Our motto: More than you’ll ever want to know.
Today was a down day for us in Linz, a chance to Rest and Recuperate after two days of cycling downstream. This day we four were divided along gender lines: M and F having decided to take a local bus to visit the Mauthausen Memorial, while J and J2 wanted to check out the Lentos Kunstmuseum in Linz itself.
M and F were first off the mark and into town, where they [we, I suppose] discovered a flea market in progress. A fabulous and nearly irresistible assortment of bric and of brac were on display, a curated selection of which we feature in the gallery below:
A few other things (below) that caught my eye while F and I were walking through town to the bus station, to catch a 10:45 bus to the Mauthausen Memorial:
Jindrak Konditorei: our pastry research begins in earnest
After our visit to Mauthausen, F and I returned to Linz by bus to meet up with J and J2. It was coffee time.
As I’ve said before, “Pastries R Us” on trips such as these, and in preparation for our time in Pastry Nirvana in Vienna, further down the road/river, J&I felt that we needed to become more familiar with what Austria has to offer.
The town of Linz is home to the famous Linzer torte, which one member of our family has made her signature baked good (and very good hers are too!). J also bakes a mean Linzer, so of course we had to try a Linzer torte while in Linz.
To that end, J had done some preliminary pastry research for Linz, discovering that Linz (not surprisingly) has many places which serve Linzer torte. She chose the Jindrak Konditorei for our first taste of Linzer. What follows is a gallery of photos from our delicious afternoon coffee break there:
Though our imaginations were stuffed by this konditorei visit, we actually showed a surprising (and uncharacteristic) degree of self-control. At least: so say I.
Perhaps this is because tomorrow we four will set out once again on our bicycles, pedalling (eternally; determinedly) towards Vienna. We look forward to your company on the next stage of our journey.
Coda: the latest news about the Church of J2 and M
Yesterday’s announcement of the founding of our new religion, the Church of J2 and M, has brought an encouraging response: after just one day, our office staff have been kept busy processing a small deluge of applications for membership in our vibrant and forward-looking congregation; we’d urge both of you out there to be cautiously hopeful.
And to those of you who are still hesitant: we’d like to say that, while we realize that this is a big step for some, we firmly believe that the benefits of having J2 and M tell you exactly what to do—and to do it snappily—are self-evident, far outweighing the negligible drawbacks. Please review the proposed commandments; we’re confident that you’ll agree.
Confession (always a good thing): all of the images immediately above—save the last—are from the interior of St Mary’s Cathedral in Linz.
Mauthausen
Note: The most difficult thing to write up about today has been the visit that F and I made to the Mauthausen Memorial. I found the experience incredibly moving, and I’ve written this section last, though our visit occurred early in the day.
On arrival, F and I split up, and wandered the site independently; I recommend this practice, because there is just so much to absorb and to process; it can quickly become overwhelming, and solitude can be a big help. The memorial itself, as a museum, was fantastic. A lot of thought has gone into the site visit: there is an audio guide, rentable for a small fee, and a free application (and free wifi to help you download the app and initialize it). There is no admission charge. The explanatory texts are well written, and succinct. I won’t write more here, except to say that there is much more information available, both on the Memorial‘s website, and on Wikipedia.
Please, visit these websites, to become more familiar with the infamous history of camps such as these, and to help put all the other stuff on this blog in its proper context.
A few photos follow, to give a sense of the site:
Danube to Dalmatia 
The church – I’m in! The pastry pics are highly satisfactory. But the coda – brings one down to earth. See current happenings in Armenia. Plus ça change.
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Did I not reply to this? I thought I had, and had welcomed you to the Church, and offered you a position within the Church: Deacon, Deaconess, Archbishop etc. Really almost *any* post, since we’re still still getting started. Just let us know your preferences. PS: at this point all positions are stipendless, until we can get this donation page figured out.
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I’ve always fancied being Pope. Or an altar boy.
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Excellent, and welcome to the Church of J2 and M! As an early convert to the faith I think we can promise you some kind of official (but honorary: no stipend) appointment: Deacon? Deaconess? Archbishop? Please let us know your preferences…
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