Melk to Krems, Austria

Cool, cloudy day , but very wonderfully fall-like. Our tour of the abbey at Melk offerred us a great look at the Benedictine monks who live and work in the abbey, as well as their church and beliefs. The three major elements in their lives are to listen, to read, and to pray. They seek to care for those in the community they inhabit, and they have a school that welcomes over 700 multi-cultural and multi-spiritual students.  The abbey was built between 1702 and 1736 and housed the Habsburgs (Hapsburgs) when they travelled--with their entourage of 300. The baroque style was again evident--no straight lines, but rather curved ones. We enjoyed seeing the black-robed Benedictine monks stroll by, as well as their lovely gardens. The abbey's library holds over 80,000 medieval  manuscripts, all are used by the monks. One's not allowed to take photos of the library, so I snapped a  photo of a postcard to share with you.

   One thing that struck me was the idea that this abbey is a living, modern abbey; rather than only showcasing historical sturctures, statues, this abbey embraced the modern--from art to whimsy.  

      

     The Wachau Valley was shrouded in clouds as we  sailed through it.   Until it began raining, we'd tried  to enjoy the deck of the ship.