The food onboard is very good. Breakfast is all you can eat buffet, while dinner is served at your assigned table. The 5 course dinner is fine dining with main dishes such as leg of duck, mushroom risotto, salmon in a mustard sauce, pork chops, etc... The portions are not huge, but are satisfying. The servers are practiced and professional.
The crew are mainly fron Czech Republic and Slovenia, while the sailing crew is from Africa. They all do double or triple duty to make the trip happen.
The bikes Mari an I are using are 7 speed cruisers that allow you to sit upright. They are well maintained and are perfect for the light riding done on the trip. Mari and I will try out e-bikes tomorrow on our longest leg yet.
This morning at 3am, our boat sailed from Linz to Mauthausen, arriving at 6am. After a good hearty breakfast, with started the third leg of our bike tour. We biked about 2km along the north bike path before crossing the bridge to the south. Once on the south bank, we headed east along the Danube bike path. After about 6 km of riding through new suburbs we turned south toward the village of St Pantaleons. We could see the Bavarian Alps in the distance. The bike path continues inland along a broad flat valley of farm land. We were in the direct sun, but a steady breeze kept us cool, while making us battle for each km. There were several small private churches and shrines along the way. We also saw many deer stands for hunters on the edge of the fields. The trees were more of the hard wood varieties than the day before.
After several km, the path returns to the south bank of the Danube. From here on, the bike path started to be more crowded than we had seen yesterday. We could see the tower of the Abbey church in Wallsee on the south side of the Danube right below the massive locks and hydroelectric station that crosses the river. After skirting Wallsee, we pedaled another 4km to the Parlament Cafe, sitting on a hilltop along our path. We stopped to sample the local pear cider. It was cold and sweet on a warm sunny day. After looking at the menu, we abandoned our packed lunch for chicken tenders and a mixed grill. The portions were huge. We could have both shared one meal.
Back on the road, we remained in flat river bottom farm land until reaching Ardagger Markt. There we returned to the river bank until crossing the Danube by bridge at Tiefenbach. Then we had a short 4 km to our port for the night, Grein.
After a 44 km ride battling the wind, we were glad to see our floating home. But we did leave after a shower and clean cloths to walk up the hill to tour the Greinburg Palace, still home to the princes of the Saxe Coburg Gotha. Yes this the family of Prince Albert, prince consort to Queen Victoria of Great Britain. And yes, the current prince is 40 years old and single. The palace has been extensively refurbished, with modern heating and plumbing, while restoring rooms to their original purpose. The 500 year old palace dominates the valley from a high hilltop above town, with impressive views of the Danube.
After another great dinner, comparing notes with our boat mates, we retired to rest up for tomorrow's 50 km ride to Melk. We will try the e-bikes in hopes of easing our journey. All photos are up on Flickr, https://flickr.com/photos/22583315@N08/sets/72157681732751383
I do love the travel journal! I would like to see Prince Albert's home, especially after watching the PBS series on Victoria. The flicker link to your photos didn't work, hopefully it will later!
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