Last part of my trip report: from Quedlinburg to Vienna
Oct 28th, 2009, 10:52 AM
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Last part of my trip report: from Quedlinburg to Vienna
I never did finish my England, Germany, Austria trip report, so here goes.
I decided to take a day trip from Quedlinburg to Erfurt and Weimar, so I drove through the Harz mountains via some really twisty roads. It didn't look all that far away and probably wouldn't have been if I'd gone on the Autobahn, but the drive took so long that when I got to Erfurt, I decided to skip Weimar.
I left the car in a parking garage and began to wander the streets. The city was very impressive, with big, beautiful buildings, but it was also very busy. Streetcar tracks ran every which way, and I had to dodge a couple of times, as the streetcar traffic was pretty brisk. While it was beautiful, the city lacked the charm of places like Quedlinburg, but I knew that I needed more time to explore the city to be able to enjoy it more. As I was leaving the city, I made a turn a bit too soon and found myself on some streetcar tracks, scaring the heck out of some bystanders who yelled at me to let me know that I'd goofed up. I got off the tracks in a hurry, grateful as always that they didn't know I was a dumb American.
I decided I'd return, hopefully next year, and attend a Goethe Institute in Dresden, spending weekends in places like Goslar, Weimar and Wernigerode. Most of my German travel has been in southern Germany, and now that I've seen some of what the former GDR has to offer, I want to see more of it.
The next day I had to leave the wonderful Romantik Hotel am Brühl and drive to Regensburg, where I would spend the night. I'd checked Viamichelin to learn the mileage, but either Viamichelin lies or I got lost again. Well, I did get lost again, but anyway.... At one point, I found myself off the Autobahn and in a little town called Güsten. I thought I'd goofed up again and had taken the wrong turn, so I took another whack at it. I got back on the Autobahn and paid close attention to signs. The same thing happened. The Umleitung (detour) wasn't really posted, so that the driver tooling along the Autobahn unexpectedly found him/herself in the middle of a village.
The drive was longer than I'd expected, but I found the hotel easily, mainly because I bit the bullet and asked directions at a gas station/convenience store.
I say "bit the bullet" because I hate asking for directions and prefer to wander around aimlessly, hoping for divine inspiration. This time I gave in early.
The Ibis was quite pleasant. I prefer small hotels with more charm, but it was perfectly adequate. The only thing that struck me was that the hallways reminded me of one of those high security prisons, straight and austere, with what looked like metal doors stretching down a long hall. Compared to other hotels I stayed in, it was fairly inexpensive--80 euros.
I saw a sign for Colditz Castle, which I'd love to see. Another reason to return to eastern Germany!
The drive through Bayern to Austria was pretty uneventful, except of course that no matter how many times I drive in Germany, the Autobahn speeds never fail to astonish me, especially the speeds of Mercedes or BMW autos driven by men. At one point, I was buzzing along at 84 mph and a guy in some type of VW passed me doing about 110.
At Linz, I saw a sign for Freistadt, which I knew was on the road to Dürnstein, where I would spend the night, so I took that turn, having no idea of a more efficient way to get to my destination. The road followed the Danube, and it was slow, but I wasn't in a big hurry.
I decided to take a day trip from Quedlinburg to Erfurt and Weimar, so I drove through the Harz mountains via some really twisty roads. It didn't look all that far away and probably wouldn't have been if I'd gone on the Autobahn, but the drive took so long that when I got to Erfurt, I decided to skip Weimar.
I left the car in a parking garage and began to wander the streets. The city was very impressive, with big, beautiful buildings, but it was also very busy. Streetcar tracks ran every which way, and I had to dodge a couple of times, as the streetcar traffic was pretty brisk. While it was beautiful, the city lacked the charm of places like Quedlinburg, but I knew that I needed more time to explore the city to be able to enjoy it more. As I was leaving the city, I made a turn a bit too soon and found myself on some streetcar tracks, scaring the heck out of some bystanders who yelled at me to let me know that I'd goofed up. I got off the tracks in a hurry, grateful as always that they didn't know I was a dumb American.
I decided I'd return, hopefully next year, and attend a Goethe Institute in Dresden, spending weekends in places like Goslar, Weimar and Wernigerode. Most of my German travel has been in southern Germany, and now that I've seen some of what the former GDR has to offer, I want to see more of it.
The next day I had to leave the wonderful Romantik Hotel am Brühl and drive to Regensburg, where I would spend the night. I'd checked Viamichelin to learn the mileage, but either Viamichelin lies or I got lost again. Well, I did get lost again, but anyway.... At one point, I found myself off the Autobahn and in a little town called Güsten. I thought I'd goofed up again and had taken the wrong turn, so I took another whack at it. I got back on the Autobahn and paid close attention to signs. The same thing happened. The Umleitung (detour) wasn't really posted, so that the driver tooling along the Autobahn unexpectedly found him/herself in the middle of a village.
The drive was longer than I'd expected, but I found the hotel easily, mainly because I bit the bullet and asked directions at a gas station/convenience store.
I say "bit the bullet" because I hate asking for directions and prefer to wander around aimlessly, hoping for divine inspiration. This time I gave in early.
The Ibis was quite pleasant. I prefer small hotels with more charm, but it was perfectly adequate. The only thing that struck me was that the hallways reminded me of one of those high security prisons, straight and austere, with what looked like metal doors stretching down a long hall. Compared to other hotels I stayed in, it was fairly inexpensive--80 euros.
I saw a sign for Colditz Castle, which I'd love to see. Another reason to return to eastern Germany!
The drive through Bayern to Austria was pretty uneventful, except of course that no matter how many times I drive in Germany, the Autobahn speeds never fail to astonish me, especially the speeds of Mercedes or BMW autos driven by men. At one point, I was buzzing along at 84 mph and a guy in some type of VW passed me doing about 110.
At Linz, I saw a sign for Freistadt, which I knew was on the road to Dürnstein, where I would spend the night, so I took that turn, having no idea of a more efficient way to get to my destination. The road followed the Danube, and it was slow, but I wasn't in a big hurry.
Oct 28th, 2009, 01:36 PM
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Hi Peg, I'm glad you decided to continue on with your TR! Looking forward to the rest.
In case others are wondering where Part I of the TR is, here's the link
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ny-austria.cfm
In case others are wondering where Part I of the TR is, here's the link
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ny-austria.cfm
Oct 29th, 2009, 04:21 AM
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Only 110 mph? On a trip a few years back I was cruising at 110 or so with Mercedes and Audis passing me with ease.
Thanks for the nice report--gave me some helpful information on parts of Germany I haven't visited yet.
Thanks for the nice report--gave me some helpful information on parts of Germany I haven't visited yet.
Oct 29th, 2009, 10:23 AM
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I forgot to say that there was much construction on the Autobahn, and it was kind of scary because the lane I drove on was so narrow that I kept thinking I would scrape the side of the car or be sideswiped by one of those huge trucks in the other lane.
That night at Regensburg, I had some trouble sleeping because when I would doze off I kept finding myself racing down the Autobahn. I just couldn't calm down. Of course, there's also a positive aspect to the lack of speed limit. Onc time when I was doing close to 90 mph, I found myself checking the rear-view mirror to see if there was a Washington State patrol car behind me. There wasn't one!
Linz was a traffic nightmare. Apparently there'd been an accident, which backed up traffic for a couple of miles, but I finally got through.
As I drove along the Danube, I saw the town of Mauthausen, which was very pretty, with buildings painted pink, blue, and yellow, etc., but I can't imagine what it would be like to live at a place with that name, knowing the history of the concentration camp and extermination site located nearby. Apparently there's now a monument to the people who died there.
Much of the drive to Dürnstein was beautiful. The Danube was wide and seemed slow-moving. There were wooded hills on both sides of the river, the sun was shining, lots of bicyclists on the road--it was lovely. I eventually arrived at my hotel, the Hotel Sänger Blondel, and was welcomed warmly by the host. The Blondel is cozy rather than elegant but very comfortable. My room was a corner room, so I could look up and down the street to watch the passing parade and see the beautiful, well-preserved buildings on the Hauptstrass. I loved the hotel and especially the staff, who were very friendly.
Dürnstein stretches along the Danube, but is not deep. The town is quite lovely, perhaps the prettiest on the Danube, so that periodically boatloads of tourists disembark to wander the streets and buy the local wine.
I had dinner in the pleasant garden restaurant of the Blondel, which was exceptionally good. I then wandered the streets for a while, admiring the richly decorated old houses and doing some window shopping.
After I settled in my room that evening, for some reason, I turned on the TV and happened upon a Eurobasket basketball game between Germany and Latvia. I kept watching it because one of the German players, Elias Harris, is a recruit for the Gonzaga University basketball team. Since I'm a faithful Zags fan, I had to see how Elias was doing. The ending was odd. Germany lost by 6 points but were jubilant because that meant they would continue in the tournament, whereas Latvia would not. Apparently an overall point system determines who continues in the tournament. If Latvia had won by 7 points, they would have continued.
That night there was a wonderful thunder and lightning storm. Very cozy in my little room, I left the curtains open so that I could see the lightning. As you can tell, I'm easy to please.
That night at Regensburg, I had some trouble sleeping because when I would doze off I kept finding myself racing down the Autobahn. I just couldn't calm down. Of course, there's also a positive aspect to the lack of speed limit. Onc time when I was doing close to 90 mph, I found myself checking the rear-view mirror to see if there was a Washington State patrol car behind me. There wasn't one!
Linz was a traffic nightmare. Apparently there'd been an accident, which backed up traffic for a couple of miles, but I finally got through.
As I drove along the Danube, I saw the town of Mauthausen, which was very pretty, with buildings painted pink, blue, and yellow, etc., but I can't imagine what it would be like to live at a place with that name, knowing the history of the concentration camp and extermination site located nearby. Apparently there's now a monument to the people who died there.
Much of the drive to Dürnstein was beautiful. The Danube was wide and seemed slow-moving. There were wooded hills on both sides of the river, the sun was shining, lots of bicyclists on the road--it was lovely. I eventually arrived at my hotel, the Hotel Sänger Blondel, and was welcomed warmly by the host. The Blondel is cozy rather than elegant but very comfortable. My room was a corner room, so I could look up and down the street to watch the passing parade and see the beautiful, well-preserved buildings on the Hauptstrass. I loved the hotel and especially the staff, who were very friendly.
Dürnstein stretches along the Danube, but is not deep. The town is quite lovely, perhaps the prettiest on the Danube, so that periodically boatloads of tourists disembark to wander the streets and buy the local wine.
I had dinner in the pleasant garden restaurant of the Blondel, which was exceptionally good. I then wandered the streets for a while, admiring the richly decorated old houses and doing some window shopping.
After I settled in my room that evening, for some reason, I turned on the TV and happened upon a Eurobasket basketball game between Germany and Latvia. I kept watching it because one of the German players, Elias Harris, is a recruit for the Gonzaga University basketball team. Since I'm a faithful Zags fan, I had to see how Elias was doing. The ending was odd. Germany lost by 6 points but were jubilant because that meant they would continue in the tournament, whereas Latvia would not. Apparently an overall point system determines who continues in the tournament. If Latvia had won by 7 points, they would have continued.
That night there was a wonderful thunder and lightning storm. Very cozy in my little room, I left the curtains open so that I could see the lightning. As you can tell, I'm easy to please.
Oct 29th, 2009, 12:50 PM
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The next morning I set out for Melk Abbey, but as usual, I got lost. I assumed Melk Abbey would be near Melk. Wrong! I should have looked at a map instead of doing my usual--winging it! I had to backtrack and then turn at St. Polten. I also discovered, finally, that Melk Abbey's read name is Stift Göttweig. It's much easier to find your destination when you have the right name.
I wandered around the Abbey grounds, then went into the magnificent baroque abbey church. It was gorgeous! It's hard to do justice to such magnificence in words, but I'd say it's one of the most beautiful churches I've ever seen--perhaps more beaufiful even than the church at Kloster Ettal or the Hofkapelle at the Residenz in Würzbur. There are lots of windows, so it's very light, and the walls are pale blue. Of course, there's lots of gold, as with so many baroque churches. Simply not to be missed!
I strolled through lovely rooms in the abbey and even saw a reproduction of the abbey pharmacy, with an effigy of a black-robed and cowled monk working in the exhibit. I won't try to describe the entrance hallway (magnificent!) or the other rooms, but they were memorable.
When I went to the bathroom area, I laughed out loud when I saw one of those no-smoking signs, the cigarette with the circle and line through it. What I thought was funny was that the background of the sign was baroque, with gold scrolling around it.
Unfortunately, visitors could not enter the library because it is a working library. I went to the terrace to have an ice cream. I found a table in the shade, then noticed that every single other table was in the sun. One tableful were actually in the shade playing cards and then moved into the sun. In my many years of experience with Germans (and probably Austrians, too), I've seen that they love the sun. I remember in the 60's driving on a country road and seeing someone lying on a chaise lounge in a pasture, just taking in the sun.
Lord, I'm wordy!
I wandered around the Abbey grounds, then went into the magnificent baroque abbey church. It was gorgeous! It's hard to do justice to such magnificence in words, but I'd say it's one of the most beautiful churches I've ever seen--perhaps more beaufiful even than the church at Kloster Ettal or the Hofkapelle at the Residenz in Würzbur. There are lots of windows, so it's very light, and the walls are pale blue. Of course, there's lots of gold, as with so many baroque churches. Simply not to be missed!
I strolled through lovely rooms in the abbey and even saw a reproduction of the abbey pharmacy, with an effigy of a black-robed and cowled monk working in the exhibit. I won't try to describe the entrance hallway (magnificent!) or the other rooms, but they were memorable.
When I went to the bathroom area, I laughed out loud when I saw one of those no-smoking signs, the cigarette with the circle and line through it. What I thought was funny was that the background of the sign was baroque, with gold scrolling around it.
Unfortunately, visitors could not enter the library because it is a working library. I went to the terrace to have an ice cream. I found a table in the shade, then noticed that every single other table was in the sun. One tableful were actually in the shade playing cards and then moved into the sun. In my many years of experience with Germans (and probably Austrians, too), I've seen that they love the sun. I remember in the 60's driving on a country road and seeing someone lying on a chaise lounge in a pasture, just taking in the sun.
Lord, I'm wordy!
Oct 29th, 2009, 12:56 PM
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Peg, which library are you referring to? We did visit a library at Melk - it's part of the tourist route...
http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_3351.jpg
http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...9/IMG_3351.jpg
Nov 3rd, 2009, 03:33 AM
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"Melk Abbey's read name is Stift Göttweig"
That´s wrong!These are 2 different abbeys!
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stift_Melk and
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%B6ttweig
That´s wrong!These are 2 different abbeys!
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stift_Melk and
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%B6ttweig
