Getting to be Fall along the Danube

October is a good month to either drive long side or take a riverboat down the Danube. The weather is still mild and the leaves are turning. 

Winter has not yet come.

We found that the castles and fortresses were better seen due to the contrast in colors. This is an old toll fortress on a hill above the river.

 

Buskers in Munich

 I have a good friend who paid for things by being a busker on the violin. She tells stories about her travels and about the places she played. I think it takes believing in yourself, your abilities, and your safety.

We have seen buskers all over the United States and Europe. They add life to the cities and add to the experience. In the same way I like flash mobs.

On a negative note: we were in the Ghetto in Venice having a relaxed and romantic dinner when this man came into the area playing "Lady of Spain" on the accordion.

An exception.

 

Looking back at the Winter Olympics

If you watched this year's Winter Olympics you know they were primarily located in Cortina in the Dolomites and in the fashion city of Milan.

The closing ceremony was held in the ancient colosseum of Verona.

It is very large and during opera or other events bring along a pad as the cement seat are hard. But the venue is wonderful.

This photo shows the modern stage and the modern seats in the foreground.

Look through the stage and you will see the old seats.

 

 

The Iceman of the Alps or of Bolzano is the remains of a hunter

 

Taking the road north from Venice you will arrive at Bolzano.

It has the remains of a hunter found frozen in the snow in a well done museum.

This has been featured on Nova and National Geographic.

But... Bolzano is more than that. It is a lovely town of the Italian Alps.

This is the creek you cross getting into town.

Church steeple outside Prague Castle

While Prague Castle is the home of the large and imposing St. Vitus Cathedral there is a pretty church with steeple clock just outside the walls.

I often wonder if tourists are so busy trying to see the sights from their guidebooks and miss other things of beauty,

 

Unmanned lighthouse in the islands of Norway

 

 

We were on the ship for 12 days going up the inland coast of Norway. The trip was to the Russian border at Kirkenes and back to Bergen. There were only a couple of places when we went into open sea. Most of the time it was in fjords and between islands. The channel sometimes became very narrow and with very little depth. The crew threaded a number of needles to get us to the small villages. Does this look close: it was.

Twilight over the Norway's Islands

It is the land of "the midnight sun" or the land that dwells in darkness in the Winter. We went on the shoulder season when we had lots of light and no snow.

The photo above is the last in a series of photos taken of the sunset.

The took a long while, but each drew something new out of the sky.

This shows the clouds and fog forming over the outer islands

along the coast of Norway. The are over 2,400 islands large and small.