Sunday, May 22, 2011

Passau, Germany and Wernstein, Austria

This weekend, Corey, Ben, Joey, and I met up in Passau to visit Justin.  Passau is in Germany right on the eastern Germany-Austria border and lies at the intersection between 3 rivers, the Danube, the Inn, and the Ilz.  As soon as we got there and got settled in, we headed up a big hill just outside the inner city to Andorfer brewery, a Passau favorite known for their wheat beers.  Getting to the top was a struggle.  We teased Justin the whole way up for not telling us it was all going to be uphill.  It was totally worth it though because where we sat had an amazing view and the food and beer was incredible.  I ordered Goulasch with Semmelknödel and a weizenbock.  Mmmm it was so tasty.







After that we headed out to an Irish bar called Shamrocks and met a guy from Bavaria and a guy from Michigan of all places.  Then they invited us to an extremely crowded club called Soda.  If you know me, clubs aren’t my element but it was fun nonetheless.  The highlight was seeing Herbie!  Mom will like this...



On Saturday we walked into the inner city to grab some lunch and we got Turkish Döners which we were all very satisfied with.  After that we walked around some more and stopped in a Back Werk to get some coffee and pastries.  After that we decided to take a trip across the border into Austria to a small town called Wernstein that is known for its cider.



 We thought the walk would take only 45 minutes but it turned into about 3 hours!  We were feeling pretty tired already, but we had plenty of laughs and even distracted ourselves a few times by throwing rocks in the river haha.  It turned out to be totally worth it though because the river and the forest and the fields were very pretty and once we finally got to Wernstein, we were not disappointed.


We all felt like James Bond walking across this dam

Throwing rocks a li'l bit

There's Wernstein in the distance.  Almost there!


Me frolicking in the wheat
 We walked across a sweet bridge in Wernstein that halfway across has a line between Germany and Austria.  The town is very quaint and has such a homey feel to it.  We found the brewery we were looking for and ate an exceptional dinner.  We all ordered the same thing, roasted chicken breast with asparagus and potatoes with an amazing cider to wash it down.  Side note, it is currently asparagus season here in Germany and they are absolutely crazy for it.  They are huge and white in color and super delicious but the season only lasts from the end of April to the middle of June.




Deutschland/Österreich (Germany/Austria)


Hello ferry




Look at the size of that asparagus!


On Sunday we walked around the inner city some more and walked into St. Stephen’s Cathedral where the largest organ in the world is.  Then we walked to the place where the three rivers combine and where you can see the original fortifications of the city wall still intact.  Passau really is a very beautiful city.  We stopped at a café to eat and we all were craving Currywursts.  It’s sausage with a sauce and curry powder on top which seems odd, but it is super good.  With it I had a cappuccino.

St. Stephens



Largest organ in the world

Currywurst always hits the spot


Rathaus (town hall)


Veste Oberhaus - A fortress built in 1219 served as a stronghold for the Bishop of Passau.  You can see the walled fortifications are still standing.

Where the 3 rivers meet


Justin looking like a true Bavarian in lederhosen
After that I took the train back to Munich.  It was a fun weekend.

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