Yesterday
afternoon at 4.15pm we departed Budapest on our way to our next stop, Vienna in
Austria. We sat in the lounge watching the scenery go by, as you do. It was
interesting to see out in the countryside, how many houses were dotted amongst
the trees lining the Danube. Occasionally you see a small town, always with the
obligatory church spire poking above the trees. Last night we had a formal sit
down dinner after the Captain’s toast and meeting all the staff. It was just
divine to watch the scenery go past while eating your meal. It stayed light
enough till 9pm to see all the sights going past.
At 9pm we
were entertained by a traditional Hungarian music ensemble together with two
male and two female dancers in traditional Hungarian costumes. Their dancing is
very energetic, with lots of twirling, foot stomping and knee slapping. By 10
pm, still jet-lagged, we were falling asleep in the chairs so we retired for a
very good night’s sleep.
Today we
woke up, opened the curtains to reveal…a concrete wall! We were in the first of
64 locks between Budapest and Amsterdam. We watched as they flooded the lock
and the ship slowly rose up 50 feet to the top of the lock, then slowly sailed
out. The lock is long enough for our ship, plus two others.
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| Leaving lock |
Right now I am on the
sun deck on top of the ship typing this and the capital of Slovakia, Bratislava
is just hoving into view. We have each
been issued with a TailorMade device, a combination GPS, electronic guide and
radio receiver with earpiece. With it we can set it on River Guide and it
automatically starts talking to you when passing a site of interest and
explains everything about it. When we are on guided tours, our tour guide can
talk to us via the radio connection so we don’t have to be right next to them
to hear the commentary. Ingenious devices indeed.
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| Ros on Sun Deck with TailorMade around her neck |
Bratislava
is a beautiful city, spanning the banks of the Danube. It has five bridges
across it, the most beautiful being the Apollo Bridge, a uniquely designed and
built bridge, constructed in one span on the shore then rotated in one piece
into position. It is a blue and white and has no right angles at all in its
construction.
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| UFO Bridge of Bratislava |
The most unusual bridge (Bridge of Slovak National Uprising, but colloquially is known as the UFO Bridge of Bratislava) has a single suspension pole at one end
with what looks like a flying saucer on top of it, which contains a restaurant and viewing platform.
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| Apollo Bridge |
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| Bratislava Castle |
Most prominent on a hilltop overlooking the city is Bratislava Castle, an
elegant four spired structure with solid walls surrounding it. It was built in
the 9th century but now holds the centre of government of Slovakia.
We did not stop in Bratislava, just passed on
through to Vienna which we will reach tonight. After an early tea, we will be
bussed into the Palais Lichstenstein to hear a concert, featuring Strauss, Brahms, Beethoven
and others. Vienna is of course, considered the centre of music in Europe and
we are eagerly looking forward to this
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