We woke up before 5:00 am and did our final packing.  We walked to the airport in plenty of time for our international flight.  After navigating through security, we spent the rest of the spare time in a waiting area of the airport with restaurants and bars.  We had a beer and croissant breakfast around 8:00 am.

The flights to Chicago then St. Louis were uneventful.  We arrived back at our St. Louis home in the late afternoon.  Just in time for tommorrow's Christmas celebration with our kids and grandkids.

Today is the first of two travel days to end our trip.  We were up early in Budapest to pack up for a train ride back to Vienna where we will spend our last night in Europe.  We were awake at 7:30, packed, ate, and out of the hotel at 10:30 am.  We took a Bolt taxi to the train station before 11:00.

Our train departed at 11:40.  Smooth going.  We transferred to a local train at Vienna's main train station to get to the airport.  Smooth transition.  We walked to the hotel and checked in around 3:30 pm.  After dropping off luggage in the room, we went to the lounge for Manhattans.  I taught the very nice bartender how to make them.  We had dinner in the hotel restaurant around 5:00 pm -- Mary, a burger -- me, a Weinerschnitzel.  Both very good.  Went to bed at 7:00 pm for a VERY early rise tomorrow morning.

Today is our last full day in Budapest, and Mary's 74th birthday.  We left our hotel room at 11:30 am to go to the most famous cafe known for their coffee and delectable desserts.  Mary had a hankering for sweets.  We were lucky to get a table.  This place attracted tourists and wealthy locals.  It was a good place to see Hungarian women.

After lunch, we walked further to get to the famous Chain Bridge, ...

... then Parliament, ...

... then finally to the antique district.

It was not our style of antiques, but the area did include a statue of one of Hungary's favorite sons, Peter Falk, who starred as Columbo.

We were tuckered out by this time, so we got a Bolt taxi (Hungary's version of Uber) to go back to the hotel.  We had a Bloody Mary at the restaurant next door, then to our room around 4:00 pm.  We rested till 6:30.

We went out for dinner.  It had been hard to find Manhattans, so we returned to the Ritz-Carlton bar.  While we were there, we had to get photographic proof the today was indeed Mary's birthday.

Leaving the Ritz, we walked toward a highly rated Indian restaurant.  On the way, we stopped for a little birthday gift for Mary.

Upon reaching the Indian restaurant, we were a little put off by the inconspicuous, tiny hole-in-the-wall place it seemed to be.

We were the only customer.  There was only one employee who was the maître d', the server, and the chef.  But this was the best Indian food we'd ever had!

Then back to the Ritz-Carlton for after-dinner drinks.  It was our third visit in two days, and by now, they knew it was Mary's birthday.  They treated her to a special cake -- delicious!

Back to our hotel room at 11:00 pm.  It was a very long and fulfilling last day in Budapest.

We spent the day in roaming around Pest today.  We left our room at 11:30 am and walked south on Vaci Street, one the main pedestrian market routes.  We soon stopped for lunch -- beer and Langos for me.  Langos is a popular street food similar to pizza but with various Hungarian tooppings.  Unfortunately, my dough was way too stale or overcooked -- I could barely cut the crust with a knife -- but being my first one, I didn't realize it was not normal.  I later discovered it was NOT, as I watched others eat theirs.

We continued our walk down Vaci Street, ...

... eventually ending at Central Market, a popular place where the locals as well as tourist could buy just about anything Hungarian, with a particular focus on foods, ...

We then headed back north on Vaci Street and rested with a Schnapps and hot wine.

We went back to the hotel at 4:00 for a rest.  Below shows the main entry hallway of the hotel and the elevator button that took us to Floor 1/2.

We ventured back out at 5:45.  For the first time on this trip, it seemed appropriate to take the subway to a further-out part of Budapest to get to District VII.  Until now, all the sites had been within easy walking distance of our hotel, largely because I had chosen hotels to be in the middle of the main tourist area.  But District VII was supposed to be a "lively" area of the city and I wanted to venture out of the primary tourist area.  We only had to take two stops to District VII.  The area was dark.  We walked many blocks without seeing hardly a sole.  We couldn't find any of the restaurants that Google was showing.  We felt like we had gone into the Twighlight Zone.  So we took the subway back to the main tourist area.  In retrospect, the subway ticket system had been difficult to figure out, we wasted a lot of time, we could have done it cheaper, easier, and quicker using a taxi, and in the end, it was all for nothing.  The only real mistake of our trip.

Back in the comfort of the central tourist area, we had Manhattans at the Ritz-Carlton.

Then walked to a very good Hungarian restaurant right next to our hotel.  I had Goulash and Chicken Paprikash.  Mary had the New York Pasta appetizer.  The Italian food was always the best on this entire trip.

Today was our first full day in Budapest on our own.  We disembarked the ship at 9:30 am after coffee and breakfast.  Camille, the Cruise Director, ordered a taxi for us and escorted us down the gangplank and introduced us to our taxi driver.  The taxi took us to The Loft Budapest, our lodging for the next three nights.  It was an interesting boutique hotel with only eight rooms on floor 1/2 of a very old building.  We got in our room at 11:30 am.  Even though we hadn't done anything to speak of, we were tired and took a rest in our room for about three hours.

Then we walked to the biggest Christmas Market in Budapest at St. Stephen's Basilica, a short walk away.  We found a great Italian restaurant for dinner, then walked through the market.

The huge outdoor plaza around the Basilica was amazing.  Even the ground was paved in elaborate designs of tiles and cobblestone.

The main attraction was the light show projected on the face of the Basilica.

We walked back to the same Italian restaurant for after-dinner drinks.  (Once you find a restaurant with a good bar that recognizes American drinks and cocktails, you have to stick with it!)  We walked more, somehow working up an appetite again, and stopped for appetizers, wine, and beer at a bistro just across the pedestrian plaza outside our hotel.

Then back to our hotel, The Loft Budapest, seen below.

Today is our last full day on the cruise.  We had sailed all night toward Budapest.  We woke up to sailing past several small villages along the Danube.

As we neared Budapest, the excitement soared, and many passengers made their way to the upper deck for the best views.  In spite of the cold weather, there was at least one passenger already up there enjoying the hot tub.

We sailed into Budapest at 11:30 am.  The pilot made a complete pass of the city, turned around and sailed upstream through the entire city again, making for lots of great photographs.

In the afternoon, we took a tour of the primary sites in the Buda side of the city.
​The President and Prime Minister homes:

House of Houdini:

Overlooking the Pest side from the Buda side:

We returned to the ship at 6:00 pm.  We then had a cocktail hour with entertainment by a troupe of Hungarian Gypsies.

That evening, Mary and I had an opportunity to dine at the Chef's Tasting Table.  This was a particularly good meal with a number of specialties and plenty of wine.

Then after-dinner drinks in the lounge completed our final full day of the cruise.

We stayed docked in Vienna all night.  Today we took a bus tour of Bratislava, Capital of Slovakia, not far from Vienna.  A local guide gave us a one-hour walking tour of old town.  Then we had about an hour on our own.  Went to a classic Hungarian restaurant.  I had the red cabbage & sausage soup and a goose leg.

Shopped for souvenirs, but couldn't find any suitable for carrying back.  Got back with the group and onto the bus.  We had a leisurely late afternoon on the ship, then a Cocktail Gala, then a Dinner Gala, then a Christmas Party.  We set sail for Budapest at 7:00 pm that evening.  Went to bed later than usual when the party wound down.

We docked in Vienna just as we were waking up.  A busy day today.  Left ship at 8:30 to go into city center of Vienna.  A 45-minute bus trip around ring road for an overview tour.  Then a couple hours of walking tour through city center area.  Although we had seen St. Stephens Cathedral on our first days in Vienna, today we got to go inside.

After a few more of the main sites, we were on our own for the rest of the afternoon.  We strolled through some shopping districts -- picked up a couple souvenirs.

Had a good lunch at Mozart Cafe.

We FINALLY visited Christina and her husband Tom.  A beautiful apartment in an old building in the city center, first built in 1300s.  They were very gracious hosts -- sweets, meats and cheeses, breads and crackers, good punch, and Scotch.

We walked through the city center again to catch a shuttle back to the ship by 5:00 -- just in time for cocktails!

We had another unplanned cruise ship maneuver last night due to swift Danube currents.  We had to sail through the night rather than this morning, and we had to go slightly past the planned destination.  So we missed the morning cruise through the Wachau Valley, the most scenic stretch of the Danube on this cruise.  We woke up in our port town of Krems.

It was a leisurely morning -- bistro breakfast on ship, stroll through Krems, bistro lunch on ship, coffee on balcony of our state room.

Then a full afternoon of tours.  First to Durnstein, another Medieval town with a ruined fortress.  Durnstein was in the middle of the Wachau Valley, known for their technique of harvesting hillside grapes and producing very good white wines.

Then on to the Abby of Melk.  Impressive, but not as fun as Durnstein.

Back to ship, cocktails, dinner, after-dinner drinks, and texting Christina about the possibility of meeting up again (after sleeping through two invitations) when we arrive in Vienna tomorrow morning.

Today was a FABULOUS day on our day trip to Cesky Krumlov, Chech Republic.  Amazing architecture in this Medieval town that started in the 1200s.  All cobblestone streets.  A lot of history in this town and one HUGE castle that went on and on.  Our tour guide was exceptional -- very much history and ways of living in the Chech Republic.  This was actually her home town.  It was a 1-1/2 bus ride each way from Linz, Austria.

The guided tour lasted about an hour, then we had a couple hours of free time to roam around.  First stop -- lunch at an historic, traditional Chech  restaurant.

Returning back to Linz, we got a brief tour of the city of Linz and its Christmas market.

We took advantage of sleeping in.  Hard to get to sleep due to watching the sailing down river and through a lock.

We had our 11:15 lunch then got on a bus to take up from Linz back to Passau.  A two hour bus ride.  Then had a good guided tour of old town and its Christmas market.

Took the bus back to the ship, arriving at 7:00 pm.  We had a quick happy hour, then a wonderful dinner with two wines, white with appetizer and red with main course.  Then to the lounge for after-dinner drinks.  Back to our room at 9:30.

Checked out of the Munich hotel.  Uber to train station.  Everything went smoothly.  Got to station more than a half hour early.  Went to Platform 25 and the platform sign verified that our train was sitting there.  Others had already boarded, so we also boarded.  We had first-class tickets.  To get there, we had to drag our luggage up a flight of stairs.  We settled into nice seats with power to charge our mobile devices.  We sat for a half hour comfortably waiting for the train to leave.  Then, one minute before departure, I received an alert on my phone that our train was changed to platform 26!  We had been sitting on the wrong train all that time!  How could that be?!  Why did all the other passengers know they were on their correct train?!  We QUICKLY got all our stuff together, got off the train, with help from a guy to get our luggage down the flight of steps, and "ran" to the next platform.  We made it!  This was our 4th train, and 3 out of 4 had bad surprises.

We arrived in Vishofen.  Got a taxi to the dock to board the cruise ship, where we learned our ship already left and was now in Passau, due to the quickly rising Danube river.  (The huge snowfall that occurred in this part of Germany on the day we arrived in Vienna, was now melting, and the water was running down the Alps foothills into the Danube.)  If the ship hadn't left Vilshofen when it did, it wouldn't have been able to get under the next bridge.  So we had to wait for a shuttle to take us to Passau, about 35 minutes downstream.

​Meanwhile, we walked into the town of Vilshofen to see the old town and get lunch.

We tried four restaurants -- ALL were closing around 2:00.  So we missed out.  Finally found a deli/cafe with sandwiches and salads.

We met the shuttle and drove about a half hour to Passau and got on the ship.  Very impressive!  We unpacked into the very efficient state room.  Had a good dinner.  I was impressed with the efficiency of serving so many people, so quickly, with such a great menu!  They told us that the river was still rising, and we had to continue downstream to the next stop in Linz.  So we would be waking up in the town we were supposed to be at on day 3 of the cruise.  They told us the day trips would be somehow reschedule to work with the ships changing locations.

By then, we were very tired -- a head cold did me in.  We planned to sleep in till our 11:15 lunch.

Today was a very good day.  Woke up feeling pretty good.  Before I went to sleep last night, I made reservations on train and Uber to take a day trip to Fussen and see the famous Neuschwanstein Castle (the real-life prototype for the Disney castle).

The train ride to Fussen went smoothly.  Mary and I watched a young Asian woman spend about a half hour making up her face, until I guess she thought she looked perfect.  The countryside scenes from the train were interesting.

Upon arriving in Fussen, we had lunch at a good restaurant -- I had classic German, Mary had Italian.  Then we walked the small town.  Beautiful architecture.

We tried to find a taxi or an Uber to drive us to the castle a short distance away.  No Ubers there.  We called four taxi companies -- no one answered the phones.  Mary suggested walking back to the train station where we remembered seeing Taxi signs.  It worked!  We hired a taxi to take us to the castles (there were actually two castles) and wait for us while I took some photos.  32 Euros.

The first castle was built by a noble who was in a questionable mental state.

The second castle, the model for the Disney castle, was built by the noble's son.

Back to the train station to wait an hour for the return train to Munich.

The return train ride required a connection at the half-way point.  That connection almost didn't happen -- we were late.  But with some running, we made it!  Got to Munich at 5:20 pm.  Uber to hotel.  Manhattans to settle us down.  Then dinner in the room on leftovers.  An early day for travel tomorrow.

A better day today.  Slept late.  I felt much better.  Mary somewhat.

Left room about 1:30 pm.  Walked to four sites of interest within Old Town.

Back to hotel bar around 4:00 pm for Bloody Marys.  Went to room to rest.  I planned tomorrow's day excursion and tonight's dinner plans.  Mary slept.

At 6:00, we went to the hotel bar for Manhattans.  Then walked to a very good Italian restaurant.  Back to hotel bar around 8:30 for after-dinner drinks.  (We had fallen into a comfortable pattern.)  This hotel bar is a popular night spot for locals.  Being Saturday night, it was packed, and loud disco music.  A very interesting scene.

Back to hotel room at 9:30.

Awoke groggy and not feeling too well.  Both of us had mild cold and body ache symptoms.  Sleep was rough.  We hated this room.  

Mary got our room changed -- a 1000% improvement.  

It was a late start for the day.  Left the  hotel at 1:00 or so.  Had bought tickets for a hop-on hop-off city tour.  We walked to Marienplatz, just 5 minutes.  VERY interesting sights -- buildings and Christmas markets.

​We had brat & sauerkraut sandwiches.  A trip down to the subway WC (bathroom) left Mary very tired and achy.  So we planned to make it a short afternoon.

We got on the tour bus.  We got off at only one stop -- another shopping district.

Got back to the hotel at 4:00 pm.  Went right to bar for Bloody Marys.  Then a 1-1/2 hour nap to get regenerated.

Manhattans at the bar completed the regeneration process.  We went out for dinner.  Walked only one block to a highly-rated German restaurant!    So popular, we almost didn't get in.  But they squeezed us in.  Family style.  Had a fun time joking around with the folks on both sides of us.  I had a huge pig knuckle -- delicious!

Back to the hotel bar for after-dinner drinks.  Then bed.

Got up early to shower, eat breakfast, and pack.  Got an Uber at 9:30 am to get to the train station for our 10:28 train.  Went smoothly.  But then we found out, that due to a German rail strike, our train would go no further than Salzburg.  We were on our own to find a way to Munich.  We were told there would be many people trying to cram on the regional train, so I bought bus tickets as a back-up.

We DID manage to get on a train.  We managed to cram into the seats with two women from Boston, Kathy and JoAnna.  We had a blast.  A lot in common.  When they learned it was our anniversary, they "broke" into a bottle of wine (no cork screw).  When the conductor came by to check tickets, they talked our way out of NOT HAVING TICKETS.

We arrived in Munich after two hours.  My phone wasn't working, so JoAnna used hers to get us an Uber.  We planned to maybe meet for dinner.  We checked into Haus Im Tal -- a seemingly weird place.  Our room felt like it was in a basement -- tiny, dark, one small window.  The only place to sit was a hanging wicker seat.  No place to set luggage.

We immediately went up to the rooftop bar.  At least that was very pleasant with a nice view.

​We had two Manhattans.  We were all too tired to meet for dinner.  We took food back to our room.

Happy Anniversary, Mary!

Since we didn't sleep well the night before last in Pinkafeld, I slept 14 hours!  We were supposed to meet Christina at 9:45 am for breakfast.  Since I went to bed at 9:00 pm last night, I didn't set an alarm.  So today, we slept through the SECOND invitation to visit Christina.  I texted and apologized profusely.

We finally got out of the hotel around 1:30 pm.  We walked around another shopping district and found a very good Austrian restaurant.  At least one of us had Weinerschnitzel.

At 3:15 pm, we walked to the Spanish Riding School, but didn't go inside.  You need a half day to see this.

We walked to Hofburg Palace.

About 4:15 pm, Mary's phone, the one we were using for navigation, lost power.  The phone seemed to have a battery problem which was made worse by the cold.  So we went back to the hotel to recharge the phone, and us.  But then we didn't feel like going back out.  It was cold and drizzly, and now dark.

​It was kind of a wasted day.

Margit, Karl, and Maria picked us up at the Pinkafeld hotel at 9:00 am sharp.  (Margit is always right on time!)  First we drove through Weisfleck again to see some homes and to pick up a bottle of schnapps that Elizabeth and her husband wanted to give us.  We arrived at their home to find they were celebrating Elizabeth's 60th birthday.

Karl then started driving to Edestal, a small rural town in Austria about two hours northeast of Pinkafeld.  This is where the Scheumbauers first settled in Austria before some migrated to Pinkafeld and Weisfleck.  A number of Scheumbauers still live there.

Along the way, we stopped in a small town (have forgotten name) where Mary's grandmother, Anna, was from.  That town is famous for this castle.

A short time later, we stopped for lunch, the main meal, at a "Steak House."  Mary and I both had the Austrian version of filet mignon. Not nearly as good as one in the USA.

Continued on to Edestal, to the home of Anna and Joseph.  Anna is another second cousin of Mary.

We were served cake, coffee, and schnapps.  But it was difficult to eat so close the big lunch we just had.

We were joined by Anna's two sisters.  Here is Mary with three of her second cousins!

We took a walk through Edestal to the local cemetery, where several Scheumbauers are buried.

Near the cemetery was the town's Catholic church.

We walked down the street where "all the Scheumbauers" have lived.

We stopped at Eduard's house, another second cousin of Mary.  He and his wife were home.  The front gate to the house revealed another compound-like setting, with several buildings and barns to the rear.

This was the site of the home of Mary's grandfather, John (who came to the US in 1904).  We think one of these structures was the original home before it was expanded into the current compound.

The barn housed several horses.  Eduard and his wife bred and raised horses as a hobby, riding them and riding horse-driven carts.

About 4:30, Karl, Margit, and Maria drove us from Edestal to Vienna, another two-hour drive.  We parked in Christina's apartment parking lot.  As we walked to our hotel, we saw the front of Christina's apartment building and other Christmas street scenes .

After two such fun days with wonderful hosts, it was sad to say goodbye to them.  Getting back up to our room, we appreciated the street view we had from our room.

Awoke at 6:00 am -- 15 hours of sleep for me!  But not a restful night -- hard mattress, feather pillows.

Breakfast in hotel (good European brunch buffet), showers, unpack, pack for overnight trip with Margit.

Margit met us at hotel at 10:00, along with her cousin Christina.  They had walked from Christina's apartment.  We walked to A1 phone store and got a European SIM card for Mary's phone.  We walked to bus stop.  Said good-bye to Christina and headed for Pinkafeld with Margit.  Margit wouldn't let us pay for our bus fare -- we were her guests.

We spent the 1-1/2 hour bus ride to share gifts and show family photos.  She gave us a Scheumbauer Family Tree back to 1694!  Mary showed Margit old letters her mom had received from the old country.  Margit was intrigued and learned a lot from just two letters.  Mary told  her to keep them long enough to study them.  Letters were from Anna's (Mary's grandmother) sister-in-law to Anna.

Arriving in Pinkafeld, we met up with Margit's husband, Karl, and ate a very nice lunch around 1:00.  They eat their big meal at midday.  Margit paid for our lunches.  We were her guests.

After lunch, Margit checked us into to Pinkafeld Hotel.  The hotel was very nice considering the size of the town.  Margit had already paid for our hotel bill.  We were her guests.

​Pinkafeld has a population of about 6,000.  It reminded me of a small Irish town.

We visited the cemetary where Margit's father, Eduard (Mary's second cousin) was buried.  He was the oldest of the Scheumbauers in Austria, and he had just passed away six months before our trip.

Midafternoon, we drove a very short distance to the neighboring village of Weisfleck, where a number of other Scheumbauers live.  We met the gang at Margit's cousin, Maria's, family home.  She lived there with her parents and a son.  The home was like a compound with a large house with backyard swimming pool and two additional buildings which were once barns for horses.

In the early evening, we went back to Pinkafeld, to Margit's home.  There we were joined by Margit's immediate family -- Karl, brother Eduard and his wife Sabina, her sister Elizabeth and her husband, and Elizabeth's daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter.  Margit served a large spread of meats, cheeses, and breads.  This is their light, third meal of the day.

They said it was common for this group to get together on weekend evenings.  They start out drinking wine with the meat and cheese, and later cap off the night with their own home-made schnapps.  After a couple of those, Maria drove us to our hotel to finally rest after quite an eventful day.

Taxi to hotel -- 70 Euro!
Got to hotel at 9:30-10:00 or so.  Check in was not till 2:00 pm!
Dead tired, we meandered along a famous pedestrian shopping street, looking for Bloody Marys.  Not common here.  Settled on beer.

Back to hotel at 12:00 hoping our room would be ready.  No luck.  Went back out, somewhat in a daze now.  Roamed around till we happened upon a wonderful Italian restaurant.  Menu was in German and Italian, no English.  Servers didn't speak English.  Managed to order a great pasta/trouffle dish and a great pizza.  We ate all the pasta and half the pizza when the waiter came over and asked if we were done.  I said yes and he took up the pizza.  I expected him to return with a box.  We lost half of that wonderful pizza.

Got back to the hotel at 2:00 and checked into our room.  We had not slept in 24 hours.  We immediately went to sleep.

We missed a text at 3:30 inviting us to Margit's cousin's Christmas Open House.  Her apartment was only a two-minute walk from our hotel.  But we missed the party and a chance to meet Mary's cousin for the first time.