Dreaming of a White Christmas - Day 6

Saint Nicholas Day


We woke to a snowy landscape again, as well as chocolate gifts at the door of our room. Apparently December 6th is the feast day of Saint Nicholas, the inspiration for Santa Claus, and he had visited us all overnight.

We watched the snow fall and the ship negotiating her way through the locks as we enjoyed breakfast. The scenery was very monochrome until we passed small settlements which boasted lovely pastel-coloured buildings – a distinct contrast to the blanket of white.   

After breakfast there was a blog to write, photos to upload and editing to complete for clients back home. This successfully filled in the time until our 11am English briefing about the afternoon’s excursion into Linz.

We docked at 3 and as soon as the doors were open, we were out and off to visit this picturesque city and its range of markets. First port of call was the small open Christkindlmarkt in the Main Square, which we reached through winding cobblestone streets lined with coloured buildings all with a unique baroque architectural style.

We strolled around the little red huts admiring the range of Christmas tree decorations, pottery and glassware, delicious-smelling tasty treats and the other lovingly crafted goods on offer. Then we walked the beautifully lit main street – it was only 4pm but already dark enough to appreciate the lights decorating the streets.

We reached the Stiegl-Klosterhof – a hidden winter wonderland of trees decorated with thousands of lights and baubles. There was a definite magical Christmas ambience here for young and old. We turned down another cobbled street past the Pfarrplatz square at the parish church which also housed a Christmas Market, and then journeyed on the end of the main street where we reached the Volksgarten Christmas Market.

We enjoyed the atmosphere and the beauty of the decorations and lights before retracing our steps. En route to the ship we found Mozarthaus, the building in which Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart apparently composed his Linz Symphony and the Linz Sonata in only three days, way back in the 16th century.

We were back onboard by 6:15 in plenty of time for our final dinner. As we approached the dining room I was struck by the overwhelming smell of capsicum! It really has been a struggle to find a meal on board that isn’t tainted by capsicum, so it was tomato, lettuce and fish for me tonight. At least I know the desserts are capsicum free.

Time now to repack our cases in readiness for our departure early in the morning.


Happy feast day Saint Nicholas

Lovely Linz

Overtaking a river barge on the Danube

Snowy landscape 

Winter garden wonderland



Comments

  1. Deb FrankDecember 6, 2023 at 1:46 PM

    Having German DNA I felt it tingle whilst reading about the cobbled streets and twinkling lights. My imagination lit up and I could picture the Volksgarten Market. I always wanted to do a white Christmas but now it's probably not going to happen so I really enjoyed you taking me there.

    ReplyDelete

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