Geoff Brock & Bruce Gamble
         
     
 

Sailing past Bratislava &
Arriving in Vienna
Well, today was boring. Just sailing down the river. We passed under several bridges, and the passengers waved at the people on them. I mooned them. I texted WSM to tell her that I was planning to visit the Lipizzaners tomorrow and that I had collected sugar from the coffee shop to feed to them. She replied, explaining that they are highly trained and probably not allowed carbs...! Well that's what she thinks. What does she know anyway? Hmmm, I must also look for the gutter that WS ended up in having had one too many litres of sweet white wine in a Viennese wine cellar in 1976... and she talks about me! I like the idea of a free bar. I spent the afternoon sampling the beers. I think we should keep a wider range of beers at home.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Wednesday 23rd April 2014
  
As we were eating our breakfast, we sailed past Bratislava.
Now, how to stuff our faces and take in the view? Well, we managed it somehow.
 
 
 
When we last cruised on the Danube in 2003 (from Vienna to the Black Sea), we stopped in Bratislava and went through immigration in the building below (left). During that visit, we had a walking tour through the old city and also visited the the castle on the hill (below right).
Less than two hours after passing Bratislava, the ship was flying the Austrian flag and we were passing the first Austrian town.
 
Video: Our ship glided so quietly through the water that it was possible to sit on our balcony and listen to the birds singing.
 
 
 
We spent a relaxing day watching the passing landscape and the other traffic on the river.
 
Of, course, we also found time for refreshments!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
As we exited the large lock it was possible to see the newer buildings of Vienna in the distance.
 
 
 
 
Video: Duck!
 
 
The new high-rise buildings are all located on the right bank of the river. The older parts of the city are on the left.
At approximately 4:00pm we had docked.
 
 
Most of the other passengers departed for an evening concert, but we decided to do our own thing, once again.
Here, Geoff is talking to our cruise director, Daniel.
The Saint Francis of Assisi Church on Mexikoplatz, close to where our ship was docked.

The city centre is a fair step from the river and we were only planning to go there in the morning anyway. This evening, we just strolled about the immediate area (Vienna's Second District, Leopoldstadt) to stretch our legs and get our bearings. It was a warm evening and there were a few people sitting about and chatting in the parks and squares. Everything seemed very peaceful, ordered and clean!
 
 
After strolling for about an hour or so, we returned to the ship, from where we saw the hydrofoil in this video
 
We had a late night snack of goulash soup, which was delicious. We were looking forward to exploring the city in the morning.
 
 
 
©Geoff Brock and Bruce Gamble