Wednesday, July 13, 2016

More This and That

I forgot to tell you in my last post that my husband and I have been on vacation!  We aren't big travelers but we did something unusual for us and took a Danube River Cruise.  We began in Budapest on the AmaViola - what a beautiful city and what a beautiful boat.  This is my favorite picture from Budapest, taken on our night river excursion.


I believe this was their Parliament building though, to be honest, after a while the buildings began to blur on me.

My second favorite place was the Benedictine Monastery in Melk, Austria.  It was founded in 1089 and reminded me of Downton Abbey, only way, way bigger!


I believe they said one wing had 60 bedrooms - necessary because visiting dignitaries and royalty traveled with an entourage!

Another favorite place was Schonbrunn Palace, the summer residence of the Hapsburgs, who reigned in Austria for over 600 years.  Gold leaf was, apparently, quite popular among the royalty of that time!

I have no idea where this was taken - can't remember - but you can tell we were enjoying ourselves.  :)  My husband's faithful hat has traveled everywhere with him.  He isn't supposed to be in the sun and it was blazing hot that day.



We cruised from Budapest up to near Munich.  Slovakia, a country I've seldom heard of, was quite beautiful, by the way.

When I got back home my flowers were blooming like crazy.  My vegetables could take a lesson from them!


This angel wing begonia was given to me by a dear friend at least 20 years ago!


This lemon tree was a Mother's Day gift this year - I might actually get lemons from it!


And this Mandevilla was a gift last year - we wintered it inside of course.

Since it's summer and other people's gardens are actually producing I'm still doing lots of this:


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24 comments:

  1. butterflyJuly 14, 2016 at 1:57 AM

    Lovely post , love the photo's ,looks like you had a great time .

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  2. SparkyJuly 14, 2016 at 5:51 AM

    I am sure you took many more photos...how beautiful they are....Slovakia....our daughter comes from there... Know it well....love hubbys hat....where is your hat sweet lady....your plants are doing well considering....oh what a hot summer our world is experiencing....

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  3. Ray and JeanneJuly 14, 2016 at 6:28 AM

    Your River Cruise looks like it was wonderful! We've talked about river cruises but never been on one. Your flowers are beautiful. Gardens are flourishing around here - it is definitely the time of year to put up some veggies. Stay cool while you are doing all of that canning. ~Jeanne

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  4. KyleJuly 14, 2016 at 7:37 AM

    What a wonderful trip. A river cruises is on my bucket list. What company did you use?

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  5. VickieJuly 14, 2016 at 7:59 AM

    wOw! What a trip! I would love to be able to do something like that someday.

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  6. Robin in VirginiaJuly 14, 2016 at 8:24 AM

    What a wonderful adventure you had! Your plants look fabulous.

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  7. CarolJuly 14, 2016 at 8:46 AM

    I'm so excited to see your photos as my youngest son will be in Budapest and Slovenia next week--looks like lovely scenery. I hope to do a river cruise some day, too :)

    Such a great photo of you and your husband, Marlene--welcome back to the good old U.S.A.!!

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  8. Ranch WifeJuly 14, 2016 at 9:05 AM

    Welcome home! It sounds like you both enjoyed a fabulous vacation in a BEAUTIFUL part of the world! Austria and Germany are my old stomping grounds. I spent many a summer and Christmas exploring the historic cobblestone streets.

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  9. Needled MomJuly 14, 2016 at 9:32 AM

    It sounds like a fabulous trip. The buildings are just gorgeous.

    I hope that the lemons will ripen for you so you can enjoy a tall glass of fresh lemonade.

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  10. Cricket-bug CornerJuly 14, 2016 at 10:10 AM

    Fantastic! I want to take one of those cruises! They look like fun!

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  11. AndreaJuly 14, 2016 at 12:29 PM

    It looks and sounds like a wonderful trip. There are some truly magnificent places to see.

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  12. Daniela BencúrováJuly 14, 2016 at 2:11 PM

    You had a beautiful holiday!
    Slovakia is my country :-)
    You were in Bratislava? It's just 270 km from my home.
    I hope that in Europe you liked.
    Pá

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  13. BarbJuly 14, 2016 at 7:06 PM

    What a wonderful trip, thanks for sharing the pictures. What a great one of you and your DH!

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  14. Julie FukudaJuly 15, 2016 at 2:45 AM

    Lovely pictures to commemorate your trip ... and home is looking pretty welcoming too.

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  15. ElizabethJuly 15, 2016 at 7:57 AM

    Lovely pictures of your trip - Melk is a beautiful spot. Enjoy the rest of your summer.

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  16. SherrillJuly 15, 2016 at 10:39 PM

    Your poor little lemon tree looks like it could use a bigger pot (though it's doing way better than mine this year--all the little lemons fell off!). That trip looks absolutely fabulous and I've been considering a river cruise. We doing two cruises out of Galveston (Sept and Nov) and a European cruise next June out of England up to St. Peterburg. Can't wait!

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  17. BrigitteJuly 16, 2016 at 7:49 AM

    What a great adventure you were having on the Danube River cruise.

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  18. FlourishingPalmsJuly 16, 2016 at 12:15 PM

    How nice to have a get-away like that! Everyplace you went looks beautiful! And now, aren't you glad you're back at home as you are... given the events in the world? It's so sad that we seem to be "letting" these random things happen. Our Central Florida MQG chapter has been making quilts to give to the Orlando MQG for distribution among families of the victims of the Pulse nightclub attack. How awful that we have to do these things. I'm sure you're happy to be at home again, and checking on the condition of your flowers, vegetables, and fruit! When we lived in Iowa we had a lime tree that produced fruit and made a nice dash of flavor for Tangueray and tonics! :-)

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  19. ChitterChatterDesignsJuly 16, 2016 at 12:51 PM

    Hello Marlene. You have been busy haven't you? I can't imagine taking a trip that far away, so it is nice to go along with you instead. I love the history of it all. You two look like you had a wonderful time. What a pretty lady you are... can't wait to get to that point in my relationship... without the kids... it never seems like that will happen, but I hear it happens all at once when it finally does. Best wishes with your canning, that is so much work. I think we take it for granted at times how easy it is to just buy it. Nothing can replace homemade though. I bet your family sure appreciates the hard work and I know they will appreciate the taste. Stay cool and busy sweet lady.

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  20. Gabri millecrocetteJuly 16, 2016 at 4:07 PM

    Nice views from your holiday and you are a very lovely couple!!!Nice to see from your garden plants!!Have happy Sunday!!

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  21. Eggs In My PocketJuly 16, 2016 at 5:22 PM

    What a breath taking picture of the building on the river! Your trip sounds wonderful and what a sweet couple you both make! Such pretty flowers.

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  22. Carol SwiftJuly 17, 2016 at 7:53 PM

    So many beautiful photos...thanks for sharing!

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  23. AnonymousJuly 19, 2016 at 12:48 PM

    Looks like a neat vacation...I'd like to do a river cruise but my vertigo says no way....
    Mama Bear

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  24. BarbCarolJuly 19, 2016 at 6:04 PM

    Keith says that is Fisherman's Bastion near Matthias Church in Budapest. That is where the heat won and I waited for y'all at the bottom of the towers. That was with the tour lady with way too many layers of clothing for 95 degrees and way too many personal prejudices that she shared with us.

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