LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND

Cold and rainy…welcome to Lausanne, Switzerland. We arrived around 4, after spending 4 hours on the train, being served just like the airlines, but with better food and wine. As we’re traveling, what do we hit but SNOW!!!!! Betty was excited….I was crying inside.

After an hour nap, we finally arrived in Lausanne. Our hotel was just up the block from the train station, but we took a cab since we all had 2 big bags.

We should have skipped Switzerland…at first I thought I would be better traveling 2 four-hour days, but after having to drag the luggage, we should have gone right to Milano. I mentioned this to Anna a couple of weeks before we left, but she said that Regina was going there too, so, we go to Switzerland.

Betty and I went out for dinner…Anna was with Regina and her daughter. Most of the restaurants were closed for Good Friday, but we did find another…Italian restaurant.

Saturday morning we headed out, in the rain, to see Lake Geneva and the old town. After a couple of hours, we headed back to the hotel to gather our things and head to the station. (Betty and I had stored 2 bags which was a big help!)

Still raining, struggling with our suitcases, Betty finally did it!!! Got us smoking…(cold breath, not cigarettes).

Scenery through Switzerland is beautiful. Betty was jumping from one side to the other to see the sights. Two more hours and we’ll be in Milano.

Hello Italy!!!

PARIS

Well, we made it through Paris. 

We conquered the underground! Our first morning out, we headed over to the Tour Eiffel...took the underground and got off at the right station. Of course, we still had to walk about 1/2 mile to get to the base, but before that we stopped at Carrete Cafe for breakfast. 

Delicious hot chocolate and pastries for me (9,50E), coffee and a cheese sandwich for Betty and Anna(13E), and Quiche Lorraine for Regina (15E).

We headed over to the Tower for our tour and eventually go the the top. It was a breathtaking view, even with the overcast skies.

After the tour, we got the hop-on, hop-off bus to see the sites of the city, including The Arc, Notre Dame, and all the rest. The first thing we did was to take the metro to the Eiffel Tower. Another first for Betty and she handled it marvelously. It was great to see her expression as we rounded the corner and saw the Tower in all it’s glory. We had tickets to ‘skip the line’ which saved a lot of time and got a great history lesson of the tower. After our guide was finished we were able to take the elevator to the top and even though it was overcast, it was a wonderful view.

After the tower, we did the hop-on hop-off bus to get an overview of the city, going past the Louvre, Notre Dame and all the other sites of the city. After a full day, we had dinner at an …. Italian … restaurant, headed back to the room to get ready for the next day. Anna decided to stay with Regina until Regina’s daughter got into town so we were on our own.

The second day we continued on the hop-on, hop-off and then just walked around checking everything out. Dinner, again, at our newest,  favorite Italian restaurant.

The next day we tried to get into Notre Dame, but the line was just too long and we had to be at the Louvre for our afternoon tour. A very informative guide, we got to see the Mona Lisa, Venus, Nike, and many of the famous oils on display. She explained about the 5 pyramids and later we were taken downstairs where we saw what was discovered during the 1980s excavation which unearthed the original keep, moat, and wall.

After the Louvre we definitely needed to rest, so we stopped in at a café for wine and cheese. I then headed back to a little shop that I found where I bought a duffle bag, since my clothes seemed to be multiplying expotentially. So now I’m dragging around 2 big suitcases, Betty has my small one and I have her small one inside my big one. And I have a backpack …. Someday I’ll learn.

We headed back to the Tower so Betty could see it lit up…it was quite a sight and on the hour the lights sparkle for 10 minutes. Thank you Paris for a wonderful four days.

On to Lausanne.

BETTY ARRIVES

BETTY ARRIVES!!!! BARELY!!! Betty was leaving Orlando at 2pm on Sunday and due to arrive in Paris at 7 am on Monday, the 25^th. They were running 20 minutes late and then she finally got on the plane, after having to gate check her carry-on because the flight was full. She decided she didn’t want to be crowded so she upgraded to an exit row seat for $129, was happy that there was no one else in the row and then found out that the arm rests didn’t go up, so she had to put her legs on top of the rest in order to stretch out. The only problem was that she was right by the bathrooms, so everyone who came by and had to wait, sat in the aisle seat so she couldn’t stretch out.

Ok, so they’re ready to take off and a bad storm comes in, the 70 mph winds, actually rocking the plane as it sits on the tarmac. She said people were screaming and crying…..now keep in mind, this is Betty’s first overseas trip…..solo or otherwise. She found out that it was a tornado in the area. Finally, they were able to take off for Washington, but low and behold….SHE MISSED HER CONNECTION!!!!!

She gets to her gate in DC and was told that she would have to get the next day’s flight and to find a hotel room (United would not pay for it because the issue was weather related.) Well, little Miss Betty ripped that dude another you-know-what!!! And told him he needed to go home because he was an idiot. It turned out that there was another guy who had the same problem, took Betty under his wing, and they ran over to Air France, British Airways and several others to try and get out.

Finally, she went to the United CS Center and they were able to get her on United into Frankfurt and then Lufthansa to Paris. She was suppose to arrive in Paris at 7am on Monday….she got to the hotel at 5pm Monday.

She made friends with one of the flight attendants who lives in Paris, so she got all the low down on what to watch out for. The attendant stayed with her through baggage claim, but her big suitcase never made it!!! She had to file a claim with LH and knew that she’d never see her bag!

She had to explain to customs that she couldn’t show her bag because LH lost it. The customs officer saw her small carry-on, which did show up, and said ‘that’s all  you have?” Yes, Betty said, they lost the rest. They then sent her to gate 20 to find a taxi, but there was no gate 20.

She then called the shuttle service to let them know that she arrived and they told her that they were there at 7am and she wasn’t. After arguing with him and explaining that she missed her flight and that their instructions were that she was to call them not the other way around. She finally told the shuttle service … I’m not arguing with you anymore…FU…you must need the money more than I do…and she hung up.

She rolled into the room, and if you know Betty, she told us the story and we were just rolling, laughing so hard, we lost it.

But she got to Paris!!!!! Now the fun starts!!!

AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS

Bitterly, Bitterly, Unbelievably Bitterly COLD!!!! At -1C and a wind that would rip off a witch's broomstick, we tried to do the walking tour, but so, so, cold. 
We stopped at one of the 'coffee' shops (aka pot house as opposed to a cafe ...coffee) and bought muffins laced with the big M, which is legal in Amsterdam. We stopped by a seed shop and thought about buying some...but realized we couldn't get it back to the States.

Anna wanted to see the 'red light district', so after a few wrong turns we finally found it...but alas, no pictures allowed.  

It was too cold to stay out so we headed back to the ship and after lunch ventured out again. We had tickets for the Anne Frank house, but went to the wrong place and have to travel by cab to get to the right place that was actually the wrong place, again. Long story short, I headed back into town (losing out on my $67 tour ticket) while Anna, Regina and Jack hung around for two hours to do the tour.

I was trying to find the 'hidden church', which is located on a major shopping street...the door is just a plain door but inside a beautiful church. Only problem was that it closed at 4 and I was 1/2 hour late. Guess I'll have to do it in December.

It was amazing to see the canals and the narrow homes of Amsterdam.  There are so many house boats on all of the canals and they use the canals to dump their 'water waste'. I witnessed a man who picked up his dog's droppings and just toss it into the canal. Guess being high they really don't care about the environment.

They have huge winch-like structures at the top of the homes that were used in the 'olden' days to get goods up to the upper stories. They still use them 
today to get furniture and other large items up to the third and fourth floors.

I'm busy packing as we need to leave the ship by 8a.m. We'll get a cab to the station and head on down to Paris where we'll meet up with Betty...hope she makes it to the City of Lights without any problems.

The river cruise was great, but the castles and churches were starting to run all together. I'll be glad to see the sites of Paris again and then onto Italy.



Till tomorrow....

COLOGNE, GERMANY

Sailed into Cologne Saturday to a wickedly cold wind and a temp of 30F. Since Anna and I were here last Spring, we decided to forego the walking tour and headed over to the Cathedral, since we didn’t explore the interior on the last trip.

The ‘Dom’ has the privilege of being the largest cathedral in Europe and is a UNESCO site,which means that it must be kept as it is. I also found out that because of that status, no buildings in the area can be built higher than the church.

The church….taller, wider, longer, bigger than any of I’ve seen. You can help but walk around, ooing and awwwwing at the magnificence of the building. And to think that it was built so many hundreds of years ago without any modern equipment. Totally AWESOME!

We did the hop-on, hop-off bus, but decided not to hop off.

We had a Captain’s dinner tonight…after the Captain’s cocktail hour with champagne….very impressive. Baked Alaska was the finale and the entire restaurant staff paraded into the dining room.

After dinner it was the ‘Crew Show’ and believe me, they put on quite a show…even the Captain was involved in one of the skits. Dancing to YMCA and the Chicken dance, we members of the crew, it was time to head back to the room to begin packing….which will definitely be a major chore.

KOBLENZ

Where the Rhine meets the Mossell, another fast flowing river, is the town of Koblenz. A wonderful way to enter the city. Even more interesting, the captain had to back up from the Rhine into the Mossell.

We got in around noon and Anna and I decided to find a postal center…me to send home two tote bags of shoes, postcards, and tote bags; Anna, the whiskey she purchased for her son yesterday (for 107E ….(boy, she must really love her son….LOL). We found the center, after a few wrong turns, and Anna learns that she can’t ship liquor to the States. I, on the other hand, got my box all packed, filled out the shipping information and went to the counter. Yeah, yeah, yeah…you know something happened…well it turns out I needed a German address in the ‘shipper’ box. ‘Hey, Lady, I’m on a ship.’ Well, I’m in Germany…YOU VILL DO AS I SAY!!!!! And so I carried the box back to the ship and will have to hope and pray that JP will have room in his duffel bag when he heads back to NJ.

Side note…facetimed with Jennifer today and JP is in his glory. He said Rome was beautiful, they went to Siena, did Florence and will beheading to Venice tomorrow. His Italian has improved immensely, he’s had his first Italian beer, and completely forgot about baseball. Maybe I can spend the summer in Italy and have my own interpreter to.

We headed into town for our daily ‘walking tour’ and found an irresistible city. Even though the ‘old town’ was just a few square blocks, the architecture was wonderful and there were so many statues and monuments dotting the city. One particular monument shows the history of Koblenz, from it’s founding through WWII.

Enjoying my German wine and waiting for dinner at 7. They are feeding us too good and too often. A full meal at lunch and dinner…appetizer, soup, entrée, dessert, wine/beer. I’m going to hate to get on the scale when I get home!!!!

Tomorrow we’re off to Cologne (Koln). Problems again with pix

CASTLES ALONG THE RHINE

Today we sailed up/down/I have no idea but I know we’re heading UP to Amsterdam so I guess it’s up. Anyway, today we were on the most scenic part of the Rhine…..castles on each side, one more majestic than the next…some in ruins, others occupied or used as museums. Even though it was a bit overcast when we started out, the sun slowly began peeking her head out through the clouds and the trees were a ‘little’ bit greener. The best thing was that, even though the high was 9C, THERE WAS NO RAIN!!!!!

After a couple of hours of castle-gazing, we were served a traditional Fruhschoppen….a treat of 2 types of sausage and, of course, the pretzel, along with beer or wine. Fruhschoppen is held on Sundays. People on the way to church would stop and enjoy a small treat before heading into church, but it appeared that the men never got into the church?????

We did pass a unique little church called Klosterschruit…..where the only entrance into the church was through the pub….interesting.

HEIDELBERG

If it’s Thursday, this must be Heidelberg.

We arrived in Offenbach and transferred to a bus to head out to Heidelberg. Heading up a winding road, passing beautiful homes, we come upon a beautiful site. A huge castle, with a huge moat, partly in ruin, but being restored. It took 400 years to build and was destroyed by the French in 1689; rebuilt and then destroyed again by fire in 1764. 

There was an apotheke museum on the grounds which had some unbelievable medical instruments and medicine bottles.

We headed into Heidelberg for lunch and had a ‘local product’,

a mincemeat pie, filled with meat and vegetables.  After lunch we walked down the ‘longest’ shopping street in Germany, filled with shops from mom and pop to high end. Heidelberg, a university town, was overflowing with young people.

Leaving Heidelberg, we continued by bus to our next port, Rudesheim, where we had a ‘pub crawl’.

Time for bed….problem with pix again....maybe tomorrow

ROTHENBURG, GERMANY

If you never visit any other city in Germany, you must, must visit Rothenburg!!! Totally surrounded by their medieval wall, you are transferred back in time. Streets tilting, rolling up and down, narrow and one way, buildings that are reminiscent of olden times…and surprises at every turn. It’s just beautiful.

I climbed the wall several times; walking along it, never smooth, darkness engulfing the tunnels, and with little portals to see out, you can see home gardens, farms out in the distance, and more wall…you can feel the spirits that walked the same path. The steps are very steep and narrow. We past several wells, still in their original positions.

Notice I didn’t mention the weather…the city was so beautiful I didn’t even complain about the rain, wind, hail (yes, hail) and more rain.

We had a typical Bavarian lunch of gravy, spaetzel, gravy, pork, gravy at Ratsstube Restaurant and, of course, dessert was apple strudel.

We also tried the local sweet…schneeballen…pastry pieces formed into a ball and then deep-fried and topped with various toppings, including Cointreau.

Anna and I roamed around the streets, losing our guide at one point, but it was definitely worth it. I love the fixtures that are outside of establishments. They are so ornate and every one is different.

We stopped in Kathe Wohlfahrt, a Christmas store/museum beyond belief. Now I know that I’m coming back in December for their Christmas Market river cruise, but I just couldn’t help buying today. I was checking out the schwibbogen (German candle arches) when I was in Germany the last time, so I just couldn’t resist this time.

We spent most of the day at Rothenburg; Anna kept saying …’the next time we’re here’…she must know something I don’t.

 

BAMBERG, GERMANY

Bamberg, home to Bamberg Lace, Bamberger Zwiebel (onion filled with ground meat, mashed potatoes & gravy) and Schauferia (pork shoulder with dumplings & sauerkraut)....hmmm...which one should I try. let's see what they look like first.  

Another cold morning, snow on the ground, early rain but now just a moist, cold miserable day....but we're having fun!!!!

A very pretty town, but it was so cold and rainy.....since I only took 46 pictures (unlike the usual 100+) you know it was bad.

The Town Hall is centered in the middle of the river with bridges on each side. I'll let the pictures talk for me today.

Bamberg is situated on seven hills and encircled by the river Regnitz which runs through the middle of the city.

Bamberg is known for its 'smoked' beer.

The Cathedral of St Peter and St George was built in 1004 and then again in 1237 after it was demolished by fire.  Pope Clement II is buried here, as Bamberg was his hometown.

RHINE-MAIN-DANUBE CANAL

What a wonderful morning. We arrived in Kilheim to sunny, warm (39F) weather. As an optional tour we boarded a ferry and sailed the Rhine-Main-Danube canal through the Danube Gorge with limestone cliff formations reminiscent of Norwegian fjords. 

There are 17 locks in the canal, compared to over 100 if you were to continue your travels on the river itself.

We continued on to the Weltenburg Benedictine Abbey founded in 610AD. The monks here have been brewing a dark ale since 1050, which we were able to sample, along with the infamous Bavarian pretzel. Now, I’m not a beer drinker, but this was pretty good…..

Expecting to see a beautiful entrance I was a bit disappointed with the unadorned entrance. Then I went in….I hate to keep using the same phrases, but this was UNBELIEVABLE!!! Even though it is a very small church, the frescos, marble columns, statues take your breath away. As you walk in it appears very dark and as your eye travels up it gets brighter and brighter. The guide explained it represents the stages of life..the first being purification, second - illumination and the third -reunification.

One of the frescos portrayed ‘Heaven and Hell’. On the left side are men climbing up to reach heaven, while on the right there is chaos, rocks blocking the way to heaven and movement down to hell. It was  pointed out that only men were going to heaven, while on the right side only women are portrayed and they are going to hell. Guess we know what gender did this fresco.

On the opposite wall a fresco is showing monks traveling to the New World – with Columbus and the Virgin Mary and you can see the devils trying to get into the boat. Of course, this was the artist’s interpretation.

In the Baroque style (from 1600 to 1750) you can see that the portraits are of people rather than saints. Although on the highest level you can find four archangels…Michael, Gabriel, Rafael, and Uriel.

After lunch on the ship, we visited a local Bavarian family for a kaffe-klatsch. Maria, who has 4 children, 2 and 2, greeted us outside and showed off her garden and the hens that supply the family’s eggs. Inside we had ‘kaffe and tee’ and a delicious German custard cake. Maria told us about her life and her family and in turn asked many questions about us and the United States. She has a map of the States with markings of where her previous guests were from. She has been doing this for 4 years and donates the money she receives from Grand Circle to an orphanage in India.

Later she showed us around her home, which is much smaller than American homes and told us how she does her laundry at 10 p.m. because electricity is cheaper then. Her husband, who doesn’t speak English was out back splitting wood, which is their main source of heat for the winter months. After a couple of hours, we headed back to the ship to eat….some more.

Tomorrow it’s Nuremberg.

Problems loading pix. Will try tomorrow.

NUREMBERG

Uh-oh…..talk about being spoiled. Woke up this morning, opened the drapes and what do I see but junkyards, industrial sites, smoke stacks….guess we’re out of the Bavarian mountains….welcome to Nuremberg. We’ve passed through 7 locks during the night, slowly climbing from 1,109 feet up to the highest level on the canal (1,340 ft) and then started heading down. We’re at 1,025 at Nuremberg and will be down to 280 feet when we reach Mainz.

We saw the parade grounds where Hilter held all the notorious propaganda parades. Rather than repair and maintain the Nazi sites, the government has decided to leave them as is rather than ‘memorialize’ such a terrible time in their history.

We then headed to the court house where the Nuremberg trials were held--Room 600. I expected it to be bigger than it was but it was very thought-provoking and the guide who did the presentation was very informative. He pointed out a door in the paneled wall where the prisoners were brought in. They went from the prison, through a tunnel and into the courtroom, never going outside of the building.

We traveled into the ‘old town’, on the way passing the medieval wall that protected the city. It is the longest, most well preserved wall in Europe. When we got to Hauptmarkt square they were celebrating with an Easter market, vendors selling their ware, sausage, pretzels, candies, all German.

We were at the town square at noon and were able to see the Glockenspiel in action. At first we thought it was just the bell ringing, but then after a pause, the trumpet players and drummers did their thing, and then the parade of characters passed in front of the king who was sitting in the center. It took 10 minutes for the scene to finish.

I was a little disappointed with Nuremberg; not sure if it was because it was so big and the old town so small or just the fact it was Sunday and there weren’t too many locals out and about. It just seemed that there wasn’t that much ‘old world charm’ as in the other cities we been to.

ALTE LINDE IN REGENSBURG

Thank you Grand Circle for a wonderful evening. We had dinner out at a local Bavarian restaurant, Alte Linde at Mullerstrasse in Regensburg. 

We walk in to be greeted by 4 members of an Oompah band and the moment the music starts you want to DANCE!!!

It started off with a local beer, which was really mild (sort of like Dos Equis). Now, I normally don't drink beer, but this went down so smooth!!! I stopped at one, but my dear friend, whom shall remain nameless, had 4 during the evening, which isn't bad, unless you add the wine. I had 3 glasses, she had 4. 

The meal, typical Bavarian, started with a delicious potato and leek soup, followed by a plate containing 3 local sausages, veal, potato dumpling, and the best sauerkraut I've ever tasted. All evening the band continued playing and even celebrated 2 birthdays in our group. 

We were lucky to have our Tour Director, Milena, and Wiebe from Amsterdam, at our table. Wiebe educated us on Amsterdam and gave us some wonderful hints about what we should do there at the end of our river cruise. 

Thinking that the 'drinking' was over, what happens but they bring  out Schnappes, which as we were told that we needed to 'down' it'....what an easy way to add to you buzz!

All in all it was a great evening with wonderful friends.  Even the taxi ride was a blast! The driver must have thought .. 'crazy Americans' but we couldn't stop laughing..between  discussing where a certain person had his pockets, and where we'd like to put them, to the empty bottle of wine I presented to Anna as a reminder of a momentus evening, to the Russian, German, Italian, and Spanish phrases we learned to help us on future tours. 

I need to mention Wiebe. The first time I saw him (I had not yet met him) he was walking down the hall heading to the restaurant and tilting his head every time he walked past one of the smoke alarms in the hall. Tilting from right to left every few feet, it was hysterical watching him. After meeting him this evening I would call him a gentle giant. This young man is 6'8", an arm span that could reach across a room, and a complete delight. Originally from Amsterdam, he has been all over Europe and visited the States many times, including my own New Jersey, and he is part of the Grand Circle family...they are lucky to have him. If only I was young again....I would definitely learn several languages and take on the world the way these tour directors do.

Well, it's time to sleep off the buzz...we're off tomorrow to a Bavarian monastary...to pray for forgiveness...or to taste more beer....guess we'll have to wait to find out which one is in store for us.

REGENSBURG, GERMANY

What a wonderful surprise at dinner last night. To welcome us to Bavaria, we were served a typical Bavarian meal. First and foremost, German wine, pretzels, potato and leek soup, and a mixture of sausage, pate, and meats for the appetizer. Then waiters, dressed in typical Bavarian style paraded through the dining room with a roasted pig, prime rib and a mixture of other meats on sparkling platters. Dinner was buffet style and the dishes included cabbage salad, German potato salad, brat and sauerkraut, and much more. The staff really went overboard and by the time we finished everyone was stuffed and sort of rolled down the hall to the lounge to drink and party.

Regensburg is over 2,000 years old and one of the best-preserved medieval cities in Europe. Parts of the original Roman wall can still be seen.

Steinerne Brucke, the Stone Bridge, was built in the 10^th century and is 1,000 feet long. There is a small statue on the bridge pointed towards the cathedral. It seems that the master builder of the bridge and the master builder of the cathedral had a wager on who would finish first. The bridge builder, being worried that he would lose the wager since the Bishop had God on his side, made a deal with the devil. The devil’s only payment would be the first 3 souls who crossed the bridge. The builder agreed. Needless to say, the bridge was finished first and there was a big holiday to celebrate and the Bishop, Mayor, and General wanted to be the first to cross. The builder, remembering what the devil had said, quickly gathered a chicken, a goat, and a dog and chased them across the bridge, spoiling the devil’s plot.

The cobblestone roads of the city where the lower class lived were barely 6 foot wide, but the roads in the rich section were much wider. To show their wealth, the patricians would build their homes as high as possible, as shown by this tower in the right side picture (even though it only contained a spiral staircase).

The Old Town Hall had two figures at the top…the figure with the crossed arms representing ‘protection’ and the other ‘ready to attack’.

On the side of the Town Hall were measurement poles; the shortest to measure elbow to arm, the medium foot to knee, and the third arm to arm (showing the height of a person).

St Peter’s Cathedral was started in the 1100s, more than half was built within 50 years, but the remaining half took 250 years. When the cathedral was started it was in the Romanesque style, but finished in the Gothic style.

We did a little shopping to help 'fortify' us during the cold weather (if you get my drift). We even found a TJ Maxx, but here it's TK Maxx. The snow started again so Anna and I got warmer socks, but I think the other 'fortification' will help warm us a little better.

We’re heading out tonight for dinner at a local restaurant. More later….