We arrived in Amsterdam on Thursday. I like to seek out Vermeer paintings whenever we go somewhere, so I especially wanted to get to 2 museums that had 5 of his paintings that I'd never seen before. This photo is from the Mauritsuis Museum in The Hague and the next is of the Rijks Museum in Amsterdam. I have now seen 25 of his 34 paintings.
Amsterdam is a very bustling city with a mix of old and new buildings and more bicyclists than I've ever seen in a city.
Intersections are organized chaos involving cars, trains, buses, scooters, segways, pedestrians and lots and lots of bicycles, frequently with one or two children in seats on the front and/or back. Somehow they all manage.
We left Amsterdam Friday night and stopped in Kinderdijk, the 'only place in the world with so many windmills so close together'. Very picturesque. This photo was taken almost right across the street from where we docked.
Of the two tour options, Paul and I chose the visit to a dairy farm where they specialize in making Gouda cheese. It was great -- we were the only ones who chose this one so we had private tours of the farm. We learned a lot about cows and cheese!
The boat is beautiful.
Our suite is at the end of the boat so it has a small terrace and windows around our living room. Very nice for relaxing. We've been sailing since yesterday afternoon and will be arriving in Cologne, Germany right after breakfast. It will be a busy day today.
Monday morning started with a tour of a 700-year old fortress in Marksburg. The afternoon was all about 'scenic sailing' down the Rhine River. We lounged outside on the top level of the boat, which is where I took all of these photos, and watched the world go by for 3 hours as a commentator pointed out castles and fortresses on the hillsides. The views were spectacular! It was really hard to choose just a few photos to share with you. We enjoyed Rudesheim coffee (coffee, brandy, sugar, dark chocolate and whipped cream) and German pastries. We'll need to get out on that walking track again that's also on that top level!
On Tuesday we did a walking tour in Miltenberg, Germany. This photo was taken from the top of Miltenberg Castle - lots of steps to get up that high.
Miltenberg is a classic 16th and 17th century village with lots of the half-timbered, gabled houses in beautiful condition.
We have to travel down quite a few canals to get to the big rivers. This photo is of the boat behind us as we're entering of of numerous locks. It's a very interesting process. The tallest lock was 80 feet high! We're actually glad that one was when we were asleep. Not sure we wanted to experience what it must look like being at the bottom of an 80 foot well and slowly rising to the top.
Wednesday was an all day excursion to Rothenburg. One of the places we toured was the Bishops' Residence. Unfortunately photographs were not allowed inside. It's the most over the top ornateness I've ever seen.
Thursday's shore excursion was to the city of Bamberg, Germany. We walked down a path next to a small river lined with residences.
The town is situated on 7 hills, each with a beautiful church on top. This photo shows a little detail inside one cathedral completed in 1012.
The morning in Nuremberg started with a bus tour through areas like this huge stadium that was built for Nazi party rallies, but was never finished. In classic Hitler style, the design was based on the Coliseum, but was supposed to be even bigger.
On Saturday we did a walking tour of Regensburg, Germany. It's a bustling little city filled with upscale shops and sidewalk cafes throughout the preserved historic buildings.
We had lunch in a beautiful restaurant which provided a performance of songs from the Sound of Music by 4 singers and a piano player.
There was another HUGE festival going on in the city center with lots of food and other booths, music, rides and tons of people.
Part of Monday was scenic sailing as we traveled down the Danube, dotted with medieval towns, ruined castles and terraced vineyards.
Tuesday evening was our favorite experience with the Vienna Boys Choir. We first toured the boarding house and school where they live (a small former palace) and then had a private 40 minute concert in one of their small concert rooms for the 30 of us on this tour. This photo is of the 25 boys just walking into the room. It was amazing!
After the concert there was a small reception with the boys so we could talk to them and ask them questions. All fantastic!
From Vienna, we sailed through the afternoon and night to Budapest. In the evening, we sailed through Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, and enjoyed a spectacular display of lighted bridges and public buildings on both sides of the river. We took these photos from the top deck of the ship.
Thursday, our final day, was a bus and walking tour of Budapest. What an interesting city. It spans both sides of the Danube River with the historic Buda on the east bank and the more posh Pest on the west. The architecture, monuments and vibe are so varied on both sides. Contemporary big city landscape mixes with all the beautiful old stuff. This is Heroes' Square on the Buda side.
Mathias Cathedral on the Pest side.
Finally, this photo shows part of a huge spa on the Buda side that features thermal baths. There are over a hundred natural thermal springs throughout Budapest so this is a centuries old tradition.
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