Big Rabbits and Small Trains

The Imperial Castle

Our ship Kara docked at Nuremberg on the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal beside another Viking ship.  Nuremberg is  the second largest city in Bavaria, Munich being larger. It was warm, summer day without a cloud in the sky. No umbrellas needed.  We boarded our bus for a tour of the city before lunch.  Our first stop was the old parade grounds of the Nazi Party. Adolf Hitler had made Nuremberg the headquarters of his Nazi Party prior to and during WWII.  Nuremberg was strategically placed in Hitler's empire. Also it had been the center of the Holy Roman Empire. Hitler believed that his third Reich would be the third great empire. Here were the huge parade grounds where the Nazi rallies were held from 1933 to 1938, seven rallies total.  These were huge propaganda events frequently seen in films of that era. The largest rally was to have been one million men but fell short of expectations. Today only ruins remain. We clamored off the bus inside what was to be a coliseum to rival Rome's, but it was never completed. The structure of which part is used for storage is owned by the city of Nuremberg.  However, the building in which the trials of the German war criminals were held is still in use.

Like most cities in this area the highest point is dominated by a castle, a medieval fortification. Nuremberg is no exception. The highest spot, literally, on the tour was the Imperial Castle.We walked around these fortifications, under arches and through courtyards. Claudette and I enjoyed a great view of the city of over one half million below.

"Do you see that orange house directly below us?" our guide asked. I think it was a rhetorical question. But we did see the house.
"It was one of the few houses not destroyed during the bombing in 1945. Ninety percent of the city was destroyed in one hour by Allied bombers!"

The city was finally captured by the allies in 1945 after heavy door to door combat. Much of the city has been restored to its pre-war style.

"I think that this is where they have the caves under the castle," Claudette said as we walked the cobblestone walkways around the castle.

"What caves?" I asked

"I read in the guide book that under this castle are caves the Germans used to brew beer in.  It seems the temperature and humidity was perfect for brewing," she answered.

"So..."

"Well, during the war many people hid in the caves, using them for bomb shelters," she continued.

"Okay, so Nuremberg didn't suffer as many casualties as some of the other cities?" I surmised.

"You got it!" she said with a smile.


One of the most famous citizens of Nuremberg was the fifteenth century artist, Albrecht Durer. Actually, he was much more that an artist.  He was an artist, engraver, author, scientist, and mathematician.  We saw his beautiful half-timbered house.  Near there is a statue of one of his most famous works. Young Hare was created as a watercolor when he was thirty years old, but the city of Nuremberg has reproduced it as a sculpture. "I know something about Durer," Claudette said, "Actually, two things."

sculpture of Albrecht Durer's
Young Hare

"Oh, yeah?" I said.

"Yes, he once drew a picture of a rhinoceros without seeing one. He based his picture on descriptions written by other people. It was amazingly accurate," she said in a rather authoritative voice.

"I know something about him too," I interrupted, "He made the Praying Hands."

"Well, phooey on you! That was my second thing!" she said with disgust

After the tour was over we went back to the ship for lunch. You may wonder why we always ate on the ship.  All meals were included with the price of our fare. The food was good, so why not?
We had lunch with friends and planned our afternoon excursions. We, or maybe, I decided on the Nuremberg Toy Museum.

The Toy Museum is located in the old part of the city. It has a renaissance facade and toys on three floors. At the entrance was one of the most disgusting signs ever displayed. "No Photos Allowed" The first floor is dedicated to wooden toys and dolls and dollhouses. In Germany the ground floor is not the first floor. My favorite was the second floor.  It had all the mechanical toys much like the ones I remember from my childhood. These were the metal toys of cars and airplanes and mechanical clowns. You wound them up.  No batteries required. Nuremberg has long been the center of the toy industry. In 1910 over 5,000 people worked in the toy industry in this city. On the second  floor were also the electric train layouts. One

Drawing from the Toy Museum
no photos allowed

train layout recreates a railroad junction of Omaha, Nebraska, circa 1950s. But the creator had never been there! It is said to be amazingly accurate. There was also an awesome collection of miniature steam engines.  The scaled down giants of the industrial age. I would hardly call these toys. Construction sets are also featured. I remember Erector sets as a boy and here were the European versions. There was a video presentation showing most of the toys in operation. The upper floor was dedicated to modern toys and play areas for children.  I did not get to see all 70,000 objects the Toy Museum has but then only 54,000 can be viewed. This was one of my favorite stops on the cruise. Incidentally, Nuremberg is home to the largest international toy fair annually.

We walked back to the bus stop and caught the bus back to the ship.  We would recount our adventures to our friends over dinner before retiring for the night.

Cruising on the Rivers

"Okay, before you ask, I'm six feet tall. And sometimes I like to wear high heels for an overview!" the blonde said with a Dutch accent.  She deftly flicked a strand of hair from in front of her blue eyes. Our activities director was giving our first briefing aboard the Viking longship Kara.  The ship had left port in Amsterdam, and we were on "The Grand European Tour".  That was Viking's term, not mine.  We would see five countries in fourteen days beginning at Amsterdam and ending at Budapest.

Briefings would become a daily occurrence, as Chantal would tell us about our upcoming events. At this particular briefing we were introduced to the crew and given some information about our upcoming cruise.The crew of the ship is multinational. The captain is a Ukrainian, the hotel manager German, the maitre'd and chef de cuisine German, the concierge Slovakian, and the activities director was Dutch. She also pointed out some simple shipboard conventions.  The bow was the front on the ship and aft meant the rear of the ship. The shipboard compliment was one hundred ninety-two passengers and fifty-five crewmembers.

Upon boarding we entered our cabin on the port side of the ship on the main deck.   Our steward led us to our cabin, and our luggage was waiting at the door. He introduced himself as Ivo and showed us how to swipe the key card to gain entry to the cabin and how to use it to turn on the cabin lights.  He also noted that if we opened our sliding glass door to the outside the airconditioning would shut down. Ivo brought our bags in before departing. The queen-size bed took up most of the space. Inside the cabin door the bathroom was on the right, the wardrobe with safe on the left, and a waist-high cabinet filled the rest of the width of the cabin. Above the cabinet which housed the mini-frig was a forty inch flat screen television with a mirror of approximately the same size beside it.  On the countertop of the cabinet was the telephone, a bottle of water and

glasses. There were also two "Quietvoxes" in their charger. These electronic devices were a little larger than a large cellphone and were used as radio receivers to hear tour guides commentary on tours.  The electrical outlets were plentiful and at least half of them are standard American receptacles.  No adapters required.  I was overjoyed to see the big TV. I watch a lot of TV. But this one had some added features. There was the local weather channel, movie channel and some television news shows. One of my favorites channels was the channel showing images from the bow camera of the ship.  It was good to see where we were going while kicked back on the bed. There are four classes of passenger cabins or staterooms. Suites, of which there are two, staterooms with verandas, rooms with floor to ceiling windows, like patio doors, and cabins with very small windows.

The Viking river cruise ship, Kara, is designed specifically for river cruising. It is long and narrow. Its narrow width, or beam in nautical terms, allows it to fit through numerous locks. On the rivers Rhine, Main, and Danube there is a difference of some one thousand feet in elevation. This requires over fifty locks. Frequently during the night, and we sailed every night, you could feel the ship bump into the side of a lock.  The ship contains a dining room, lounge, reception area, library, and other spaces for passenger activities or shipboard necessities. The open air dining area on the bow was a very popular spot and houses the Aquavit restaurant. I would get a cup of coffee while Claudette slept and join Steve there to watch the approaching

landscape as we moved along the rivers. The lounge, besides being a popular watering hole, was also the venue for our daily briefings and entertainment. We had some very interesting demonstrations and lectures. A glassblower came onboard to demonstrate his craft as well as some opera singers. The Hungarian musicians were a hit as were the ship's bakers as they prepared apple strudel. We heard lectures on Dutch water management, the European Union, Germany, and other subjects. Most were only as good as their presenters.   The sundeck was designed for lounging and exercise. There was a walking track, miniature golf, and shuffleboard. It was also where the chef's herb garden was located.  When the chef announced that dishes were flavored with fresh herbs, they really were fresh. Solar panels flanked the exhaust stack for the two huge diesel engines which power electric generators.  These produce the energy for the electric motors which turn the propellers. The bridge from which the ship is controlled could be lowered when going under low bridges. The canopy over some of the sun roof chairs also collapses. I estimate the speed of the ship was about ten knots.

Chef Andreas would always describe the dinner delicacies at the afternoon briefing. I must say that his dishes always lived up to his colorful descriptions. Often the food would have a local flair. Yes, sausages were quite common on the menu. Made-to-order omelets were my favorite

breakfast. Claudette, along with most of the women on the ship, had a crush of the omelet chef, Boris. Apparently the young Serbian was a charmer. We usually shared the evening meal with Steve, Evelyn, Jean, and Jim.  Normally we would dine for about two hours. Wine and beer were available with lunch and dinner. Our sextet managed to consume some eighty-four bottles of wine.  But of course that included red and white wines!

One of the most extraordinary treats of our cruise was our entry into Budapest at night. We were prepped at our afternoon briefing to expect great things as we entered Hungary's largest city.  And we were not deceived. On or about 2200 hours or 10:00PM the announcement came over the intercom that we were entering Budapest and to come to the sundeck. We joined our friends there with a bit of trepidation. I believe everyone on the ship was there. Waiters were bustling around with flutes of champagne and platters of chocolates. Around us the city was illuminated brilliantly with most buildings appearing as glistening gold. It was a spectacular event. The kind of event that would not soon be forgotten. 

Our cruise was on the Rhine, Main, and Danube Rivers from which we visited five countries. If time and finance permit it is a great way to vacation. One final note about the ship. If there is an ugly ship contest these Viking river longships would be near winners. But, then, that's just my opinion.

Abbey on the Danube.

We disembarked from our river cruise ship for Melk and its grand abbey. From the Danube it appears as a fortress high on a rocky outcropping complete with turrets. After a short bus ride through local farm land we reached the abbey and its surrounding village. I found it amusing that we walked down a stairway from the bus parking lot to an abbey which had appeared to be on the top of the mountain when viewed from below. It was founded by the Benedictine monks in 1089, and the current structure was built beginning in 1702.  It has been a school for many centuries and currently serves as a school for local children.  As you would imagine, the massive structure has over one thousand rooms with chapels  and a baroque style cathedral.  Through the halls and rooms you learn the history of the Abbey. There is a scale model of the entire complex which allows you to become more oriented. 

The displays in some of the rooms are of the old artifacts presented with new technology. The Kaisergang, Emperors' Gallery, was a 658 foot long hallway with, of course, portraits of rulers.  A personal favorite room of mine was the library.  As we stepped into the library of the Melk Abbey I said.

"Can't you almost hear the sheep bleating?"

"What in the world are you talking about?" she queried.

"Look around. There are hundreds of bound manuscripts here," I responded, indicating with my raised arm walls over twenty feet high full of books.

"It's the monks' library. Of course there are a lot of books.  The guide said there were about one hundred thousand. But she did not say anything about sheep," she said.

"Sheepskin, dear. Books were first made of vellum, sheepskin. Only about four pages could be made from one sheep's skin. Look around, many of these old books have vellum pages, and that was a lot of sheep!" said I.

"I thought vellum meant 'calf skin'?" she asked.

"Well...it does, literally.  You got me on that one. But when someone graduates from college we say 'They got their sheepskin', not calf skin!  Did you know that vellum is more permanent than paper?" I was still trying to impress her.

"Look at these book shelves.  They must be twenty feet tall, and the gilded wood carvings are awesome. I can't believe that this library is still in use," she mused.

"I wish I could take some pictures in here," I commented.

"You know they are forbidden! You shouldn't have taken those in Nuremberg where the sign said: 'No Photos'."

Wikipedia photo

There was a sculpture in the center of the library representing wisdom. Also, there were antique globes representing the earth that were true works of art.   The largest was over four feet tall. There was a spiral staircase to the other floors of the library which were off limits to tourists.  We did not see a scriptorium, which is where the monks would have copied manuscripts by hand. However, we had seen one at Mont Saint Michel, France.

Another favorite room for visitors is the Marble Hall.  This hall, that was originally used for meetings and dining, was empty during our visit. It was a thing of beauty with sunlight streaming in illuminating the interior. The floor is parquet style marble with colored stone in various colors. You can detect the wear of centuries in its unevenness. But the center is dominated by a huge ornamental iron grate which allows for heating of the large hall. The ceiling was spectacular not only because of the fresco by Troger but because of the design. Following the idea  trompe-l'oeil  the artist created the illusion of a domed ceiling.  Another bit of visual trickery is in the wall decor.  Some of the wall treatments are actually painted on to represent carved marble. (see photo above) However, the Marble Hall at Melk Abbey was definitely worth our time and shouldn't be missed by a traveler in that part of Austria.

We exited the building through the church. Since mass was in progress we did not tarry, but did take a few photographs of this beautifully decorated church.  Built in the baroque style, ornamentation is lavish. This style was encouraged by the Catholic Church in rebellion against the Reformation. Much of the ornamental stone work was covered with gold leaf.  Having done some gilding as a signmaker, I particularly enjoy good examples of the gilders craft.

Once back aboard ship, we sailed for Krems. Some of our shipmates went to a wine tasting tour of a local winery. But, Claudette and I did some window shopping, because most of the stores were closed. There was a street entertainer, a one-man band, rendering American folk songs. He was good.  We dropped a few euros in his cup.  I did a few sketches, and we enjoyed ice cream at a sidewalk cafe. Soon we were back aboard the Kara and enjoying hearing of our friends' visit to a local winery at dinner.

I am fast becoming a fan of Viking River Cruises.