The Princess of Namedy Castle

Once upon a time, in a castle far, far away, there lived a Princess. There were many rooms in her castle and, as there were only a few servants, most of the rooms were empty or full of years of fading memories and bric-a-brac. The Princess was very lonely.

One fine spring day, the princess was sitting by the window of a room high in the castle. There below her was a small but bustling village nestled between a low, jagged outcrop of hills and a broad, sparkling river. People were busily going about their simple lives. Ladies were shopping at the market, young children chased each other through the narrow winding streets, and porters were carrying goods to and from the many trading boats crowding the small river port.

Suddenly, around the river bend, sailed a long elegant ship. It was full of people from a far and distant land enjoying the magnificent scenery whilst laughing, drinking, and sharing much merriment. Oh, how the Princess wished she could meet such joyous and carefree people.

Immediately, a curious idea popped into her head! “I could tidy up the castle, clean out some rooms, and invite these people to visit me!”

So off she rushed, directing servants hither and tither, until the castle was spotless and bright.

“Send word to APT!”, she announced. “I want only the best of the tours to meet me in this magnificent home. Bring me also the best young pianists so we can have fine music with our merriment!”

So began the close and enduring relationship between the Princess, APT, and the fun loving people from the far and distance land. Now, the princess is never lonely, and the people tell of her generosity by word and blog throughout the world. And, of course, they all lived happily ever after (except quite a few of the tourists, because they were very old and only just survived the trip!).

Note: Everything (mostly) in this fairytale is based on a true story with minor variations because the real story is longer and less fairytale-ish. Feel free to ask me for it in person!

We had to get a little glammed to meet a real Princess!

Not the grandest castle but Namady was still impressive.

Champagne and hor d’oeuvres.brings out our best!

Wendy and her gym buddy Rosie who, with her husband Richard, are sheep farmers from NZ. Despite this, really nice people!!

Royal garden

The rear of the castle from the garden.

Not sure this was the original colour…

Chopsticks?! Oh, Chopin!!

Dinner at the rowdy table! Unfortunately, raucous laughter quickly turned to fits of coughing due to a rampant flu that infected about 95% of passengers.

The Mirror Hall has incredible acoustics and is the dining/performance room. Incredible!

Medieval: Part 2

Our German language skills are not great. We know the obligatory: Greetings – Hallo (Hello), guten Tag (good day), bis später (see you later).

Food – brot (bread), apfel (apple), bier (beer), kartoffel (potato).

Vehicles – flugzeud (aeroplane), auto (car), schiff (ship).

A lovely friend of ours who had spent time in Germany told us that the term “berg” meant castle, and “burg” meant mountain/hill. What a revelation, considering we were visiting Regensburg, Nuremberg, Bamberg, Würzburg, and Miltenberg. Hills and castles, often both together with castles on hills! And did we see a lot of those!

Historically, the castle was mostly built high and central, with the willage surrounding it. Located on the river, trade was easy and taxes were levied on those travelling through. When threatened by unfriendly forces, the willagers would flee to safety within the castle walls. Here endeth the lesson!

The cruise is a taster of some of the most spectacular places in Germanic Europe and, from Passau onwards, there was nowhere we would not love to come again and explore further. We hope the pictures show why. Enjoy!

REGENSBURG

St. Peter’s Cathedral, Regensberg

Cathedral windows

BAMBURG

The Ratheus. Means Cityhall. How apt!

Can you find the leg and the cherub?

Brewery. Fa mouse smokey beer.

St. Peter’s and St. George’s Imperial Cathedral

Palm Sunday procession.

The Regnitz River, used as a middle-ages harbour

WÜRSBURG

The AmaReina about to dock…

…too big to get in one photo! Our room is top deck, 3 double Windows from the left.

Crossing the Main River to the Fortress.

Made it!

Looking over the vineyard to the ship.

Post-Fortress recovery. Bratwurst und wein!

MILTENBERG

Approaching the dock.

A Scotsman in Lederhosen. Now that’s confusing! Jim was a great guide.

The village is built on a narrow strip between river and hills. Income was mostly taxes from travellers and traders passing through.

In 1625, the mayor decreed that all buildings would have the ground floor rebuild from stone to protect from flooding. Here, eerything above is known as half timbered.

Built as a butcher’s in 1500’s. Still a butchers in the same family!

Built by a former Spanish ship builder. Looks like a galleon! Was once ‘the’ place to stay in Europe. ‘

Easter decorations.

A major source of income… the brewery!

Beer and schnapps! Just helping the local economy!

RÜDESHEIM

A museum for automated musical instruments. This came from a merry-go-round in Budapest.

An amazing music box with a tiny mechanical bird.Built by a watch maker and was almost lifelike in appearance and sound!

Ceiling bible stories from the time of knights and fair maidens.

The famous Rüdesheim coffee. The brandy (rocket fuel!) is lit up first for a bit of theatre, and to lower the alcohol content!

A medieval alley.

The Legacy of Nuremberg

As you know, when travelling in Germany we lived by a very important rule: Fawlty’s Law, which states, “Just don’t mention the war.”

In Nuremberg, this rule doesn’t seem to apply, as the locals bring it up first and then expect some discussion and head nodding to follow.

The Nazi party, under Adolf Hitler, had a very mesmerising and radicalising impact on Germans in the 1930’s, something that they never want to see again. Anywhere. The ridiculousness of Hitler’s ambitions, as communicated at the Nuremberg Rallies, for the Third Reich to have a 1000 year reign, was exemplified by the scale of the facilities he had built there. The Rally Grounds cover 11 square kilometres! A massive arena was partially completed until the war coffers began to run dry.

The stadium from outside…

…inside…

…and what it was planned to be.

The focal point for Hitler to address the masses at the Rally Grounds

After the war, the Nuremberg city rulers were incredibly embarrassed and ashamed by the role their city had played in the rise of the Nazi Party and Adolf Hitler. They started to destroy and remove some of the iconic structures and, dare I say, religious pillars and statues associated with the hypnotic power of the Nazi regime. But then they stopped. The new generation of Germans, and those opposed to the former Party, fought to keep the remaining buildings as a lesson to the world, never to repeat the evil that rose in their city.

The war trials were also held here. These saw the conviction of 22, and execution of 12, Nazis of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The Court House still contains working courts. They were in use so we couldn’t visit.

The city was extensively damaged by Allied bombing, yet the rebuild remained faithful to the mainly baroque style so that it still looks old. The castle also sustained damage but has been faithfully restored. Only when our tour guide pointed out the newer stone work was it apparent. Incredible work!

The moat was always dry

Entry to the will age was via this tunnel. If you were unfriendly, expect boiling oil and sewerage poured down on to you through the holes!

The original stoned have bullet like holes in the side from being carried and positioned by clamping tongs

The tower served as lookout and final bastion of safety.see the bricked in arched doorway halfway up on the left? Once in there the ladder was pulled in too.

It is a beautiful city. Like so many places we visited, a couple of nights rather than an afternoon would have been ideal.

The greater city from the walled old city

Saturday markets in the old city square

The Shöner Brunner Fountain from the 14th century

Toot Toot to Singin’ Salzburg

So, if you’re filthy rich in the 1800’s, rule over half of Europe, and wish to travel through the peasant’s fields to show them how great you are, what would be the most fitting way? By using the latest and greatest technology, of course! The train. The Hapsburg’s took to train travel like @realDonaldTrump to Twitter! But not without help. No one in Austria knew anything about trains engines, so they contracted the maintenance and operation out to Englishmen, who promptly stayed for good in Austria! It would seem most of them just need an excuse to leave!

The steam trains are gone, and the carriages are faithful reproductions of the originals, but the Majestic Imperator still rolls through the Austrian fields, now carrying well heeled Aussie retirees (and a few thrifty wannabes like us!) who still revel in having the peasants glance up at them from their Beemers and Mercs whipping past on the Autobahn. “Carry on, Fritz!”

Wishing he was 20yrs younger!

The destination was Salzburg, once the royal city of it’s own priestly kingdom, but since 1805, part of Austria. There is a fortress built in 1077, a host of impressive cathedrals, and blah blah blah… There are only two things that everyone coming by fancy carriage wants to discover in Salzburg: music and music!

Mozart was born here, and Julie Andrews sung here. I’m a little more partial to the significance of the former, but found myself significantly outnumbered by the 60+ crowd. They knew all the words to all the Sound of Music songs, and belted them out with gusto when given half a chance… Wendy included!

Much more to my liking were the three performers known as The Sound of Austria, who joined us on the train, with arias from Mozart’s The Magic Flute and The Marriage of Figaro. Their encore song was Eidelweisse. Happy retirees, happy Harley and fellow youngsters!!!

Art and history

Restored Medieval. Magical!

Mozart’s childhood home

The fortress and old city

 Salzburg was very cold, and after enduring the inadequate tour guide’s grasp of English, we settled on a bratwurst in a roll for lunch and a poke around the oldest part of the city. Pastries and chocolate. Smiles all round!

 The ship had been repositioning up river at Passau in Germany. This is where our Majestic Imperator glided to a stop. Now, just remember: don’t mention the war!!

Beautiful Passau. We’ll be back!

Medieval: Part 1

After Vienna, things got decidedly medieval. Castles, ruins of castles, monasteries, and cobble-streeted villages (“willages” in the direct translation!).

The first of these stops was a post brekkie visit to Dürstein, a small but spectacularly positioned village on a bend in the Danube. It sits surrounded by vineyards at the foot of a craggy hill, crowned with a ruined castle. Richard the Lionheart was imprisoned there for some time. Maybe we found the room…

The town gate

“Richard was ‘ere”

 Sailing to our afternoon stop of Melk, we saw castles and churches, and a nose. Not just the sniffly red (from the cold!) thing in the middle of our face, but a large sculpture protruding from the grass. Go figure!

 

Melk is a village with a massive Abbey overlooking it. Abbeys mean monks, monks mean…alcohol!! Just like the order at New Norcia, these guys are Benedictine Monks, and they make a brew from herbs that they consider the elixir of life. It’s a bit like Jägermeister and, at 40% alcohol, has much the same influence on a ‘life’. I only bought a small one! The abbey itself was very overdone with gold. The reason given was so that people needed to know what heaven was like and so they would stay under the influence of the Roman Catholic Church.

The town of Melk from the Abbey

Below the Abbey

We walked back to the ship and chatted with some Americans from another ship. They were jealous of ours! Good job APT.

Mozart and Strauss – Heroes of Vienna

Within 5 mins of being on the bus tour of Vienna, we passed the former house of the great Viennese composer Johann Strauss, famous for popularising the waltz. He, along with Mozart, were treated like rock stars in Vienna, the centre of the world’s popular music industry in the 18th century. Having both studied music history, we soaked up the Vienna experience like a Danoz Direct Magic Cloth. Buy 2, get 2 free! But wait, there’s more….

Stunning architecture, narrow winding streets, hidden café gems. Like the one that Mozart frequented and would perform impromptu concerts at! Café Frauenhuber. You know how in Australia we can order a Vienna coffee? It’s a real thing! Cream upon cream upon coffee, and in Tim’s and mine, liqueur! And no one’s over weight. I think it’s all the beer that offsets the calories… Works for me!!

Centre of the old city area

Mozart was here. According to the wall plaque, so were Handel and Beethoven!

Café Frauenhuber

Mozart Kaffee

The highlight of Vienna, was the evening concert at the magnificent City Palais Liechtenstein, a little Austrian holiday shack of the Liechtenstein family when they’re not in their own castle, in their own country! The Viennese Imperial Orchestra played all three Strauss’ (senior, junior, and younger brother Josef), and Mozart, music and vocal arias. What a venue! What a privilege!

I hooked up with this amazing leggy blonde!

Not as gold looking as it really was. Incredible concert with fantastic musos!

The orchestral hall. All that gold is for real!

Free time on the second day in Vienna saw us at the NaschMarkt, a wonderfully long array of food, clothing, food, beer, wine, and food stalls. Needless to say, we stopped for food, and Tim and I had to try a pint of the local! It was everything we wished Freo Markets would be!

The Viennese are very proud of their (former) royal family, the Habsburg’s. We heard about them, in relatively unkind terms, in Hungary which was ruled by them for hundreds of years. Descriptors such as inbred and mentally impaired were used! But now in Vienna, these people were depicted as conquering heroes and innovators. The truth, I feel, is somewhere in between. Certainly they were filthy stinking rich and loved to display their obscene superiority, including by having their arm of the Roman Catholic Church bestow sainthood on dead emperors! Some cathedrals even have the remains of an ‘unknown saint’ gifted to them by the royal family for display (and presumably to pray to) in glass cases! What the!!

Schonbrunn Palace, the ‘small’ winter palace to get out of the stench of the city.

The palace backyard complete with monument to the Austrian Empire’s war dead

Having said all that, we absolutely loved Vienna and will definitely be back for a longer visit. Tschüss Wien!

Just Cruisin’

Wendy and I have always wanted to go on a cruise. Canada and Alaska, Hawaii, Caribbean, and of course the rivers of Europe. We thought that this trip would give us a gentle introduction to this increasingly popular holiday but we were wrong. There is now no ocean cruising desire. We’ve been ruined!

River cruising with APT is remarkable: small numbers (150) and large staff (50) spread over 4 decks means that you get to know most people without living in each others pockets! I’m writing this from the restaurant in the stern on deck 3, just past our stateroom. No one else is here! Love it!! Yet I could wander down to the lounge or out to the stern deck lounge and drink and chat for hours with tables full of interesting people.

The choice of tours are exceptional and varied according to location, as is the food. Ah, the food!! Thank you Jesus for walking tours and the gym or they would have to roll us off this floating 5 star pantry!

Chef’s Table Restaurant. Doubles as our ‘private’ lounge/study. We’re the only ones who use it!

Our first night was still in Budapest after a leisurely after-dinner night lights cruise on the Danube. The Hungarians really know how to light up their historic city. We sailed the next day at 1230 for Vienna, passing through many villages and towns. They were always spotted through the trees as we approached by the church steeples, often not just one! Sunday morning must be a cacophony of duelling bells. No chance of sleep ins here!

We sailed through the night in order to make Vienna by 0700. The captain had us at full speed as one of the busy locks was only half working, possibly delaying us. Sleeping was a little like laying on a washing machine. It makes you smile at first, but then… I awoke with a headache! What better excuse to get a massage. From our on board masseuse! Two doors up from our cabin! Gotta love this cruising!!

Entering one of the deepest locks

Open sesame!

The view back

The staff here are incredible!

There is nothing that could be too much trouble. All of European origin, they speak excellent English, are very respectful but also have a great sense of humour that us Aussies appreciate! Of particular note is our Cruise director, Marion. What a wonderful person! She organises every aspect of the cruise, from communications to outings, from entertainment and special surprises, to just out right spoiling. For instance, while in Salzburg, Harley purchased himself a Danish, as is his inclination, however upon biting into it, he found it contained a coin! 20 cents to be exact. He thought to himself that he should definitely ask Marion about this obviously Austrian tradition…. However when Marion stared blankly from him to the Danish and back again, we realised that this was not a tradition but a tragic accident waiting to happen! We laughed out loud together and then commented on the germs Harley had now subjected himself to from the coin of unknown origin! (My Mum always told me when I was little, not to put money in my mouth because it might have been in an old man’s pocket! Harley) Marion said ” You need Schnapps!” and off she dashed! We giggled some more and were in the process of retelling the story to others from our cruise who had joined us to see what the commotion was all about when Marion returned, shoving a small brown paper bag into Harley’s hand. “Quick, drink it down”!!! And so with the assistance of the Aussie crowd chanting” Scull, scull, scull”, Harley downed the 40ml of 40% alcohol apricot schnapps, to prevent infection from the wayward coin. What a woman is our Maid Marion. She is just the best!

Budapest – A Bright Beginning

Hungary, relatively freshly released from the clutches of communism, is learning very quickly to make the most of it’s natural beauty and the wonder of it’s often tragic history. The capital city, Budapest (pronounced Budapesht), is a wonder in itself. It straddles the Danube River and is actually 2 cities: Buda is the ancient city on the hill side of the river, and Pest the newer (relatively speaking!) city on the plain.
We stayed the first night on the Buda side in the Buda Castle district. The hotel receptionist was very friendly and helpful, but surprised and even disappointed that we would only stay 2 nights in her city! We assured her that if we liked Budapest we would return. Unsure what to expect, we stepped out into the late afternoon warmth for n evening of sightseeing and food.

What a gem is Budapest! The castle district is a mix of very old and post WW2 repairs/reconstruction. They have done an incredible job of making it looked like the city was never bombed. Amazing! As the sun was setting, it’s glow cast all the limestone buildings in pink and orange. The cobbled streets, while not packed, were bustling with the business of a popular tourism precinct. There were some trinket and souvenir stores, but even these were not in your face and unattractive, rather more integrated into crafty, handmade goods shops. We found a Hungarian themed restaurant recommended by our lovely hotel girl, and after leafing through the English section of the picture-book display menu, was seated inside in a cosy spot for 2. Right next to an elderly gentleman playing a gypsy instrument for entertainment. It was like a miniature grand piano, with exposed strings that are struck with sticks (like xylophone sticks with a fluffy covered hard bit on the end!). He played Hungarian folk, waltz classics, and other popular tunes, with an entertaining flare. Loved it!! The food was great too. We shared a meat platter cooked traditionally followed by a dessert share platter. I’ve only eaten paprika dried and ground, but here it was baked as we would capsicum. Delicious! I’ll be adding it to my roast lamb from now on!

Matthias Church

City from Fisherman’s Bastion

Fisherman’s Bastion

Restaurant

We planned to board our cruise ship mid-afternoon the next day, so we had the whole morning to see the rest of the castle area. It is presented really well, with stacks of info going right back to the origins of the Hungarian people and their establishment of the first European kingdom. Once on the ship, we met up with Tim and Simone who had just arrived from the airport (Tim’s bag had been misplaced in Abu Dhabi!), and settled in to our staterooms on the upper level, directly opposite each other. This was going to be a great adventure, for sure! (as they say a lot here in Europe!!) As for Budapest, we confirmed with our hotel receptionist at check out, we would be back!

Our ship!

Parliament by night

The Pad

Loving London

Today we travelled to London to meet Kate and Alex. What a great couple: newly married, in love with each other and God, fun and welcoming! We love you guys!!

The plan was Kensington Palace, lunch, and then St. Paul’s Cathedral. The Palace was stunning. Most of the young Royals live in one part while us peasants get to traipse through the opposite side. The history of the place is intriguing, beginning with the exile of James to France (he was Catholic) and the reign of King William (Church of England). Lots of tragedy and intrigue followed, retold to us as we walked through the same rooms and corridors.

To bring is into the modern times, we went through a Princess Diana frock display. Yep, dresses. Needless to say I was hungry after that!

It was a very late lunch so we missed the last tour of the cathedral. Regardless, we went to St Paul’s for a Captain Cook at the building anyway. Wow! Even more wow was that we discovered it was still open. There was an Evensong service under way…for free! Such an amazing church! Such amazing acoustics! We felt very humbled to hear acapella songs of scripture performed amidst such splendour.

Tomorrow we leave for Budapest. We have so enjoyed our stay with Chris, Ang and Tilly. When next we see them, Tilly will have changed so much! We are privileged to have spent this week seeing and enjoying her at this young age. Chris and Ang are doing a great job of being parents. We love you guys!

Back to Blighty

Horsham is an historic market town south of London, about half way to the coastal city of Brighton. Our nephew Chris, his lovely wife Angela and their 4 months old baby daughter Matilda (Tilly) live in a lovely neighbourhood on the outskirts of town and graciously agreed to put up with us for the week. We offered them free babysitting. How could they refuse? How could we not offer? Tilly is beautiful and both of us have loved the opportunity to spend time with her, and with Chris and Ang too!

Ang’s first Mother’s Day at The Boar’s Head Pub, Horsham

As is our habit when visiting the UK, we brought with us fine weather. We had 4 days of sun before a drizzly, grey Wednesday. But then Thursday (today) is fine and forecast to be the warmest day of the year: 22 in London! They’ll be cooling off in the fountain at Trafalgar Square!!

We’re on the train now, almost at Tower Bridge Station, heading in to meet Kate and Alex Russell. Kate was Wendy’s KidzChurch intern at Riverview and lives in Leicester with her ‘top bloke’ husband Alex. It should be a fun time of laughs with a bit of sightseeing and food on the side!

Our week of good weather was spent mostly along the Sussex coast, visiting Worthing, Brighton, Bognor Regis, and also Portsmouth.

All are very different historic towns with their own feel.

Worthing has a broad promenade along the seaside (I’m using the local vernacular…) that allows one to ‘promenade’ in ones finery with top hat and parasol alongside the beach (again I use local vernacular. There is no sand, only rocks and pebbles!) It was Mother’s Day so we took Ang for afternoon tea at a café restaurant at the end of the pier. It was well good! (local for really nice).

Brighton has the same pebble beaches and a large pier with an amusement park, complete with a couple of roller-coasters, on the end. However, by far the best part of the town is found in the lane ways behind the beach front hotels. There is a huge array of food available, from traditional pubs to gelato and waffles, and an array of European cuisines. We found an incredible chocolatier but no way to carry the Easter eggs with us. The picture will show why!

Matt’s restaurant

One of Chris’ best friends, Matt, has just opened a restaurant in Brighton called Redroaster. It was a Brighton coffee establishment that has been refitted and refined to be a totally unique space. It has an Aussie feel, light and airy, designed by a guy in Melbourne. Matt is a Michelin Star chef and the lunch menu was simple but perfect. The café transforms into a fine dining restaurant at night. We look forward to that experience next time!

Arundel is a village with a big castle. Unfortunately it was closed for our visit, but considering we are travelling through Europe in the next few weeks, we aren’t going to run short of castles! The town is beautiful, with 400yr old churches, and a great collection of pubs (we’re working hard on our pub visits!). We went ‘trundling’ along the Arun riverbank for a short distance, and had this trip’s first museum visit.

Arundel Castle… from the car park!

A great afternoon for trundling

We then drove to Bognor Regis (“Bugger Bognor!”, once said the King… Google it!), saw it’s pebble beach, and then headed back through the stunning South Downs of West Sussex back to Horsham.

On Tuesday evening, we ate at Restaurant Tristan (Michelin Star awarded), where Chris is one of the top chefs, ‘Sous’ I think is the title. We loved the atmosphere of this lovely 1600 something building, exposed timber beams and quaint windows with modern, classy styling. Chris sent us a glass of English sparkling (incredible! Who knew?!!) to start, and then began the food. Haute Cuisine is possibly the term…. Whatever the description, it was incredible! 8 courses, with paired wines to each dish – for Harley anyway. Wendy has little capacity for anything more than 2-3 glasses! We ate for 4 glorious hours! And the staff spoiled us as though we were their Auntie and Uncle! So special, and we were very grateful! And so proud of Chris’s talent. Much of the menu reflects his creativity and skill. He works long, arduous hours, and does an incredible job. If you’re ever in Horsham……

Restaurant Tristan. We took no foodie pics here. We just wanted to soak up the experience.

We took the train to Portsmouth. It’s a Navy city that is in the process of a renewal of the dock area, similar to Melbourne’s Docklands development, with a large shopping, food and apartment precinct. The Navy base is next to this area and has some interesting displays.

Lord Nelson’s ship HMS Victory from the battle of Trafalgar in 1805. It is the world’s oldest Navy vessel still in commission.

We went into the museum purpose built for the remains of the Mary Rose. This ship was built under King Henry VIII in 1533 and sunk by the French in 1545 just off Portsmouth. It was discovered in 1970, the remains successfully raised in 1982, and the drying process completed this year. An incredible amount of relics, personal possessions and even complete skeletal remains were found beneath the silt and mud. Because the boat sunk on its side, only one side – the side in the mud – survived the nearly 500yrs. And we stood in the same space as it! Very hard to fathom for our Australian brains that don’t know what old ‘modern’ history really is.

All that remains of the Mary Rose

What it would have looked like