Day 9-10. Up and down Danube river.

Blog is better read in chronological order. Previous posts:

1. The route
2. Day 1. Die Hängebrücke
3. Day 2. Conquering two peaks
4. Day 3. Glacier lakes and a small miracle
5. Day 4. From the top of the mountain to the depth of the earth
6. Day 5. Berchtesgaden. Rossfeld route. Malenwinkler rund.
7. Day 6. Klagenfurt
8. Day 7. Design city. Schwarzenegger's heritage.
9. Day 8. South to North.

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The next two days did not produce many pictures since we were busy - the first day - biking, the second one - driving.
Melk abbey is built on the high bank of the Danube river in Wachau, close to the famous wine valley. Cruise boats go up and down Danube, stopping at Melk and many other small beautiful towns and villages in this area. The wine valley can be explored hopping on and off the boat, driving by car or riding by bike. We took a bike downhill from Melk to Krems and then a boat back upstream.

The recommended bike route goes on the north side of Danube and the first couple of villages are not that remarkable. 

Then the vineyards start - steep long terraces with vines, formed by mountains, silt, Danube and human hands - interrupted by small cosy villages and wineries. 

Bike trail wound among the vines, mostly downhill, sometimes going up, busy with bikers traveling in both directions. The route is extremely popular among bike tourists, riding their bikes loaded with backpacks and probably staying in small villages along the way. 

Slightly higher went along the touristic railroad - Wachaubahn.

Weissenkirchen is a small village featuring a church with white tower (Weissenkirchen means "white church"). Besides vineyards surrounding it, if you want to learn more about Wachau region, you can visit Wachaumuseum situated here. 

Closer to the end of the valley, Dürrstein is the nicest town of them all.

The view to Danube from the town walls is amazing.

The narrow streets are filled with local restaurants and shops offering apricot (Marillen) products from jams to liquors and wines from the hills around.
We happened to be in the region in the apricot and chanterelle season and almost every restaurant served fresh chanterelle dishes as part of their tageskarte and there were places along the road where you could buy fresh delicious apricots just picked from the trees around.

We left bikes in Krems and landed in a riverside cafe waiting for the boat. At the next table a small cutie waited for the boat as well.. 

Danube is busy with cruise and cargo ships going up and down the river.

Not only people, but buildings themselves on Danube shores are very friendly and welcoming... 

On the next day before driving off to Wolfgangsee we came back to Wachau valley to admire its atmosphere again and taste the local wines (the idea of tasting it while riding bikes did not seem great to us yesterday). We found a nice vinotek around Weissenkirchen with a shady garden...   

... romantic pavillion for one ...

... and a couple of aboriginal sparrows, who didn't mind posing for the camera ... 

With this the Wachau visit was completed and we drove off to north-west Austria for some more hiking.

Day 8. South to North.

Blog is better read in chronological order. Previous posts:

1. The route
2. Day 1. Die Hängebrücke
3. Day 2. Conquering two peaks
4. Day 3. Glacier lakes and a small miracle
5. Day 4. From the top of the mountain to the depth of the earth
6. Day 5. Berchtesgaden. Rossfeld route. Malenwinkler rund.
7. Day 6. Klagenfurt
8. Day 7. Design city. Schwarzenegger's heritage.

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Next morning we set out to move from south of Austria back to its north, to Melk Abbey, which

caught our attention in 2013.  Last time it was being renovated, and we also arrived late in the evening, so didn’t get into the building and internal gardens. This time we planned 2 days to explore the abbey and take a day trip down the Danube river and back.

The route to Melk passed through the mountains. It was raining the whole way, so driving was not as easy as it could have been. In spite of that I enjoyed the surroundings: mountains half-covered in blankets of clouds, small villages on the mountain flanks, and the road winding up and down through valleys and forest. Sometimes next to the road a deep abyss would open, covered in trees and bushes, leaving you guessing how much further deep it goes.

The weather was gracious to us. When we arrived in Melk, it was hot and sunny again, and abbey looked gorgeous. By now it was fully renovated and also still open, so without further delays we went inside.

Inside I was amazed how rich, modern and beautiful the exhibition was. The tour guide talked with passion about the history of the abbey, the relics stored in it and interesting installations in some halls. One hall was illuminated green, another - blue, one hall had 11 sculptures symbolizing human's path from being born to maturity, leaving the 12th - state of enlightenment - out.

The abbey was rebuilt several times, last time in 18th century, last renovation started in 1978. Now it is finished. The balcony on the west side of the abbey (see on the right in the picture below) didn't exist until 18th century, now beautiful views to the city and the river open from it.

Behind the abbey there are gardens and a small shady forest with trails and thoughtful texts here and there. Stone pyramids found me again in this forest, and I erected one more:  

The Danube river has a small arm next to Melk, which created an island, where the berths are built for river boats coming all the way to Vienna. The island itself is covered in forest and has walking trails all over.  A bridge is leading to it, notable because it provides a perfect spot for panoramic abbey pictures.

In the evening, when Heavens decided we had finished our day, the black clouds came and it started raining.

But it didn't rain for long, the clouds passed and a beautiful rainbow decorated the sky above us.

 In the hotel I came to conclusion that stone pyramids are following me, there was one more waiting on the wall...

Day 7. Design city. Schwarzenegger's heritage.

Blog is better read in chronological order. Previous posts:

1. The route
2. Day 1. Die Hängebrücke
3. Day 2. Conquering two peaks
4. Day 3. Glacier lakes and a small miracle
5. Day 4. From the top of the mountain to the depth of the earth
6. Day 5. Berchtesgaden. Rossfeld route. Malenwinkler rund.
7. Day 6. Klagenfurt

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I couldn't remember why I picked Graz as a stop. One reason might have been that we wanted to visit Styria in general, since we haven't yet been there, but why pick Graz and stay for two nights - that will forever stay a mystery to me.

Graz is a small town, both literally (the name means "small town" in Slavic languages) and by population (about 300,000 in 2014), which does not prevent it from being a second-largest town in Austria and being for centuries more important for Slovenes than their capital Ljubljana.

The town left a mixed feeling of surprise and desolation. It was Sunday, everything was closed, there were few people on the streets, and the town itself didn't look very touristic or lively. Graz is famous for being the City of Design and indeed there were quite a few interesting buildings. Next to a church (below) sat a very peculiar cat:

 Another famous design element is the artificial island on the river Mur in the center, called simply Murinsel ("Murisland").

It didn't raise to expectations though - looking slightly unkempt and too simple to be a landmark. A couple of other funny things found today: a table supported by slippers, cafe welcoming "owls" ...

... a graffiti on a hot topic ...

... and a town core (claimed to be located in the geometric center of Graz):

The Old Town of Graz is one of the best preserved in Central Europe, although the town was bombed in WWII. It is known for its Schlossberg hill formerly hosting a castle (Schloss), Clock Tower with a small quirk and a double-spiral staircase in one of the buildings. 

 

There are tunnels inside the hill under Schlossberg, built as bomb shelters during WWII. They are easily accessible and also feature a lift taking you up to Schlossberg without much hassle.

From the top of the hill there are nice views to Graz with its "well yards" resembling those of Saint-Petersburg.

At one point it felt like we were back in Tallinn, with Viru hotel sticking out of sea of Old Town rooftops.

But the main pleasant surprise was not in Graz itself, but in a small village 10 km from it, called Thal, a birthplace of Arnold Schwarzenegger. There is a museum in his house, but the leaflet in the Tourist information office bluntly lied about its' opening times, so we were late and could only enjoy the entrance to the house... 

... and imagine how little Arnold ran around the wheat and corn fields.

The small walk led us to a local church, which turned out to be the landmark of the day. Built in 1618, rebuilt and completely redesigned in 1992-94 according to design of the painter Ernst Fuchs. I have never seen churches like this. Judge for yourself:

With this the day was over. Tomorrow a trip lies ahead over the mountains to Melk Abbey.