Melk Abbey

The second of our day trips was based around the Danube River, and started in the town of Melk which, like Heiligenkreuz, is home to an ancient monastery. This time, our group's stop in Melk included both a tour of the abbey and some time to wander through the town. We decided to spend less time at the abbey, and more time wandering through the town.

The town of Melk, seen from the tour bus as we arrived.

Natasha, Dave and Sam in the courtyard of the Melk Abbey. Behind the fountain, you might be able to catch a glimpse of bright colours which, taking a closer look...

... is a modern painting incorporated into the more classically-oriented architecture of the abbey.

After walking through the abbey, we arrived at a balcony which offered great views of...
... the town of Melk, as well as...

... the surrounding countryside, and ...

... the Danube River valley. This was a precursor to the Danube River cruise, which came later in the day.

Now back inside the abbey, we walked through an amazing library, complete with globes and shelf after shelf of beautifully bound books.

And finally, a glimpse of the church itself. We didn't stay long, as we wanted to do some more exploring of the town, but it was certainly an ornate church!

Then it was time to wander through Melk, and make our way down to the dock to start our river cruise.

Finally, a view of the abbey from the boat that we took down the Danube River. You can see the balcony from which we took the pictures shown earlier.

Up next: Cruising down the Danube.