10/11/14. Passau

We had a lovely walking tour this morning.  Passaic is called the city of three rivers as the Inn, the Danube, and the Ilz all come together at this point.  It is at the border of Austria (in fact we can see it in the distance).  Passau was the site of a Roman fort and became a huge center of the diocese of the Holy Roman Empire.  During medieval times, it was an important center for the salt trade due to its position at the confluence of the three rivers.  The cathedral was destroyed in a fire in the 17th century and was rebuilt in the baroque style.  It boasts the largest cathedral pipe organ in the world with 17,974 organ pipes.  We were lucky to arrive there at noon and were treated to a concert featuring Bach and Liszt.  We came back to the ship for lunch and then split.  John hiked up to the castle on the hill across the river while the rest of us wandered around the tiny streets and poked into a few shops.  We will be leaving here at 5 and heading for Melk, Austria.