Museum Escape in Passau

" I'm out of here." Theo gives a big sigh of relief. Hours spent walking through a museum that never seems to end is not on Theo's top ten list of things to do in Passau, Germany. Sure, it's an old historic town near a bunch of rivers. (This is Theo's down and dirty summary of our afternoon experience.) But can we leave now? Haven't you guys had enough?

"Look around you," I say to my frustrated cat. "Look. The river. The town. This place definitely does not look like New Jersey."

He scoffs. 

Dan has an idea. He whispers into my ear. "Snack. I think the kid needs a snack."

We have this portable bowl that expands. It's handy for situations like this. Open the ziplock bag. Pour in a bunch of dried cat food, ahem, healthy dried cat food and make a peace offering of sorts. We're standing on a bridge that connects this museum (a used to be castle) with the rest of the town. We have a super magnificent view, the kind you want to stare at so you can re-imagine it later when you're back home in the states.

Theo expectedly chomps on his snack. The bowl is clean. Finally, the kid looks up. Dan hoists him on top of the wall that lines the bridge for a better view. 

"Well, Theo? What do you think?"

Is that a nod? A smile. A look of approval?

"How do you even begin to capture this?" as I ignore Theo's enigmatic response. I decide to take a video.

Everyone counsels to be in the moment. Appreciate what is around you. I glance back at the used to be castle. 

And, before I realize it, Theo is glancing back, too. Is he changing his mind? Maybe stopping at the Veste Oberhaus wasn't such a bad idea? 

Theo begins walking along the top of the wall. One slip and . . .

Dan grabs my arm. "Let the kid be. He's not going to fall off this wall. He's being a cat."

When seconds later Theo jumps down, I know it's time to go. We start walking down the bridge towards the spot where we'll meet a small shuttle bus and get back to town. He'll probably be asleep before we arrive back at the hotel. Life is good.

Theo Cruising the Danube

 

Most of us hear the word cruise and think--yeah!!! That sounds like fun. Theo, the gangster cat, thinks--why would I like a cruise? His question comes out like a low-sounding growl meow. 

The truth is we hated leaving the Schonbrunn Zoo and Vienna. But a leisurely cruise down a portion of the Danube River where we do nothing but relax and watch the sometimes gorgeous and sometimes baffling scenery can't be all bad. Can it? 

The Danube River is Europe's second longest river, which flows through Germany, Hungary, Austria, Slovakia, and Serbia. We'll be traveling on only a small portion of the river (in Germany) for the next few days and making stops along the way. 

We're not quite sure what we're going to see, but we're prepared for anything. Theo is, of course, skeptical that we'll spy anything of interest. I disagree. He counters that this cruise is a giant opportunity to take a long and well deserved nap. 

"But . . . you're going to miss out on some really great stuff," I tell him. "How about if we wake you up if we roll by anything spectacular?"

He doesn't agree and he doesn't disagree. Why are so many of our compromises with Theo based on an uneasy truce?

Imagine Dan and I in deck chairs on the top deck. We have a perfect view of the river and the river bank. Theo is nestled on the deck between us, on top of a cozy blanket. He settles in and his eyes immediately snap shut. Is he really sleeping or only cat napping?

We pass our first noteworthy, not so noteworthy site:

What is it? It looks like a dilapidated house so it must be a ruin. No, don't wake Theo for this.

Ah, this is more like it. The kind of village where you want to walk around--the picture perfect antiquish town--cobblestone streets, old churches--a glimpse into the way life used to be. I turn to shake Theo awake, but Dan stops me with a quick shake of the head.

Regular people houses. So this is what a contemporary Danube River house looks like. I like the red roofs. Should we wake Theo? Dan votes no.

 

It takes us awhile to figure this one out. We see the large protruding rock but what is that underneath? Some kind of statue? It must be. 

And finally some greenery. We know the land near a river is often fertile and perfect for planting vineyards. Wine and more wine. We think this is what we see. Still, Theo is no wine drinker. We leave him napping.

We see more of the same---picturesque houses, beautiful scenery and a lovely terraced vineyard that is eye-popping. Theo is fast asleep.

Parts of the river is, well, just river stuff. 

And then, we get the view that we can write home about. Surely, Theo will relish this one. He has to see this one, I think. Dan looks skeptical.

"Let the kid sleep."

"But this one will make his day," I insist.

"Will it?"

You tell me. Should we have woken Theo up for this view?