Cities of Light River Cruise - Day Eleven

The last time we saw Prague was at the end of the Elbe River trip in 2013. The river that runs through Prague was rising, flooding the lower parts of the city. It was still raining and cold and windy and miserable.

Today could not have been different. The sun has been shining brightly and the temperature rose into the upper 70's. Our tour started with a bus ride to the Prague Castle on the highest point above the city. The castle, built by the early kings including the great Charles IV who governed the area, is the official residence of the Czech president but is otherwise empty. It has beautiful vistas overlooking the city, the Queen's Garden, and also an awesome cathedral dedicated to St. Vitus. The only downer was this being Sunday, services were being held and we could not see the interior.

From there we descended to the old town to walk along the river and to cross the famous Charles Bridge adorned on both sides with stone and bronze statuary of saints and religious scenes. From there we moved to the old town square (another UNESCO site) to see the fifteenth century Astronomical Clock, which besides telling the time, the phase of the moon, the saint of the day and the sign of horoscope, it also presents a little tableau every hour on the hour. In the town square is also a monument to Hus, the first Protestant reformer (even before Luther) who was burned at the stake. Hus' movement never died and is the forerunner of the Moravian Church.

After a rest, we were led to the Jewish section of the city, where during the various persecutions the Jewish population was forced to live in the ghetto. We saw the oldest synagogue in the city and its ancient cemetery.

Jan and I left the tour at his point to return to the Charles Bridge to find the creperie we had enjoyed in 2013. Of course, being Sunday, it was closed. But, not far away was another, even nicer place where we ejoyed savory crepes and a cool one. After that we went back to the old town square where a small museum was showing collections of works by Salvadore Dali, Alphonse Mucha and Andy Warhol. The Dali collections was large, many pieces which were not included in the exhibition several years ago in Philadelphia. Mucha was a Czech artist who specialized in art nouveau works ranging from designs for the Czech currency and stamps, to posters for exhibitions in the late 1800s and early 1900s, to designs for fancy postcards. And the Warhol collection was not so extensive but had some good pieces especially the cover designs for magazines such as Time, Rolling Stones, etc.

By this time is was appropriate to get another gelato, return to the hotel, turn in our listening devices from the walking tours, check our email and rest. By my trusty pedometer, we had covered 8.86 miles.

Tomorrow early we leave for our trip home. We hope to have our photos on Shutterfly in a few days and will send you the link. We hope you have enjoyed this trip with us.

Cities of Light River Cruise - Day Ten

Today left the Viking Odin early in the morning, traveling by bus to Nuremberg. Once there we were treated to one of the most intelligent and articulate tours ever. Our guide was a young German who was able to recount the rise of Hitler's rise to power in his attempt to establish the third empire (Reich) "to make Germany great again", and the devastation it brought. Of course this was because Nuremberg was his favorite city because it was central of his power, had good travel connections so that great crowds could come for his "peace" rallies. We saw the buildings in which the famous Nuremberg War trials were held, before moving on the the castle atop the city. Our guide gave a thorough description of the military engineering which made the castle so impenetrable. But of course, it was never attacked.

Afterwards we had a little free time in the city square. We visited the home of Albrecht Durer (famous for his "Praying Hands") and went back to the city square for sausages in a bun and gelato. The sun was shining brightly and continued to do so the rest of the day. I found my favorite monument called "The Ship of Fools", of which is the photo.

We boarded the buses again for the trip to Prague. After checking into the hotel, we walked down to the town center (so far today we have walked 7.28 miles) taking lots of photos of gorgeous architecture. At a little restaurant we had a small plate of Prague ham on bread with horse radish and gherkins, finished with espresso. It was just right for our dinner.

At the hotel we have decent Internet connections, so I have been catching up on some work that has been sent along.

Tomorrow we will have a half-day guided tour of Prague, so the cameras will be busy again. More will come...

Cities of Light River Cruise - Day Nine

The city of Bamberg is a delight. Nestled in the valley of the Linker River, a Franconian town, it was the center of a diocese created by an early king, later expanded and modified by a series of powerful archbishops. It is situated on seven hills each topped by a church, earning the nickname of "Franconian Rome". In fact, one of the popes so liked Bamberg that he was buried in the cathedral.

Our walking tour took us to the riverside where quaint half-timbered houses, once the poor section of town and the pricey, to the street where the oldest brewery in town, the Schlenkeria Brewery, creates a smoke-flavored local favorite. From there we visited the above-mentioned cathedral and the royal residences that surround the church including a formal garden. Our guide noted that the courtyard most recently was the setting of a sword fight in the movie "The Three Musketeers".

The tour brought us down to the heart of the old city, where the town hall is positioned on a spit of land between two branches of the river. This area is a blend of styles, from half-timbered to baroque to modern. It suffered only one bomb during World War II, so most of the city is as it was built. We were set loose for some free time so we walked some of the streets, through a farmers' market, down an alley to find a private and beautiful flower garden. We celebrated with gelato in cones.

Tonight is the last evening on the Viking Odin. Tomorrow we leave for a bus journey first to Nuremberg, then on to Prague where we will stay for two nights. There will be more to come...

Cities of Light River Cruise - Day Eight

When we awoke, the Viking Odin was still underway, having sailed through the night. The Main River, on which we're traveling, has 34 locks, and it seems as though we went through at least six of them through the night. There is often a gentle shudder in the boat if it comes in contact with the walls of the lock. It's not a cause to worry - it is just a gentle interruption if it happens.

As soon as we arrived in Karlstadt, we boarded buses for the tour of Wurzburg. The feature of the tour is the Bishop's Residenz, a monumental baroque building commissioned in 1720 by one of a series of bishop-princes who ruled the city of Wurzburg. In it is a grand staircase above which is the largest fresco in the world painted on an unsupported vaulted ceiling. The theme of the fresco is the Four Continents (Australia was unknown at that time) with people and animals. The artist had a vivid imagination.

We were able to tour one of the suites, a series of progressively more opulent rooms. Our guide explained that the whole purpose of the building and the rooms was to impress visiting princes with how wealthy and powerful was the bishop-princes, hence the over-the-top decoration. Part of the building was destroyed by Allied bombing and rebuilt. Miraculously the staircase and frescoed ceiling were not damaged. The whole building is a UNESCO site.

We then toured the old city part of Wurzburg, which while in the German state of Bavaria, fiercely contends that it is a part of Franconia, a separate entity with separate traditions and dialect, even though later political settlements lumped it with Bavaria. Our guide was firm that Franconian Wurzburg does not celebrate Oktoberfest, instead it has a wine fest in September. Wurzburg is also the resting place of Saint Kilian, an Irish monk who brought Christianity to the region. He is remembered as being the patron saint of those with rheumatism.

A dampening shower brought our tour to an early end, so we returned to the ship where we enjoyed lunch followed by a restful afternoon. This evening was the Captain's cocktail party and a special seven-course dinner. While not the last night on the ship, the dinner was held tonight so as not to conflict with packing tomorrow night. We leave the ship day after tomorrow to journey first to Nuremberg, then to Prague. Tomorrow we will arrive at and tour the city of Bamberg. So, more to come...

Cities of Light River Cruise - Day Seven

We are more than half way through our vacation, but it seems like it just started. Today we left Aschaffenburg on the Main River on a bus to take us to Heidelberg, the home of the oldest university in Germany. The trip started a little late as the traffic on the river has been heavier due to the high water, slowing down the passage through the locks. On arrival we did a little walking tour of the old city, then moved to our destination, the Ritter Hotel. There the entire group was treated to a three-course luncheon - salad, the rolled up beef, bacon and onions called rouladen, and dessert.

The luncheon was special because university students were invited to join each table, to talk about their experience and answer questions about what was on our minds. Our student was Sophieanne Perkins, from Montreal, Canada, working on a masters degree in medical anthropology. She explained that the focus of the specialty was to identify the interplay of the medicine of other cultures and Western medicine and how it affected the culture for good or bad. She explained that the university education is free for all who attend, but that it is expensive to live -- American students enroll there and consider the cost of living a trade off for the cost of tuition. Sophieann pays $400 a month for a small apartment in a nearby village, and hosts AirB&B guests for stretch her income. In all, it was a pleasant time with an engaging young woman. Sophieann took the picture in the Ritter Hotel dining room.

After lunch we took a funicular rail car from the main town to the Heidelberg Castle. It is now a ruin, but a beautiful one, a combination of several buildings, each an example of German architecture, the first constructed around 1300 AD. The castle was a residence, a well-protected fortress, until it was struck by lightning in 1764 making it uninhabitable. It was never restored, but the ruin commands a spectacular view of the city below and is one of the most visited sites in Germany.

Our day is ending with another fine dinner and conversation with four new friends from Colorado and Massachusetts. Again we sail overnight to tomorrow's port in the city of Karlstadt. More to come...

Cities of Light River Cruise - Day Six

Today was one of the days for which we were waiting. Last night we docked at Kolblenz, just after entering the Rhine River. Now we were going to explore the most beautiful section of this historic river.

First we visited the so-called German Corner, where a giant statue of Kaiser Wilhelm I, the first emperor of the newly united Germany. Destroyed in World War II, it was rebuilt and now, after the fall of the Berlin Wall, it stands again as a monument to the united German nation.

The day's excursion was to the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress, a major 19th century project built to defend Prussia from the French. The fortress occupies a strategic location 500 feet above the confluence of the Mosel and the Rhine Rivers. After a gondola ride across the Rhine, we met our guide, dressed as a 19th century British engineer, portraying the role of an agent sent to snoop out the Prussian military engineering effort at Ehrenbreitstein for possible use by the English. As such he took us through the amazing project, pointing out the genius of the Prussians in constructing an almost impenetratable fort - gun placements, dry moats, thick walls, small portals, just to name a few. At the end the guide revealed that the fort, built at great expense, was never attacked, as the lines of warfare had moved to the East. Now the fortress is used as a youth hostel, a museum, a performance center and other community projects.

We rejoined the Viking Odin at lunch as the ship was about to enter the region of the castles on the Rhine. For almost four hours we watched with delight as the castles, all save one destroyed by the troops of Louis XIV, swept by. Most now remain either as ruins or rebuilt as hotels or private residences. The weather was warm enough so that we stayed on the sun deck for great views and opportunities for photos as the tour director supplied a running narrative of the passing scene.

The dinner we just finished was a German feast with wurst, sauerkraut, beer, and Black Forest tort, just to name the principals. Tonight we cruise into the morning on the Main Canal in order to reach tomorrow's destination, Heidelberg. More to come...

Cities of Light River Cruise - Day Five

he day dawned with rain and clouds. The Viking Odin had sailed all night along the Mosel from Bernkastel to Cochem. By the time we had our breakfast, the weather began to clear in time for our walking tour of Cochem. This little town is a tourist magnet because of the very large castle - the Reichsburg - sitting high above the village. Our guide gave us the background: the original castle was one built to serve as a toll collector on the Mosel River. It was destroyed by the troops of the French king, Louis XVI, the Sun King, as part of an effort to consolidate control of the entire region. Later the ruins were purchased by a wealthy Hugenot merchant and restored as a summer place for his family. When the area was overtaken by the German Reich, he was forced to sell it to the Germans, and after the war was purchased by the town of Cochem who now maintains it as a source of revenue from the tourists.

In fairness, it was a beautiful restoration and a fun place to visit. Small vans took us up the 1500 feet from the town to the castle; after a guided tour, we returned by van and walked through the main marketplace where the tour ended. On our own we visited the town's Roman Catholic church whose war-destroyed windows had been replaced by fantastic modern stained glass reminiscent of the work of Marc Chagall, had a tasty gelato cone and returned to the ship.

On board, as the ship began again to sail toward the mouth of the Mosel where it joins the Rhine River, our tour director gave a presentation on the political and economic evolution of Germany from the end of World War II to the present. But the highlight of the day was a private invitation by the Viking Odin's captain, Ruud Boonstra, to visit the wheelhouse to get an overview of how the ship is navigated. (We discovered that this special invitation was offered because we were the most seasoned Viking travelers on board.)

The wheelhouse is an electronic wonderland with large monitors showing displays of the radar, the GPS location and video of engine room and other locations aboard the ship. In addition, large dials showed speed, draft (the amount of water depth below the hull) and turning orientation. The biggest suprise of course is that there is no wheel -- the rudder is controlled by a joystick. While in the wheelhouse we watched how the ship is manuvered into a lock and lowered to the next level before continuing. The captain could not have been nicer and we enjoyed it immensely.

The ship arrived in Koblenz, our port for the night. Koblenz is at the confluence of the Mosel and the Rhine, on which we will travel tomorrow to see the castles on the Rhine. We are looking forward to it. And, more to come...