Heart of Europe Tour

Sept 20, 2013

Robert came out to get final instructions for Lilly and Lydia.  It should be about the same distance for him to drive to work.  He left about three and a little after four we loaded all our suitcases (ours and Fortunato’s) and headed for the Cleveland Airport.  As we were checking in, the gentleman aiding us noted that the fight we were booked on to Toronto was going to be late arriving in Cleveland which meant we would not make the connection to Frankfurt.  He switched us to an earlier flight so we had plenty of time in Toronto.  It was a good thing because we had to walk from one end of the terminal to the other, and clear through Canadian Customs.

The flight to Frankfurt loaded on time, but we were delayed 25 minutes taking off due to storms to the west.  The flight over was smooth and we had a dinner and a light breakfast before landing.  By the time we cleared customs, picked up our bags and trekked to the place where we were to meet the tour, we were 45 minutes late.  Our guide had gone with the rest of the tour so we had to find our own way.  Later she said she left a note on the message board with her phone number, but we never found it. The suggested connections from Image Tours would have required a ride to the train station, a 45 minute train ride and then a taxi to the hotel.  This would have cost each couple about 120€ (Euro).  An airport limo service guy noted our problem and made an offer we could not refuse.  He was waiting on two passengers to take to Schriesheim, the town we needed to go to.  He said he would check with his dispatcher to see if we could go along.  It was agreed to transport us for 60€ a couple.  (On that date a dollar was worth 1.55€)  Hopefully we will get this back.

The ride was an interesting one as there was no posted speed limit.  We rode in a van similar to a Sterling van in the US and the drive was very nice.  He drove through some narrow alleyways to drop off the two other passengers and then to the Hotel Scheid. The hotel was a quaint little place in a small village.

Cassie, Ange and Judy having coffee before we head out to Heidleburg.

 That’s our bus in the background and below is the hotel front. Can’t read it but sign says “Biergarten.”

After an hour’s rest and meeting the tour guide the entire group set off for a drive through the country side to Heidleburg, the first real stop on the tour.  After a brief talk, the guide (Franca) let us go to wonder the cobblestone streets and visit some sites and shops.  We saw the old bridge into the city and the remains of a castle on the hill above.  Some of the buildings are centuries older than the United States!  Below are the castle and the bridge.

       

One of the stops was to visit an old church.  Hard to believe this was constructed so long ago.

This was Saturday and a shopping day for locals and tourists.  On the right is the old entrance gate to the city.

         



We wondered into a little grocery and bought small box of chocolates for 7€- silly but seemed like a good idea at the time.  We also bought two small boxes of pretzel sticks for snacking.  And, this is where we saw our first pair of leather pants, but only on a store mannequin.

                   

 Judy and Cassie posed with a giant nutcracker outside a shop.

Back at the hotel, our first German dinner in a small dining room on the main floor.  Franca said we would hold off our real ‘welcome and get acquainted’ dinner until tomorrow night.  There was a wedding reception going on in the larger room but it was quiet.  We did not hear it but apparently there was a second wedding reception on the other side of the hotel.  Those folk were a bit livelier and kept some of our group awake as they left.

It was up early (and that will be a trend) for our first real full day.  Breakfast in the hotels each morning is more like an American buffet with a European twist.  Usually eggs, bacon and little sausages plus cheeses, like luncheon meets, fruit, cereal and various rolls and breads.

Franca, our tour leader gave us some easy to remember tips.  To convert Celsius to Fahrenheit, double the "C" and add 30 - it's not perfect but close enough.  If it is 20 degrees C then double would be 40 plus 30 it would be 70 degrees F.  The European highway system numbers (Autobahn in Germany and Motorway elsewhere) are like the US - even numbers run East/West and Odd North/South.  There is also only one WalMart in Germany.  They (WalMart) had opened several but they did not succeed.  The only one left is located near a US military base.

We drove to the town of Rothenburg-ob-de-Tauber (on the Tauber River) for some sight seeing and lunch. On the way we passed lush corn fields and everything is so crisp, green and clean.              

Yes those are cows grazing and look at that bridge spanning the valley. 

 

The one on the right is from the bus window lush corn fields.

This is a very old walled city with an interesting history.  In the 1289 the Christians killed off all the Jews in the town for supposed sacrilege.

Below is the plaque on the monument along the wall.

We had ‘packed’ a lunch from the breakfast table so walked to a little park just outside the main walled area to eat.  The views of the city and walled area were something else.  And to think all this was built nearly a thousand years ago.

The steps to the top of the wall were very narrow and the walk way at the top just wide enough for two to pass - sideways.   Not quite like walking The Great Wall in China.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

The Gilberts with Judy along the wall.      

                 The view down from the wall.

Here is most of the group waiting at our first “meeting place” after our day in the town.

It was Sunday afternoon and the square was full of people and merchants.  Then we had the long walk back out of the city to where the bus was parked.  Off in the distance are one set of stairs leading to the top of the city wall.

                      

We were back in the bus for the drive to Adelsried near Munich for our nights stay.  For our break, Franca said we would stop only once at a McDonalds.  It was very busy as there was some sort of a fair right across the street.  An interesting Mickey D’s as it had a separate coffee bar area, so we ordered two cappuccinos.  We then walked into a small village through a gate in the wall.  Most old villages and towns were walled.  We saw lots of families out on bikes.

In this area of Germany there are so many solar panels on barns and houses.  The goal is 20% clean energy by 2020 and the farmers are given a subsidy by the power company to install panels.  They use power generated and what they don’t use goes to the electric company.  On Sundays no trucks, unless they have a special permit, are allowed on the autobahn highways.  They must park late on Saturday night and remain in rest areas or off the highway until very late Sunday evening.  Drivers plan on this stop and cook and watch TV via satellite.

                                  

Late in the afternoon we arrived at the Park Hotel Schmid where we will spend two nights. Tonight we enjoyed another German meal and were entertained by an accordion player, in lederhosen. We also had our official ‘welcome and get acquainted’ time.  We did self introductions.  It is a fairly diverse group; including four ladies form Hawaii and three from Argentina.  Most are retired but there are several still working and one man with his 22 year old daughter.  That’s a story for later.

One other couple in the group had been married 50 years and one couple 57. We had two ‘newly wedded’ couples too.  The oldest in the group is an 89 year old man – he and his ‘bride’ have been married less than a year.

Monday morning we had a short drive to Munich. After a ‘panoramic’ drive in the city we were let off the bus near the Town Hall Square.  The square is the home of the famous ‘Glockenspiel’ that depicts an historic battle.  Munich was established by Benedictine Monks in the 9^th century hence Munich means “at the Monks.”  The plaza was very crowded but we did manage to see the animated characters as the clock struck eleven. 

Took a video and hopefully it will show up.

Click on below)

Glockenspiel

At 12:30 we met and were transported to the real October Fest.  This is a very big deal in Munich and there are several stories as to its origin. One has that it is to ‘drink up’ all the old beer before the new hops are harvested and another has to do with a Bavarian King’s ability to down in one session a large tankard of beer.  Regardless of the origin it is a very big deal and people come from all over to be part of it.  It is set in a large ‘meadow’ or field/park/fair grounds area with some permanent and semi permanent buildings.

Here we saw many men and boys dressed in lederhosen and the women in the traditional dirndl.

                                                               

 It was very much like a carnival or fair with lots of rides, food and crowds.  Different brands of beer sponsor large tent-like structures where you can buy food find restrooms and of course lots of music and beer.

We opted to sit in an outer room area and enjoy lunch.  We split a meal of a foot long sausage, potato salad (German of course) and with the Fortunato’s split a drink.  The ‘sparking apple juice’ was good and refreshing.  

After our stay at the October Fest, we boarded the bus for a drive through the mountains to Innsbruck in Austria.  On the way to the bus, one of the fellows nearly got clipped by a cyclist – as in bicyclist.  On the side walks an area marked in red is designated for bikes, and they do whiz by.  American’s are so used to spreading out that we forget that some other form of locomotion has access to the walkways.  More about bikes later.

On the drive you could see castles on the hill side.  Bavarian was once home to a number of kings and each had a castle.

Later when the country was consolidated, the Ludwig’s built many castles of their own.

We did make a stop along the motorway.  Most places you have to pay to use the restroom.  Generally .50 to .70 Euros so bathroom breaks can become expensive.

We had some time in Innsbruck before moving on to our hotel in the village of Fulpmes, Austria.  We wandered the village which was set on either side of the river running through the city.  Side walks contained a marked bike path so you had to be aware not to wonder from the pedestrian area.

                    

And of course we had time to visit a church, Saint Jacobs while there, but soon it was back on the bus.  We saw little sheds or buildings in the fields and Franca explained that the farmers live in the village, not on the farm land.  These buildings house tools or equipment and some feed for the cattle.  Another explanation is that the farmer ‘gives’ a section of land to a son, and the shed designates his area. 

Franca lead us on a detour to “the church in the meadow” a church located in the middle of fields and not a village.  The building has an onion dome rather than a tall steeple.  Some say the onion shape came from the Muslims and is a sign of victory over them.  The onion dome and rounder lines denote the rococo/Baroque style.

Note the charred Christ in the niche over the middle of the alter.

The fresco on the ceiling was so vivid and the pipes on the organ stood out.  Would have been nice to hear it boom out some sound.

The next stop was Oberammagau. The villages in about 1100 prayed that they would be spared from the plague.  This village prayed and promised to do a passion play every year if spared.  Well, every year became a burden and eventually it was settled on doing one every ten years.  Most residents of the village take part in some way in the production.

Judy posed beside the costumes worn by members of the Sanhedrin during the play in 2010.

The flowers on the balconies were beautiful and so colorful.

There were a number of little restaurants and shops but Franca directed us to an alley where a butcher/baker shop was located.  We found the place and it was neat - all sorts of meats and cheeses.  We selected a pretzel type roll and the lady cut it and we then picked what appeared to be their meat of the day.  It looked like a cross between dutch loaf, ham loaf and salami and she cut of a 1/2inch thick slice for our sandwich.  We added a nice slice of swiss and had a filling and good lunch for 5€.  After we had a small ice cream cone.

Below is a statue in the park next to the Oberammaergau Theater.

On our way back to the bus we passed the fire station.  Could not resist getting a picture for the firefighters in the family. A very unusual ladder truck.

Oberammergau was the site of our first and really one problem on the trip.  One of the guys came out of a shop and turned the wrong way.  His wife had turned in the correct direction and started walking towards the bus park area.  He could not find her and we spent about 20 minutes before he was located.  He was very apologetic and upset with himself.
Then it was on to Ludwig II’s summer palace and another country drive.

The grounds and garden are lovely.  He had the castle built as a small version of the French Palace in Versailles as he was enthralled with the French aristocracy.  We were not allowed to take any photos inside the palace.  Servants had separate stairs and  he had a special table built in the dining room that lowered to the kitchen where his food was put on and then the table raised.  When the table went down, floor material moved in to cover the area of the now vacant floor under the table.

The servants had entrances so he never had to see them

Before our tour began we were treated to a water display from the reflecting pond in the gardens in front of the palace. 

The jet contrails in the sky add a different meaning to this picture.

We opted to take a walk up the pathway to the Ludwig’s “Tea House” high on a hill.  Franca had been here in early spring and there was still some snow and of course no flowers.

This is the Tea House – Nothing there but a table for one.

 
Franca (back to camera) talks with Norma Jean, Judy and Jean.  Look at those hills!

After dinner in the hotel dinning room (another good meal) Franca lead us to the bus for a 30 minute drive back into Innsbruck for an after dinner show.  The show was at a little family theater and it appeared that most of the folks in the show were actually family.

This was a Tyrolean production, named for this area of Austria.  They danced and sang and ended the show singing a song from every country represented in the audience. 

The men do a lot of hip and heal slapping while dancing as the women twirl.

                               
 Here the men are doing a wood choppers dance.  The wood chips were flying as they chopped and danced.

This lady played a song using small cow bells.

 

The camera battery had given out and was on charge back at the hotel so these photos and the video were taken with the iPhone.  (Click here to hear: Triolean Bells )

It was a late night to be followed by an early call.  It was after 10:30 when we arrived back at the hotel and we were to have our luggage outside our rooms by 7 the next morning.  Because of driving rules, William had to leave the bus set not running for 9 hours and this meant we could not get started quite so early, but we still had to get up and moving early as we were moving on to Italy.

Wednesday it was a leisurely drive through the Dolomite Mountains on our way to Riva del Garda, a city at the north end of Lake Garda.  On the way we stopped along the motorway about 10:15 for a break.  As is the custom, you pay to use the restroom and get a receipt which can be used for credit for purchases.  We opted for two American coffees and a chocolate bar.  If you eat/drink standing at a bar or tall table the price is cheaper than if you sit in a booth or at a table.  It is nearly impossible to get a carryout/take away cup so you must consume while in the establishment.

This lake is the largest lake in all of Italy as it covers 142 square miles. The northern part of the lake is narrower, surrounded by mountains, the majority of which belong to the Gruppo del Baldo. The phallic shape is typical of a moraine valley, probably having been formed under the action of a Paleolithic glacier.  We had some time at lunch to explore and have a bite to eat.  We ordered pizza slices and sat by the water before boarding the bus for a drive along the lake and on to Verona. We saw a number of campgrounds and sun bathers along the way.

We arrived at our hotel in Bussolengo near Verona in the early afternoon.  We had time to check in and then we were off to Verona.  The hotel, the Montressor Hotel Tower, is a high rise affair and as Franca put it “of questionable financing” - Italian Mafia?  We are on the 5^th floor so we walked up to our room rather than wait on the elevator. It is a beautiful room and our breakfast will be on the top floor. 

After a 35 minute drive we were in Verona, and Franca walked us to the center of town and the remains of an amphitheater built nearly 1200 years ago.  It looks old but is still used for performances and shows.  In fact they were setting up for some performance, maybe an opera, next week.

Down some of the side streets are expensive shops and restaurants.  We walked to an area where the old Roman Road was still visible.

              
Here a number from the tour are looking over the rail at the road above.

In the center of the main plaza is a statue of Dante.  We walked down a narrow street and into a small courtyard to the balcony that was a scene in Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.”  It is said that the play was based upon the struggles of a real family living here.

                                

Within the courtyard there is a wall of locks.  Lovers engrave names or initials on these and hang them here and toss the keys – meaning for ever joined.  We saw something very similar in China at the Great Wall

                    

We went looking for a place to eat.  We found one that looked promising, though no one was seated outside.  We read the menu and the prices did not seem bad, until we noticed the main selection – stewed horse meat!  We moved on.  We found a quiet little place down a side ally.  We all had very good pasta dinners and were served by a young waiter from Morocco.  He had quite the personality and provided very good service.

At 8 we all gathered at “the meeting place” for our walk to the bus and back to the hotel.  It was another long day.  We walked 16,700 steps today – about 8 miles.

Breakfast was on the 13^{th floor} (that’s right 13), an aside here about floor numbering in Europe.  The ground floor is floor 0 and the next floor up is 1 as opposed to the US where the ground floor is the first floor.  It took some getting used to – pushing “0” to get to the first or ground floor.  They also have no aversion to a 13^th floor.

After breakfast it was a long wait for the elevator.  It seemed to stop at every floor on the way up.  When it finally arrived on the 13^th floor, it was half full.  As it started down, it stopped at every floor and more people tried to get on. There must have been a tour group from Asia and they all wanted on.  We decided to get off on the 8^th and walk down to 5 and then down to the lobby. 

A number of us were just a tad late getting to the bus, but by 8:20 we were on our way to Venice.  On the way we passed vast orchards of peaches, kiwi and apple and of course lots of grapes.  We also saw many corn fields and again most of the corn is ground for silage. 

Before we entered Venice proper (it is not all on the canals) we had to stop and the bus had to pay a license fee of about 200€; this fee necessary to get to the boat launch docks to get to the center of Venice.  It was then a hike to the docks.  Below is a picture of the boat we took to Venice.  And Judy looking our over the bow.

Everything has to be taken into Venice via boat or barge.  These are two cement trucks on a barge heading into the city.  The one on the right looks as if it is about to drive off into the water. 

As we cruised toward the main city another larger passenger boat passed us.

                                 

Here are a couple of views of the buildings, built right up to the waters edge.  These are along the main canal/channel leading to the city proper.

     
In the background of the picture above you can see the dome of St Mark’s.  It was copied from St Sophia’s in Constantinople.  In the 5^th Century, Christians brought back relics of St Mark and brought them back to Venice.  They are housed in this church. Below is the dome of St Mark’s as we neared the docking area.

Note the onion shaped domes along with narrow steeple like structures on the coroners.

After we docked, our first stop was St Zachariah’s.  There was a large painting called “Mary on the Throne.”  The colors were so bright and the painting sharp and clear.  There was either a relic or corpus of Zachariah who was the father of John the Baptist.  We walked a short distance to a larger square where St Mark’s basilica is located.  It is decorated in small mosaics and gold leaf.  We were not allowed to take any photos in the church.  There are relics of St Mark, the Gospel writer stored in the church.

On the square adjacent to St Mark’s stands a clock tower.  It displays the time in digital fashion as well as via a sun dial.

The next stop was the Milano Glass Company where we were treated to a glass blowing exhibition by a master blower.  He made a small vase/pitcher and then a horse.  The demonstration lasted about 20 minutes and of course we were next ushered into a sales room for the obligatory sales pitch.

On the walk to Milano we passed the “Bridge of Sighs” that was built in 1602 of limestone.  It is a bridge from the interrogations rooms to the prison. It was said that as a prisoner passed over to the prison he would get his last view of Venice. 

Masks are another unique item linked to Venice from the mid 1300’s.  In 1347 three quarters of the population of Venice died as a result of the plague.  Doctors began wearing masks with long noses.  The stuffed the noses with cotton to mask the horrific odor, a symptom of the illness.  Doctors were then taken up as characters in plays and operas and were depicted as characters with colorful masks.

We had packed a little lunch from the breakfast buffet and sat on the platform for the lion statute next to St Mark’s.  We strolled through some squares and alleys and found a few good buys at some shops.  We were back at “the meeting place” at 3 for our gondola ride.  We went down canals with ancient brick work.  

                 

After being on some inner and quiet canals we entered the “grand canal” with larger boats and lots of water born traffic.

                                                               

Buildings are built on pilings right up to the canals.  Cruise ships were causing a serious problem as they came close – their water displacement making the water levels at high tide even worse.  They now must anchor further away.  Venice is slowing sinking, dropping 7 centimeters a year.

                                                                                                 
Below are several pictures of our group on the gondola ride.  The ‘newly wed’ couple was treated to a musician during the ride.  Fortunately we were all close enough to hear.

     
Our gondolier is a local to the area, but can not afford to live in Venice.  During the off season or his ‘holiday’ he takes his family to, of all places, Thailand.

Dinner was at a Venetian Italian restaurant with the group. It started with two slices of cantaloupe (separated from the peel) topped with the thinnest slice of prosciutto.  Next is was salad and then the main course; lasagna.  The lasagna was different, cheesier than ours and it had peas in it.

Following dinner it was a hike back to the dock and we boarded the boat for the mainland.  Twilight fell and the lights of Venice came on. 

              

It was a long walk back to the bus after the boat ride and then and hour and a half ride back to Verona to our hotel.  We were tired, but it was a good day.

Friday morning we departed for Switzerland.  We found a second elevator so we were not quite in such a rush to get down to the bus.  This will be a long day in the bus as we must pass through northern Italy, into the south of Switzerland and then through the mountains to central Switzerland.  Southern Switzerland is more Italian than Swiss. Most of the people speak Italian. We passed Lake Como, a very rich area with buildings and homes from waters edge to high on the hills.

We stopped in Lake Lugano for over an hour for lunch and some sight seeing.  We walked in and out of alley ways and found some elegant shops as well as ‘green groceries’ and bake and butcher shops.  There is a Burger King and we checked the menu.  A chicken sandwich cost the equivalent of $10 US!  Many in the group did eat there and spent anywhere for $16 to $45 for lunch.  Jon was going to get a coffee, but at $6 decided against it.  We had packed some lunch from the breakfast buffet and ventured next to the lake and ate.

     
There are lots of palm trees and semi tropical plants. Everything is lush and green.  In the square they were setting up for some sort of a festival so there were tents and the toilets were free.

At the appointed hour, actually well before, nearly all member of the group were at the ‘meeting place’ and ready to board the bus as it pulled up.  The bus could only stop for a limited time so Franca did not call William to come until we were all ready.

As we got back on the motorway and headed for the mountains, traffic began to back up.  We were scheduled to go through the Gotthard tunnel, a eleven mile long drive through the mountain.  Because of the tunnel's length, they space out trucks and busses as they enter and William and Franca decided that we would go the old route, up the mountain and through the Gotthard Pass.

This was the ‘old’ road before the tunnel was completed.  They built the tunnel because the road through the pass was closed for a good part of the winter.  It was a two lane road and filled with many sharp and hair-pin curves.  We climbed to an elevation of 200 meters.  Near the top there is a small rest area and gift shop.  We stopped for a photo-op and for a break.  Rather than describe each turn and twist, we've psoted some pictures to show the climb up.  Of course we had to go down, but nearly as far and not as many turns and bends.

Up and up we went.  Many times the bus had to go completely into the oncoming lane when negotiating the curves.
I think we may have seen these curves and roads in an advertisement for some sport car or road car with road hugging suspension.

When we stopped it was chilly and windy.

Yes, that is snow on the mountains and another view of the road we just passed over.

     
These were taken from the bus as we moved down towards our hotel in Giswel, Switzerland.

We are above the tree line.  Only scrub vegetation and some grasses. And no we did not see any animals on the mountain sides.

When we arrived in Giswel and checked into our small town chalet type hotel.  We had some time to explore before dinner so we set out to a church located high on a hill in the center of town.  You could hear the cow bells dinging all around.  As we walked a path way to the church we passed what appeared to be a senior citizen home and an area with a beautiful garden with large cabbage, asparagus and other plants flourishing. 

The church was unlocked so we went in.

              
Not sure what these stones are meant to represent.  We do know that the church was up on a knoll while the rest of the town was low.  The original town of Giswel was destroyed in a flood and only a few buildings, including the church remained.  Thoughts are that the flood washed away much of the earth around the knoll the church now stands upon.

In the morning the church was shrouded in mist.

We were awakened to the church bells at 6.  The bells rang out the hour, paused and then began ringing and ringing.  The ringing must have gone on for six to eight minutes.  We never did find out the reason they kept clanging.  After breakfast most everyone boarded the bus for the drive to the village of Stans and the climb to the summit of Mt Stanserhorn – said to be Walt Disney’s inspiration for his Matterhorn.

In Stans we boarded a cog wheel train car for a lift up to the Cabrio platform.  A cabrio is a gondola type cable car, however, unlike a gondola car which is suspended from above, a cabrio is suspended on each side and is a two level open air car.  As we went up on the cog wheel, we passed farms and cows grazing.  You can see the bells on these cows.  They cling and clanged as the cows walked.

Once we transferred to the Cabrio we started up to the first of several towers and once over the first we passed through the cloud deck.

On the left is a Cabrio car heading down as we are moving up.








Below, looking over the edge you can see the cow paths cut into the hillsides.

 Judy bundled against the chill.

     

At the top there is a circular rotating restaurant, snack bar and gift shop.  For fun Franca held an alpenhorn contest.  Judy tried and did manage to get out a toot.  On the right is a view from the main look out area of the valley below.  And yes you could hear the cow bells all the way up on the top.  

         

From the main observation deck we hiked up an additional 280 feet to the actual top and took a few more pictures.  Yes that is snow and a glacier or two on the mountains.

      

The picture on the right shows a village on a plateau slightly above the clouds.

After an hour at the top we started down and you can clearly see how the cows have cut paths into the rocky hillsides – looks almost terraced from a distance.

We were back on the bus for the drive to Lucerne where we will have most of the afternoon to ourselves to shop and have lunch.  The first stop in Lucerne was at a carving of a lion into a huge rock.  The carving was done in honor of the Swiss Guard.  The Guard is the official protector of the Pope.  They are dedicated and all come from this area of Switzerland.  The lion depicts a guard, protecting its master, even though struck by and arrow and another on the way.

We had about four hours to explore and be on our own in Lucerne.  There was an option boat ride that we decided to pass up.  We found a big plaza down one of the alley ways.  It was Saturday and quite crowded.  We bought a bacon and egg quiche and split it for lunch, eating in the plaza on a bench watching the people.  Just across the river was a castle that had been turned into a hotel. 

We ran into a couple on the tour from Florida and they had bought a clock at a flea market not far from where we were seated.  After the quiche, we made our way across an ancient wooden bridge to the other side of the river.  It was interesting to see the things they had all spread out along the walk bordering the river.  Judy did buy a long piece of material with a giraffe graphic to use in a quilt sometime.

This being a Saturday they were having some sort of boat races in the river.  From what we could gather, these long boats were rowing against the rapid flow of the river.  Not sure what the contest was about but there were many teams.  Below is a team of women.

We were back on the bus at 4:30 for the ride back to Giswel and all the cowbells.  During and after dinner we were entertained by a three piece Swiss band. In the morning it was off to France.  The topography changed and the mountains became less rugged, but broader.  We stopped at the site of the Gotthard tunnel expo.  They showed a movie of the drilling machine and had a model, much like the device used to drill out the tunnel from England to France.  We stopped on the motorway for mid-morning snack and ate at a picnic table outside.  We shared the shelter with a team of girls travelling in vans.  They were either volleyball or soccer players.

 

After lunch we travelled on the motorway to the city of Beaune, the Capital of Burgundy, France.  Burgundy is wine country and Beaune is one of the best preserved medieval cities in the area.  After a drive around the old city, where you could see the remnants of the city walls and towers, we walked into the center of the city.

It was Sunday so not many shops were open.  We did visit an old building containing massive wooded wine presses.  It is hard to imagine making these turned shafts with only hand tools.

One of the main buildings in the city was a former hospital and then a hotel.  As seen by the date over the door, this building pre-dates the founding of the US.

That auto and the building behind it were on the square in Beaune.   Ange and Cassie sat under an umbrella waiting for the misting to stop.  This was the first day of our trip where we had anything even close to bad weather.

       
We were back in the bus and on our way to Paris.  On the ride, Franca again went over the need for personal security; safe guard wallet and valuables and be aware of  ‘travelers’ who among other things will try to entice you to buy a gold ring they ‘just found’ on the ground.

As we approached the city the traffic got heavier and heavier.  Even as an old city, Paris has many wide and expansive streets and boulevards.  The bus took on a brief tour around the city and to our first meeting place – a boat ramp.  Many on the tour opted for a ninety minute cruise on the Seine, but we instead wanted to do some exploring.  This sculpture was at the entrance to the boat ramps.  Not sure of the significance.

We had time to walk the side of the river in a park to the Eifel Tower.  As we started our walk, we came upon large art/photograph display.  After spending some time walking through the large photos, we found the tower.  The lines were quite long to actually go up in the tower and we just did not have time to waste.  The line to even walk up the steps to the first level was quite long.   We did manage to get some pictures.

 

We did walk all around the underside of the tower.  It does look like a giant erector set all put together. 

    

As we walked along the river to the tower, a man approached and when he was about six feet from us he bent down and appeared to pick something up.  He showed us a shinny gold ring and asked if it was ours.  Having been warned, we shook our heads no and walked on.  We had not walked a hundred yards when a woman with a young boy at her side approached.  She tried the same tactic.  This time we just ignored and walked on.

On the way back to the meeting place we passed a house boat moored along the Seine.  There are not too many of these along the river, but a few.  The bridge behind Jon is an old vehicle bridge that has been converted to a pedestrian only bridge. 

   

We were crossing that when the woman and young boy approached us for a second time.  Guess she did not recognize us, but we noticed her.  It was strange to be approached three times in less than an hour.

Saw a few "houseboats' moored along the river.

From the meeting point at the boat ramp, we boarded the bus for a drive by the Eifel Tower and then on by the Louvre.  The bus stopped for just a couple of minutes near the statue of St Joan of Arc to let us off.  It would return in two hours to pick us all up and take us to the northern section of the city to our hotel.

As it was nearly lunch time we decided to try to find some place to sit and have lunch with the Fortunato’s.  Just down the street from St Joan’s statute we found a sidewalk restaurant that had a menu in both French and English.  The waiter that beckoned us was very good and spoke good English.  He led us to a nice table and we had a nice lunch and watched the crowds pass us by.

After lunch we checked out some shops and then crossed the busy street to the gardens of the Louvre.  The gardens and boulevard stretch from the Louvre to the Arc De Triumph.  We had time to look at the flowers and do some people watching.  In the photo at left you can see part of the modern glass pyramid that is now the entrance to the Louvre.  On the right in the distance is the Arc and you can see the crowds at 2PM on a Monday.  

    

A group of school kids were in the park playing some sort of a game similar to a cross between king of the mountain, red rover and tag.  Judy, Cassie and Ange chatted near one of the flower beds.  

  
There were a number of statues and monuments in the vast park area.

By late afternoon it was meeting near the Statue of St Joan and then on to the bus for a ride to our hotel in the Northeast section of the city.  We would have a little time to prepare for our “Paris Evening” that included a visit to a bistro and a night time tour of the city.

The hotel room is small compared to the ones we have been in so far.  Franca had warned us the day before to pack what we would need in one suitcase as there might not be room enough to open two in the room.  She exaggerated some, but it was a small room.  We boarded the bus at 5:30 for the drive back into the city and to the restaurant for dinner.

The bistro was down a narrow alley and then up a narrow and steep stair case.  The dinner included tantalizing French dishes including Escargots, Quiche Lorraine, Duck l’Orange and more.  We passed on the Escargots, but the rest of the dinner was very good.  The waiters were quite the characters and they had as much fun as we did.

 After dinner we were back on the bus for a tour and some night time pictures.  We drove past the National Arcade, then the Louvre.  Not nearly the crowds as daytime.  You can see the illuminated glass pyramid the picture on the right.   (065

 

 

It was difficult to get a picture of the Arc de Triumph from the bus.  The highlight of the night tour was a stop at an area over looking the Eifel Tower where we saw the flashing lights at 10PM.

They only turn on these LED lights on the hour in the evening.  They used to do it more often but the electric costs became too much. ( Click here to see:  Eifel Lights )

On from the bus to the outlook we were approached by a number of street people trying to sell all sorts of little trinkets; Eifel Tower flashlights and glow sticks and so on.  As we were returning to the bus we heard a commotion behind us and suddenly we were nearly pushed down and someone stepped on the side of Judy’s foot.  When we regained our position and turned around we saw that two Paris policemen had wrestled one of the sellers to the ground and were arresting him.  The other sellers scattered.

After a long day we were back at the hotel for an early rise the next morning for the drive into Belgium and our visit to Antwerp.  The topography changed to flat, no hills but plenty of farms, mostly cattle and sheep. (0664/70)

    

Antwerp was very pleasant; side cobblestoned streets and alleys; school kids around and lots of shops and places to eat.  We had a little time to explore on our own and did a little shopping.  The sidewalks were not crowded and the area less congested.  

For lunch we found a little street side shop selling fries and a drink for less that 5€. Ange, Cassie and Richard and Ann Smith joined us for lunch before heading out to find a genuine Belgium Waffle.

The architecture changed some from France but there were still large old buildings and great statues.

   

And of course there was time for some shopping.

On leaving Belgium we entered The Netherlands – Holland.  Holland is actually the name of two separate provinces in The Netherlands.  Some marketing guru figured that it was too hard to sell “The Netherlands” so most products are marked as from “Holland.”  We passed our first windmill shortly after crossing the border.  There are not very many working windmills left and the remaining ones can be worth up to a million dollars.

As we drove, Franca told us about how The Netherlands has been reclaiming land from the sea and water for centuries.  In addition at one time The Netherlands had influence over a great portion of the earth.  It was the Dutch-East India Company that founded New York and expanded trading into what is now the US.

As we drove, William had the GPS on the screen and we could see our position in relation to sea level.  We were mostly driving at 6 to 8 feet above, but occasionally we dropped to 10 feet below!  We entered the town Lelystad, a new city on land that was reclaimed.  The reclamation began in 1930 but was interrupted by the war.  It was completed in the 1960’s and a town laid out with broad streets and central shopping areas connected by pedestrian and bicycle paths.  The first building was constructed in 1970.  So we came from a city hundreds of years old to a new city.  As we entered the city we passed by what would equal a middle school in the US.  There must have been 250 bikes in the lot.  They had specially constructed racks for the bikes.  There are no school buses. Kids may ride four or five miles to school each morning – at least it is not up hill both ways.

Plenty of cows (Holsteins or Freeshiams) and sheep grazing on the reclaimed land.  

                               
Wednesday we began our “Grand Holland” excursion.  To get to Lelystad we had to drive over a long dike and even under a canal so to get to Amsterdam we had to cross back over and under the dike.  We saw lots of kids on bikes peddling to school.

For our break, we stopped at a little former fishing village called Volendarn.  We had to walk a good distance and up on a dike to get into the town itself.  Because of loss of fishing grounds, the town has turned to tourism as an industry.  The shopping was good and the prices not bad.  Jon was even able to purchase a real cup of coffee for only 2€.  The first shop we went into had a nice video about the reclamation project and how pumps are used to remove water from the canals into the sea.

On our way out of a shop, Judy spotted something on the ground and picked it up.  At first she thought it was a small bag of beads.  Franca was right beside her and quickly took it and said you don’t want that – it was marijuana.  When we got back on the bus Franca explained that possession of a small amount of marijuana was legal in The Netherlands – possession by a resident that is.  She did pass the bag through the bus so all could see it and then William disposed of it – he did not want it on his bus.  She said the street value was probably about 20€.

We stopped by a picturesque Windmill for a photo opportunity. 

                                      

Just across the road from where Judy is standing are these new but built to look like older homes.

          

At one time Amsterdam was the center of the world what with all their trading, exploring and of course water engineering. Its name comes from the word dam on the Amstel River.  Today it is a thriving financial center.

Our first stop was at a canal for a glass top boat tour of the city and canals.  

Along some of the canals, boats are moored as permanent homes.  They are connected to city services and people live full time on them.  Because property is taxed on frontage, most of the houses and buildings are narrow, but long.

 

   

We passed under many bridges.  Cars were parked right up to the edge. 

  
After the boat tour we had some time to explore before our appointed hour to ‘skip the line’ for a tour of the Anne Frank house.  It was interesting and sad.  We were not allowed to take any photos while on the tour.  It starts in a building fronting the street where Mr. Frank had his business, making pectin.  To the rear of this building was another complete house, the upstairs of this house was where the Frank family and friends took refuge.  Anne Died one month before the liberation and only her father survived.  His secretary had gathered up Anne’s writings after the SS had arrested those hiding.  When Mr. Frank returned in 1946, she gave the writings to him and those writings became the book.

Below the line we were able to ‘skip’ and get a personal briefing and entrance to the house.

After the tour we had a little time to explore before boarding the bus for our ride back to Leylstan.  Instead of auto parking lots, throughout the city are located large bike parking lots.

The area between the striped poles is designated the bike only area along the road and sidewalk.  

We got back to the hotel in time for some folks to visit the super market located just down the pedestrian walkway from the hotel.  We had found the store the evening before.  It was a fairly good sized market and prices, considering they were in Euros, were not too bad.

Thursday we were up early – so what’s new – and on our way back into Germany.  We drove past farms, cows and small villages.  All along the way were bicycle paths.  The bike seems to be the prime mode of transportation.  Franca said that when she was a girl, the entire family would be on bikes on Sunday to ride to another village or visit relatives.

We crossed the River Rhine at a point about 15 miles from Arnhem, the site of “The Bridge Too Far.”  Operation Market Garden was an attempt by the Allies to break through the German lines and invade the occupied Netherlands.  The Rhine in this area is very wide.

We had to climb through some low mountains/hills and then down again to be along the Rhine for our afternoon cruise.  Traffic was very bad and we were running late.  We were supposed to be on the boat at 1:30 but at 2 we were just entering the village where we were to catch the boat.  Franca had been on the phone with the boat and they did hold it for us.  We boarded a little after 2 and started down the Rhine.  This was the type of boat we were on. 

As we started up the river we saw many small towns right on the water’s edge.  Not sure but believe all the flags represent the provinces in Germany

The highlights of this part of the river are all of castles you can see as you cruise.  Some of them are in complete disrepair and others are being restored and a few have been turned into hotels or hostels.  

There is one stretch where you can actually see three castles.  The boat slowed when we were near the ‘middle’ one and you could see one off the port side, one to the rear and one forward.  Franca and the boat Captain said that this is the only place along the Rhine where you can see three from one location.

During the nearly two weeks we have been travelling through Europe we saw a lot of campers.  Most were pull-behind trailers but we also saw a number of what we would call class “C’s.  We even saw a few larger class “A’s” – but not many.  Most of the trailers were small by US standards and had only a single axel, not duel like in the US.  A few places, even the first night in Schrieshein, we saw small campgrounds, but along the river on this cruise we saw several campgrounds right along the river.

We passed by the deepest and narrowest point along the Rhine.  It is marked by at statue of Lorilie.  Legend has it that a beautiful temptress with long blond hair sun bathed along the river’s edge.  Many a sailor was distracted by the sunbathing beauty and ran their boat to ground and the boat sank.  The statue is located about 16 miles from Rudesheim, where we will be spending the night at the Parkhotel.

There are many vineyards on the mountain sides along the river.  They seemed to go nearly straight up the mountain sides and looked so lush and green. Franca told us that the hills are so steep that the grape harvesters are tied to a rope as they move done the grade picking grapes.  

When we arrived in Rudesheim the road was crowded with vehicles and the sidewalks full of people.  The road runs right next to the high speed rail line and just to the edge of the tracks is a small green area and then the river.  The hotel was an old one, but very nice.  We had to walk up a narrow stairway and then down a long hall to our room.  We had a view of an alley that lead to a square and many shops.  In the other direction from our hotel was what was described as the narrowest alley in the country.  You could put your arms out and touch both sides.  We found a few nice shops and in the central square two men were playing guitars and singing – singing Beatles songs – in English.

This was the view out the back from the hotel.  The square brick building is an original tower from the wall that surrounded the village. 

After some free time and shopping it was time for our farewell dinner before a very very early wake-up call on Friday morning.  We were all trying to take pictures of each other and of groups.  This is Franca and our last driver and the four ladies from Hawaii.

And these are just some random shots of some of the folks on the tour.

Ange and Cassie are happy and ready to head to London.

Our wake-up call came at 4:30AM on Friday morning and by 5 we were all at breakfast for our 5:45 departure for the airport in Frankfurt.  When we arrived at 7, the bus parking areas were full and we had to circle several time before we could stop to unload.  The driver had tried to load the baggage so that our bags would be separate, but that did not happen.  It was somewhat of a mess getting bags and moving into the airport and to top it off, it was raining.  We had to unload in the arrival area which meant we had to go up to the departure area to catch our flight.  We had plenty of time, but still had to walk a long way to get to the Lufthansa check in area.

Once we were checked in and our bags checked, we moved on to clear through security.  The lines were long but we moved along, well all except Judy.  She did not remove her Nook (she didn’t need to when clearing security in Cleveland or Toronto) from her carry-on so she was pulled aside for further checks.  Cassie, Ange and I all cleared but she was stuck.  Stuck behind two women from the Middle East with packed carrions plus two big bags/purses each.  The security screener unpacked everything – much of it candy and cookies.  When she finally got to Judy it was quick and we were on our way to the gate.  We had about 2 hours to wait.

About and hour before our departure time, I noticed that our fight was not longer posted at the gate.  I checked with the person at the counter and she directed us to the new gate – which according to her was “just around the corner.”   It was not.  We had to walk from the end of one wing to the center hub and then all the way to the end of the next wing. 

The flight to Heathrow was not long and was smooth.  When we disembarked, it was a long hike to the customs area where we faced a long line.  It took us nearly 90 minutes to clear through customs, then it was to baggage claims to get our suitcases.  We found the hotel bus and had to wait about 45 minutes for the other passengers to arrive.  While we were waiting, we did a ‘facetime’ with Mark on the iPad and got to see the boys.

Our ride from the airport was educational as our driver was originally from Pakistan but planning on moving to the US soon.  He pointed out many sites and places of interest as well as telling us that his wife had been in the US near Baltimore for some time. She had a job at a bank and he was moving there to open a yogurt shop soon.  When we arrived at our hotel we realized this was a place to end the journey.  It was a modern building just across the bridge from Big Ben’s tower. 

Before we had departed the airport we bought a 24 hour ‘hop-on-hop-off’ passes on “The Big Bus” so we could tour.  After checking in and getting settled some we walked to a nearby pub for a late lunch/early dinner (it was near 3:30) of course fish and chips.  After we ate we walked to the bridge and boarded a bus for a short tour.  We took a shorter ride over the Waterloo Bridge, past the Tower of London (more on that later), back over the Tower Bridge, past St Paul’s and back to the Big Ben tower. The streets were crowded but we did get a couple of after dark pictures of the tower and Westminster – seat of the UK government.  (Those are birds flying across the night sky)

                                               

Back in our room we enjoyed some TV with all English speaking channels.  It was to bed early, however, as it had been a very long and tiring day.  We walked about 4 miles today!

Saturday morning we enjoyed a ‘continental’ breakfast before heading for the bus.  Throughout the day we were all over London and Greater London.  London is actually only one square mile but the greater London area is huge – over 8 million people.  We hopped off the bus near the Tower of London.  It is not actually a tower but a fortress type structure with several towers, including ones at each corner.  

In two areas they had uncovered parts of the old walls and fortress boundaries.  It was interesting to see the masonry work done hundreds of years ago. The lions, however, are new – not sure of the significance. 

                                                                                        

We did not take a tour of the actual buildings as none of us really wanted to see “the rack” and other torture chambers.  We did get a photo of a Beefeater Guard with a raven.

-

As a boat ride on the Thames was part of the bus package, we made our way to the pier and got on a river cruise boat. We stayed on the boat for about two hours.  We cruised up the Thames and then back to our original boarding spot.  The next stop was Greenwich (home of the Prime Meridian) so we stayed on for a bit longer.  As we were going up the river we passed the Tower and the entrance to the old mote from the river.  Notice the saying above the now blocked in entrance and the tide level.  The Thames is influenced by the tide and changes as much as 20 feet.  The picture on the right is at near high tide.

We passed under the Tower Bridge several times and once when we had just passed, the bridge opened up for a larger ship.  According to the boat captain, the bridge opens some 500 times a year and we were lucky to be in the right spot.  (

After our lengthy ride on the Thames we headed toward Westminster Abbey.  Between the Saturday crowds and some sort of a protest in the park near the Abbey, it was like a gauntlet to get there.  And alas when we did make it, the church was closed for services.  It is a beautiful old church structure.

After walking for a long time we found another bus stop and hopped on for a longer ride.  We went by Buckingham Palace, Soho, down Baker Street and Piccadilly Circus and through crowds of Saturday shoppers.  The Apple Store was wall to wall people.

Sunday morning the hotel provided us a box breakfast and we were picked up at 6 for the ride to the airport.   The flights home were uneventful and we were glad to be back on Ohio soil.  We arrived home a little after 5:30, or 10:30 by our body clock.  It took us a few days to get our sleep patterns back.