Marvellous, Must See, Melk

Austria, Danube Donau, European Trip 2018, , , ,

Leaving early (well —  8am — early when you are on holidays!!) with a mist hovering and the Donau sparkling in the early sunshine.

We are in the breakaway!!!! ….. No cyclists ahead of us!!

Day      Thursday 26 July 2018 – STAGE 6

Start    Ardagger Markt, Austria

Destination    Melk, Austria

Distance Travelled     35km

Accommodation       Goldener Stern (Golden Star)

Weather         Hot, 34 degrees – then thunderstorms in afternoon

Passing colourful hotels (pretty green?) tiniest church, bike museums, circus tents & interesting birds.

In Innenhof, Mark enjoys a chat with his dad and some welcome shade and a coffee.

It’s summer holidays and great to see young families out and about cycling together.

Water bottle refill stations are much appreciated on these hot days.

The local communities along the Donau rely on the income from travelling cyclists! There are many great cafes for a cuppa and light snacks on route. The bicycle paths are EXCELLENT and offer varied scenery . . . . only occasionally do we have to share with a car or truck !?!?!

Approaching the end of the stage, Bev gets excited when we see a large sign advertising the gasthof (hotel) we have booked for tonight! . . . it’s right in the middle of the old town.

Passing riverboats, we the cross the finish line into Melk and are awestruck by the spectacular Benedictine Abbey. Melk’s baroque Abbey is perched high on a rock, overlooking the Donau. It is famous world-wide and is recognised by UNESCO’s world heritage. Since 1089, Benedictine monks have continually lived and worked in the Abbey. They follow the rules of St. Benedict – pray, work and learn. Melk Abbey (or Stift Melk in local language) has 900 students on it’s secondary school and our guide is a past student!!. Our tour was very interesting and included one of the 10 libraries – containing a total 100,000 volumes!!. The Abbey was built in 17th century – on the site of an earlier monastery.

Great views again from our 3rd floor room – overlooking Melk village.

The pelaton finally catches up with us and many bikes converge on the main square! It is holiday season and summer – so many cyclists touring the Donau. However, on the paths, we are usually riding peacefully alone.

5 thoughts on “Marvellous, Must See, Melk”

  1. Hi, that s funny!
    We stayed there too in the Goldener Stern. Room above the entrance. May be the same room!
    Enjoy you Holiday.

    Frank with Vincent…Steffi is in spain, Madrid.

  2. Hey Mark & Bev,

    Loving your posts & glad you’re enjoying your trip. Brings back lovely memories from our trip last year & wanting to go back again.

    Love Mandy & Paul xx

  3. G’day to our Aussie pals! This tour looks really interesting and slightly off the beaten tourist track. The architecture is great isn’t it?
    Looks like Thomas is going to keep le jaune unless Bev concentrates on her Time Trial skillz.
    BTW the writing and pics are top notch! It’s like having a (free!) bespoke travel writer at our behest.
    Looking forward to the next instalment.
    BTW-the weather has finally broken in London. It’s now very windy and we can breathe again.
    PS Pinky sends her love- I’m taking her to see The Jungle in the West End tonight. It’s supposed to be ‘Life Changing’ for some reason. We saw Book of Mormon last week- very funny.

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