We moved overnight to Mauthausen. Our cruise director Nina had told us about the concentration camp at Mauthausen so we cycled up the very steep hills to the camp. Immediately after the war Austria turned the camp into a memorial. Together with the adjoining camp at Guzen, which was a quarry work site, Mauthausen was graded as camp type 3. This was the most severe regime and only Auschwitz was ever (and temporarily) in this category. Most of the people sent to these camps did not survive for long. The museum presented the facts but the gruesome reality was horrifying to read. We could have spent much longer at the camp but we were aware that we had a long cycle ahead. Our mood was sombre as we walked back round the camp perimeter to the bikes.
We fairly blasted along today and stopped at the Radlerbauernhof (cider farm) at Mitterkirchen for lunch. Delicious Apfelwein and we share a couple of cheese platters. The beautiful cider and the surroundings lightened our mood. We bought a light cheese platter lunch which was superb.
Another swim on the way to Grein on a sand/mud beach (Howard didn’t swim this time but kept an eye on us and the bikes) and then on to the boat, moored at Grein today
Back on board with the the cocktail of the day which a was Tequilla Sunrise - a blast from the past!
The beautiful chandelier on board the boat
After dinner we went into the beautiful little town for a wander and had a couple of drinks at a traditional gasthof and a chat with the owner. He owned 3 different establishments and scraped a living, he was not complimentary about the river cruises because people seldom came ashore to spend any money. He did tell us that the trips a couple of weeks ago had rainy, windy weather so we are very lucky. We were last back aboard the boat before it left for Tulln, around 9.30pm.
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