Austria & Germany 2024 - Day 4 / Melk & Vienna

Steps today: 20 857 / 13.74 km

Today we took a day trip to Melk. We were supposed to do 2 day trips from Vienna (Melk & Linz) but since we lost a day with the fun and games of getting to Austria, one of them had to go.  We chose to keep Melk because before I even met Frank, I went on a bus tour that was supposed to include Melk but that excursion was cancelled and many people were very upset about missing their chance to visit the Abbey. At the time, I knew nothing about Melk nor it's Abbey, so this was my chance to see what all the fuss was about.

Meh, it was just ok. No pictures allowed which always pisses me off, but I don't think I would have taken many anyway. The two main attractions are the Church, which was nice but comparable to other beautiful and amazing Baroque interiors, and the Library which was nice but the ones I saw in Prague or St-Gallen left more of an impression on me. Here are a few shots of the courtyard

 

After the Abbey, we strolled around the gardens... 

...and it was warm enough to sit with a Radler in the sun in the café. ("real" beer for Frank)

The little town was attractive, basically one street...

...and we had a nice lunch outside.

We were done by about 3PM and headed back to Vienna. During our walk yesterday, we spotted a place that boasted the best schnitzels in Vienna, so we decided that's what's we do for supper.  

It seems that "Schnitzels too big for the plate" is their signature. I could not finish!! 

After supper, I was feeling good so I managed to persuade Frank to go for a nightcap at an outdoor café.  It took persuading because he DID his schnitzel and wanted nothing more to do with food and drink! ha!

Back to the hotel to pack after this, moving on to a new homebase tomorrow.