Passau, Germany
The River Cloud had been docked throughout the evening and night near the confluence of the Inn, Ilz and Danube River in the small town of Passau, Germany. During breakfast our Expedition Leader reviewed our options for our morning’s activities. Our second day in the country of Germany would give us a chance to explore a little further the southern state of Bavaria, the largest state in the country of Germany.
At approximately 9:00am our group departed into town exploring this well-established and ancient town situated along the Danube River. Some of our group crossed the river by chain bridge and headed up a path leading to the Veste Oberhaus fort. From the top our views extended over all three rivers and further out into the Bavarian countryside.
Another small part of our group were escorted by our on board historians and a local guide around Passau on a historical and archaeological walk. Passas, along with many of the towns along the Danube River, has been settled since the Bronze Age and evidence of man’s presence in this area is well known and well documented. The Danube River is situated in a rich and fertile area of Central Europe, which has attracted human population and settlement for many thousands of years. Walking up narrow streets that have witnessed many generations of human inhabitants gave many of us a moment’s pause….how many travelers before us had moved over these cobblestones exploring, visiting, and possibly settling along the rich waterways of the Danube River?
In one of the hotels of Passau a famous collection of just such a traveler exists. The Wilderman Hotel has been documented in local records since the 1300’s and today holds a very unusual collection of items famous in this area of the world. George Holts started collecting Bohemian glass in the 1970’s and found a place to display this vast collection of over 30,000 pieces in the four floors, a veritable maze of cabinets arranged in alcoves, and rooms that wind their way down to the main floor and entrance to the hotel. A small group of us gained entry before opening hours, took the elevators to the top floor, and spent a good hour and a half exploring the world of collectable glass; from early Celtic beads to some of the finest Art Nouveau and even a few modern pieces of glass as art. Stunned by the vastness of the collection and the tremendous attention to detail we wound our way through the maze of rooms and halls, down to the ground floor and entrance of the hotel.
Once outside our groups walked towards the center of town to attend the daily organ concert at St. Stephen’s Cathedral. The organ is well known as Europe’s largest church organ: 233 stops, including four carillons, constitute this monument of 17,774 pipes. Split up into five stylistically different instruments, the cathedral organ represents one of the main tourist attractions in Bavaria.
With the sound of an organ concert fresh in our minds we returned to the River Cloud where lunch awaited, and preparations were being made to leave Passau continue our journey down river. The afternoon would be spend cruising some of the most scenic waters of the Danube River making our way through the gooseneck loop of the Schlögener Schlinge, and continuing towards tomorrow’s destination into the country of Austria.
