Day 5: Prague, Regensburg, Vilshofen

Last time, we were in Prague. We walked Charles Bridge and shopped a little on the bridge. Then we found a secret garden with well-trimmed hedges, peacocks and a strange, gray grotto wall.

Today, it was time to leave Prague and go to our cruise ship!

As we said goodbye to our fancy hotel room in Prague, I noticed these flowers in a coke bottle. Did the staff do that? Ah, it was Auntie Nancy! A girl once gave me a flower in a coke bottle….

In a previous post, I wondered if the insects in Europe are the same as here. What about the trees? I heard of an iPhone app that can tell a tree from a photo of its leaves. So what's this tree?

The tree itself is below. It was a beautiful tree with room underneath for a couple of benches, and you could sit there protected from the sun/rain. If you ever want to find it, it was in the courtyard outside our hotel.

It was time to join our fellow cruisemates! They were staying at the "official" AmaWaterways hotel on the other side of town. We all boarded buses to take us from Prague to Regensburg to Vilshofen.

The countryside was much nicer than I expected. For some reason, I envisioned industrial/rocky landscapes. But as soon as we were out of the city, it reminded me of England or anywhere green in the U.S.

In fact, many years ago when I crossed the United States, I took photos of hay rolls just like that!

Look how far you can see! Makes you want to just run out there! (Or use a horse. =)

We stopped at a McDonald's, and boy was I excited! I don't even go to McDonald's much in the U.S. (I once had a Big Mac that gave me a tummy ache.) But it was like a little taste of home.

Auntie Nancy enjoying one of my fries.

The ship was in Vilshofen, but we stopped first in Regensburg, Germany as part of the cruise tour package.

Throughout the cruise, our tour guides would be top-notch. Here, our guide explains history using an extendable ruler. The ruler had 10 sections, and each section was labeled with 100 years of history. So one compact ruler covered 1000 years! Very cool.

I wanted some photos of Auntie Nancy interacting with our tour guide, but it was hard because the guide was very energetic and always moving. But this is a funny photo. At least when you see the one a split-second later.

Auntie Nancy thinks, "I don't want to eat that!"

We finished the tour at an amazing cathedral. It was like, "Pillars of the Earth"!

Auntie Nancy and I had been on the "regular" tour, while Mom and Mary had been on the "gentle walkers" tour. When we got to the cathedral, we saw Mary but not Mom, whom had been left alone on a bridge….

Auntie Nancy and I went back to find poor Mommy.

Found her! The cathedral's in the back. That water is the Danube! And that bridge is really old. Older than the entire United States, by far far. (Built in 1135–1146.)

Flowers in Regensburg. I was trying to find a particular color…

This color? Pretty flowers, nonetheless.

I really like the composition of this photo. What do you notice? The window in the upper-right with flowers? The small "hill" of a window in the top-center? I took it because of the nun working the rooftop garden.

The cathedral from another angle. It's amazing that human hands had to build that. Did they know it would still be standing today? 

Inside the cathedral. It's all amazing: The vaulted ceiling, the windows. But the tall columns really make my heart skip a beat.

This photo needs explanation. I took this because of the small sign hanging in the upper-left. The white one. It says, "Thurn and Taxis." Thurn and Taxis is a German noble family that helped develop the European postal system. There's a board game of the same name that I used to play, in which you build a postal route in European cities.

One of those cities is Regensburg! So to find a "Thurn and Taxis" in Regensburg, well, I had to take capture that.

The family also makes beer, which is the reason for the sign in this case. =)

Previously, I wondered about insects, then trees, in Europe vs. the U.S. Here we have insects and leaves! The fly on the right looks familiar! The one on the left looks scary. (Perhaps because it's not familiar? It's also bigger … and scarier …)

After Regensburg, we got back on the bus, to Vilshofen! There were appetizers and dessert waiting onboard.

This beautiful cake is made of marzipan. I felt bad being the first to cut it, but it was meant to be eaten … right?

Auntie Nancy enjoying the view.

Mom looks ready for our first meal of the cruise! Dinner!

Food was fancy. Look how it's plated! I'm just starting to learn about "plating," thanks to an anime called "Food Wars!" Sadly, I started watching after the cruise.

Whew! The 4 of us had made it to the ship, luggage intact, everyone healthy more-or-less. Let's get this boat moving!

Actually, the ship would stay anchored overnight! We had arrived in Vilshofen that evening, so we would tour the city tomorrow. Then, we'd finally be moving!

Next time: Vilshofen, Passau and …?

Day 4: Prague, day 2

Last time, I described our first full day in Prague. I walked Charles Bridge at dawn, and we all visited Prague Castle.

The next day, we started with our hotel's fancy breakfast.

Here's one of the butlers. I think his name was "George," but in Czech. Anyway, he was good.

Mom, me and Auntie Nancy. I enjoyed breakfast so much the day before, that this time I woke early for breakfast, with plans to come back a second time for brunch.

Or if you're familiar with Hobbit culture, "second breakfast."

Just a pic of Mom that I like. =)

We met Ken and Debbie, a nice couple staying at the hotel. Here, Ken's showing some stamps he just got for his collection.

Ken and Debbie live in Novato, California! That's pretty close to us, considering we were all the way in a tiny hotel in Prague.

Ken's wife, Debbie.

They have a small volunteer-run "Space Museum." I visited the museum recently, and actually it was quite nice! They have real space relics, including Russian ones. You can touch/play with a lot of it. Made me think of the film "Gravity."

 We went to walk Charles Bridge. This time it was all four of us, in the middle of the day. We expected it to be crowded, and it was. But it was more lively and busy, not sardine-packed.

I didn't realize there would be vendors on the bridge! Mom really enjoyed the local craftsmanship.

This looks like a car's side-view mirror, but it was a mirror at a vendor selling hair accessories. I like the composition of this shot, with the river in the background.

 The bridge has a lot of statues. I don't know what this one is about. But the birds on it are funny.

Street musicians. They were covering American pop music. It was nice!

Mom especially liked this woman's work and bought some gifts for friends.

Another street band. Also very nice!

 Mom was tired and it was getting a little late. But there was a "secret garden" that I had heard about and wanted us to see. It's very close to here. (In the background is the castle.)

A map of the garden. I think it's real name is "Wallenstein Garden."

The garden was very easy to miss, even though it's big and only a stone's throw from our hotel. We almost missed out!

The landscaping reminded me of a hedge maze.

A peacock! This was my first photo of it. I couldn't believe how close it would let us get.

*Really* close.

The feathers are shown as a mating ritual, right? I hope he found what he needed.

Wow, those feathers! I also felt sorry for the child trapped inside. But I'm sure she got to go outside and visit the peacocks later.

The day before, from Prague Castle, I had seen a large, gray "mass" in the distance. It was this wall! What is it?

We didn't have time to really take in the wall. Apparently there are hidden things all over, even suggestions of hidden passages. But actual hidden passages? Tempting.

It really was a beautiful garden. Not very crowded when we went, either. My favorite part of Prague, except maybe for breakfast. =)

Whew! Mom was tired. The next day, we would leave Prague and head for the cruise ship!

Mysteries like this glowing tower would have to wait for another trip. =)


Next time: Get me to the ship on time! Day 5: Regensburg, Vilshofen.