A New Era

The end of one era and the beginning of another. Today is a bittersweet day, but one we knew would happen. After over half a century of RVing, we are selling our beloved "freedom machine." We have loved RVing and we will continue to sing the virtues of RVing, but alas, we are too old and creaky to enjoy it as much as we did. Today we are trading in our F-350 4x4 Pick up truck and Reflection 303RLS fifth wheel trailer

 

for a 2023 F-150 Limited Hybrid 4x4.

Let the new adventures begin!

Impressions Along the River

As you know, we just concluded a vacation on the Rhine/Main/Danube Rivers from Amsterdam to Budapest. I took the required pictures along the way and then I transformed  a few using an app called Brushstroke. Here are a few my "impressions" along the rivers.

Morning in Vienna

The "Giant's Nose" outside Vienna*

Regensburg on the Danube

Old Town Regensburg

Cologne

The Gothic Wonder of St. Matthias Cathedral in Budapest

*The Giant's Nose: look carefully in front of the farmhouse and you will see a nose. There was a contest some years back to find the perfect nose...many people applied and one was found. The nose was then made of cement and "buried" to look like a sleeping giant laid underground with just his nose showing. It's silly...but you have to be silly every now and again.

Flying and other "Fun" Things

Yesterday was a 26 or 27 or 28 hour day. It started at 2:30 when we got up in order to catch the 3:30 bus to Budapest Airport (called BUD). We packed the last of the "stuff" and headed for breakfast on the boat and by 3:30 we were motoring to BUD. Once there we found the handicapped line and after waiting a long time, we were finally checked thru to SLC via CDG (Charles DeGaulle in Paris). At 5:30, right on schedule, we boarded our plane to CDG...but we were delayed 40 minutes from taking off. I don't know why but most of us caught a needed nap oblivious to the fact that we were going to be late for our flight to SLC.

We arrived at CDG at 8:50 and our boarding time for the next leg was 9:17. We flew handicapped, so we had to wait for a huge van that picked us up at the back of the airplane. He drove us to a terminal where folks with wheel chairs were waiting to take us thru. The final goal was gate M50 and we were no where near M50. About 40 minutes later, with the help of some great airport assistants, we went thru customs and finally saw the M terminal and of course M50 was at the very end of it. Somewhere along the way, our assistants asked for our flight to be held and it was. As soon as we boarded, the doors were closed and we were winging to SLC. IF we had not had the assistnance of those helpers, all 4 of us would have been left behind in CDG hoping someone would understand our plight. That airport is an absolute nightmare. It looks very modern and sleek, but it's not efficient. I would like to ask the architect of CDG what he was thinking when he designed that garish complex airport?

The last leg of the journey was in a Delta Suite. Now while that sounds like a fancy place, it's the current nomenclature for business class on Delta. A Delta Suite is nothing more than a cubicle that has privacy, a bit of space, and most important of all, a BED. For the 14 hour flight, we enjoyed that bed, along with the touchscreen TV that had access to over 500 movies, TV series, games, music, and the flight plan. 

After a much welcome glass of champagne I settled in my "suite," enjoyed duck for dinner and a series of videos. I don't think I saw any video to the end as I dozed off and on thruout the flight. I'm thinking I had about four hours of sleep. While the suite name is a misnomer, it is a sweet way to fly. We landed in SLC without any problems. We went thru customs and Global Entry worked once again. We found our luggage and called our ride and soon we were back at the home of our friends. We'll be here maybe another day until we are less jet-lagged and then we'll drive back home.

The cruise was good. The weather was bad. The food was fantastic. The scenery along the rivers is always wonderful and ever changing. Given that, it's always good to be back home in the USA.

Budapest

Our last city is Budapest, Hungary. A teeming city with lots of old buildings and new buildings that look like old buildings. Budapest was heavily damaged in World War II, so the buildings had to be repaired or replaced, and the people decided to replace the old buildings with look-a likes from the past. We did not have a walking tour today and my back really appreciated that fact. We picked up a bus and were driven around the city. Our guide gave us a brief history of Budapest and told us all we ever wanted to know about this city that straddles east and west. It was part of the Soviet Union during the Cold War. When the Wall came down in 1989, it was no longer communist, but our guide said it still has communist leanings and tends to go with Russia. Today it is part of the European Union, but it uses the Florint for local currency instead of the Euro. We were told to make sure we went to Euro ATMs not Florint ATMs as the Florint is highly inflated and not useful anywhere else.

Bridges cross the river to unite the cities of Buda and Pest and we saw a lot of city views. We did not see the beautiful Parliament building as the Pope is coming here next week, and the government is closing off buildings that might put the Pope in harms way. I understand that as the same thing happened in Zagreb when we were there a few years ago. The bus dropped us off for a 30 minute walking tour, which is just the right length of time, and we walked to a fantastic Gothic church that was started sometime in the 1200s, but had been damaged in WWII. The old stained glass survived the war and today enhances the current church. During our free time, I purchased some OTC cough medicine for the other DrC's cough and cold. He took one dose of the cough medicine and he has not coughed since. I'm a happy camper. A good day on the River. 

Last Day

It's almost over. It's been a good cruise; we've seen a lot of different cities along the Rhine, Main, and Danube Rivers; we've walked a fair few cobblestone streets; and we've laughed. At this point in the cruise I think of highlights and lowlights. The highlights are many, including great food, great service, and a good itinerary. The lowlights are few, but real. My bed on this Viking Longboat is a torture chamber. I've not had a day without back pain that precluded me from enjoying several walking tours. Another low point were all the walking tours. It would have been nicer to have a bus tour of the cities where we could have stayed dry...and would have been easier on my back. 

The next few hours we can rest, but then the work begins anew. We need to pack our suitcases and put them out in the hallway before we go to bed. At 3:30 AM we will board a bus to the Budapest airport. There we will catch a two hour flight to Paris. In Paris, we'll have a 1 hour and 25 minute layover before we catch our flight to Salt Lake City. IF all goes to plan we should be in SLC 10 hours and 40 minutes later. We'll be picked up at the airport by friends and we'll stay in SLC a couple of days to recover from jet lag before we drive home.

It's been a good adventure. We looked at the Viking itineraries and to be honest, we've been to most of their destinations. We've devoted the last 22 years to travel and we've seen a lot of this wonderful world. We've been from Antarctica to the Zoo in Sydney with a lot of stops in between. We've traveled on river boats, ocean liners, trains, trolleys, elephant, camel, donkey, horse cart, rafts, and zodiacs, We traveled around the world and touched foot of 7 continents and about 120 countries. This cruise added one new town, Miltonberg, to our list of places to which we've been. It's good to break into new territory which is getting increasingly difficult to do. Now as we get ready to go home, we can add this cruise to our memories. 

Vienna

What is Vienna? The Waltz Capital of the World. The Capital of the huge Hapsburg Empire. A modern day city in Austria. A place where Viking Longboats park 3-wide on the Danube. All of these are possible answers...however my answer is yet another day on the river where I'm dealing with a cold. I'd love to get out and about in Vienna, but I know if I do, I'll catch pneumonia and I don't want to do that. When we went on a Swiss Train vacation several years back, I started to get "the cold" in Lucerne. I should have stayed in our hotel room instead of going on the next leg of the journey, but I went and I paid. By the time we got home I had pneumonia and I had to be hospitalized and I was on oxygen for 4 months. I learned a lesson. If I start to feel bad, stay put. We have the luxury of a floating hotel with excellent service...so I'm staying put. I had tickets to see the famous Lippenzaner Horses, but I stayed on the boat. I had tickets for a panoramic tour of Vienna, but I stayed on the boat. I could have gone to a concert last night, but I stayed on the boat. I feel better today than yesterday--but the other DrC is suffering from the same malady and he's about a day behind me. Tomorrow we head to Budapest and we might stay on the boat tomorrow too.

Such is life. In the meantime I've been playing with the pictures I've been taking along the river. 

I'm turning them into watercolor paintings and it's great fun. If they download, here are two of my "masterpieces."

When you get lemons make lemonade. The longboat is wonderful. Music is playing all day long, the sofas are comfy and today I discovered a whole closet of blankets. I'm curled up in a blanket now and I know I'll have a nap soon. That's a good vacation too.

To Make a Long Boat Work

I'm sitting in the 2nd floor lobby of our Viking Longboat and thinking about all the "stuff" that is needed to make the cruise work. I'm looking at throw pillows, of which there are hundreds; easy chairs, sofas, end tables and coffee tables, drapes, umbrellas, benches, outdoor tables and chairs; indoor tables and chairs. There are about 200 pax on the boat, so there are 200 beds and all the linen that goes with the beds; towels of 3 different sizes (washcloth, hand towel, large bath towel). Then there are dishes and silverware. For every meal we have collection of silverware that includes a salad fork, dinner fork, butter knife, regular knife, steak knife, 2 tablespoons, and a dessert fork. (I might have missed something). There's more silverware on the table than I currently use with any meal I cook--and all of the silverware is neatly placed on our table with precision. There are table cloths, every table has 2 and they get changed with every meal. A few tables are not as formal, but they have placemats and napkins that get changed with every meal. There are coffee machines and baskets of cookies and fruit.

After accounting for furniture and linens, we have to remember art. The walls need to be decorated and they are. Since we are a Viking longboat, we have lots of framed Viking themed runes and symbols. There are a few pictures as the artwork is runic by design.  Flat screen televisions have a regular set of pictures highlighting places we have been or are going to go, with a few teasers from other trips that might be of interest.

That's the easy stuff...but there is a mass of electronics to make the boat work including card counters to keep track of pax as they take shore excursions. There are mops and squeegees for tidy windows and floors. You also have to think of the wait staff, which is extensive. What do the wait staff think of the decadent traveler who uses each of these wonderful amenities. 

Then comes the food. Six course meals at every sitting. We go thru a lot of food from fruit and nuts, to fish and steak to regional specialities to simple ice cream. If your want something, the wait staff with try to find it for you. We are pampered. I've only scratched the surface when I write about what the boat has. Most important is the staff. I don't know how many wait staff we have, but it's more than 50. There's also the hotel staff and the crew for the longboat. The 3 different crews work together to make this the best experience possible. Everyone has a smile and a willingness to help the best they can. It takes a lot of folks to make a Viking Longboat work and we are enjoying the pampering knowing that reality will hit when we return home, jet lagged, tired and with an empty refrigerator. 

Day ?: Regensberg

Somewhere along the line, I lost track of the days. Today is Sunday...so I think we are in day 10 but I'm not putting any money on that. From that piece of information, you can infer that the cruise has been good. Cruising on the rivers of Germany is always relaxing and fun and I can say the same this time. Our boat is a "Viking Longboat" which means it is exactly the same size as the smallest/widest lock. What the Viking ads on TV forget to tell you is all the river boats in Germany are about the same size as they all have to fit in the locks, and there are a lot of locks on the rivers. 

Yesterday we stopped at Regensberg, a OLD city founded by the Romans in 179 AD and it's been inhabited continuously since then. The streets are narrow, the row houses kiss, as they are right next to each other. Most Roman towns were named for the nearby river but here the river is the Danube and there were many Roman forts along the Danube. The nearby Regens River is a tributary of the Danube and "got the nod" for the name of the town. We had a short walk in the old town (a short 3.9 mile walk?) and saw the gothic St. Peter's Cathedral that is 1200 years old (and being repaired), the old Jewish quarters, the homes where the commoners lived and the homes of the rich merchants. All of which are still being used.

Commoners and Merchants lived very differently. Commoners lived on narrow windy streets in row houses that had a business downstairs and living quarters upstairs. (This arrangement is very common, as that's what's happening in VietNam right now.) At night, the people went upstairs and their pigs were moved downstairs where they generated heat for the upstairs. I can imagine the smell and the mess. The Merchants lived on wider streets, in larger houses, and they did not have animals to keep their houses warm--they had servants who stoked the fireplaces and took care of their daily needs. Life was hard on both sides of the street as life expectancy in the 1500s was 35 to 40 years.  Several merchants built towers to show off their wealth. At one time there were over 50 vacant towers in the city, where there are now only five. The tower we saw was over 50 meters tall, was made of stone (the most expensive construction material at the time) and was completely empty, it did not have any floors inside and only fake windows. It was built for show and nothing else. I guess people have been bragging about their wealth for a very long time! Given that, all the water was polluted, the stench was ripe, and life was hard. Because the water was polluted, everyone drank beer. Beer was fermented and all the "uglies" were purified, so everyone drank beer to stay healthy. While the beer was about 1.5% alcohol, it was safe to drink, but children were limited to two liters a day. I guess they did not want to see a lot of tipsy children. Our guide said there were over 300 breweries in Regensberg then, and there are 3 now. 

There were always Jews in the city and they were always hated, mainly because they were the folks who could lend money according to the Bible, so they had money where others did not. The cathedral has a grotesque sculpture facing the Jewish quarter implying that the Jew is bad. There was a purge of Jews in the early 1500s where even the cemetery was destroyed. At that time, the remaining Jews moved across the Danube and settled on the other side of the river where they were safe from the folks of Regensberg. Hitler did not have a new idea, he took an old idea and made it worse.

Regensberg is also the home to Pope Benedict XVI. He was born in the city and taught at one of the 2 large universities here. Our guide said that Pope Benedict's wish as a young boy of 5 was to be a Cardinal, of course that wish was granted, and later he became Pope. Needless to say, the Christian parts of the city are Catholic. 

It was an interesting day in Regensberg, but alas I caught the ship's cold. I'm doctoring myself with some good German medicine and I hope to be better soon. One of the downsides of any cruise is the dreaded ship's cold...I hope the other DrC does not catch it from me.Today we are in Passau, near the Austrian border, and I'm not taking a tour. I'll stay in our floating hotel and enjoy it.

(Pictures to follow)

Day 6, 7 and 8: Wurzberg, Bamberg and Nuremberg

Cruising on the River has been most pleasant. The boat stops at wonderful places...folks go on the planned walking tours...come back to the boat filled with pictures and stories and possibly sore feet. Me...well that's different. I had great plans to do all of that but my back had other ideas. Instead, the two DrCs are enjoying a private floating hotel. We are enjoying wait staff wanting to serve us some of the best food on the river. It's very tempting to eat everything in sight, but it's also dangerous as we might have to rolled off the ship at the end of the journey. Not wanting to become a human-sized beach ball, I've resisted eating three 5 course meals every day. I've noticed a lot of other folks are doing the same thing. The food is good and the temptation to eat all of the delicacies the kitchen provides is beyond tempting. 

For the last 3 days we've visited Wurzburg, Bamberg and Nuremberg. The site to see in Wurzberg is the Prince-Bishop Residence which is an over-the-top, late baroque or early rococo palace. The ceilings are fantastic 3-D frescos that are definitely worth at least 1000 pictures. Bamberg is a quaint town of half-timbered houses on the river that has a great rose garden. Nuremberg, the second largest city in Germany, is famous for the Nuremberg Rallies of NAZI times. Folks need to visit the enormous rally site, as well as the Document Center that tries to explain what the NAZIs did. In town you need to see the ancient clock and the fountain as well as the market platz. We won't see these sites on this trip, but we've been on this same river cruise about 5 times, so we've seen them in the past. 

So while the rest of the folks are enjoying the cities, we are enjoying our boat. The lounge is warm and comfy. The glassed in terrace in front of the boat is fantastic with good views of the river. We have met some wonderful folks on the cruise too. A river cruise has many different meanings...it can be seeing the cities along the way; looking at the countryside and river traffic, or talking to people. All of these are fun ways to have a good adventure.

Day 5: Miltenburg

Yesterday, we stopped at the teeny-tiny village of Miltenburg. I don't remember when it was founded or why, as we are information overload, but I do remember the prettiness of the old town. The ancient cobble stone streets, lined with half-timbered homes that date to the 1400s, are stunning. The streets are tidy and the homes are well restored. Our guide told the story of the old homes. She said "old homes are in a continuous state of restoration." Apparently the cost of the restoration is high. If as house started out with red timber, it has to remain with red timber. She said if someone decides to paint their house blue, it would be back to the original color in 3 days. We learned if a home has a statue of the Madonna in front, it's a Catholic house and because it is historical, the Madonna statue cannot be removed. If a house has a Rooster on it, the sign of a Protestant house, it cannot be removed either. As plumbing and electricity were added to the old homes, those amenities had to be added in a "historically correct style" no matter the cost. Our guide pointed out one home that was in need of restoration and she implied that it would not be done as the cost would be close to a million euros. The old town of Miltenburg has to remain looking like the old town of Miltenberg. 

We passed modern shops in old buildings. We learned about the origin of the pretzel, but it appears that every town in this part of Germany is the home of the pretzel. We saw the oldest hotel in Germany dating to the 1100s, and the meaning of a 6-sided star on hotel sign (it meant the hotel had fresh beer). We learned how precious glass was in the old days; how taxes maintained the city and that the tax collector was the most hated man in town; and the importance of "stumble stones" in remembering the Jewish families who perished in the Holocaust. 

As we are cruising down the Main River we are experiencing locks, lots of locks. The Rhine/Main/Danube canal joins the North Sea at Amsterdam to the the Black Sea at Constanta, Romania, as a continuous road-way. I've heard there are anywhere between 16 and 60 locks that raise and lower the water to allow for safe passage. If you want a true "lock experience" sail down this river and you will see how a lock works far better than if you sail through the 3 locks on the Panama Canal. These locks are "up close and personal" and the first few are very interesting to see; after that, all of us are saying "we're going through another lock" and it's no big deal. It's amazing how blasé we've become after a few locks. 

The meadows and fields beside the river are filled with birds, and wildlife, but fewer domestic animals than I expected. Beside the river, both passenger and freight trains race along the tracks that line the river. Barges of all varieties haul oil, containers, and grain at all hours of the day and night. The river and commerce have a symbiotic relationship. It's busy and alive. Think of the river as a major interstate highway in the United States, and you will have a good idea how important the river is to Europe. 

(Pictures will follow when I get to a reliable internet connect--please come back)

Day 3 and 4: Cologne and Koblenz/Castles on the Rhine

Yesterday we stopped in Cologne, Germany. The Germans call the city Koln...same place. There was a walking tour and I decided it was going to be too difficult to walk with a bad hip...so I took a shuttle into town and looked at the scenery. Koln is a big, old, city. The Cathedral is impressive--and it was decked out for Easter Sunday. Lots of people were celebrating Easter by walking and playing in the parks along the river (the Rhine is BIG here). There is a large Ferris Wheel in one of the parks. For some reason, cities want to have a Ferris Wheel to show off their views. The line was long, so I'm guessing the views were good.

Today we stopped in Koblenz, which is where the Moselle merges with the Rhine. It's a big hub...but it was a bank holiday so nothing was open. I was hoping to go to a little yarn shop I know in town so I was disappointed it was not open. Maybe tomorrow, when we are in Miltenburg, there will be a yarn shop. We did not stay in Koblenz long, as the rest of the day was devoted to viewing the "Castles on the Rhine." There are over 40 castles overlooking the Mid-Rhine (as the area it is called). Most of the castles are ruins, harking back to an earlier day of tax collecting. Do not think romantic fairy tale castles, these are fortifications that guarded a piece of the river the landowner was obligated to maintain. Sometimes a landowner had castles on both sides of the river that was protected with a barricade that could be raised and lowered. The only way to cross the barricade was to pay the tax. If you did not want to pay the tax, you could ram the barricade and risk a bombing or shelling from the fort. The landowner maintained the river by keeping the waterway clean and free from snags. Someone had to pay for that service and that was the reason for the tax. It was also a good money making scheme which is not in effect anymore.

After dinner tonight, we left the Rhine and headed down the Main River (pronounced MYNE). We entered the first of over 30 locks on the Rhine/Main/Danube canal. I like this set of locks better than the locks on the Panama Canal as you can really see "up close and personal" how a lock works. We'll have a better view tomorrow in full daylight. 

The food on the cruise is excellent. The service is excellent. I'm already cutting back on what I'm eating as there's no way I can eat 5 course meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and keep wearing the same size clothes. First time cruisers are still learning they cannot have 3 desserts at dinner time. The staterooms are tiny, but we ordered our cruise late and only tiny rooms were left. Next time, we'll have to order earlier so as to get a slightly bigger room. We've been on 18 river cruises, and  I like the staterooms that Grand Circle has better than those of Viking...the beds are more comfy and the rooms feel bigger. That's just my opinion, others might not agree with me. 

FYI: We have an online connection, but it is not powerful enough for me to post pictures. 

Day 2: Kinderdijk

The boat stopped in Kinderdijk (pronounced kinder-dick) to explore it's UNESCO World Heritage Site. There are 19 ancient windmills in the area, 16 of which are lived in and operational. The educational site tells the story of how windmills kept Holland high and dry...or as our guide said "kept our feet dry." Sadly, we could not see many of the 19 windmills as they were enveloped by the morning fog. When 2 windmills came into site...all of us snapped away, trying to get the best shot. We learned how the windmills worked while we walked the dike (or levee). And, we walked in a windmill home and saw a miller set a windmill sail. It was an interesting tour, punctuated by the cold, making all of us thankful for our layers of clothing. We knew we were going to have cool weather in Europe and today proved it.

From Kinderdijk, we returned to the Viking Mimir, and sailed on the Waal river/canal heading for the Rhine, which will join tomorrow. The river traffic is interesting to watch. From our aerie, the sunroom of the boat, we view waterfront towns, the quiet countryside, and barges of all sizes and colors plying the river shipping goods from "point A to point B." Sailing down the river is quiet and peaceful. All is good.

Day 1: To Amsterdam

We arrived in Amsterdam this morning. Getting here was not too hard. We drove from home to Salt Lake City and stayed with the couple we are traveling with on the river cruise. The next day, at noon we were taken to the airport and we boarded our Delta non-stop flight to Schipol Airport (Amsterdam). The flight was uneventful in so many ways which is perfect. We had good weather, a fine "suite" to ride in, and decent food. 

We booked a business class ticket and that meant we had a "suite." Put more simply we had a nice cubicle for the duration of the flight. We had comfy chair that made into a lounge chair and a bed at the push of a button. We had a 19 inch touch screen TV with hundreds of movies, shows, audio recordings and games to entertain us during the flight. We were greeted with sparkling wine, which was followed not too much later with dinner. Lights were dimmed and we readied for "sleepy-time." While I did sleep about 3 hours, it was difficult to do. The other DrC did not get much sleep nor did our travel partners. 

Because my hip is bothering me, long distance walking is out of the question, so I booked us as handicapped people. We had a wheelchair roll us to our gate at SLC; and an 8 person cart met us at Schipol. The cart picked up all 4 in our party and we sped thru the huge terminal past hundreds of stores; we sailed thru passport control, and we arrived at luggage claim right as it started up. We found our bags and our cart driver, Fatima, put our luggage on a larger cart and took us to the Viking people waiting for us in the terminal. We were led to some seats to wait for transportation to the boat. Soon, we were ushered to a very nice Mercedes van and we were rushed to the Viking Mimir. We boarded the Mimir about 1030 and at 11 the restaurant opened for lunch. We had an great lunch and then we had to wait for our rooms to get ready. About 3 PM our rooms became available and we unpacked our luggage and took a nap. I woke up when I started this blogpost. For the next 2 weeks, I'll tell you about our Viking Adventure on the river from Amsterdam to Budapest. So far...so good.