DAY 15 - SEPT. 16 - MISSED FEST

😭 

Ron walked up to Edeka to get us some light breakfast "fixings". He passed this small building which housed four apartments. This gives new meaning to "tiny house".

 

  

He also noticed this kebab stand in the parking lot of Edeka. He had a "notion" to ask Publix or Kroger if we could sub-lease a small area for hotdogs or custard  or whatever. I said perhaps we should franchise them.

I had a plan that it would be most efficient if we left our car, and took a taxi to the river boat dock, and upon our scheduled return at 3 PM take another taxi to the Fest. No hassles with traffic, getting lost or parking. So much for plans! Late morning we did taxi to Fritz-Schafer Promenade, Dock 11. There was already a crowd there, but it turned out two or three cruise lines were using the dock. 

Ron was very hot in his green wool sweater waiting in line to validate our tickets (which I had purchased on-line). I couldn't escape the Sun either, and had on my heavy red wool vest. In every single picture, we look like we are dressed for Alaska and the other people look like they're in Key West.

We found a place to sit and wait, and then broke into the line (with other handicapped people) when the Swarovski Crystal ship arrived. 

Passau is known as the City of Three Rivers: the Danube, the
Inn, and the Ilz. From the end of the peninsula you can see the confluence, and the different colors of the three rivers. Since it was too hot to be out walking or sightseeing, I thought a river boat might show us more of the city, and leave us rested enough to go to the fest that evening. 

We had booked for the Kristallschiff trip. The boat is advertised as having over one million Swarovski crystals, creating an atmosphere of "luxury and glamor". The boat had 30-ft. arches on the exterior of each side, also made of  crystals.  Inside, there is a crystal staircase. I made it up, and Ron was yelling for me to turn around (which I didn't hear), so this is not my most flattering picture. 

There are also two or three enormous, long crystal chandeliers. It creates a very picturesque image, although with all the crowd and noise, not so elegant. Maybe at night with dim lights and adults only!

There were at least four noisy, mischievous children on board, and we had the bad fortune to have two of the loudest at the table adjacent to us. I had selected the table because it was at a very large, unimpeded window. We have no idea where the family (grandmother, daughter, and the two demons) were from, but think maybe Uzbekistand. The Grandma had on a full

very heavy chada. She was the only one dressed more warmly than we! She also had a set of "grillz" worthy of any rapper. I told Ron I was afraid to shush the kids or the Grandma might use those gold teeth to bite me. Here you can barely see the little girl's face to the right above the chair and the boy's bare feet under the chair. Seriously, it was super annoying that there was no supervision of the kids nor corrective action taken by boat personnel. These kids and two German boys continually ran up and down the aisles, screamed, climbed on seats and window frames, and along with the background conversation, made it impossible to hear the commentary explaining what we were seeing.

Ron's Apfelstrudel

I ordered a becker of chocolate ice cream with chocolate sauce and caramel - it was enormous and so good! Decadent! Ron had apple strudel with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, and vanilla sauce. He said it was scrumptious. He ate every bite. It was the highlight of the cruise

The boat quickly left the beautiful old city, and sailed down the Danube for about 45-minutes before turning around at Kasten. For the most part, we found the scenery boring. Miles of idyllic hills and countryside. Good for reading a book and having a glass of wine. We felt it was a waste of time and money. But, the tour gets consistently good reviews.

When we arrived back in Passau, we waited to be amongst the last to disembark. When we arrived by taxi, I had tried to take note of any hotels I saw along the river level where we might be able to go up to street level by elevator. Unfortunately, there wasn't one right near the dock. The only way up we saw was an enormous stone stairway, which appeared insurmountable. Thinking my original idea was good we set out walking, but later discovered we went in the opposite direction of numerous hotels. We did finally happen upon the Hotel Passauer Wolf, which had an unlocked door and an elevator. We went up to the tiny reception and bar area, and asked if we could get a drink. Our main goal was to REST and use the facilities. The bathrooms were down one level, but again accessible by the lift, and very clean and "handicap friendly".  Ron told the young receptionist that we were ready to pay, and after asking if we were guests, and some hesitation, she said that our drinks would be free. She had mentioned that she was new, so I suspect she made a mistake. In the corridor was a bookshelf where guests had left behind unwanted items, and I found a Lisa Jewell book I hadn't read. She is one of my favorite authors. So, that hotel was a great find - elevator, good bathrooms, free book, and COMPLIMENTARY DRINK! 

We walked along Rindermarkt looking into windows of some cute shops. We made our way to the St. Stephen's Dom, the most important Baroque church north of the Alps. It also has the largest pipe organ in Europe.
 

Unfortunately, the pipe organ is undergoing a major renovation, to be completed in 2026, and we were not able to see it. It is a 5-year, 6.5 million Euro project. There appeared to be other construction taking place as well. We did sit for a few moments of rest and reflection.

Walking a bit further in a fruitless search for a taxi, we ended up at a bistro, Paulusbogen. We sat on the terrace and I had a refreshing limoncello spritz, and Ron a red wine. I had chicken (basically three large chicken tenders) with Prieselbeeren (lingonberries) on top of potato salad, and Ron had a large mixed salad. Most of my potato salad and some of my chicken went onto his plate, and a bit of his salad onto mine.

The waitress called a taxi for us, and we had to walk a few more steps to meet up with him. Well, the main reason we had come to Passau was to go to the fest, Passauer Herbst Dult. But, by the time we had done all that walking in the heat, and finished a light meal, we were TOO EXHAUSTED to make it. Ron said the trip has been taking more out of him than he expected. We both try to forget our age, but it has a way of waking you up to reality. So, we had the taxi take us back to Rivers Apartment, and called it a day.