For those who don’t know, Kathy has been dealing with some health issues so we decided to head back to Austria so she could get some consistent medical treatment. However, just because we are staying in one place for the time being, it doesn’t mean we can’t still travel a little bit. Linz, Austria is in a pretty good location for daytrips, so Kathy and I decided to do one the other day to Passau, Germany, which is only about an hour’s drive away.

In german, Passau is known as the “Dreiflüssestadt”, or the “city of three rivers” because it sits in a prime spot at the confluence of three rivers; the Danube, the Inn, and the Ilz. The ample waterfront, plus the quaint old town, make the city an ideal place for walking around. There are few cars in the old town, making the area feel more peaceful and slower-paced. The rivers that surround the city only further enhance this peaceful ambience.

Kathy and I spent most of the afternoon aimlessly wandering about. We stopped in the square in front of St. Stephen’s Cathedral where I ate a döner kebap (a german-turkish specialty), walked along the waterfront of both the Danube and the Inn, and discovered a cool little street called Höllgasse, which is loaded with artist studios and shops. Even the street itself had a little color to it!

Perhaps the most eye-opening thing we saw in Passau though, was something painted on the side of the old town hall. Right next to the main entrance is a high-water scale that dates all the way back to 1500. The scale shows the high water mark from numerous floods over the centuries. Being that the city is surrounded by rivers, you can imagine that floods can reach pretty epic proportions. Indeed, in 1501 and in 2013, floods did just that, and inundated Passau with an unbelievable amount of water. So much water, that the floor of the town hall was under about 15 feet of water!

Though Passau doesn’t quite have the same sort of vibrancy and energy as some of the African cities we visited, it’s charm and peacefulness make it unique in its own way. We enjoyed our daytrip to this cool city and I’m sure we’ll visit again sooner or later!