Town of Durnstein
Ruins overlooking Durnstein
Gut Oberstockstall, courtyard
Gut Oberstockstall, church and courtyard
On the way to Oberstockstall- Leah and Ginny with Paul and Sandra
Last Sunday, Paul Brunner and his wife Sandra took us on another incredible outing! This time Leah was still here and able to enjoy it also (Rebecca had gone to Sarajevo to visit a friend from school).
We first drove in their car (a Prius, of course) through beautiful Austrian country to a small town about an hour north of Vienna called Oberstockstall, and went to an extraordinary restaurant for lunch called Gut Oberstockstall! It is on a farm owned by Sandra’s cousins for the last 5 generations! The property includes a small stone church from about 1500 and the monastery buildings that used to be part of the church, where they now live and run a restaurant! They have also started an award-winning organic winery on their land. Unbelievably picturesque and all the food and wine comes from their property. Needless to say, this was one of the best meals we have had on our trip! All delicious and fresh and amazing! Rich and Leah had cream of nettle soup! And chanterelles are in season so next to my chicken were raviolis filled with chanterelles! The whole thing was so yummy! And the wines were truly wonderful. Sandra’s cousin Fritz, who is now retired in favor of his son, sat with us the whole meal and carried on a fascinating conversation (translated from the German by Sandra and Paul). So you can be sure that we received extra special service too!
After several hours, we were too contented to move much, but we then drove to a couple of small towns on the Danube, Krems and Durnstein. Both are Medieval originally, and have retained some of the cute winding streets of the old town, along with castles and monasteries up on the hills overlooking the river. Since the Danube used to be the main way to transport trade goods and people, the rulers of these places grew quite wealthy by placing barriers across the Danube, forcing traders and travelers to pay taxes so they could go ahead! Also, Durnstein was the place where Richard the Lionhearted was imprisoned until he was ransomed by the English crown. (We heard lots of stories about how this money helped finance a major expansion of the town of Vienna!)
All in all, a day full of beautiful scenery, interesting towns and wonderful food- what could be better!
Last Sunday, Paul Brunner and his wife Sandra took us on another incredible outing! This time Leah was still here and able to enjoy it also (Rebecca had gone to Sarajevo to visit a friend from school).
We first drove in their car (a Prius, of course) through beautiful Austrian country to a small town about an hour north of Vienna called Oberstockstall, and went to an extraordinary restaurant for lunch called Gut Oberstockstall! It is on a farm owned by Sandra’s cousins for the last 5 generations! The property includes a small stone church from about 1500 and the monastery buildings that used to be part of the church, where they now live and run a restaurant! They have also started an award-winning organic winery on their land. Unbelievably picturesque and all the food and wine comes from their property. Needless to say, this was one of the best meals we have had on our trip! All delicious and fresh and amazing! Rich and Leah had cream of nettle soup! And chanterelles are in season so next to my chicken were raviolis filled with chanterelles! The whole thing was so yummy! And the wines were truly wonderful. Sandra’s cousin Fritz, who is now retired in favor of his son, sat with us the whole meal and carried on a fascinating conversation (translated from the German by Sandra and Paul). So you can be sure that we received extra special service too!
After several hours, we were too contented to move much, but we then drove to a couple of small towns on the Danube, Krems and Durnstein. Both are Medieval originally, and have retained some of the cute winding streets of the old town, along with castles and monasteries up on the hills overlooking the river. Since the Danube used to be the main way to transport trade goods and people, the rulers of these places grew quite wealthy by placing barriers across the Danube, forcing traders and travelers to pay taxes so they could go ahead! Also, Durnstein was the place where Richard the Lionhearted was imprisoned until he was ransomed by the English crown. (We heard lots of stories about how this money helped finance a major expansion of the town of Vienna!)
All in all, a day full of beautiful scenery, interesting towns and wonderful food- what could be better!
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