and offers much more information. The reconstruction is amazing - using only simple tools as the original builders would have access to. Some of the features uncovered from the marsh included the original gates into the complex as well as remnants of buildings, part of the wall rampart and the road. The impression of the town remained buried deep in the murky earth - there were 13 long houses each containing between 3 and 9 seperated and identical dwellings and it is estimated that up to 1,000 people could have lived here at a time. Oh yes, our early ancestors were much more sophisticated than we give them credit for!

And in the museum attached to the settlement are relics found on site during the numerous excavations - including the skeletons of a number of people found in various burial positions. Yes, the actual skeletons, not moulds. They were a little shorter than us and probably died in the 40s to early 50s. There is evidence of weaving looms, and sewn clothing, of beautiful jewellery and religious icons as well as the anticipated arrow heads and cooking pots.
What a truly amazing site.

From here we head to Wenecja to have a look at the narrow guage railway museum. The museum itself was closed, and the rolling stock on show was fairly minimal and in desperate need of some tlc (tender loving care). But as Michael said, the cost of maintaining such is enormous.

Then to the Gąsawa to have a look at the Church of St Nicolas. Now, this is a true cultural gem. Built in the 1600's of larch wood, local officials asked the regional Prussian government to allow the church to be dismantled and build a new one when it was in bad repair in the 1850s. They only gave permission to overhaul the building when wall paintings were covered with a layer of reed and ordinary plaster, and forgotten for some 150 years. The interior of the church has been cleaned and today the beauty of the paintings is very obvious. The local custodian is very proud and despite us telling him English only, he chose to excitedly chat to us in - German! Still, we got the gist of what he was telling us!

The afternoon is barrelling along so we keep moving, going through Strzelno to have a look at the Church of St Prokopus - a round brick building that dates back to the 12th century on the hill next to the St Adalbert's Hill with its baroque Basilica where the 6pm bells are calling the faithful to worship. And come they do - quite a lot of them. They must get some big masses here because it is broadcast outside. I won't go in because we don't want to stay too long. We drive via Żnin before turning to head back towards Poznań. But there is one last stop we want to make at Gniezno to take a closer look at the Cathedral we had seen from a distance on our way out this morning. This twin-towered edifice can be seen for miles. Unfortunately it is closed by the time we get there, so we don't get to see the famous 'Gniezno Doors' - one of the most valuable romanesque monuments in Europe with their richly engraved bronze doors of 18 panels showing the life of St Adalbert (popular guy, huh!) dating back to the 12th century. Oh well.

And as we return to Poznań we see a new temple in the form of the Galleria Malta. Gosia reckons that it is a great shopping mall - the newest in town, but honestly, seen one, seen em all! You could be in any shopping mall in any city - although open for business, trade tonight is quiet. We buy some cakes and them stop at a chemist to re-stock on bathroom essentials. By now it is after 8:30 pm and we struggle to find somewhere to get dinner. We are both tired and can't be bothered cooking or going into a restaurant in town. We take a fruitless search for a pizzeria and end up with the dreaded Maccas. Oh well, predictable - we knew exactly what we were getting! It tastes just like their cardboard food at home!!!

Still searching for accommodation in Berlin - wish us luck.

My feet are killing me, but my heart is singing

Another huge day here in Prague. After walking a total of 4.55 kms yesterday, we slept really well (and even with the fan on!) and rose a little earlier this morning. Breakfast is a repeat of yesterday, although much less busy - there is only one other couple and us eating. The lass serving breakfast could do with a very healthy dose of cheer - she is only happy when we say thank you and goodbye. Yes, the tourist season is busy, and yes some of them can be demanding, but gee, if you choose to work in the hospitality industry is it asking too much for you to be a little hospitable??

Prague is very definitely the City of Towers. While I put the finishing touches on the blog for yesterday (and agonize over which photos to add), Michael takes a walk over the bridge to go up the Old Town Tower and brings this photo amongst others - isn't it fab!
My feet are bearing up remarkably well and I can't believe how easy it is to put my shoes on again this morning! We head out and almost as soon as we reach the street, I spy a porcelain shop across the road. I have been keeping an eye out for something small to buy as a reminder of our time here in Prague and finally, a few shops further down, I spy it. There in amongst all the china plates and mugs and servers are some large ceramic buttons in my favourite colour of blue and white and once inside I also find some amazing small ceramic bells for our christmas tree. I buy a trinket or three and Michael takes them back to our room as we know it is going to be a long day.

We are headed the opposite direction to yesterday - through the Lesser Town up to the Castle and back. The Lesser Town has been least changed through recent history of any of the areas of Prague. We start by walking up to the Lesser Town Square and its dominant building the Church of St Nicholas with its stunning domed roofs. And like many of the churches we have seen recently, this is an ornate baroque church. Now, at the risk of offending some with a little history . . . On second thoughts, read how there came to be some many baroque buildings here! One of the artistic merits of the baroque era is the use of cheaper materials with elaborate decorations so that at first glance they appear to be something else. This includes stucco work, faux marble and trompe l'oeils. So these vast caverns of marble and gold are not quite what they seem! There are a lot of people in here and again I am hot, hot, hot. Thankfully I have my little Chinese folding fan with me.

Back out in the Square we turn to follow the advice of two locals. Karim, our waiter at dinner on Saturday and Tony, our guide on the boat cruise last night who both suggested that we get out of the city and up to the Petřín Gardens by taking the funicular train. And so we head south in the searing midday heat to catch it up the hill. And thank god we did - there was no way I was going to walk up that slope! Now not only are the gardens an oasis of peace and quiet and beauty in the city, they afford a remarkable view back over the whole of inner Prague. Ah yes, there is definitely merit in asking the locals for a non-tourist tip! There are a few tourists here, but many more locals enjoying this little haven. The rose garden (the youngest of the gardens) was established in 1932 and is truly beautiful for all the senses as these are fragrant roses. We sit in the shade enjoying an ice cream for a few moments and watching the butterlies dancing in pairs and the bees busily buzzing about their daily tasks.

And while I finish my ice cream, Michael goes around to the Observatory, also located in the Gardens. And another of the wonders here - to add to a maze, a mirror hall and led horse rides for the kids - is that it is home to an observation tower that resembles the Eiffel Tower! Up 299 steps for spectacular views. Hah, they are great (and free) down on the ground from up here!

From here we want to walk around to the Prague Castle and St Vitus Cathedral. IT IS ALL DOWNHILL - steep paths and steps, lots and lots of steps. Oh, my poor hip. Thank god for the drugs! The walk takes us through shaded wooded areas as well as sculptured gardens. Some of the paths are covered in a fine yellow powder - pollen and crushed petals from a stand of trees.

We get glimpses one minute of the city below us, and then the next of the castle around on the ridge to our left in the next minute. Truly a lovely place and it is easily understandable why the locals love it. So far today is the exact opposite of yesterday - calm and cooler (now we are in the gardens) and with much fewer people around. A nice contrast, but we know that all of that is about to change!

For now we have reached the last climb up to Pražský hrad (Prague Castle). There is a steep slope of 200 m where we are jostling with the elbow of many others - back to earth with a thud! There are followers with their leaders and their silly flowers, and families, and couples young and old and the backpacker groups. There are walkers, and bikers and prammers! And we are either headed up to, or down from a castle that looks so amazing from its city below.

Once we are through the ornate gates, Michael goes to get tickets and manages to snap part of the changing of the Guard - with a cheeky young lady in tow! Our first stop once we have paused to take in the size of the first courtyard is St Vitus Cathedral. Entry into this gothic masterpiece is free attesting to the huge number of people wandering through it. Wow, it is amazing! Quite dark inside but probably because the stained glass windows are full of intense colours and they let little unfiltered natural light through. There is a Rose Window that is as nice as any of them we have seen anywhere. And then there are the amazing early artworks preserved on the walls. The pews are all roped off - presumably in an effort to keep people moving! We keep moving, trying to stay ahead of a group with a very loud Spanish guide.

Our ticket covers us for three restricted areas of the Castle grounds - the Old Royal Palace, St. George's Basilica, and the Golden Lane with Daliborka Tower. And while this doesn't sound all too much, please take note that the Cathedral is at one end of the complex and the Golden Lane at the other end with our other visit spots between the two. And this complex? Well, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, the Prague Castle is the largest coherent castle complex in the world, with an area of almost 70,000 m²!

And where the Cathedral was jam packed with people, the other areas are much much quieter - well, you do need to pay 250 CZK (€10) each to get in to them! I won't go on too much about them other than to give a brief description:
The Old Royal Palace was used for royal state ceremonies most recently and dates back to the 12th century. It has a fantastic view from its balcony right over the City and River.
St George's Basilica has an imposing facade because of the gorgeous red colour it is painted. Inside it is much calmer than the nearby Cathedral. It contains a wealth of history and its existence pre-dates the cathedral by a couple of hundred years. Today, only the foundations of this early church remain (still visible) with much of what is now there being also built in the 12th century.
The Golden Lane originated after the construction of the northern wall of the Castle. The area of the northern bailey was used for the building of modest dwellings, which are now the last remainder of the small-scale architecture of Prague Castle. They were inhabited by the castle servants, perhaps goldsmiths (the name "Golden Lane" is documented from the 16th century] and the castle marksmen.
And the tower was built and used as a prison and contains macabre instruments of medieval torture - I can only hope they were never used for real!

We are both pretty knackered by now and are both very hungry. So on our way out of the complex into the greater castle compound we see a sign for Lobkowicz Cafe that advertises a panoramic view terrace. Sure the view would be one of the best from the site - if it weren't for the trees! Still we do get glimpses. And lunch, though late, is very tasty. We just opt for something light - sandwiches - Tomato, Mozarella and Pesto for Michael and Prague ham, brie and spinach for me. Both toasted and we ended up sharing half each. Served with chips and salad - translated this means potato chips (crisps) and coleslaw! Tonic water - 2 bottles each finished it.

It is now after 6 pm. We head back down (yes, still more down, still more steep paths and steps) to the city below, walking through the Saint Wenceslas Vineyard and the classicist summer house Villa Richter. Its been a ripper of a day, although a long and arduous one for my hip. Am still surprised how well it is holding up! And no complaints from me!!

We walk back through the Lesser Town from near the Mánesův most (bridge) around to the Charles Bridge. The streets are a little quieter here, but then I guess most of the locals have headed home for the day. Of course, once we get back to the area around the bridge then we hit that people wall again!

About 8:30 pm Michael heads out to get some night pics and to take a walking tour - The Ghost Tour of Prague. He needs to head back across the bridge and in to the Old Town to the meeting point. Tour guide was good he says, but really, a little too corny for his taste - nothing like the fabulous one he did in Edinburgh! But a nice photo of Our Lady Before Týn by night as well as a few others.

So Prague comes to an end. We have managed to see heaps in a rushed two days, but have just scratched the surface. This is a city you could spend your life in and still not uncover all its secrets! And those towers, guess by now we might have seen maybe 10% of the official ones, but lots of unofficial ones as well. Tomorrow we head for Poland.

Yesterday: 4.55 kms walked, Today: 5.6 kms walked !

Salzberg - the City of Umbrellas and Melk the huge

The Jugengästehaus Youth Hostel in Salzburg has been renovated and this shows clearly that they are working hard to dispel any images of dark, seedy places, infested with bed bugs or worse. In fact, this one is one of the better ones we have seen – bright and hip, open 24 hours with a coffee shop and all mod-cons needed for today’s traveller. Once we had finished breakfast and packed the last of our things, and I had caught up with Hels, who is delighted at the apartment we have managed to snaffle in Paris, we head into Salzburg.

Trouble is, so has everyone else. Now, parking is a pain in the proverbial in most European inner city areas, but Salzburg takes the cake. The fortress castle sits high on a hill with the old city laid out in a ring around the base. The streets are narrow – designed many hundreds of years before for a population that walked and rode horses. Even the horses and carriages that at exorbitant prices are doing a roaring trade cannot pass side by side.

And the dilemma is that everything we want to see today is in that tight ring around the rock. So it is in to one of the four paid parking stations we go – well, we try to go! We end up having to wait for 40 minutes in a queue. The car parks are all full and will only issue a ticket and open the boom once someone else has driven out. So, with Frances unable to help, we have to wait it out! Once parked, there is still a bit of a walk to get in to the main plazas.

We walk in past the Opera performance stage – it looks so ordinary in the bright light of day! Once in the main plaza, the sights we want to see are all close. We opt to begin with the Cathedral. The first cathedral on this site was in 746 and later more than doubled in size in 1177, but was totally destroyed in a fire in1598. The current Cathedral dates from 1614. The US Air Force dropped a bomb on the church in 1944, destroying the dome and much of the interior was badly damaged. It was fully restored and re-opened in 1959. To look at it today, you are looking at that piece of art from the 17th Century. Today we are incredibly lucky. There is an Organ Concert about to begin in the Cathedral so we pay our few euros and join a couple of hundred other people to hear Master Organist Heribert Metzger perform pieces from Bach and Mozart. We cannot see the organist who sits behind a screen. But we feel his might! There is nothing like sitting in a grand cathedral with your eyes shut while the air around you reverberates with powerful music and the vibrations come up through the floor into your feet.

And while it thundered inside, so too did it outside! But by the time we were out, the rain had stopped and we were able to continue on our journey of discovery. Our next stop is at St Peters Abbey – the only Romanesque church in Salzburg. This church is smaller, yet just as ornate as the Cathedral. Its minor altars are set between the columns supporting the walls – quite unusual. You know, there is a sense of sameness to the churches we have seen recently. They are very ornate, generally in the baroque style and heavy with gilt and in Salzburg a focus on the four founding Fathers of the Church. And yet there is something unique about every one.
In the cathedral it was the four minor organs that frame the choir, and its sepia coloured frescoes.
In St Peters it is setting of the side altars, its very wide main aisle and detailed baroque scroll-work. Oh, and its ancient cemetery and catacombs that are set into the rock, way beneath the fortress. My brother Michael had told us about the cemetery, urging us to have a look – and we are not disappointed!

The next stop was at the Franciscan Church. It has a dark Romanesque nave built in the 12th Century, solemn and sombre, and a light filled gothic choir supported by five huge stone pillars. And although the high altar is ornate, the surrounding nine minor altars that are set in a semi circle behind it are quieter. The overall effect is a less gaudy church, much quieter and what you might expect from the Franciscan order!

Back out into the streets we go and inadvertently head through the Residenz Platz – home to the Residence Palaces of the Prince-Archbishops. And in the centre of this wide open space surrounded by elegant buildings stands the largest baroque fountain outside of Italy – the Residence Fountain. From here, we turn into the main shopping area of Getreidegasse – a narrow street even by those days standards, filled with the shingles of the myriad of traders. It passes by the Rathaus with its elegant clock tower.

Its now well and truly time for some lunch and a sit down for a while. Elbowing our way through the throngs, we find a little arcade that houses a small but very busy restaurant – Fabrizi Espresso, and find the last empty table. The menu looks inviting and we finally settle on a Greek Salad for Michael and Three Sausages with Kraut and Potatoes for me. They were fulsome and tasty and very very enjoyable. But what is that? The people at the table behind us have just finished a dessert and when we asked our waiter what it was he laconically replied ‘Salzburger Nockerl’ and advised that it takes 20 minutes to cook. So although we really didn’t need dessert, we order one. And true to his word, 20 minutes later the most exquisite soufflé is delivered with a flourish and served to us along with Himbeersauce (raspberry sauce – made with fresh raspberries). It melts on your tongue and yet holds its shape for a surprisingly long time. This is a Salzburg speciality and a real treat not to be missed! When I go to the toilet before we leave, I pass a kitchen smaller than ours at home with only the addition of a second stove, and while we were there they not only turned out a range of meals, but no less than 11 of those Nockerl!!

The last on our list of must sees today is the Collegiate Church. Turns out it is opposite the other end of this arcade! This is quite a different church – a brighter, lighter and less severe church. Presently undergoing major renovations of the high altar, we can only imagine how beautiful it is. The side altars stand out because most of the rest of the church is quite plain in whites and creams. Outside the Church, the Grünmarkt was in full swing with bakers, butchers, flower sellers, fishmongers and confectioners plying their wares to locals and tourists alike. Walking back to the car we find a small souvenir shop selling the cutest Austrian girl doll that yodels music! Had to have one for a special little girl!!!! AND she had a stuffed kangaroo sitting under the Alpine hats – so while all others say there are no kangaroos in Austria (and Michael has a photo of the tee shirt to prove it), she says yes, there is!

Its been a day of churches – and so well worth it. Now, these churches are literally within spitting distance of one another – were the predecessors here more pious? Or did they live their lives in such a way that they felt the need for more ‘saving’? Guess we will never know for sure! Michael must be well on the way to a conversion – LOL, but no, seriously, he is right when he says that you can tell so much of the history of a place by studying its churches. And they are so close to each other that it is impossible to take a photo from the ground where you can get the impressive domes and steeples of them all in the one photo – thankfully Michael got one yesterday from up at the fortress. Oh and we did get some as well from Untersburg – but there is no detail to those – they are so high up!

As we go back to the car to leave, I stop by a small market store and get some souvenirs – Mozart chocolates and apricot schnapps! We could easily have filled another week here, but must keep moving. Then we take our leave of Salzburg – or try to. Seems that just like this morning when everyone was trying to park at the same time, they are now all trying to leave the city together as well. It takes us forever to get out on to the motorway with Kate frustratingly giving us new arrival times every ten minutes, while also telling us “You are still on the fastest route.” OK, ok, I get it!

The route we are going is on a mtorway. I had looked at taking an alternate route, but it would have added 2 hours to the journey and as we have left more than an hour after we had planned to, we opt to just do the boring bit and go straight through on the motorway. While much of the journey is behind those big barriers they up to minimise noise, we get glimpses of scenery – the beautiful Lake Mondsee with the high mountains behind it, rolling pastures and healthy crops of corn and various smaller plots of cabbage, lettuce and other vegetables. We smell that acrid smell of cow poo fertiliser, just sprayed and still brown on the tips of feed grasses.

Austria is right in the heart of Europe and we pass under a number of directional signs that not only point the way to Austrian towns and cities, but also finger the way to the surrounding countries – Italy, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary! Cool.

We would have been happy to just get to Wien (Vienna) but OH. MY. GOD. What is THAT? We see this amazing amazing sight to our left on a hill. And then we are crossing the River Melk. Damn, I had forgotten to leave time for us to go and have a look at the Abbey at Melk. Bugger getting to Wien in a hurry, we turn off the motorway - this we just HAVE to see. I was hoping (desperately) that we might have been able to get really close, but no, we get to the car park - all abandoned and closed up snug for the night - oh well, it is just before 6 pm! But there is still enough light to get some photos, so we drive in to town, trying for the best possible vantage point. The trouble is that it is just so big that again we have trouble getting it all in one photo.

It is so impressive that it literally takes your breath away. High above the town, the sheer size of the complex is stupendous. This is one of the grandest pieces of architecture we have seen yet! In his book 'The Name of the Rose', Umberto Eco named one of the monks, Adso of Melk, as a tribute to the amazing library here of medieval manuscripts. Today, the buildings house a school for 900 pupils. Gosh, we must try to get back here and have a look at the buildings and the museum they contain. Sigh, if only we had more time! We knew we were never going to see everything in just one year, but boy oh boy, how we wish!

So back out on to the motorway (heading in the wrong direction for a little while [she blushes], but, honest to God Kate got it wrong - directing us to another road - soon rectified by a determined me!) On to Wien in the now waning light.

We hit Wien right on dusk - not a good time to arrive when you are looking for street signs etc. And we are coming from the opposite direction to that we arrived in 2006. Through the seedy side of town - the red light district. An interesting trip for sure with all the 'show' buildings and massage parlours. To early for interesting street trade though! We find the Youth Hostel fairly easily which is great because it is now well and truly dark. And joy of joys - our room ony contains bunks! Still, they are quite comfortable.

Michael goes in search of something light for dinner and comes back, two hot dogs in hand. Ah, but don't despair for us - they are not those plastic things on a sweetened roll, these are hearty sausages on long crusty rolls with the yummiest mustard pickles. Quite delicious! And so at the end of a day where our brains are bursting with the images of so many beautiful places, we hit the sack.

PS Antony and Amanda have hit a Kangaroo on their journey home to Darwin. Don't worry - we are told that they are OK, even though the car is very definitely not OK. We will update you when we have more info.