Strassbourg

In our wandering we came across this most ornate merry-go-round.

It was an overnight journey from Germany to France - we woke up in a canal in Strassbourg. Up for an earlier breakfast and then onto a canal boat for a tour of the old city. It has changed identities over many many years at times being German and at times French, then German and now back to being French. The old city area is completely surrounded by water - the river I'il and a canal which is managed by a couple of locks. We visited the old Notre Dame Cathedral which for many years was protestant until it was returned to the RC church. The facade is of very intricate working, almost like filigree lacework. Inside it contains a unique clock dating back to the C13th and still works - it is called an astronomical clock but at present is 1/2 hr different from current time. There is also a magnificent pipe organ way up the wall which dates from 1200's and is still in use!! Well, it has rained today while we were in the Cathedral so it was back to the ship for lunch and we are having another quiet day on board when we set sail again this evening. Last night's meal was an epicurean delight - local food served with local white and red wines - we slept well!

Speyer

1. Visited the huge Cathedral, a C12th Romanesque style very cavernous inside and echoey and then did some shopping. It is another uncharacteristically warm day. Came back for lunch and then headed off up the street again for the afternoon .















2 . This time we visited the remnants of a Jewish Synagogue dating from the 1100's and went down into the Jewish ritual bath area which has been kept intact - it is very cold because it is a number of meters below ground level.











Archeological work has revealed the remains of the men's quarters and the adaptations of the building to accommodate a women's quarters. The wall has little holes in it so the women could hear what was going on in the synagogue, but could not enter.

Barges continue to ply up and down the river - the barges are on average 110m each in length, but one that just went past is a double barge one being pushed by another. We have seen them also lashed side by side. They carry sand, gravel, oil, containers, one went past today with army vehicles - tanks and jeeps etc. Then there are the host of other passenger vehicles as the tourist season gets under way. Ours, the "River Ambassador" has two levels, and we are on the lower level which is the same level as the dining room/restaurant. The upper level has the lounge and more cabins, and then above that is the open sun deck where we spent most of yesterday as we went up the Gorge. We head off tonight while we are at dinner for Strasbourg which takes us then into France for the day before heading back into Germany before going into Switzerland.
Natalie left a couple of hours ago to start her part of her journey and so it will now not be long before we meet up with her in Vienna in a couple of weeks. How exciting. We have booked to go to a concert with the Vienna Boys Choir (wow - in VIENNA!!!!!) Graeme heard them years ago on a visit they made to Australia when he was with the Australian Boys Choir. We also plan to see the Lepazaun (however it is spelt) horses - the SPanish dancing horses. We understand also that there is still much snow in Switzerland that has yet to melt which is why the Rhine is still so low. COuld be some more magnificent photos to take yet (we're upto 830!!!! so far) Blessings to all our family and friends - we think of you often and realise how priveleged we are to be able to share these experiences with you all via this medium.

Some more photos

1. Marksburg Castle - way up on a rock outcrop we visited yesterday but seen from down on the river - we took stacks of photos here - hope ELijah and Ashley will be captured by them


2. The original castle where the winery was established. The people lived in this castle which is different from all the others we've seen. They are on cliffs, this is surrounded by a lake with its drawbridge.

3. The Loreley Rock - a very sharp bend int the Rhine river - legend has it that a mermaid sat on the top of the rock with long hair and a beatufiul enchanting voice and she would sing causing the sailors to look up at her and consequently would come to grief on the rocks and the turbulance of the waters. The river usually is only about 2-3 metres deep on average but here it is 30 metres. and is at is narrowest.

The Goergeous RHine Gorge

1. What a magnificent day - awakw to leave at 8a.m and headed through the Rhine Gorge with all its castles, old and new, the Loreley Rock. 2 Morning tea - sausage and pretzel bread 3. Arriving in Rudesheim and a ride up the cable car to a massive Prussian statue with its view over the Rhine Valley. 4. Off to an old Castle, the only extant old exisiting wine castle dating back to the 1100's for some wine tastoing. Now back on board. The Intgernet is very, very bslow tonight 6-7 minutes to load each picture, so as we are about to leave now we'll sign off before the sginal drops right off. Its been a great day - very sunny and warm. Is eveidently to be 29 degrees tomorrow!!

Koblenz

1. The spitting boy
2. A square in Koblenz and a memorial done in 1992 to celebrate the 2000th anniversary of the founding of the town
3. The Rhine from Marksburg Castle

A good sleep last night. Didn.t hear us even depart from Cologne but became conscious at about 2-30am that we were moving. We docked at Koblenz a town at the junction of the Rhine and the Moselle Rivers at 9am. The city has a rich history of serttlement but also of dispuite over many centuries between Germany/Prussia and the French. The chef gave a demonstration of making black forest cake and then again we had a our radio assisted your guides as we wandered the old streets and some of its unique attractions, like Schlagel, the statue of a boy who spits every two minutes, the Jesuit quarters of the Inquisition, now the TOwn Hall offices, and the guy with the rolling eyes on the clock who on the hour pokes out his tongue to denote the number of the hour. W saw him at midday so we had 12 goes at getting a photo! It was then back on board for lunch and then a bus trip to MArksburg Castle, the only castle that has never been vandalised and destryoed in any of the many battles and so is pretty well in the same condition as when it was first built n the C12th, C13th. I took stacks of photos for Ashley and Elijah as we toured the various parts of the castle still furnished with much of its m,aterial of furniture, kitchen, smithy and even the torure chamber! Magnificent views from that height of the Rhine valley which we will continue to explore tomorrow. The we had afternoon tea at a quaint hotel which had once been an old mill. All its mechanics were still there and we were led to understand are still in working order.

We remain docked all night tonight and leave Koblenz in the am so that we see the Rhine Gorge and the many castles on their crags etc in daylight.

Owdy from Cologne

A relaxing morning on board. It's interesting we don't have to travel to anywhere, our hotel does it for us. A lovely sleep in, breakfast and then lunch and 3pm came and we docked at the ancient city of COlogne - home of eau de cologne, in its original form and the later version of 4711! We had a walking tour of the old city, divided up into 4 groups each of us given a hearing aid and receiver and our guide spoke as she walked - much easier to hear as a group rather than having her having to shout to the group. We saw old Romanesque type architecture and the magnificent Cologne Cathedral - famous because it is reputed to hold the remains of the 3 wise men (photo3). There were some old tapestries on display inside and the ceiling height is enormous as are the columns that support the structure - you may be able to pick out Graeme standing next to one of them being dwarfed. Way up on one of the walls is a set of pipes from the organ - it would be stirring to hear the organ playing. We've just had the formal Captain's welcome dinner - a 7 course meal. They are not large helpings but scrumptious and easy on the tummy.
Our stateroom is self contained - the ensuite is just on the right as we enter the room. We are in the middle of the ship on the port side. Wardrobes on the left as you enter, drawers under the bed as well as space to store cases. A TV on the end of the bed where we can watch whatever we like eg. info about our next day, GPS of the journey, camera on the bow of the boat as we travel, then other channells or films. Staff service the room 2x a day, make the beds eg in the morning, then pull back the sheets and arrange jamas on the bed at night (if they can find them) and leave us a nougat. What a life of luxury which we had better not get too used to. We set sail tonight at 1am for Koblensz where we will arrive about 10-30am tomorrow.

SOme photos

1. Out of our room at the hotel at Amsterdam. 2. Hope Barry and Ashley like the cheese.
3. Our stateroom on the Ambassador
4. 9-30pm going through the lock

As you can see we do have wifi but it is a satellite service which is very slow, but also drops out when we pass tall buildings or in the locks etc. But I've finally managed to load these.

Canals to Cologne

Well we are now on our way, but not without a bit of drama. Having checked where the boat was to come in yesterday, we arrived there this am with our luggage only to find the boat not there - it was supposedly about 1km at west dock. So we trundled with our cases over there only to find it still not there. So finally a phone call to the ship (yes Graeme's phone did actually work) and so we then had to call a atxi to take us to where it was. Were we relieved when we saw "River Ambassador" we hastily got on board before it slipped away from us. It is a ship of over 100m length, 30metres wide. It has a maximum of 120 passengers and about 40 staff and crew. We were offered a buffet lunch while we waited for the staterooms to be ready. We took possession of our keys at 2pm and so it was now so good to be able to empty our cases into cupboards and drawers and not live like tourists for the next 7 days. We left at 5pm and headed up stream past Amsterdam Central and then into the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal. We all gathered in the lounge at 6pm for preliminary welcome and instructions and then had a most delightful dinner in the restaurant - 4 courses. We have just passed through two locks which have lifted us quite a number of feet from one level of the river to the level of the Rhine. We will head off to bed now and we are due to arrive in Cologne tomorrow at about 2pm.

I didn't add any photos from yesterday so the first is a view from our hotel room at Amsterdam. The last is a photo of going through the lock. The camera is magnificent - it is taken on automatic, night mode at 9-30 at night!

A Bit of COmmunication and Culture

Ho to all. WEll we finally were able to catch up with family on SKYPE video contact this am - it was good to see and hear Dee, Daz and Wendy. We then wandered across the road a few hundred metres to check where our boat comes in tomorrow (now today for us) and then we headed off to a couple of museums: The Bible Musuem where there were some interesting displays of artifacts and some tremendous models of the the original Tent of the Tabernacle which a Dutch Rev constructed as much as he could using the specifications that appear in the OT. It was also housed in a lovely old Dutch house with beutifully painted ceilings and some wall panels by an old Dutch artist. We then wandered the canals and came to the Anne Frank House and so lined up with the queue outside and finally made it in (about 1/4 hr) and so we wandered the house and up into the secret hiding place behind the bookcase. We could see up into the attic where Anne wrote the diary but not able to go there. Her original diary is in a display room - whets the appetite now to re-read the book. Had our evening meal in an oude Dutch restaurant - beef stew and mashed vegies and salad followed by apple pie and whipped cream. Off now to breakfast, pack the case and head for the River Ambassador and the next stage of this adventure. Conscious that today is also ANZAC Day and pray that all went well this am with the youth group and the service - will try to have a listen a bit later

Thw Walking Tour

Morning was sepnt working out the laundromat which is just opposite where we are staying - ROsslyn is very excited to have clean washing! After our lunch nibble we then headed for Dam Square and joined the free English speaking walking tour led by university students. (Thanlks for the tip Anna) It was an exciting experience especially for old ones like us because it was obviously aimed at the youn ger members of the tour it focussed on beer, prostitution and drugs. BUt on the other hand there was much informative stories told animatedly by our guide (Jenniifer) on the buildings and the history and stories of Amsterdam through its many periods. The stories were very engaging and we enjoyed the experience - the public male toilets and the contraptions placed at doors in alleys to try to prevent the fellas from relieving themselves there - on one occasion the were also electrified until some prankster turned up the current and a guy was killed!! The narrowest building in Amsterdam (1.8 metres wide!) We walked for 5 and 1/2 hours and then stopped for tea - scrumptious Dutch soop and moreish pancakes. Rosslyn had cheese, Graeme had ginger.

Intro to Amsterdam

Well, Robbie our travel agent has set us up well in Amsterdam - we are in the centre of the red light district!!!!! Had a good night's sleep as we said earlier. after breakfast we then headed out, not really feeling in the mood to do the walking tour that Anna had suggested. We will probably do that tomorrow. But we did just wander around some of the streets of the old quarter where we are and there is a mixture of old and new, narrow streets and wide avenues and modern trams. Piles of pigeons were in the Dam Square and people were feeding them and there was this big carnival oputside the Queen's Palace - sublime and ridiculous. After a little nibble for lunch we then decided to go on a boat tour around the canals - of which there are many and varied. Lots of house boats many in great disrepair but still residence for some. Again, many of the old buildings are so narrow but very deep and were once warehouses. Just about all of them have this beam protruding from the top of the house used as a crane to lift things into the houses upsstairs as the stair ways a so steep and narrow and twist that furniture could not be got in any other way. Saw Anne Frank's house from the canal, as well as the oldest building one called Noah's Ark. Bicycles are the order of the day here, they are all over the place and there are multi-storey building for bike p[arks, one is even an old ferry moored at the wharf next to the rail;way staion. SOme of these facilities hold 3000 bikes. Its the major mode of transport which interesting add-ons whether for carrying babies, or goods.

Scotsman and his kilt

This blog is especially for Ashley - a photo of a guy in his kilt playing the bagpipes for us - the night we ate the haggis!

We still don't know what is worn under the kilt, although the guy said to us there is nothing worn under his kilt!

Training for Amsterdam

WHat a day - much stress but we made it - arrived Amsterdam at 10 past 9, in the dark and then negotiating where we are to go from a map, in the dark and then realising that what are streets marked on a map are actually small lanes because we are in the delighful old quarter. We are actually only a coupe of hundred metres from the station, but we stopped on a corner and a young guy asked if we needed directions - we said Waarmestraat ST and he smiled and said - it's just there pointing to this narrow lane!! Then end of a 7 hour train journey that had started earlier.

We left the Copthorne at Chelsea, London at about 8am dragging our luggage - it's interesting how baggage becomes luggage when you have to lug it up and down stairs, on buses, stations and trains! Especially fun getting it up the winding narrow stairs to the top of a double decker bus - our choice as a better way to see London. We got the local London red bus into Green Park where we met the hop on hop off bus we had booked. Fopr most of the next 3 hours we wound our way through crowded London streets, but we were the only ones on the bus so we had the guide just sitting with us pointing things out - so much more informal and interactive. This really was a bonus as we were ablwe to see things that otherwise we would never have seen for ourselves - REgent St. Mayfair, Park Lane, The Strand, Piccadilly, Trafalgar Square, Parliament House, The Eye, St Pauls, Australia House, Whitehall, Downing Street, where the Great Fire of London started and a building that survived the Great Firwe of London. Tower Bridge and the Tower of London - how spread out London is, how congested, double decker buses as wall to wall going down narrow streets. Although Monopoly came alive, I don't think its a place we would want to live. A lot of character, a lot of history - it was also the QUeens actual birthday but she had not been seen since Easter having gone up to WIndsor. Were'nt able to see the front of Buck Pal, but did see the Queen's birthplace - well, a plaque indicating where it was as the building had been demolished.

We alighted at Victoria Station and then had to make our way to St Pancras and collect our tickets for the Eurostar train. The train was only a 2 hour trip from London flashing past the Kent countryside, under the CHannel from Dover and up again about 25 mins later in France and then onto the first stop at Lille. Then a short run across to Brussells. Of course you don't see much from the train but you do get impressions. Then came the major stress trying to find toilets, where the heck we go to get the local train to go onto Amsterdam. Arriving at the loo in desparation and then having to find the euros so we can pay 50p for a pee! But, God is good! Although we were surrounded by humans and suitcases, it was hard to find a helpful human so we joined a long queue, along with a million others in the same predicament - and an official ;ooking man just happened to be standing next to us, so we waved our tickets and said how do we get to this and he said that the Amsterdam train was leaving in 8 minutes from platform 18. We found it and were on board with about 3 minuites to spare - again people and cases, and now, having altered our time for an hour ahead, we started the final transport stage of the journey. ALl is good. We found our tiny hotrel, a quaint little 3 star place and then went up to another place in the street for a very late evening meal. We went to the seat and found on the seat opposite a big black and white cat stretched ouit quite oblivious and unconcerned to his new seat mates. Then finally to bed. We've just woken up after a 10 hour sleep to some wonderful church bells that chime each 1/4 hour but play tunes on the hour. Will head off now and explore a little bit of Amsterdam.

We love hearing any comments either on the site or by our regular email which usually we are able to access each night. We are now 8 hours behind you all. Twas especially great to hear of Manova and Gladis' news and can't wait to get home at start of June and see this wonderful new boy!

Love to all - especially the Imit people - we thought of Terry when we went past the sign to the village of Denholm, and of Jackie in Yorkshire, and Andrew in Scotland.

Daffodils for May

Literature and Study

An early rise this am for a long drive down to Stratford on Avon - a look at Anne Hathaway's Cottage and then a tour of William Shakespeare's House. A most interesting place. After lunch we had a further drive down the motorway past Blenheim Palace (where Winston Churchill was born) to Oxford. This is the oldest University in England and the second oldest after Bologna in Italy. We wandered the streets but had a conducted tour of one of the University Colleges - Brasenose. FOund a painting of a Richard Sutton hanging in the Refectory. There is also a beautiful Chapel. Got back into LOndon by 5pm. The day has been characterised by much anxiety by many of the group as we approached London re their future plans in the knowledge that they will not be able to fly out anywhere. Our levels also were rising a little as well when we tried with the Concierge at the hotel to work out our plans for tomorrow - he said he could probably get us a ferry flight in a week's time!!! He got onto Eurail for us and managed to arrange a rail trip to Brussels for 2-30 tomorrow afternoon and then we will catch a local train through to Amsterdam. So we are on taget and on time but with the bonus of the morning in London this will allow us to do a 2 hour bus trip around London so we will see things that we did not ever think we will be able to see live.

More photos