ClefsDor

What was Mark and Sonia's talk about? Strange to think of Mark giving a talk instead of singing.

 

Forgot to ask you to tell Mark F "Elton John's pool boys from London say hi" and judge his reaction. He should be able to work out its Ken & John from London.

 

 

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Mark wasn't doing the talk he was just assisting with music throughout the presentation.

Unfortunately I only just saw this post and we have already check out so wasn't able to say hi from you to Mark.

Thank you so much, Suite Traveller. I can assure you I am not looking forward to going back home and getting on the scales because the food tastes as good as it looks!

Unfortunately our second morning in Budapest was just as cold and wet - well maybe not as windy and no snow, so a slight improvement. We went on the Market Hall and Parliament tour. Both were indoors so perfect for the weather. The Market Hall in Budapest is just fantastic - such gorgeous produce. I couldn't leave without purchasing some paprika and a spaetzle maker. My husband also purchased a bottle of Hungarian red wine to have at dinner that night as he was keen to taste some more of the local wine after our dinner at Costes Downtown. The Parliament buildings were also quite incredible and the interiors really do justice to the amazing exterior. I highly recommend both venues.

We saw a lot of duck and goose for sale in the markets and I mentioned to my husband how great it would be if they had duck on the menu at dinner so imagine my surprise when I saw a lovely roast duck in the carvery section of Waterside when we returned. So roast duck, gravy and a napkin dumpling was my lunch. So naughty but so good. If you haven't gotten the picture already the lunch at Waterside may be a buffet but it is done so tastefully and so nicely that it really doesn't feel like you're eating at a buffet.

The ship sailed away at 1.00pm heading back to Vienna and Instead of heading to the gym in the afternoon like I should have I went to a very interesting lecture on Mozart given by Mark and the Hotel Director Sonia. Afterwards there was trivia which our team won again. By that time it was late afternoon so we retired to the room for lie down and before we knew it was after 7.00 so we did a quick change and headed down for a drink in the cove. The sun finally made a reappearance just as we got to the Cove and it was a magical sunset with some stunning scenery along the way. As you can imagine after the lunch I had I was not hungry at all for dinner but how could I say no to the caviar appetiser? But I did then only have a soup for my main course and it shows how full I must have been to resist the slow braised lamb shank that I saw a lot of people eating and which looked and smelled wonderful. The Hungarian wine we purchased was quite nice too.

After dinner Mark Farris did a great cabaret style show featuring the songs from Sound of Music (it had to happen!) which was lots of fun. We didn't stay for the disco afterwards but came back to the room and watched a great documentary movie on wine called Somm. The selection of movies available on the television are very good and I love not having to go to the front desk or library to borrow dvds.

Only one more full day left before we disembark on Saturday - sigh!

I checked with the Hotel Director and there is indeed a new Exec Chef on the Mozart - Chef Yurie (?). Chef Dirk is still on board but is working behind the scenes on menus and nee recipes for the new river ships. He will be Exec Chef of Crystal Bach when it launches.

Sailing into Budapest and the amazing Parliament buildings

Some pictures of our meal at Costes Downtown - the restaurant for our Michelin dinner

The interior minister of Costes Downtown - more casual than most Michelin star restaurants

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We woke up on Wednesday to a very cold, wet and windy Budapest. I was quite frankly amazed to see snow flakes floating down past our window! Amazed because the week before it was 25C and sunny! Very few passengers had packed for this weather but we all tried to make the best of a bad situation.

The sail into Budapest at around 8,30am was just beautiful and I could tell that this was going to be a very special city, We docked at 9,00am (even numbered rooms facing the dock) and disembarked via a very wet, slippery and steep pier to go on the Budapest in a nutshell tour. The tour, due to the weather, was tailored to spend more time on the bus, thank goodness as it was very VERY cold! Wow, what an amazingly beautiful city Budapest is! Unfortunately, we didn't get to experience it to its fullest as the weather was so bad but I know without a doubt this is one city I am coming back to.

We had our Michelin dinner last night and our restaurant was Costes Downtown. It was a very pleasant evening and the food was very good but if I am going to be quite honest, the food on the ship was just as good and dare I say it, actually better. We had a good time though, despite battling the elements getting to and from the restaurant. When we came back there was an evening performance by 3 local violinists after which we went to bed. I was so sad that we couldn't see as much as I would have liked of this amazing city but we still have one more day here tomorrow.

http://www.pressburgerduo.com

 

By the way, is it Chef Dirk who is currently the Executive Chef on board?

I believe the executive chef has changed and it's no longer Chef Dirk - I've been meaning to check with the HD and will confirm once I've spoken to her.

Sailing towards Bratislava

Fairy floss encased dessert at Waterside

Pretzels at Blue

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Patty is right - very cold, wet and windy today in Budapest - who knew it could snow here in April?! We, like many of the passengers, just didn't pack warmly enough. But as Patty says we'll just have to return and enjoy Budapest in better climate.

In contrast, yesterday we woke up some blue skies and hints of sunshine which made cruising the Wachau valley very scenic. As we weren't going to reach Bratislava until 3.00pm it was a semi sea day and nice to be able to have a bit of a lie in. I then did some walking on the treadmill before having the late risers breakfast at the Bistro. Team Trivia was at 11.30 am and despite getting 18 out of 20 our team came second. We had lunch at Waterside where the pasta of the day was lobster Mac and cheese. The pastas on board as well as the soups are really wonderful. Our tour for the afternoon was the city walk and Slovak beer pub. I ended up doing the tour on my own as my husband decided to do the e-bike excursion which he has been loving! Bratislava has a small quaint town centre and it really only takes about 40 minutes to see all the sights. As we came out of the pub though the weather had taken a major turn for the worse and to top it off there was also a student demonstration that we were quite close to so we made a quick bee line back to the boat. Evening entertainment was a very cute duo from Bratislava playing the piano and some traditional local instruments. After yet another wonderful dinner at Waterside we went to Palm Cove where Mark was hosting a Not So Newly Wed game show featuring 3 passenger couples. It was very funny and hats off the the participants for being such good sports. We went to bed excited to be arriving in Budapest at 9.00am.

Some photos of Monday nights dinner

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Thankseveryone for your comments. Johnken3, it sounds like the same performers.

Monday was also spent in Passau, or I should saythe morning was spent in Passau as we set sail for Bratislava at 1.00pm. Theweather was cold and rainy so I decided against the nature walk and went to thefirst paid excursion that we have done so far which was a brewery tour and beertasting. I was slightly underwhelmed as the tour seemed quite rushed and at 69euro per person not great value. On our return we had lunch at Blue – a CobbSalad for me and a flat bread with mozzarella, tomato and prosciutto for myhusband.

The afternoon saw the first round of Trivia which our team won. There are 2 more rounds to come so hopefully our winning streak willcontinue.

In the evening we had theCrystal Society reception which was in fact open to everyone and they did alovely caviar canapé to accompany the champagne. There were a few people onboard celebrating milestones which is always nice to see.

Another wonderful dinnerat Waterside the highlights this time were the escargot, house made linguinewith pesto and the oh so tender beef tenderloin with morel sauce. Dessert was afabulous Grand Marnier soufflé with vanilla sauce and a lovely extra splash of GrandMarnier. I was glad I managed to walk for a few kilometres on the treadmill inthe morning in an effort to work off some of the food! We didn’t have theenergy to while away the evening in the Cove and headed straight for bed. Can’tbelieve we’re already half way through the cruise!

Easter decorations in the dining room

Easter dinner - local Crayfish Appetiser

Roast lamb with goats cheese ravioli

Carrot cake with carrot and ginger ice cream

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Easter Sunday was spent in Passau (even number rooms facing the dock). We went on the walking tour of the city, which was supposed to include a stop at St Stephen’s cathedral to listen to an organ recital but being Easter Sunday this unfortunately wasn’t possible. The town was very quiet which made it easy to walk around and enjoy all the vantage points.

Back on board we had lunch at Waterside where the carvery section highlight was a fantastic stuffed pork roast with crunchy crackling. It was really delicious.

We had good intentions of going back into Passau in the afternoon but the weather turned gloomy and we had a cheeky afternoon nap instead. It turned out to be a very indulgent afternoon as we also booked in for a foot massage and again the therapist was very good and the treatment rooms much larger than I would have imagined. Interestingly enough the spa and saunas on board are actually larger than their equivalent on the ocean ships. Spa menu and rates:

The entertainment in the evening was a real treat. Crystal had flown in a virtuoso pianist and lead tenor from La Scala in Milan and they did two amazing performances one before dinner and one after dinner. I must say this is one area where Crystal really excels and whilst it is a common practice for them to fly entertainers in for their ocean voyages I wasn’t expecting this luxury on a river cruise and I’m not sure this is something that any other river cruise line does.

Dinner at the Waterside was another sensational meal with a festive Easter touch. Menus posted below. I must say that the food on board has really blown us, and everyone else we have spoken to, away. It far surpasses the food on the ocean ships and that’s really saying something. Not that the food on the ships is bad, not by any stretch, but obviously catering for a smaller crowd and being able to get fresh local produce daily means that amazing things can be achieved on board with the right chef.

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Yesterday we were docked in Linz (odd number rooms facing the dock). There were quite a few excursions on offer and we decided to do the full day tour to Salzburg. Being a Sound of Music fan I couldn’t resist! As it turned out Salzburg was incredibly crowded this Easter Saturday, even our tour guide said she had rarely seen it so busy. Unfortunately the only House of Music related part of the day was the Mirabelle gardens and our tour guide didn’t have too much to share that was film related, but nonetheless Salzburg is a very pretty town. We had quite a bit of free time there, probably more than I needed and in hindsight part of me wishes we had done the Cesky Krumlov tour but I guess that just means that we’ll have to return. We got back to the Mozart at around 5.40pm. Just enough time for a rest, quick shower and change before the evening entertainment started at 6.30. There was a group of local young men doing traditional Austrian singing and dancing and they we’re really great. A very energetic performance with a little audience participation, which made for great fun. I found out just before dinner that it was lobster night at the Waterisde and I’m wondering if that is to be the official celebration for Easter? It seems a bit strange to have this on the Saturday night and not on Easter Sunday but maybe they are planning something else for tomorrow – I’ll let you know. Dinner was fantastic. The lobster offerings included lobster bisque as well as poached lobster on seasonal vegetables with mushroom risotto and a hollandaise sauce served on the side. It was just fabulous. After dinner Mark hosted an Easter “disco” in the Palm Court which was well attended and we hit the sack at around 11.00. Tomorrow is Easter Sunday and we’ll be doing an overnight in Passau – our first stop in Germany.

Mirabelle Gardens

Mozart's birthplace

Lobster dinner at Waterside

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Thanks Nancy and as Patty mentioned we have indeed met. Thought I would post some pictures of the Wachau, Melk Abbey and an example of today's activity sheet.

And a view from the windows of the Crystal Cove whilst we were enjoying pre dinner drinks

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WirralGirlie, I asked about the e-bikes and if there is no e-bike excursion you canstill take the bike out on your own. You just need to contact the fitnessinstructor beforehand and she will organise it all for you.

Inrelation to which side of the boat is by the dock, so far it has been asfollows: Vienna – odd number rooms facing dock; Durnstein – even number roomsfacing dock; Melk – odd number rooms facing dock. This may of course change foreach cruise but I will add this information for each port going forward.Another reason I am happy we chose this time of year is that the rivers are fairlyquite. There has only been a maximum of 2 other river boats so far in any ofthe ports and no rafting.

Yesterdaywe were in Durnstein and Melk, and in between the two ports (from about 12.00 –4.30) we sailed the Wachau Valley. Durnstein is a lovely small town with awonderful Baroque church. I did the walking city tour and my husband did ane-bike excursion, which he really enjoyed. We sat on the top deck when wereturned to view the beautiful Wacchua valley float by – such beautiful scenery.

Weate lunch in Waterside (lunch time openings are normally 12.00-1.30). They havea pasta station every day and I had the most fantastic linguine vongole – a dishwhich is hard to get right even on land let alone a ship, and this was probablyone of the best I’ve had.

InMelk we did the tour of the Abbey and really enjoyed it – I only wish we hadmore time in the actual church and less time in the museum leading up to it. Onebonus was that being the last tour group of the day we were lucky enough to beable to hear the choir practicing for the Good Friday evening mass. The Abbeyhas to be one of the most ornate and beautiful churches I have ever seen andhearing the choir and the organ was very special. If you’re in Melk it’sdefinitely worth a visit.

Thebistro was open for dinner last night as well as Waterside. The Bistro didn’tlook too busy and I must say for it to appeal to me for dinner they would needto add perhaps some tablecloths or some table lighting to make it feel like Iwasn’t eating in the daytime café. After dinner we were too tired for a drinkin the Cove se we went to bed and watched a movie – fantastic selection on theTV and a very good size screen – I can see myself being tempted to do thisagain after a big day of sightseeing. Forgot to mention that I had a wash and blow dry in the salon yesterdayand very happy with the facilities and the salon staff.

Here is the inclusive wine list - lots of very nice local wines to try

And the wardrobe and drawer space. There is one teeny drawer on each bedside table but can't fit more than few pairs of socks and one good size drawer under the mini bar but thats sll. Moi can fit 8 pairs of shoes snuggly in the bottom of the wardrobe

I know this frankfurter lunch doesn't look appealing but it was delish!

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Wehad a very full day yesterday and were pretty much on the go from morning tilnight. Started the day with breakfast at Waterside – fruit and a bircher muelsithat tasted far too good to be healthy and then we did the Chamber of Wondersand Treasury tour which I can highly recommend. Not only did we have the museumto ourselves for a private viewing of the Chamber of Wonders but our guide wasvery informative and the items on display in these rooms were truly amazing.

Backon the ship we had lunch as Blue. Loved the menu and the fact that they have afew local dishes as well as burgers etc. We couldn’t resist the Austriansausages with mustard and pretzel. We managed to work this off though in theafternoon as we did the Vienna Vineyards hike. It was a little strenuous withsome quite steep inclines but the scenery, despite the drizzly weather, wasjust lovely. After the walk we went to a traditional Heuriger for some localwine and snacks before heading back to the boat. A great tour and once again,as with all the excursions we have chosen, it was a complimentary tour,

Wehad enough time for a quick shower and a bite to eat (buffet style atWaterside) before heading off to the Crystal Signature Event at BelvederePalace. It was a lovely night – a private viewing of the gallery where many ofKlimt’s most famous works are on display followed by a Mozart and Straussconcert by the Schloss Schonbrunn orchestra. It was a lovely surprise to havethe orchestra accompanied by 2 operasingers and dancers too. The only negative I have about the evening is that itwould have been nice if they could have served a slightly nicer Champagne.Whatever it was that they poured was really undrinkable and I was surprisedCrystal wouldn’t just serve what they do on the boat.

Backon board at 10.30pm where a lovely littlebuffet was waiting for us at the Bistro. I think our jet lag might finally besubsiding as we managed to stay up until midnight listening to Mark in theCrystal Cove. A fantastic day!

A picture from the top deck of the nee Vienna docking location - nice picturesque church to view from the dining room

Some shots of the dining room including my delicious wild mushroom tart appetiser

I'll post some photos of our room and the inclusive wine list a little later

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Patty, great idea - I'll definitely ask Mark to point you out. We went to bed early too.

Nancy, so looking forward to meeting you on the Northcape cruise!

Keith, thanks for your kind comment.

A contented sigh - we boarded Mozart yesterday. As plannedwe got to the boat at 11.00am and check in was very swift. Not too much fanfareor sense of occasion as there were still passengers milling about with theirluggage from the previous cruise so there was a general sense of disarray butwe didn’t mind as it was nice to be able to get on board earlier than theofficial 12.00pm embarkation time. Wewere checked in at the front reception desk but I did notice that people whochecked in later in the afternoon were seated in various different alcoves and thecheck in process was a little more personal. Our room, as we expected, wasn’tready so we did a quick tour of the ship and I must say the Crystal Mozartreally is stunning. The interior design, furniture and textiles are just beautiful. The attention to detail is evident in every element. We’ve stayed insome amazing hotels all over the world and the interiors of Mozart are tight up there with some of the best. Having seen pictures of just about every other river boat there’snothing on the market at the moment that I think can compete with the contemporaryelegance of the Mozart.

Our stateroom was ready incredibly quickly and we wereunpacking by 11.30am. I was a little anxious about the room size but to be quitehonest it is no smaller and perhaps even a tad larger than a veranda stateroomon Symphony. We are in a window onlyroom, the smallest on board, and we managed to fi everything into the wardrobeand drawers with the suitcases fitting under the bed. We did ask forall the robes to be taken away as they take up an awful lot of preciouswardrobe space and we never use them. We also packed very lightly for this trip– just one large suitcase each - it helps that there are no formal nights assuch although my husband always travels with a few sports jackets. I’ll postpictures of the wardrobe space shortly as I know this is something I wascurious about. There definitely isn’t as much storage as the staterooms on theocean ships which is a shame as they could have easily chosen bedside tablesand desks etc with drawers and perhaps a slightly smaller bed (the bed isreally enormous for the size of the room). However the room is beautifullyappointed and I guess with most river cruises being only 10 days long thereshould be enough storage space for most people. The bathroom also is tight onstorage but again we managed to find a place for everything. I think the keywhen packing for a river cruise is to try and pack as lightly as possible.

Lunch was in the Waterside and served buffet style but verynicely done with the buffet being in an adjoining room. I did notice that thetables for 2 were placed very, and I mean very, close to each other and I’m notsure if I’m going to like this. Whilst we enjoy socialising this would feellike we are sitting at a table for 4 every night. After lunch we went on a Vienna city tour andit was well conducted. The coaches are very comfortable but they seem to havedone away with the Nespresso machines and in fact no water was even on the busbut I think this could just be an embarkation day hitch.

We’ve already done a load of laundry (very nice machines)and sent some shirts for pressing which were returned an hour later!! Pressingis complimentary for all staterooms and I can also confirm there is complimentaryunlimited wifi although each person can only be logged on to one device at atime, Mark Farris played in the Palm Court for dinner and he has to be one ofthe nicest gentleman I’ve ever met and a wonderful entertainer – so so pleasedhe’s on this cruise! Dinner at the Waterside was just fantastic. Again I will post some photos but the food isdefinitely of Michelin standard and the ambience of the dining room waswonderful. We tried to stay up to hear Mark again in the Crystal Cove but jetlag got the better of us and we went to bed far earlier than we would haveliked. We are so happy to be on board and so far the experience on Mozart hasbeen amazing.

Yay, it worked - so all set now to include photos of our travels on the Mozart. As they say a pictures worth a thousand words!

Just wanting to test out inserting photos - haven't tried to do this before so crossing fingers I can work it out.

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Patty, Looking forward to meeting you on board!

Shirin

Thanks so much, Nancy! Vienna is certainly a wonderful city!

Today is our last full day here and we'll be doing some shopping as well as having lunch at Kunsthistorisches Museum - I think it must be the best looking dining room in Vienna.

We plan to get to the Mozart around 11.00am tomorrow. Unlike the ocean ships the Mozart appears to be a little more flexible with boarding times. They asked us what time we planned to board and made no objection to 11.00am. We'll know soon enough if it proves to be an issue.

Thank you for doing a live report, there isn't masses of information around so look forward to your updates.

I hope you don't mind if I ask a few questions along the way!

We are sailing on the Mozart in August and can't wait, this will be our first river cruise!!

 

Kim

Kim, please ask as many questions as you like! This is our first river cruise too although we've sailed on Crystal's ocean ships. I also forgot to mention that if there are any other CC members on this sailing to feel free to chime in on this thread.

Its Sunday morning in beautiful Sunny Vienna.. We departedfor this much anticipated Crystal River Cruise on Friday afternoon from Sydneyand we arrived in Vienna on Saturday afternoon – a 31 hour trip door to door!

We were fortunate to be able to secure Emirates first classreturn tickets using points and it certainly helped make the long journey muchmore pleasurable. The food and beverage choices in first class on Emirates werereally spectacular and it was a fun novelty to take a shower 30,000 feet inthe air. It was a great way to start the holiday.

Our pre cruise hotel is a budget design hotel called MotelOne in Staatstopper, - very close to the Vienna Opera House so the locationcan’t be beat. I was a little nervous about our choice of hotel but we wantedto do this trip on a bit of a budget and I knew we wouldn’t be spending toomuch time in our hotel room. I’m pleased to say that Motel One has been afabulous choice. The rooms are very clean and not too small given this isEurope. The hotel lobby has a great vibe with a nice bar and a good breakfastoffering in the mornings. I must say Motel One must have a great reputation inEurope as there are some very well heeled people staying here. So if you’relooking for a good budget hotel in a great location I can highly recommendMotel One Staatstopper.

We have three full days in Vienna before boarding CrystalMozart. Our plans are to do a lot of self guided walks around the city, go to Sundaymass and listen to the Vienna Boys Choir, go to Schonbrunn, shop and eat.Speaking of eating after much deliberation our restaurant choices in Viennaare: Imperial Café (wonderful Schnitzel), Greichen Beisl, Schawrzen Kameel (TheBlack Camel) and Zum weissenRauchfangkehrer (The White Chimney Sweep).

I’m so pleased we have chosen this time of year for ariver cruise. There don’t seem to be too many tourists around and the weatherso far has been really delightful – clear blue skies, with just enoughcrispness to make walking around comfortable. My fingers are crossed that the weathercontinues to behave. All going well my next update will be from on board theMozart – we are so excited!!

Our cruise documents for two B2B May voyages show the Millennium Tower Docking location for both embarkation and disembarkation,

Our cruise documents also showed the Millennium Tower location and it was only through an email from the concierge that we were informed of the new docking arrangements.