In Linz

I have missed another day of blog entries.  I’m suffering from a cold, so that’s my excuse.  On Monday, we were still in Vienna, and took a bus ride to an area of the region I hadn’t seen before, the Vienna Woods, on the outskirts of the city.  The Viennese can visit these wooded hills by public transport, and they’re covered with hiking trails.  We went to the hunting lodge where a young Habsburg prince and his lover committed suicide (macabre!) in a gorgeous setting, the abbey of Heilingkreuz (very beautiful Cloisters and lovely stained glass) and the spa town of Baden (totally delightful).
Resting in the town of Baden

Larry took the afternoon off, while I went for a lightning tour of the Kunsthistorisches Museum with an excellent guide.

A famous salt and pepper shaker

I enjoyed this tour because the guide was efficient and didn’t ramble.  She showed us the highlights and directed us around the enormous museum with energy.

A Vermeer, one of the most famous works in the museum.

The boat cruised away from Vienna and down the Danube through the beautiful valley of the Wachau, which I watched from the deck Tuesday morning. The boat docked at Melk where we went on a tedious guided tour of the Abbey.  Unfortunately, my cold was getting worse and the rain was pouring down by the time we visited a winery to sample the Gruner Veltliner white wines of this region.  We skipped dinner and I slept a long time last night.  

I’m feeling better this morning but I’m not sure I want to participate on the all day excursion to Cesky Krumlov (about a two hour bus ride from here).  It’s raining so hard, and my cold is still there.