Sailing towards Passau, Germany

 Another lovely  day! A great mix of castles and other river scenes.

We passed an area where there were a lot of terraced vineyards. 

The ship repositioned to Melk to allow us to tour the abbey there.  It was originally  a castle about 900 years ago but was turned over to Benedictine monks.

Now in addition to being home to 40 monks, the abbey houses a day school for about 800 mostly local students and a lovely church. 

Beautiful interior  spaces. 

And lots of historical artifacts.

Quite the touristy attraction. 

Amazing ceiling fresco.

Out on a balcony, lovely view of surrounding area.

This fresco is in a library....there were several  libraries with ancient tomes.

And lastly,  we toured the ornate church.  Frescoes on the ceilings.  

And each alcove was a different scene.

Pretty over-the-top ornamentation....

After the church we had a nice walk in the adjoining garden area.

New friends Rosana and Gus from Arizona happened by and took a quick photo of us!

And a last view of the valley before heading back to the bus and then boat waiting below. Another great day.