‘Ole in Ground

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Have you ever heard someone speak English and thought to yourself,”I have no idea what on earth they just said. Not a clue!”? Maybe you had a cold and your ears were blocked, maybe the TV was on and you didn’t quite catch the words. Or maybe it wasn’t what you expected to hear or the speaker wasn’t a native English speaker. Whatever the case, particularly if you are married, I’m sure you can relate!
My cousins Sue and Andrew (Aussies) live in Ilkley, an idyllic village in the north of England. It is famous for the broad hills and winding valleys of the Ilkley Moors, part of the larger area of the Yorkshire Dales. And there lies our language problem. Yorkshire. The nicest people, in the nicest part of England, speak the worst of the Queens language. Having just come through the middle of Europe, we had better sign language exchanges than some of the efforts in Yorkshire!
For instance, we happened across a lovely gentleman in York, once the seat of English royalty. We were struggling to find our bearings and he hobbled across to us and mumbled what we thought was a friendly greeting. We smiled and responded with a bright hello. He then repeated what he said before. I knew this because the pattern and tune of his sentence were the same. That’s right, the tune. It wasn’t a greeting, he was asking where we were trying to get to! It took some effort to detach the ‘music’ from the ‘lyrics’ but we got there in the end. What a remarkably nice man, but I was wishing for subtitles!
We love Yorkshire, having been to Sue and Andrew’s previously on our first European adventure in 2013. In a tangible sense it’s like stopping off home for a bit of a recharge, not that it’s at all like Perth or Freo. Apart from being with family, somewhere in the depths of our being our heritage calls and we relax in the company of the similar, both relational and cultural. For those of you who have visited countries of distant family origin, I’m sure you understand.

There is so much history, triumphant, humourous and disturbing, in Yorkshire. We explored York on Easter Sunday, finishing with the Evensong at York Minster. The grandeur, choir, pipe organ, and religious pomp and ceremony made it an unforgettable Easter. And the message too! Revelation 1, John’s vision of the glorified Christ, delivered by the Venerable David Butterfield, Canon Residentiary, who spoke not just from the Book, but also the heart. A fellow brother indeed.

York Train Station

Standing on the York City wall with Sue. Built in Roman times, 3.4km of it still stands.

The Shambles, an area of medieval streets in York with overhanging half-timbered houses.

York Minster

Choir practice before the Evensong Service.

We also spent some time in Skipton, a very scenic historic market town, and drove out to Windemere in the Lakes District. What a treat! The scenery of dense forest surrounding Victorian villages, perched around sparkling expansive lakes was surprisingly English! I expected bare hills and pastie-skinned locals both ensconced around a muddy ‘ole in ground. I found the aforementioned locals but the wooded hills were radiant in the new shoots of Spring, and the clear, deep lakes were inviting for all manner of water sports. It would be a great place for a summer holiday, something we would love to try when we come back again….

Canal in Skipton. Our European boat ride next time!

Next to St Oswald’s Church Ambleside, where William Wordsworth is buried.

Lunch at The Flying Pig in Bowness-on-Windemere.

Surprisingly Good Nether Regions!

Now that got your attention, didn’t it!! Sorry to disappoint, but this is a blog entry about Holland, or more correctly these days, The Netherlands. The Dutch name translates to “The Low Lands”, which is how you can then get to The Nether Regions. Jokes a-plenty!!

Day break saw us leave the Rhine and make our way towards Amsterdam on a broad canal. This is the shipping equivalent of the autobahns, with river ships racing past each other at, well, speed in a sense. It’s not what you call break neck speed though. The difficulties arise from the sheer size of a lot of them, and the narrowness of the canal.

I was riding in the wheelhouse with Captain Janos, and he was radioed by the captain of the following ship that we were going to be overtaken by him. Capt Janos dropped a few kms/hr and told me that a lot of these captains have been born on the ships, lived their whole life on them, and are now young men captaining their own ship. They sit in their seat watching TV, drinking vodka, and powering along at 25km/hr (we were doing 18 in a 20 zone) with scant regard for anyone else. So we watched in slow motion as the barge pulled out from behind to overtake us. The AmaReina is 135m long with the wheelhouse positioned about 25m from the bow. The barge was about 60m long with the wheelhouse at the back. That means that the barge captain must decide to pass us when he is more than 200m behind the bow of our ship. 200m at 7km/hr faster will take nearly 2mins to overtake us! And while he’s doing this, another barge comes round the corner in the opposite direction, in the middle of the canal, with his feet up, watching TV, drinking vodka! Now I’m concerned, so I get out my phone to record the carnage!! At the last moment, the oncoming ship veers right and we pass 3 abreast with less than 5m between each ship. Even Marion, conducting an excursion briefing in the lounge expressed her alarm! Capt Janos just shook his head. “F%&@$ idyots!”, he muttered. I wholeheartedly agreed!

Don’t let anyone tell you different. Amsterdam is beautiful. The canals, the architecture, the bikes… the bikes!! Those people on their bikes are pedestrian killers. Seriously, the last thing you would hear before entering through the Pearly Gates would be a bike bell sounding an ever-so-sweet alert… of your immediate demise! Beware the Dutch bike!! Sorry, I was saying how beautiful the city was and was momentarily sidetracked by fearful memories!

Beware the bike!

We docked at lunchtime and then took a canal boat tour. The city is criss-crossed by an enormous network of canals. Tree-lined streets front Victorian era apartments that often used to be stately homes (now subdivided), or shipping warehouses complete with winch and hook still hanging seemingly disused over the top of the houses. However, they have a modern day use. How better to move furniture and large household items in and out of a narrow 3-4 floor apartment!

Old barges have also been converted into houseboats and line many of the canals. Just as you own the land that your house sits on, so Dutch law states that these houseboat owners own the water that their craft occupies. With so many houseboats now on the canals, they’ve stopped approving any more as there is already congestion problems with private, tourist and taxi boats.

Disembarkation. Such a thought had remained suppressed throughout our cruise but was now a looming reality. The final night on board for most was a passive, somewhat sombre time of reflective sitting, packing, sleeping, and coughing up a lung! There was nothing left for wild partying. We were done!

APT supplied us with a luxury car to the airport where the driver also kindly escorted us through the unknown of Schipol to the luggage storage lockers. Our flight to Manchester was late afternoon so we had purchased tickets to a Dutch spring time must see. The tulip gardens of Keurkenhof.

I never knew there were so many colours in flowers, let alone one type! Tulips are so varied, and what we saw blew our minds! Every way we looked was another photo opportunity, and that’s how we started. However, it quickly became clear that we needed to simply enjoy the exquisitely manicured visual feast and snap the highlights.

There is so much more to see in The Netherlands. We were blessed with our timing to just hit these highlights. Next time though….

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