Change of Plans — New Passport Needed!

In early November 2022, when I returned from almost two weeks in Turkey, I knew that would be my last international trip for a LONG time.

My passport was set to expire in May 2023 and I decided not to renew it and I became a “dog dad” to a silly little pug, Xanadu, in late February this year.

Well, things change! I was approached and asked to go on a work-related trip. Initially, it was going to be Hawaii. Of course, I said yes.

However, Hawaii didn’t make it past the planning stage. And, the excursion became a European trip with a cruise on the Rhine River in April 2024. So, I renewed the passport!

Although I went to Cancun, Mexico, in 1993, it was before passports were required there.

When I got my first passport in 2013, I was fortunate enough to use it often over the past decade with trips to Turkey, Greece, Morocco, Bangkok (Thailand), China, Israel, Scandinavia, and Europe, along with Mexico and Canada.

I used that passport for the first time ten years ago this month. I’m walking down memory lane and I’m taking you along with me.

After work that October 2013 morning, I was off to Chicago for my first trip to Europe. Although the trip was a Danube River cruise, I’ve always been fascinated with Switzerland.

And, since it didn’t cost anything extra for flight changes to Zurich, I made a 24-hour whirlwind visit to the global city and one of the world’s largest financial centers!

SWITZERLAND

Once I got to Zurich, it was too early to check into the hotel, so I walked around and explored the “Old Town” district.

Once showered and settled into my room, I walked for hours (about 12 miles) to Lake Zurich for a better view of the architecture, the people, the Lake, and the Swiss Alps.

On the way back to the hotel, I stopped at the most awesome grocery store, Coop.   The place was packed with Zurich residents and tourists getting stocked up for a weekend night.  The wine department was very popular.

I bought two bottles, a cheese platter, two loaves of bread (an olive variety and a Pane loaf), and two desserts (one was a caramel torte and the other was basically creme-filled donuts).

This Saturday evening Swiss snack ended up being dinner.

While I’m a very adventurous eater (especially now), I gave up beef more than a decade ago. (I also don’t do internal organs or deer).

As I looked at the menu at a restaurant I stopped at, the Cordon Bleu was deer and not chicken! There was also deer stew, deer this, and deer that.  If deer wasn’t your thing, there was something with boar!

So, the Swiss buffet of wine, bread, cheeses, and desserts was perfect for a Zurich Saturday night.  And, after being up for 39 hours from work Friday morning, to driving to Chicago, traveling across the Atlantic Ocean Friday night, and touring Zurich Saturday, sleep was nice.

The next morning, the hotel hosted a nice complimentary breakfast.

It was glorious waking up and seeing the Alps in the background and hearing chiming church bells all morning.

My observations about Zurich:  If I spoke German, I would definitely live there if given the opportunity; the city is beautiful and the backdrop of the Lake and the Alps is incredible; I didn’t run into Zurich resident and international pop star Tina Turner (RIP); and finally, Zurich men are very thin.

I don’t know if it’s because they walk a lot or ride bikes (very popular here) or eat deer and moose, instead of beef, but I couldn’t believe how thin a majority of them are.  Sorry America!

And, a final note, there were so many DDG (drop dead gorgeous) Europeans walking around strutting their stuff in their jeans of many colors!

That is snow on the Alps from the Zurich flight to Budapest.

Originally, the cruise was to start in Budapest, Hungary, but there was a mechanical problem at a dam and the cruise ship couldn’t get there, so I landed at the airport there and took a two-hour bus ride to embark on the cruise in Bratislava, Slovakia!

BRATISLAVA

Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, is one of the youngest capital cities of Europe, yet its history dates back more than 2,000 years.

Once in Bratislava, a maintenance problem at a lock delayed our cruise from departing the first night.

This gave us a chance to view the city and we finally left Bratislava around 11 p.m. the next night.

Here’s a dessert on the “MS Sound of Music” cruise boat. It’s called “Somloi” (a duo of Drunken Sponge Cake in Black and White with Vanilla Pudding and Chocolate Sauce).

VIENNA

We finally set sail and I awoke to a foggy morning on the Danube River docked in Vienna, Austria.

Vienna is well-known for classical composers Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Johann Strauss.

It was here also that psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud made his name.

There was an exhibit on display in Vienna honoring his artist grandson, Lucian Freud, who died in the early-2010s.

His works are known for their “psychological penetration and for their often discomforting examination of the relationship between artist and model”.  Needless to say, unflattering photos of naked men and women grace the city.  Sexuality isn’t taboo there like in the United States.

Along with this advertisement for the show highlighting Lucian Freud, boobs and penis art and mannequins grace the windows in many stores. (I censored this photo with the blue star!)

And I witnessed something very cool. The Austrian Military and the Police were outside the Chancellor’s office.  The U.S. Ambassador to Austria was in Vienna presenting her credentials to the country’s Federal President.

They even played “The Star-Spangled Banner”!

I’ll leave you with a couple of interesting notes about Austria:

Vienna is the capital and the largest city in Austria.  Of the five million that live in the country, 1.8 million live in Vienna.  (The second largest city in the country is populated by only 265,000 people.)

And, of those almost two million, 82% live in rented apartments, 11% live in townhouses/condos, and only 7% of people in Vienna own homes.  Of course, those number change outside of the city.

I close out the Austrian part of my trip by honoring another of Vienna’s stars, the late singer Falco, with one of his hits, “Der Kommissar”, although he’s better known for “Rock Me Amadeus”.

DURNSTEIN AND MELK

Since the cruise started, we traveled at night.  After another night of cruising the Danube, we arrived in Durnstein (wine country in lower Austria) and another short cruise took us to Melk (also in lower Austria).

It was another foggy morning as we walked through the very small village of Durnstein, which is known for its wines and apricot brandy.

After sampling free shots and chocolates, we sailed along the Wuchau Valley and it was spectacular. 

We then arrived in Melk, Austria, to tour a monastery that is almost 1,000 years old and it was incredible. 

It was one of the most beautiful churches in the world.  (Okay, I haven’t spent a lot of time in churches except while traveling!  But, it was spectacular.)

PASSAU

We then traveled to Passau, Germany.

While I’ve seen some beautiful sights in my travels in the United States, like Lake Tahoe, California, the boat cruise today out of Austria into Germany had to be one of the most breath-taking views I’ve witnessed.

In the afternoon, we docked in Passau, also known as Dreiflüssestadt, “the city on three rivers”.

We walked along the Danube, the Inn, and the Ilz rivers, visited the shopping district, and St. Steven’s Cathedral, which houses the world’s largest cathedral organ.

While very interesting, Passau was the least favorite city we visited, so far.  We still have two more days in Germany with stops in Regensburg and Nuremberg.

REGENSBERG

After visiting Passau, a community that was heavily damaged by summer floods that year, we woke up to another foggy morning that promised sunshine.

However, as we toured Regensberg, the 56th largest city in Germany, the sun deceived us and it remained overcast and very cool.

But, shopping was vibrant on my walk through town.

I loved the bridge of locks where lovers have their names inscribed on locks and they put them on the bridge and throw the key into the river.  Should they break up, the locks are then cut off!

NUREMBERG

When we started our Nuremberg tour Saturday afternoon, we stopped by Zeppelin Field, which had been a central part in rallies for Adolf Hitler. 

Since the fall of Nazi Germany, the area has lost its flashy look from the 1940s and is rather bleak, just like the time it symbolized under Hitler!

We visited another castle that overlooked the city and the site where the Nuremberg Trials took place in 1945-1946 to prosecute prominent members of the military and political leadership of Nazi Germany.

On a happier note, I checked out the Farmer’s Market and had a drink in a small cafe.

I’ve always been intrigued by what a Campari and soda would taste like so I ordered one and it was HORRIBLE.  (Campari is a bitter infusion of fruit and herbs in alcohol and water.)  Yuck!  It was too bitter for me. So, I had a Jever beer and it was much better (and I’m not a beer drinker)! 

Then, it was time to board our boat for the Captain’s Farewell Dinner.

My meal started with the appetizer, Pan Fried Scampi with Beet Root Risotto, and ended with Baked Alaska “MS Sound of Music” style!

And, of course, plenty of local wines! Why choose one?

The next day started with a two-hour bus ride to the airport in Munich, Germany, to start my trip back to reality.

And, on this trip, I met Barbara, who was celebrating her 70th birthday and her daughter came along.

Barbara (on the left) and I still stay in touch!

IN SUMMATION

My favorite city was definitely Zurich, Switzerland, and my second favorite was Bratislava, Slovakia, and luckily I spent almost 24 hours in each of those cities.

It was interesting going on the local tours of villages and hearing the history and seeing all the castles and brightly colored buildings.

The food was amazing on the “MS Sound of Music” cruise and the staff was incredible.

With breakfast and lunch buffets daily, cake and coffee each afternoon, free-flowing wine at the amazing four and five-course dinners, along with a cheese spread after dessert each night, I only gained three pounds on the cruise!

My final thoughts are that we need to brightly paint all of our houses in the U.S. to add some color and fun.

THAT’S IT

With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!

Anthony