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WHATS NEW
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Dear Fellow Art Lover,
We are pleased to share an opportunity to enjoy and learn about outstanding works of art in the company of both experts and enthusiastic admirers like yourself. After last year's successful trip to Russia and the Baltic region, the art-loving people who attended the Russian Art Cruise told us they were so pleased with the experience that we should create another art excursion. We have gladly obliged them, of course; as always, we are providing programs not encountered normally because our friendships and contacts in the art world are unavailable to most cruise lines.
We are delighted to invite you to join us on Fine Art Connoisseur magazine's Danube Art Cruise (October 2-9, 2011), and today we want to bring you up to date on our plans. This exciting voyage has been custom-designed not only for sheer pleasure, but also to highlight the close cultural interconnections of the Hungarians, Czechs, Austrians, and Germans who live along Europe's most remarkable river. |
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Our learning and enjoyment will be enhanced by the fact that our home away from home throughout the week will be the ms AmaDante, an elegant ship that plies the Danube offering its passengers superb cuisine and wines inspired by the countries through which it sails. |
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We begin in Budapest, Hungary, on Sunday, October 2. (Those who wish to spend a day or more in Budapest before we sail should see the "Pre-Cruise" section below.) On Sunday evening, we will gather for a festive welcome reception on board, during which all of our guests will meet and mingle. Quite a few of the currently registered passengers also participated in Fine Art Connoisseur's cruise of the Baltic region last summer; naturally they are eager not only to reconnect, but also to meet like-minded art lovers like you.
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Bratislava, Slovakia
In the morning of Monday, October 3, we will convene for the first of Peter Trippi's lively illustrated lectures, this one about Bratislava, Vienna, and Dürnstein. We will arrive in Bratislava, Slovakia's loveliest city, at 2 pm, and will not depart until 11:30 pm. This means that we will have plenty of free time to stroll independently through the historic quarter, exploring its Castle, St. Martin's Cathedral, and other sites on our own. |
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Vienna, Austria
Tuesday, October 4, promises to be very busy and totally thrilling. We will start our day with a lecture by Dr. Christiane Inmann, a native of Vienna who will tell us more about her beloved city and her fascinating book focused on paintings of women reading. This theme is particularly appropriate to Vienna, given the central role played by women in the cultural life of Austria and its empire. Soon we will set out to see the best of this great capital: in the lively MuseumsQuartier, we will have the Leopold Museum entirely to ourselves. Here Dr. Elisabeth Leopold will show us how she and her late husband created an unparalleled collection of art by Egon Schiele, Gustav Klimt, and other masters of Vienna's golden age, circa 1900. |
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| Then we will cross the street to meet Dr. Sabine Haag, director of the Kunsthistoriches Museum (KHM), home to some of the world's most outstanding art, including the unique Cellini Salt Cellar, stolen (and recovered) last decade. We will also look closely at the stunning decorations of the KHM, which were painted by the Hungarian master Mihaly Munkacsy. |
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| Those who prefer to explore the city independently are free to head off at any time, as these museum destinations are very centrally located. Others may choose to follow us onward to the Belvedere Palace, where an unprecedented survey of the Austrian master painter Hans Makart (1840-1884) is on view. And a visit to Vienna would not be complete without an evening of music, so our tour coordinator will arrange for a special outing this evening. (Rest assured that the ms AmaDante does not depart until midnight.) |
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Dürnstein and Melk
We promise that there will be no rest for lovers of beauty in Austria! On Wednesday, October 5, we will dock at the charming village of Dürnstein at 7:30 am and depart at 1 pm. Here we can stroll its quaint streets on our own; this is an especially good place to shop for souvenirs of the Wachau region, which will be ablaze with autumn foliage, and with signs up to announce the arrival of the new wines for which this area is famous. Back on board, Peter will lecture on about our next stops (Melk and Salzburg) before we arrive at Melk at 4 pm. We don't depart Melk until 10 pm, so there will be plenty of time to tour its enormous Rococo abbey and then enjoy the town itself before sailing onward.
Salzburg, Austria
Early on the morning of the 6th, we will disembark at Linz, from which we will travel by bus through 68 miles of stunning Alpine scenery to the renowned city of Salzburg, the longtime seat of Austria's most powerful archbishop-princes and hometown of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. This is an ideal city to explore independently because it is so compact, but before we disband, we will explore the lovely Mirabell Gardens, once the private domain of the archbishop. Here we will tour the Salzburger Barockmuseum, home to a superb collection of Baroque oil sketches, and also the world-class commercial venue for contemporary art, Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac. Our merry band will reassemble in central Salzburg for the easy drive back to the ship, which by this time will have put in at Passau, just across the German border. |
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Regensburg, Germany
On the morning of the 7th, Peter will lecture on our next stops, Regensburg and Nuremberg. At 2pm, we will arrive at Regensburg, the beautifully preserved city where Benedict XVI served as cardinal before his installation as Pope in 2005. The highlight of our visit here will be a tour of the Palace of St. Emmeram, ancestral home of the aristocratic Thurn und Taxis family and a treasure house of Bavarian and central European culture. We will depart Regensburg at 10pm, so those wishing to explore its charming streets may do so for most of the evening. |
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Nuremberg, Germany
Most of our final full day together (October 8) will be spent soaking up the glorious views and fall colors passing along either side of the ship. We will reach the medieval city of Nuremberg at 5 pm, where we will have the evening to wander its cobbled lanes.
Alas, our voyage concludes on Sunday morning, October 9, when some of our guests will immediately be carried by bus to airports nearby. For those opting to join us for the five-hour bus journey to Prague, please see below.
We truly look forward to exploring the Danube region with you this fall, and hope you will let us know if you have any questions or concerns. Logistical questions can be emailed to Gabriel Haigazian, the skilled travel planner who will be traveling with us. He can be reached at 818-444-2700.
Thank you for your attention, and all good wishes for a happy and relaxing summer! We hope you'll join us. You can learn more at www.DanubeArtCruise.com.
Very best,
B. Eric Rhoads
Publisher
Peter Trippi
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Our key activity together in Hungary's lovely capital will be a visit on Saturday afternoon, October 1 to the impressive Hungarian National Gallery in the Buda Castle. Here we will study the remarkable paintings of Hungary's most beloved artist, Mihaly Munkacsy (1844-1900), and also other Hungarian artists working around the same time. Hungarian art of any era is seldom seen in North America, so this will be a special treat. Afterward, we will enjoy a private tour of the magnificent Four Seasons Hotel, which was originally built at the turn of the 20th century as the Hungarian headquarters of British insurance firm Greshams. Greshams constructed marvelous Art Nouveau buildings across Europe, and this is certainly the finest. |
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Post-Cruise Visit to Prague
The ancient Czech capital of Prague is an eminently walkable city that's easy to explore on one's own, so our time together will focus deeply on one important aspect of its rich culture: the great artist Alphonse Mucha (1860-1939). On Monday, October 10, we will visit the Mucha Museum in the heart of Prague. Then, on Tuesday, October 11, those who are especially passionate about Mucha are invited to join us on a customized journey to southern Moravia to visit the master's remarkable Slav Epic, a series of 20 huge paintings depicting the history of the Czech and Slavic peoples. These are now kept in the castle of Moravský Krumlov, a three-hour drive (each way) from Prague. Please let us know if you are interested in participating in this all-day adventure.
We hope you'll consider joining us. If you wish to do so, we suggest taking action rapidly, as the summer will pass quickly and only a few staterooms remain for our voyage. Plus you'll want to book flights as early as possible.
We hope you'll consider joining us. If you wish to do so, we suggest taking action rapidly, as the summer will pass quickly and only a few staterooms remain for our voyage. Plus you'll want to book flights as early as possible. |
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