World Heritage Trail, Wachau, Day 6

Through dense forests and over creeks and meadows, the path brought me up to the

top of the Jauerling, the highest mountain of the Wachau.  It is 3000 feet high.

The trees just showed tiny green tops. It was still early spring here. Past storms had

uprooted sections of the forest; big trucks tires had dug deep grooves in the wet soil.

The area reminded me of a war zone. It was good to get out of that place.

Old barn with blossoming cherry trees
Old barn with blossoming cherry trees

 

 

Granite rock, moss and trail marker
Granite rock, moss and trail marker

 

 

 

Dry thistle in the grass
Dry thistle in the grass

 

I stayed overnight in Maria Laach.  The village is famous for its pilgrimage church.

This church is a jewel of art and architecture. I liked the unusual and humorous little

details of the art objects.

In one of the Gothic altar pieces, Mary is holding a rosary in her hand.

Her hand has six fingers. On the main altar, Jesus is keeping a firm

hold on a poppy seed pacifier.  It was common in this area to calm down babies with

poppy seeds.  On one marble sarcophagus, a person peeks out from behind a curtain.

I spent hours in this church, just looking and observing.

 

 

Mary as Queen of Heaven with Jesus holding a poppy seed pacifier, part of a tryptich, 15th century
Mary as Queen of Heaven with Jesus holding a poppy seed pacifier, part of a tryptich, 15th century

 

Detail of a marble sarcophagus
Detail of a marble sarcophagus

 

gwwien
gwwienhttps://simplyjustwalking.com
Born and raised in a village along the Danube in Austria, Traude Wild soon ventured out into the world. After a two-year program for tourism in Klesheim/Salzburg, she spent nearly a year in South Africa and Namibia. By returning back to Austria, she acquired a Master of Economics at the University of Vienna. After moving to the United States with her four children, she studied Art History at Arizona State University and stayed in the United States for fourteen years. Here, she was teaching Art History in several Universities like Webster University and University of Missouri-St. Louis. Now, she lives partially in Arizona and Vienna and works together with her husband for the University of South-Carolina, Moore School of business as Adjunct Professor organising and leading Study tours in Central Europe. She also teaches at the Sigmund Freud University in Vienna. Since 1999, she is practicing Zen meditation in the lineage of Katagiri Roshi. She loves to hike and to write and is a student of Natalie Goldberg. During her often many weeks long hikes she brings her awareness into the Here and Now, describing her experiences in an authentic way. She loves to walk pilgrimages. The longest hike so far was the 1,400 km long 88 Temple pilgrimage in Shikoku, Japan in 2016.

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