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| day 12 Daily Cruiser page 1 |
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| day 12 Daily Cruiser page 2 |
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| day 12 Daily Cruiser page 3 |
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| day 12 Daily Cruiser page 4 |
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AmaPrima arrived in
Vienna, the capital of Austria. After breakfast, we headed out on the "active" city excursion, consisting of a bus ride around the grand
Ringstrasse followed by a walking tour in the old town.
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| the most important meal of the day |
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| Roman ruins inside St Michael's Square |
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| Hofburg Palace |
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| walking on Kohlmarkt street |
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After the tour was over, the rest of the day was at our leisure as AmaPrima would be docking in Vienna overnight. Since we opted in for tonight's Mozart and Strauss concert, we planned to spend the rest of the day in town, then return to the ship for dinner. Our first stop was to sample the famous
Sacher Torte and Viennese coffee/hot chocolate. The cake was a bit dry (probably why it needed all that whipped cream), but the beverages were fantastic!
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| different ways to order coffee |
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| delectable desserts |
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| "diet" cakes? |
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| sugar overload |
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After our snack, we walked around town, then made our way to Maria Theresia Square to visit the
Natural History Museum. There was not enough time to fully explore the exhibits. The mineral section was fascinating.
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| St. Stephen's Cathedral |
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| Kaiser Franz I |
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| public water fountain |
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| Maria Theresia |
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360 spherical picture of Maria Theresia Square, taken with the
Ricoh Theta S:
Maria-Theresien-Platz in Vienna - Spherical Image - RICOH THETA
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| the museum's entryway ceiling |
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| room after room after room of minerals |
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| huge specimens |
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| meteorite |
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| meteorite cross-sections |
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| rocks from Mars |
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| lunar rocks |
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| lots of interesting fossils |
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| one of the oldest art sculptures |
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| dinosaur display |
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We took the 4pm shuttle back to AmaPrima, then had afternoon tea and relaxed until the Vienna dinner buffet.
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| a towel doggie |
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| tea time offerings |
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| day 12 dinner menu |
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| selections from the appetizer buffet |
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| schnitzel |
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| dessert buffet |
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| fruit and cheese buffet |
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| malakoff cake, almond souffle, cherry strudel |
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Tonight's Mozart and Strauss concert (70 euro per person) had a "smart" dress code, so I was expecting more than what we ended up receiving. The Daily Cruiser had listed the venue to be the
Konzert Haus, but we ended up going to the
Palais Auersperg to listen to the
Vienna Residence Orchestra. The hall was quite small, with free-standing chairs stacked right next to each other, allowing minimal arm and leg room. You couldn't help but touch your neighbor's arms or thighs. The stage was tiny, barely enough room to fit a barebones orchestra (cello, bass, two violins, viola, flute, clarinet, plus a piano off to the side and a lead violinist) with a little space for two dancers. To ensure a front-row seat with legroom, you would need to be at the head of the line, as seating was first-come-first-serve. The venue was also stifling; people were using their programs as fans. Fortunately, the performance was entertaining enough to endure sitting there for the next hour and a half. It wasn't all orchestral music as there was a bit of ballet, opera and humor(!?) mixed in. There was a short intermission, with complimentary champagne served outside the doors. Kaleb went to get some; the line was very long and you weren't allowed to bring it back inside the hall. Picture-taking was permitted during the last act.
I thought this excursion would involve a grand orchestra in an equally grand hall, but unfortunately not. If it was at the larger Konzert Haus, maybe it would have been better (perhaps we encountered a last minute change in venue). I do not recommend the Palais Auersperg concert if you are a fan of classical music, ballet or opera; go find a better performance to attend on your own.
The bus ride back to the ship included a drive around the Ringstrasse to see all the grand buildings illuminated at night. Our tour leader also distributed a Strauss and Mozart music CD per couple as a souvenir. This was not mentioned in the tour description so a few people who had purchased the CD after the show were not pleasantly surprised.
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| no seat numbers...first come first serve |
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| Bruce dressed smart; the last audience did not |
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| the chairs on stage are the same as ours |
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| at the end of the performance |
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| program page 1 |
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| program page 2 |
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| musical selections |
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| concert CD (of a different, much larger orchestra!) |
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After returning to AmaPrima, we partook in the late night "goulash and sausage" buffet before heading back to our room.
The next morning, AmaPrima set off for
Bratislava, Slovakia.
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| day 13 Daily Cruiser page 1 |
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| day 13 Daily Cruiser page 2 |
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| day 13 Daily Cruiser page 3 |
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| day 13 Daily Cruiser page 4 |
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Kaleb and I slept in, so we ended up just doing the light lunch in the lounge.
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| day 13 lunch menu |
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| marinated salad, country chicken drums, guacamole |
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| tortiglioni pasta |
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| Paris brest, ciabatta sandwich, cheeses |
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| creamy pumpkin soup |
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We went on the
Bratislava Castle hike. There were only a few of us, which was great. We did not enter the castle, but got a tour of the area and the Old Town.
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| St. Martin's Cathedral |
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| climbing the stairs towards the castle |
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| Bratislava Castle |
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| view of "UFO" observation deck |
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| contrast of the old next to the new |
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| walking around Old Town |
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| Roland's Fountain in Main Square |
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There was a fun
"Man at Work"/Cumil bronze statue in the streets of Old Town. Rub his head for good luck; ladies can rub his nose for a gift from the stork! Other quirky bronze statues can be found nearby.
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| "Man at Work" |
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| head rubbed shiny |
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At the end of the tour, our guide led us to what locals considered the best place for gelato,
Luculus. A great way to beat the heat!
Afterwards, Kaleb and I retraced our steps back to Old Town, walking down
Kapitulska Street, built in the 13th century. The buildings are in much need of restoration. We also walked by the city walls (Uzka Street) and entered
St. Martin's Cathedral. We then visited a cafe next to our dock and had some refreshments. It was such a hot day that some of our fellow passengers made use of the pool on board.
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| city walls |
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| along Uzka Street |
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| St. Martin's Cathedral interior |
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| much needed libations |
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| view of AmaPrima from the cafe |
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| Kevin and Danielle in the pool |
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Tonight was the Gala Dinner. Everyone dressed up for the occasion.
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| Captain's farewell reception |
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| day 13 dinner menu |
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| falafel with gochujang dip |
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| crab cake |
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| lemongrass crayfish bisque |
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| beef tenderloin with port wine sauce |
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| rosemary creme brulee, stracciatella ice cream |
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| petit fours |
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Tomorrow, our cruise ends with an overnight in Budapest, Hungary...stay tuned!
Missed any of the previous entries? Refer to the Trip Index at the top of this post to navigate.
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Another disclaimer: The intention of this blog was to remind Future Me in full detail about where I went and what I did. I could have made it private, but I frequently get questions from family, friends and internet folks about how I planned things, got deals, etc., so instead of repeating the story over and over, I direct them here. If you are offended by anything I say or do, save yourself the discomfort and kindly click away from my blog. Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day!
