Wining and dining on Eastern European waters

Connie Reinglass

If it’s good wine, beer, food, desserts, history, music and scenery

that you are looking for, a trip we took to Central and Eastern

Europe might be for you.

We flew to Budapest, Hungary, spent two days and then embarked on

a beautiful new five-star river cruise ship, the Amadeus Symphony. We

traveled north on the Danube River through five different countries:

Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Germany and the Czech Republic.

We were wined and dined every evening and during the day, after a

full buffet breakfast, were whisked off on tours to Budapest, the

Slovak capital, Bratislava, Salzburg and Vienna in Austria and

Regensburg and Nuremberg in Germany, as well as other small charming

country villages in between. We ended our trip with three extra

nights in Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic.

In Budapest, we were able to stay directly adjacent to the

500-year-old Matthias Church and the famous Fishermen’s Bastion. From

our vantage point, we had a glass of the local Tokaji Aszu wine. The

view was so charming, overlooking the Danube from the Buda side to

the Pest side, that I immediately fell in love with the area, and I

don’t think it was because of the wine.

In Austria, we were able to see some of the areas where the “Sound

of Music” had been filmed, along with the church used in the wedding

scene and the absolutely stunning Mirabell Gardens.

Austria is a fabulous country, and Vienna is definitely the City

of Music. We were able to enjoy a concert and ballet at the Palais

Liechtenstein with music from Strauss and Mozart. We were also right

in the midst of a pension strike in Vienna, but I have never seen a

more orderly and polite strike. The cable cars and the city buses

were not in service, but our privately owned buses were able to get

us through the city to see the sites and attend the concert. The

traffic was backed up, but none of the drivers were crossing over

onto the cable car tracks to pass other cars or even honking. I can’t

even image that happening here.

This trip had a little something for everyone in our immediate

group of 25 from Southern California. I think the men had the best

time watching the mechanics of the ship maneuvering through the 16

locks of the Main-Danube Canal. Passing through the locks is a

fascinating feat and it entertained the entire ship.

The beer was great, and we got a royal tour and tasting at the

Pilsner-Urquell Brewery, in Pilsen, just outside of Prague. We took

part in a wine tasting in the Faust Wine Cellar, a former cellar of

Dominican monks, in the Budapest Hilton and in a cellar in the quaint

little town of Durnstein.

Even the abbeys were exquisite. The Melk Abbey was astonishing.

There were several of us that just sat speechless in the cathedral,

absorbing its magnificence. It is one of Europe’s largest baroque

monasteries. We were also able to view the Weltenberg Abbey after a

leisurely cruise through the Danube Gorge.

Prague is definitely a city worth visiting. We would have liked to

spend another two or three days just exploring the history and

museums. It is a very diverse city, and I would want to venture out

into the countryside next time.

We all gathered around and waited for the world famous

astronomical clock, in the city square, to chime at the hour, and I

had the feeling as if we were waiting for the ball to drop on New

Year’s Eve. It’s quite a mechanical wonder watching the apostles

parade around at the stroke of the hour. We then went to the top of

the tower housing the clock and absorbed the entire city of Prague,

which is breathtaking. While in Prague, the women of course had to go

shopping for garnets and Bohemian crystal, which is the specialty in

the Czech Republic.

If you have never been to Europe -- or even if you have -- a river

cruise is the way to go. Your hotel travels with you. It is so

relaxing, and you really get caught up in the atmosphere and are

intoxicated with the scenery, even without beer or wine. We have been

back a few weeks now, and I still have vacation head. I would go back

in a heartbeat.

During our cruise, we celebrated our anniversary. I whispered to

my husband during the fabulous sparkler-laden layer cake that paraded

out, “How are we ever going to top this?”

* CONNIE REINGLASS is a Newport Beach resident.

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