Arrived at the Venue around 4.00pm and enjoyed our room with free internet as it started to rain heavily after our arrival.  Heavy cloud cover in the morning while having breakfast but by the time we headed out for our sightseeing tour it was a beautiful sunny day.Started with the Portland Bill Lighthouse which derives its name from “The Beel” which apparently means the beak shape of the projecting headland - as in bird’s bill.  Trinity House paid 300 pounds for the site and and work began in 1903 and finished in 1905.  We chatted with one of the volunteers there who was quite willing to explain all about Portland stone.  It is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset.  It has been used extensively as a building stone throughout the British Isles - St. Paul’s Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, Tower of London, first stone London bridge, Exeter Cathedral, British Museum, Somerset House, Bank of England, Mansion House and the National Gallery to name just a few.  The earliest known building to be constructed using Portland stone is Rufus Castle at Church Ope Cove.  Inigo Jones used Portland stone to build the Banqueting Hall in Whitehall in 1620.  Sir Christopher Wren used nearly one million cubic feet to rebuild St. Paul’s Cathedral and many other minor churches after the great fire of London in 1666.  All of the stone used by Wren was transported by sailing barge from Portland to the centre of London via the Thames.  Wren’s widespread use of Portland Stone, firmly established it as London’s “local stone” and as one of the best loved British building stones.  We then walked over to Pulpit Rock which was created about 1875 when quarrymen working the adjoining Beacon Quarry left a chunk of cliff standing proud from the ledges of their working floor.

We then headed out to the museum which was unfortunately closed and then went out to the view point and could see some of the original buildings - this is considered the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. Portland Castle is Dorset’s only original medieval castle still standing and was built in 1539 by Henry VIII. It was part of a master plan to protect the Channel coast from surprise attack and is at the west of a long string of forts.  We took in another view point looking over Weymouth Bay.  It is protected from erosion by Chesil beach.  The beach is a great ridge of a hundred tonnes of shingle that extends from West Bay (formerly from Golden Cap to Portland, growing in height and content-size all the way eastwards.  It is a wonder of the geological world, a spit joined to land at both ends.  You could see both towns and the Causeway with a small bridge connecting them.  In Portland Harbour is the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy, where the sailing events at the 2012 Olympics will take place.  The main reason that the resort was chosen to be an Olympic venue was the fact that the Sailing Academy had only recently been built, so no new venue would need to be provided.  Weymouth and Portland’s waters have also been credited by the Royal Yachting Association as the best in Northern Europe. It was a beautiful area and once again we were lucky to have exceptional weather but with all quaint towns in England the roads are very narrow and it is a one way system so we couldn’t imagine being there for the Olympics - it will just be a traffic gridlock!!  Took a walk on Chesil beach and from it distance it looks like soft sand but it is made up of smooth small stones - at least you wouldn’t get sand in your lunch!

Leaving Zermatt we took the train to Geneva and stayed overnight in the Movenpick airport hotel.  Mum told me that many, many years ago that she and Dad had stayed in a Movenpick and that it was basically a backpacking hotel.  Well, they have obviously improved their profile - the hotel was lovely and the rooms were exceedingly comfortable.  The bathrooms had massaging shower heads and they had little stools you could sit on and enjoy the pulsating water rushing over you - mum loved it - so the Movenpick has now been elevated to a higher class in her eyes!!  After a nice meal in the hotel and a restful night we took Easyjet to Luton and picked up our rental car.To celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary we decided to spend the night at the Enneborne Manor in Andover. We arrived too early to check in so decided to stop and have lunch nearby.  We thought we were just stopping at a pub but it was the Yew Tree - a 17th century inn with fine dining.  As we were planning on having a special dinner at the manor we just had a snack of smoked fish, salmon, eel, mackerel and haddock & chips. It was beautifully presented and we enjoyed a french onion soup with it. Our room at the Manor was very nice with a jacuzzi tub and a shower with a multitude of shower jets.  Dinner started with us being ushered into the bar for a drink before moving to our table.  The restaurant was about half full so everyone there was talking in hushed tones so a quiet, pleasant evening.  We split a pork starter and I had trout and Steve had lamb.  We treated ourselves to a stick toffee pudding for dessert.  Everything was delicious and once again beautifully presented.

Next morning we headed out to Stonehenge and you can easily see if from the road as you go to park your car.  As most of you know Stonehenge is composed of a circular setting of large standing stones set within earthworks. It is at the centre of the most dense complex of Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments in England, including several hundred burial mounds. As most people have said it is much smaller than you imagine but we paid the entrance fee and you receive an audio explanation as you walk around the site - very interesting - but much too diverse to go into too much detail here.

We then carried on to Salisbury and had a look around the Anglican Cathedral which was spectacular and considered one of the leading examples of Early English Architecture.  It contains the world’s oldest working clock (from AD 1386) and has the best surviving of the four original copies of the Magna Carta . It also has the tallest church spired in the United Kingdom.  Whilst the spire is the cathedral’s most impressive feature, it has also proved to be troublesome.  Together with the tower, it added 6,397 tons to the weight of the building. Without the addition of buttresses, bracing arches and iron ties over the succeeding centuries, it would have suffered the fate of spires and fallen down; instead, Salisbury remains the tallest church spire in the UK.  To this day the large supporting pillars at the corners of the spire are seen to bend inwards under the stress.  Afterwards we walked through St. Anne’s gate.  It is a very quaint town.  Final destination was Portland and didn’t realize it was an island until we arrived there.  Picked the right hotel, the Venue, overlooking the English Channel and the Portland Lighthouse.

Another beautiful morning and this was the first hotel with a balcony so what a treat to be able to stand outside and breath in the fresh air of a car free village (electric vehicles are used locally).  Mum had the best view over the fast moving river Vispa. Headed out to “conquer” the Matterhorn!  Its summit is 4,478 metres (14,690ft) high, making it one of the highest peaks in the Alps. The four steep faces, rising above the surrounding glaciers, face the four compass points.  The mountain derives its name from the German words Matte, meaning “meadow”, and Horn, which means “peak”.  We went up the Klein Matterhorn (which is marketed as the “Matterhorn Glacier Paradise”) and is the highest point in the Zermatt-Cervinia ski area in Switzerland, and the end point of the highest cable car in Europe. The peak is at 3,883 metres (12,740ft) with the cable care terminal at 3,820 metres (12,533ft).  Thoroughly enjoyed the ride up and you couldn’t have clearer skies and even the wind at the top was bearable.  This was our most favourite village as it certainly has the Swiss charm in the buildings that you expect.

Next day we caught the train to St. Moritz and upon arrival a shuttle to the Laudinella was waiting for us - a surprise treat. Nice hotel and had a walk around before dinner.  We were provided with free transport passes so we used them to  go up to Piz Nair which elevation is 3,057 (10,030 ft).  Piz Nair is a mountain above St. Moritz in the Abula Range. The summit is easily accessible from the village with a funicular and an aerial tramway.  The mountain hosted the alpine skiing events for the 1948 Winter Olympics. Once again we were blessed with fabulous weather and the views were spectacular.

Next morning was the famous Glacier Express train ride and it started out a little foggy but cleared up quickly. The Glacier Express connects two major mountain resorts of St. Moritz and Zermatt.  We passed through the UNESCO World Heritage Site.  The train was certainly not an “express” but it provides a one seat ride for a long duration travel.  It has the reputation of being the “slowest express train in the world”.  It is a 7 1/2 hour journey across 291 bridges, through 91 tunnels and across the Oberalp Pass on the highest point at 2,033 metres ((6,670 ft) in altitude.  The entire line is metre gauge (narrow gauge railway), and large portions of it use a rack and pinion system both for ascending steep grades and to control the descent of the train on the back side of those grades.  The train passes on the Landwasser Viaduct which is the most emblematic landmark of the railway line. It was an enjoyable trip but we were all glad to get off at the end of the line.  Got a pick up in a little buggy, to the Excelsior Hotel, as there are no cars allowed in Zermatt.  It was a pleasure to stretch our legs around the extremely quaint town and look for a place for dinner and to figure out the next day’s itinerary.

Got up extra early for our last day but it was worth it.  On the journey we went through some beautiful little villages which were very expensive real estate.  We also passed the line of trees where Julie Andrews sang about confidence and this is also where the 7 children were hanging out in the trees.  We also saw the hotel that Julie Andrews stayed in while making the film.

Headed out to Hitler’s notorious “Eagles Nest’ which stands at 6,107 feet.  We took our own coach to the parking lot where there is a bus service up to the top as the road has been closed to normal traffic since 1952.  This is an unusual road considered one of a kind in the world.  It was blasted out of solid rock and completed in as little as 13 months. The great difference in elevation - which is 2,300 feet - from start to finish is reached by only one hairpin turn, switching back along the steep north side of the Kehlstein Mountain. On the way up there was an area of flattened trees as it had suffered an avalanche about 2 years previously. We were blessed with absolutely spectacular weather - hardly a cloud in the sky and deliciously warm.

After the bus ride we walked down an original tunnel of 406 feet straight into the side of the mountain and then took the original brass lined elevator that takes you up on a 41 second ride another 406 feet up through the heart of the mountain and into the building itself.  The Eagle’s Nest was a project of Martin Bormann’s and presented on behalf of the National Socialist Party to Adolf Hitler for his 50th birthday.  However, Hitler was said to only visited the site 10 times and not for more than 30 mins as he could not deal with the elevation (air quality) and was also not comfortable with heights!    The Eagle’s Nest remained unscathed through Allied bombing during World War II.

We first walked into the living/dining room dominated by a red carrara marble fireplace presented by Mussolini.Note the damage caused by Allied soldiers chipping off pieces of the fireplace to take home as souvenirs. We then went into Eva Braun’s private room which is set up with a short video of the making of Eagle’s Nest and original footage of Hitler and Eva Braun spending an evening there,  Apparently nobody has ever stayed overnight there and it was basically used to entertain dignitaries for lunch or dinner!  1960 marked the 150th anniversary of the incorporation of the Berchtesgadener Land by Bavaria.  On this occasion, the ownership of the ‘Eagle’s Nest’ was entrusted to a foundation that used the profits for charitable purposes.  From the building you can head up over the rocks even higher.  The views were spectacular as there was not a cloud in the sky. There was a little cloud cover over the lake but when we took the bus back down it was completely clear.  Our ticket included a drink so we enjoyed a cappuccino and a hot chocolate with whipped cream - so decadent!

We were then on our way back to Munich with a quick lunch stop on the motorway.  There was a concern that the traffic would be heavy as holidays were over and children were heading back to school.  We made pretty good time and on arrival in Munich we drove past where they were setting up for Oktoberfest.  It’s hosted by 8 breweries and they all have their own tents which hold up to 10,000 people. We then went past the Olympic stadium which was built in 1972 but had just been recently refurbished.  Across the road was a huge BMW showroom.  We then tried to get to our hotel but a few roads had been blocked off for a weekend fair.  We eventually got there and had a bit of time to have a walk around town before the farewell dinner at the hotel.  Pleasant and said our farewells to everyone - another tour wrapped up!!

Once on the bus we encountered our first traffic jam, due to a traffic accident, so Craig decided that it was time to watch the Sound of Music!  Thankfully it was only about a 20 minute delay but we continued watching the movie until we stopped for lunch on the highway.  This was a “truck stop” like no other.  It had everything you could ever wish for and all of it fresh.  Food was excellent and too many choices!

Arrived at around 3.00 pm and picked up our local guide who took us to our first stop was at Mirabell Palace and Gardens 1606. In its geometrically-arranged gardens are mythology-themed statues dating from 1730 and four groups of sculpture (Eneas, Hercules, Paris and Pluton) by the Italian sculptor Ottavio Mosto, from 1690. It is noted for its boxwood layouts. Several scenes from The Sound of Music were recorded here. Maria and the children sing ‘Do-Re-Mi’ while dancing around the horse fountain and using the steps as a musical scale.

We continued on through the gates and down the path to the next street and when we looked left we saw Santisima Trinidad church. Right there was the home of Christian Doppler (29 November 1803 – 17 March 1853) who was raised in Salzburg, the son of a stonemason. Doppler could not work in his father’s business because of his generally weak physical condition. After completing high school Doppler studied astronomy and mathematics in Vienna and Salzburg  and started to work at the Prague Polytechic, where he was appointed only a year later, at the age of 39, Doppler published his most notable work, In this work, Doppler postulated his principle (later coined the Doppler Effect )that the observed frequency of a wave depends on the relative speed of the source and the observer, and he tried to use this concept for explaining the colour of binary stars. Which is used today in many forms including weather reporting and medicine.

We went across the foot  bridge  into the old town centre. which had many musicians playing Motzart tunes.  She took us down a street that had all the old original shop signs that would explain what the shop was selling by its design.

We then  went down a side street full of shops and came out at a market square with many vendors selling produce,pastries, chocolate and many other things, there we saw the back of Mozart’s house, the  University Church (1694-1707)where we went inside to see this magnificent church. We then walked through Residents square to the Salzburg  Festival Theatre  where the Von Trapp family escaped out the back door through the tunnel to freedom!

We then headed through the arch to St Ruperts church traditionally considered to be the oldest church in the city, it is dedicated to St Rupert of Salzburg,

patron saint of the salt merchants of Vienna. It is located in one of the oldest parts of the city, the section of the Roman Vindebona. into the square where there is a statue of St. Rupert (apparently everyone in Austria is called Rupert and saves a lot of confusion!)

Then St. Peters Abbey (696), once again we went inside to take photos and it is spectacular, Right next to it in the square is the oldest restaurant in the world!! St Peter Stiftskeller est. 803. Then through another archway to a very unique and quaint cemetery and chapel called “The Old Cemetery”

Around the corner to one of the oldest working water wheels that supplies the city most of its water from the mountains.  Entered into Salzburg Cathedral which was spectacular. The Salzburg Cathedral is a 17th century baroque cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archiocese of Salzburg in the city of Salzburg, dedicated to Saint Rupert of Salzburg.  It is the site of Mozart’s baptism.  And the composer Anton Diabelli sang in the Salzburg Cathedral boys’ choir in the late 1700s.

Then into the Residenzplatz square where many patient horses and carriages were waiting to take tourists around town Residenzbrunnen: In the middle of the square sits a grand baroque fountain, or ‘Residenzbrunnen’. The fountain was executed by Tomasso di Garona between 1656 to 1661. It is made of marble, and it is considered the largest baroque fountain of Middle Europe..  In this square is the fountain that Julie Andrews danced around singing “I have Confidence”.

 After that  we finished up going past the “Moon Clock” and down the street to a small square to see Cafe Tomaseli Mozarts favorite place to meet his friends for coffee. Just down from there is the  front of Mozarts birthplace where we met up with the group again to go to hotel for dinner, which was on the 15th floor of our hotel looking over the city at night, a nice end to a lovely day.

Took a short journey on the coach to Krems where we boarded a ferry which took us down the Danube for an hour and we enjoyed some beautiful sights on another glorious day. The first one was Göttweig Abbey which was founded as a monastery of canons regular by Blessed Altmann, Bishop of Passau. During the 15th and 16th centuries however the abbey declined so rapidly that between 1556 and 1564 it had no abbot at all, and in 1564 not a single monk was left here. At this crisis an imperial deputation arrived at Göttweig, and elected Michael Herrlich, a monk of Melk Abbey, as abbot. The new abbot, who held his office until 1604, restored the monastery spiritually and financially, and rebuilt it after it had been almost entirely destroyed by fire in 1580. In 1718 the monastery burnt down and was rebuilt on a grander scale during the abbacy of Gottfried Bessel (1714-1749).  Next place of interest was Krems an der Donau which is a town of 24,014 inhabitants in Austria in the federal state of Lower Austria. It is the fifth-largest city of Lower Austria and is approximately 70 km west of Vienna.  Krems is located at the confluence of the Krems and Danube at the eastern end of Wachau valley, in the Waldviertel.

We dropped some people off at Durnstein which a well-known place and tourist attraction where King Richard the Lion-Heart of England was held captive by Duke Leopold V. Myth has it that he was apparently saved by his right hand man singing a song only they knew so he could locate him and secure his release.  Dürnstein Castle was almost completely destroyed by the troops of the Swedish Empire under Field Marshal Lennart Torstenson in 1645.

The Wachau valley is well known for its production of apricots and grapes,both of which are used to produce specialty liquors and wines. The wine district’s rolling vineyards produce complex white wines.  Wachau is a source of Austria’s most prized dry Rieslings and Gruner Veltliners, some of the best from the steep stony slopes next to the Danube on which the vines are planted. Before the boat ride was over I had to try a glass and it was very pleasant.  After disembarking we carried on in the coach to Salzburg.

Our start today was a little later and we took the coach into the centre of Vienna.  Picked up our tour guide, Peter, and the rest of the crew outside the Schonbrunn Palace - the Hapsburgs summer palace - only 20 minutes away from the winter palace which in the olden days would have taken about 2 hours to get to by horse and carriage.

We started out at St. Stephen’s Cathedral which is located in the Stephansplatz. It is the second tallest building in the country but was not finished due to money and lack of an architect.  The north tower was originally intended to mirror the south tower but the design proved too ambitious.  The roof  is ornately covered with 230,000 glazed tiles.  The exterior is built of limestone but over the centuries soot and other forms or air pollution accumulating on the church have given it a black color but some restoration has returned the building to its original white.

Then on to St. Peter’s which is a Roman Catholic church in the Baroque architectural style and apparently the oldest church in Vienna.  Peter talked about the Great Plague of Vienna in 1679 which wiped out about 35% of the population.

The Hofburg Palace housed some of the most powerful people in Austria and it served as the principal winter residence of the Habsburgs.  It currently serves as the official residence of the President of Austria.  Although not physically connected to the rest of the complex, (Stallburg) was originally built as a residence, but was not considered up to their standards so it was  later used as  the Imperial Stables and today it is still used by the Spanish Riding School and houses the famous Lipizzaner horses.

The Spanish Riding School

The world-famous Spanish Riding School uses highly trained Lipizzan stallions in public performances that demonstrate classical dressage movements and training. In 1572 the first Spanish Riding Hall was built, during the Austrian Empire , and is the oldest of its kind in the world.The Spanish Riding School though located in Vienna, Austria, takes its name from the original Spanish heritage of its horses. In 1729 Charles vi commissioned the building of the Winter Riding School in Vienna and in 1735, the building was completed that remains the home of the Spanish Riding School today.

We then went across the street to the Imperial Library with the statue of Joseph II which is quite a sight, hard to believe the amount of wealth these people had.  We then walked around to the Opera House and picked up the coach again which took us 5 kilometres around the ring road where we saw the statue of Goethe , 28 August 1749  – 22 March 1832, who is considered the Shakespeare of Austria! He was a German writer, pictorial artist, biologist, theoretical physicist and polymath. He is considered the supreme genius of modern German literature. His works span the fields of poetry, drama, prose, philosophy and science. His Faust has been called the greatest long poem of modern European literature.

Statue of Mozart with the treble clef in the flowers.  Mozart(27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) showed prodigious ability from his earliest childhood in Salzburg. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty. At 17, he was engaged as a court musician in Salzburg, but grew restless and travelled in search of a better position, always composing abundantly. While visiting Vienna in 1781, he was dismissed from his Salzburg position. He chose to stay in the capital, where he achieved fame but little financial security. During his final years in Vienna, he composed many of his best-known symphonies, concertos, and operas, and portions of the Requim, which was largely unfinished at the time of Mozart’s death. The circumstances of his early death have been much mythologized. He was survived by his wife Constanze and two sons.

Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the only female ruler of the Habsburg dominions and the last of the House of Habsburg. She was the sovereign of Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia, Mantua, Milan, Lodomeria and Galicia, the Austrian Netherlands and Parma. By marriage, she was Duchess of Lorraine, Grand Duchess of Tuscany and Holy Roman Empress. She started her 40-year reign when her father, Emperor Charles VI, died in October 1740.  She married Francis Stephen of Lorraine and had sixteen children, including Queen Marie Antoinete of France, Queen Maria Carolina of Naples, Duchess Maria Amalia of Parma and two Holy Roman Emperors, Joseph II and Leopold II.  Where her statue is there are two identical buildings beside her which housed all their expensive collectibles and artwork from their many travels, and  is now the national historic museum.

We carried on around the boulevard to the Houses of Parliament a magnificent building with a statue of Athena - gold plated! and then past the Burg Theatre before we had to meet up with our group.

To find out more we urge to check out all the various web sites as we cannot tell you enough!

Another early morning and our lunch stop was at Gyor. Did not have a lot of time to check out the place but managed to walk down to the bridge to see the two rivers flowing into one and seeing the difference in color as they merge. It was a quaint town with lovely little shops and a watch in the window caught my eye. Had been looking as my original watch - a wedding present from my husband had finally quit after 30 years. Checked it out and decided to buy it. On our way back we stopped at the Szechenyi Square and looked in at the St. Ignatius Benedictine Church.

The rest of the group had told us that the organ was playing but unfortunately it had stopped by the time we got there. It was spectacular inside.

The church, the monastery and the grammar school were built by the Jesuits in the 17th century. After the dissolution of the order the Benedictines became owners of the building complex.

Carried on to Vienna and checked into the Vienna Hilton Danube. The whole hotel had just been refurbished and we had a room with a gorgeous view looking over the Danube and Uno city.

We went to dinner at the Marchfelderhof. This was an optional tour and we were really glad we went. As early as 1258, the name of the village, then spelled “Wacrain” - (the bank of the waves), was written down in a first document. The little rural settlement made headlines several times in its history. Due to the geographical situation, the peasants of the Marchfeld had to fight troops, invading from the east -Huns, Awars, Turks, Magyras - and from the west - French and Swedes. The Inn has since become a quiet tip for connoisseurs, attracting stars, kings, politicians, prima donnas and moneyed people all over the world. It has over 40 visitor’s books overflowing with great names and it would take you weeks to look at all the memorabilia, photos, etc. It was a fascinating place and we thoroughly enjoyed our evening there - good traditional Austrian food.

The Underground Railway is the second oldest in the world.  Other highlights include a total of 80 geothermal springs, the world’s largest thermal water cave system and second largest synagogue and third largest Parliament building.  It lies in Lajos Kossuth Square on the bank of the Danube.  It took 19 years to build at a cost that could have built a town to house 31,000 residents.  It is one of the tallest buildings in Hungary along with St. Stephen’s Basilica. At present no buildings are allowed to be taller. The church is named for Saint Stephen 1, the first King of Hungary, whose incorruptible right hand is housed in the reliquary.   It has two large bell towers and the southern tower is Hungary’s biggest bell, weighing over 9 tonnes.

In the evening we took a dinner cruise down the Danube.  A pleasant warm evening and traditional food.  Enjoyed cabbage rolls, hungarian goulash and chicken paprikas along with many different starters.  The Parliament was beautifully lit up along with the bridges and other historic buildings - all of which we had seen earlier in the day.

Took an early morning drive around town and learned some more of the history. (Worked on blog in hotel room)  - Decided to take advantage of the Ramada hotel’s thermal pools and one of them was big enough to swim in and the others were large plunge pools at different temperatures.  It also had an air jet whirlpool which massage a few aching bones!  Enjoyable and restful interlude.  We then went out for a walk and took a picture of the oldest buildings in Budapest.

Tonights dinner was a “Be My Guest” which means it had to be something local and we are the only tour company that uses them. We went to Schieszl Vendeglo es Borhaz started in 1896.  It is a winery so the start to the evening was a wine tasting in the “dungeon”. We were lined up in front of the wine barrels and started with a year old white wine then a rose and finished with a red - great start! We then headed upstairs to an area exclusive to us for a proscuitto starter, smoked pork chop for entree and a plum dessert.  Everything was delicious and we bought a couple of bottles of wine to continue on with our trip!  Very lively drive back to our hotel!