My house owner once told me that “if you haven’t seen Passau then you haven’t been to Germany yet“! After a day’s trip to this famous tourist spot, that is void of monumental attractions and offers a rather naturalistic beauty, I guess he couldn’t have been more right!
I admit, as on various other weekend trips, I can’t claim to have enjoyed this place in its entirety. The shortness of the trip added with the spoilsport weather almost made the trip a complete “washout”. Luckily there was a river cruise to rescue the upset.
We started off from the bahnhof and as is usual with most European trips went to the tourist information which was blank opposite to the arrival point. After getting some quick pointers, we decided that, even with the impending bad weather, walking was the best option.
As mentioned before Passau has a simplistic natural beauty! I would say simplistic as it is not comparable to the neighboring Black Forest or the Swiss Alps or the Austrian landscapes; but seldom would you get to see a place that is swamped with three rivers on all its sides. In fact when looked from an angle the place looks as if it is an island!
We walked from the bahnhof to the Dom St. Stephen (that boasts one of the largest cathedral organ in the world) in what I must describe as a nightmarish out pour. But I must say that even in such a bad weather the riverside view was simply superb. After taking a quick look at the Baroque styled church we started back with an idea that the trip was more or less over.
Luckily for us the docks were running a great show. The river cruise offers a lot of quality comfort at an affordable price. I think it was just a lucky chance that we hit on a two hour round trip that took us all the from Passau to Kasten in Austria. Suddenly the foreboding weather started to look the most beautiful element in the scene! Taking a casual and unplanned river cruise on a rainy and chill morning was the last thing on my mind when I planned for this trip but it was in essence the most memorable part of the trip. The sights that one can catch during this ride were simply amazing!
After the boat ride we took a long walk at the river bank before heading for some quick shopping before heading back to the bahnhof. That was in brief about the trip. Now for some pics!
Comments
Good article, lots of intersting things to digest. Very informative