Let us tell you about the birds and the bees,

 (and the butterflies) in our backyard habitat. It’s August and that means there is a lot of activity! 

More than the usual number of Goldfinches have graced our space this past year. It is their mating season and they are very hungry or maybe it is the demand from their offspring. 

If you didn’t know, the young are fed with regurgitated seeds from their parents. This year the favorite seeds tend to be zinnias and Black-eyed Susans and they visit the fast-food options (bird feeders with thistle seed) pretty often.

Cannas

The hummingbirds are stopping on their way south for a bit of refreshment and a brief rest.  In addition to the fast food feeders, they prefer to dine mostly on Major Wheeler honeysuckle, lantanas, zinnias and the cannas nest door.

One couple took up residence here in the spring and raised a family. It is difficult to count the offsprings as they flit around so quickly. Being suspicious and camera shy, there is no photo to share.

The Cardinal Family and the Doves have weathered the oppressive summer heat and remain a part of the community. The cardinals dine mostly on sunflower seeds and insects including caterpillars which they probably steal from the butterfly host plants. The ground feeding doves come along and clean up the mess under the feeders, (as do the uninvited squirrels.)

                                              

The robins have left. Rumor has it they are on a retreat to a nearby woodland resort. 

The bees, big or small, we accept them all, even the ones dominating the vitex (Chaste Tree.)

as well as those feasting on African Blue basil. Thanks to our Texas friend, Anne, for the basil.

Butterflies are also migrating, stopping by to sample the various nectars and hopefully lay a few eggs. Their nourishment of choice is zinnias, Mexican sunflowers and lantanas. So far this season four different species have paid a visit.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail on Mexican Sunflower

Black Swallowtail on Zinnia

Fritillary on Zinnia

Monarch on Zinnia

Two monarchs made a stop-over on July 29 followed by a couple of caterpillars who disappeared.

Monarch Caterpillar on Common Milkweed

What happened to them, we can only guess. It could be wasps, spiders or even those coveted lady bugs. It could be the cardinals, but the jury is out as we have no evidence. The solution, according to Monarch Watch is to plant more milkweed to encourage monarchs to lay more eggs. According to Monarch Watch, a habitat should include at least 10 milkweeds of 3 different species in addition to a variety of nectar plants. Our habitat currently has 8 including swamp milkweed, common milkweed and butterfly weed. Plans are being made to add more milkweed in the fall. And there might be an experiment or two on the horizon. Stay tuned.

As we strive to have a healthy and fulfilling life in retirement, we feel it is important to engage in a purpose, to keep active, and to continue to gain knowledge. For ABN, creating a backyard habitat fulfills these needs. And it keeps Captain active as he checks off the to-do list.

 

 

Prague

 

where Medieval meets modern.

A lovely city rich with beautiful ancient architecture and cobblestone streets, it has photo ops around every corner. Our hotel was conveniently located in Old Town and within walking distance of most tourist attractions. According to AI, it is one of the most visited cities in the world. According to our tour guide, 60% of the city’s revenue comes from tourists. As we maneuvered around other tourists, we believe that to be true.

Like most tourists, we took tons of photos. However we will spare you and share only a few of what we consider the highlights of our experience. If you want details on the Romanesque, Gothic, and Baroque architecture, they are readily available online.

The Astronomical clock drew the attention of the engineer (aka, Captain.) Tourists flock to the Old Town Hall to watch the twelve apostles appear, the skeleton ring the bell and a rooster crow on the hour. An amazing 15^th century engineering feat.

Proudy

is a humorous, bronze representation of two men programmed to move their hips and write messages with their urine. There is no accounting for diverse art appreciation.

A surprise find was the Lennon Wall on a side street off the main square.

Originally it was a tribute to John Lennon following his murder in 1980. It became a place to protest the communist government. It continues to be a place where one can post political messages and global concerns like climate change. (No, we did not see any anti-U.S. messages.)

Having gained an appreciation of the communist era from folks who actually experienced it, we decided to visit the Communism Museum. As western media were not allowed in the country during that period, we had not realized the severity of oppression. It was eye opening. As one tour guide expressed it, the KGB just changed uniforms with the Gestapo.

How was the food? As a tourist city Prague offers a diverse cuisine from around the world. The traditional food we sampled was pretty much what we expected, brats and kraut, schnitzel (much like country fried steak), and seafood. We found the elegant restaurant adjacent to our hotel to be exceptionally good and about 2/3 the price of what we would pay for a similar meal in the U.S. The desserts were the best, especially the Chocolate Dome with Sour Cherry filling and the Pavlova with Lemon filling and Cherries.

Our very favorite Prague experience was the beer spa! In a very private room, we immersed ourselves in oak tubs filled with unfermented beer. Each of our tubs had a beer spigot with a choice of light or dark beer, (the best we had in Prague.) After the 30 minute soak, we relaxed on an organic wheat straw bed covered with a sheet. Our legs, tired from walking about 5 miles a day the past 17 days, thanked us for it.

Prague is a very large city. Our three day visit gave us just a small glimpse.

With the exception of one restaurant waiter and a few airport personnel, all the folks we encountered on our European excursion were extremely nice. This included our tour guides, shop clerks, restaurant servers, fellow passengers (from Canada, Australia and from every region in the U.S.) and especially the Viking staff from Romania, the UK, the Philippians and other countries.) 

It is worth noting, we concluded our 3-week European excursion without turning on a TV and, believe it or not, we did not hear our president’s name mentioned once. What a reprieve!

Not expected but not surprised, we did bring home a respiratory virus that kicked our butts for about a week. Fortunately we picked it up on the return home portion of our trip.

All is well now and we are glad to be home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leaving the River

We are sharing the final segment of the river portion of our European trip  on our Living Richly in Retirement online journal. We appreciate everyone who has read and commented. 

Entering Austria, our first stop was in the pretty little touristy town of Melk, home of the iconic Benedictine Melk Abbey. 

Formerly a royal palace with lavish baroque architecture, it features beautifully adorned marble statues and fresco-covered walls. Perched above the Danube River, it provided beautiful photo opportunities. The abbey continues to function as a monastery for Benedictine monks and hosts a monastery school for 700 students. For us, the most fascinating aspect of the tour was the reusable casket. At one point in the Abbey’s history, a body would be placed inside the casket and transported to the cemetery. Following the funeral service, a trap door would be released, causing the body to drop into the grave. This casket would be utilized again.

At this point, we have seen and heard all we care about castles, cathedrals, abbeys and architecture.

Continuing down the river, through Wachau Valley

to a wine tasting at Winzer Krems winery.

And then we arrived in Vienna. Our first impression was another ancient architectural city flooded with tourists. However, during our free time we ventured out of the busy inner city into other areas. Strolling through a city park we encountered masses of school children. Inquiring from a local, we learned that it was the first day of the last week of school, which is a week of daily excursions. About two miles from our ship we found Hundertwasser Village, 

a former car tire factory converted into an apartment building using the concepts of artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser. Unfortunately, at the time, we were not aware that we could tour the inside. 

Heading back to the ship, a traditional Vienna coffeehouse got our attention so we stopped for Austria's national dessert,  Sachertote and  a cup of coffee in a traditional Vienna coffeeshop.

Having purchased the optional excursion to a classical concert, we were expecting to be entertained with beautiful music in one of the grand concert halls. Instead, we found ourselves bussed to the House of Strauss, where the highly respected Johann Strauss once performed his masterpieces. 

That was impressive, but more so was twenty-year-old Alma Deutscher, a former child prodigy who composed her first full-length opera at age 10. As she conducted the small orchestra, she also played a few of her pieces, including a movement from the Violin Concerto which she composed at age 9 and our favorite, The Waltz of the Sirens, worth checking out on YouTube

Our 2-week and 4 countries, our river cruise comes to an end in Budapest, Hungary.

After a bus trip around the city, we visited yet another church. With its colorful mosaic roofs and outstanding views, Mathias Church Buda Castle was a bit more interesting than some of the others. 

Saying good-bye to our new friends and the fabulous crew of the Gymir we board a bus for a few days Prague, Czech Republic before heading home.

When asked if we would recommend the Viking Grand European  River Cruise, it depends on the type of travel one enjoys. For us it was what we wanted at this stage in our lives. A snapshot of many different villages and cities, free of planning and decision making. The accommodations and crew were outstanding.

As always, the one thing that makes travel rewarding for us is the people we meet. Everyone has a story. We would love to share some of the interesting stories with you and answer any questions, maybe over a glass of wine.

Rolling on the River, Part 3

Thank for joining us as we continue our European Cruise. As we mentioned earlier, this is our travel journal. We tried to keep it short but you might find it a bit lengthy. 

Leaving Würzburg, we continued toward the lovely town of Bamberg, one of the few German towns not destroyed by WWII bombings. 

We could not leave town without trying rauchbier bier, which is made and served only in Bamberg. Often described as bacon beer as it initially has a heavy smoke flavor that mellows with each zip. At first we were not too fond of it but by the time we finished our pint we rather enjoyed it. 

Moving on down the river canal through more locks, our next stop was Nuremberg, which played an important role in the Nazi regime and was the site of the Nuremberg Trials following WW II. It is a rather large city which necessitated a bus tour to see the many historical sites. 

After the bus tour we followed our guide through the old part of town. Nearly destroyed in the war, the medieval and Roman relics were rebuilt, mostly using stones that could be salvaged. 

Albrecht Duer House and Museum

Want to know what happened to all the rubble from the bombings? It was piled up to form hills and covered with soil and grass.

You may be familiar with German gingerbread known as Lebkuchen. Quite different than the gingerbread we make at home, it is the pride of Nuremberg. 

We skipped the Regensburg tour to take the optional excursion to Munich, which we found a bit disappointing. After a two hour bus ride, stopping at BMW World 

for a restroom break and tour of the show room, we continued on the bus to see places of interest. Unfortunately we saw the 1972 Olympic complex and other historical places through the bus windows. Disembarking from the bus, a tour guide led us through the old town, pointing out the many medieval and Roman buildings that were rebuilt after the war. As it happened, it was a national holiday celebrating Corpus Christi. (A religious day in the Catholic Church that commemorates Jesus' last supper with his disciples.) We observed an enormous procession following the archbishop to the cathedral for the service. 

Video of the Procession

Following the walking tour, we had a substantial lunch at the Ratskeller restaurant.

The best part was the mustard
served with the pretzels

It was a traditional lunch of meatloaf wrapped with cabbage, with mashed potatoes and apple strudel for desert. 

We had 3 hours to explore on our own. Due to the national holiday, all the shops, museums and points of interest were closed. However the restaurants and bars were open. Tiring after aimlessly walking around, we stopped for ice cream to have a break,  after walking some more we stopped for a beer. Due to the heavy lunch we did not need or want more food but due to all the cigarette smoking in the outdoor spaces,  we needed to buy refreshments so we could take a rest and smoking is not allowed inside. A 2-3 hour bus ride back to the ship left us pretty much exhausted.

Stopping in Passau the following day made up for the disappointing Munich excursion. 

Our guide for the morning tour was Francis, a local law student formerly from Amsterdam. Having spent some time in the UK his English was excellent. We found it interesting that the the law schools are government run. If one passes the entrance test their 8-years of tuition is paid for by the government. 

As Francis led us through the charming little alleys 

                                                

and historical landmarks, he did so with a bit of humor injected into his narrative. 

St. Stephen Cathedral, home to the largest cathedral organ in the world, with 17,974 organ pipes. Many of the pipes were being repaired at the time of our visit, but we did hear a brief concert.

Taking the suggestion from our ship steward, Suzy, we did a bit of shopping and had gelato for lunch.

Of course, ABN bought a hat.

After lunch, a shuttle took us to Oberhaus, a fortress that overlooked the town and 

where we could take great photos. 

Passau was worth the 12,000 plus steps calculated on our smart watches. Of all the places we have visited these past 8 days in Germany, Passau rates near, if not at he top. 

Back on board, we were treated to a Taste of Germany Dinner, after which we joined friends
in the lounge for a lively evening with our talented pianist, Bistra and program director, Gavin as they performed dance tunes.

Gute Nacht from Germany. Tomorrow we will wake up in Austria.