We left Dover at 1:00 thinking that we would be able to arrive at
Cologne around six. We had good seats on the coach but it travelled very slowly
across northern France, stopping for 45 minutes at a services then again
at two more. Google Maps must have been thinking “Ferrari” when it
said 4:15 to Cologne from Calais for we eventually arrived at the boat
at 9.30 - 13 and a half hours after we left home!
We
went down to the dining room and were served a four course meal to compensate for the late arrival.
The
boat was very well appointed with polished wood everywhere and
concealed spotlights. The sun deck was very large with a covered area
for hot days. The cabin was small but big enough, reminding me of a
caravan due to the plastic en-suite unit. We were pleased to hear that the boat was only half full this week owing to a cancelled booking from another coach company.
We
managed to sleep OK and woke to a fine morning. The weather seems to
be about 10 degrees higher than at home. It was very pleasant sitting on the
deck in the morning sunshine writing up this diary.
Monday 30 May
We
sailed at 6.00am. I was up early and sat on deck in the sunshine
watching Cologne slip away before I went down for breakfast. Gorgeous
weather, and after breakfast Margaret and I went up onto the top deck
as we sailed to Andernach.
The
ship moored by the promenade. It was very hot by now and we strolled up
the promenade. There was a lot of restoration work going on in the town with Roman remains being discovered at a large archaeological “dig” fenced off from the road.
After dinner, Margaret and I had a short stroll up the bank and sat by
the river in warm air watching a family of swans and a couple of
Egyptian Geese. I have since read that this bird is viewed as a “pest”,
having established communities in various parts of Europe. We thought
they were rather nice
. 
Tuesday 30 May
Dull
today and damp-looking. We sailed off at 6.00am again on the way to
Rudesheim, soon entering the Rhine Gorge with rocks and castles to
either side. The Lorelei rock was impressive and it was easy to see how
many boats have come to grief over the years. The Tour Manager, Val,
made us all learn the Lorelei Song and sing it as was sailed past.
The scenery is beautiful and
passes by the boat with a feeling of serenity. We passed little towns and villages
and saw many trains loaded with passengers and freight. Food was fine and service good. Although Christina is not
the most modern ship I appreciate its highly polished wood fittings and
the subtle lighting in the bar and lounge. The crew cannot be faulted,
being friendly yet highly efficient. The purser, Darina, is a highly
organised young Slovak woman who impressed us all.
We moored in Rudesheim at 2.30pm and then took a Dotto train to Siegfried’s Mechanical Musical Cabinet Museum http://www.siegfrieds-musikkabinett.de/frame.htm
. This turned out to be well-worth visiting, containing a large
collection of mechanical musical devices which are demonstrated by the
guide (in our case a rather theatrical young woman with red hair).
Highlights were the violin playing mechanical piano and a mechanical
dolls’ orchestra.
We
then walked on to the cable car and Margaret was relieved to find that
her feet did not have to dangle out of the car, which had proper doors
and a floor. It was a quite spectacular ride over vineyards up to a
grandiose monument to Germania called the Niederwalddenkmal. Margaret
went into a café and had a delicious coffee while I strolled up to the
top to view the monument.
Back on the ship we had dinner then relaxed in the lounge where the “entertainment” was not missed.
Wednesday 1 June
We
left Rudesheim at 9.00am, in dull but mild weather. We sailed back up
the Gorge to Boppard, noted for its twin-towered church.
Boppard
Val
conducted a short walking tour and we spent time in the beautiful
church which is full of interest. Again, the history of the town goes
back to Roman times. Val kindly bought a pair of ladies tights for us -
even saying the word, strumpfhosen, would have defeated us I think.
We had a Dutch reception before dinner with four of the crew dressed in traditional dress and a glass each of schnapps.
Thursday 2 June
Woke to a fine morning and we left Boppard and sailed down to Koblenz then up the Mosel to Cochem.
Typical Mosel scene
The
Mosel is very different to the Rhine - pretty rather than dramatic,
with steep hills either side containing vineyards which look impossible
to manage without climbing equipment. Many idyllic campsites either
side of the river and far more pleasure boats than on the Rhine. The
cycle track goes all the way up the river and many people were taking
advantage of it.
The
temperature rose as the morning went on and it became really hot on
deck. We had to go through three locks which slowed us down a little
but on a holiday like this it only adds interest to the journey.
I went on an excursion to the Reichsberg Castle while Margaret remained on the ship.
Cochem
We
took taxis up to the castle but it was incredibly busy due to it being
Ascension Day and Fathers Day. We had our own dedicated tour however
which took up around most areas of the castle, led by a woman in
traditional dress who spoke English perfectly. The castle was dark and
gloomy inside but the views from the top over the Mosel valley were
spectacular. I took a photo of an outdoor café
while failing to spot Margaret sitting in it drinking a glass of iced
tea.
After
dinner we both went to a wine tasting in a stone cellar - very damp and
cool. This was conducted really well by a humorous young man with
flawless English. We were given five different wines, half a glass of
each, and the qualities of each one were explained to us. Apparently
the uniqueness of Mosel wines is due to the sun being able to reach
every bunch of grape on the vine because of the precipitous nature of
the vineyards.
Friday 3 June
We
sailed from Cochem at 7.00am and made fast progress through all three
locks, reaching Koblenz by lunchtime. After lunch there was a guided
walk around the town. The centre of the town is not all that interesting but the
promenades on the river are lovely - if rather over-crowded today due to
a garden festival. There is another huge monument on the headland at
the confluence of the Rhine and Mosel called the Deustche Eck or German
Corner.
Deustche Eck or German Corner
After dinner we had another entertainer who played until midnight. A very competent chap but rather wearing after a while.
Saturday 4 June.
Sailed
at 8.00am up to Cologne. Another lovely morning with lots to see from
the deck, such as Konigswinter and the Draconsfels (Dragons Rock) topped
by a ruined castle. Throughout the cruise Val our tour guide told us
all the folk stories around these dramatically-named edifices.
At Cologne we had to park on the west side of the bank due to low water which meant quite a walk to the city centre.
Cologne
was not too interesting - full of people, and with little character -
so many of these German town were devastated by us in the war and
although they have been rebuilt something is missing somehow. The
Cathedral is a magnificent structure however - vastly tall, but today it
was crowded with tourists so had little atmosphere inside of a place of
worship. The Ludwig Museum of Modern Art was very good
in the Tate Modern mould.
In
the evening we had the “Captains Dinner” which was a bit smarter than
the other meals and Margaret wore her dress. The centrepiece of the
dinner was a magnificent Baked Alaska replete with candles. Our captain
is a not a social animal and is not given to chatting to the passengers -
definitely not the type to mingle.
After
dinner we all sat on deck in the warm evening looking across to the
illuminated cathedral. We had a thunderstorm in the night .
Sunday 5 June
We
left in the coach for Brussels at 8.30am in a modern coach with moulded
seats. It was a very uninteresting drive across flat country. We
arrived in Brussels at 12.30pm and had a tour of the city in the coach.
You really need a coach with high windows or an open deck for this to
work well for you don’t get a good view of palaces and monuments
otherwise. The driver was able to drop us off very close to the Grande
Place and Margaret and I walked through, stopping on the way at a
pavement café to have an omelette and a drink while chatting to two
elderly ladies from our coach who came from Bromley, one of whom had
worked in Kennedys butchers in West Wickham where I lived as a boy.
In
the Grande Place we had a shower of rain while sitting at an outdoor
café and so retreated indoors for a while. We made it back to the
coach via yet another outdoor café where we chatted to a retired
shoe-maker from Northampton and his wife, who turned out to be a lover
of cricket and the opera.
We
drove on to Bruges and were pleased to find that our hotel was
excellent with a large room (what a relief after the ship’s cabin). Val
had managed to get the hotel chef to do a special buffet meal for us
and we have seldom had anything so good - a vast range of fish and cold
meants for starter (Margaret had turbot, crab, salmon). The main course
was either salmon or Flemish beef stew (carbonnades flamandes) which
was superb.
Monday 6 June
We
had a leisurely start to the day (very welcome after all the driving
yesterday) and took a taxi down to Bruges centre driven by a very chatty
driver who told us quite a bit about life in the town. He dropped us
by a canal cruise office and we got on one of the little boats just as
it started to rain.
Umbrellas
were handed out rather spoiling the experience, but it was still worth
while and made us feel we would come back again someday to hopefully see
it in better weather.
We
had waffles with ice-cream in a café then walked on to the Market
Square where we bought the traditional frites with mayonnaise at a snack
bar. The weather wasn’t going to improve and, being Monday, all the
museums and art galleries were shut so we rang for a taxi back to the
hotel and relaxed the rest of the day in very nice surroundings.
Tuesday 7 June.
The
coach left for Ostend and stopped at a chocolate factory so we could
stock up with Belgian chocolate (and garden gnomes in Margaret’s case).
We were dropped at Ostend coach park which is by the marina. We
strolled into the town and had a drink then back across the marina to
the Hotel Melinda who have an excellent brasserie where we had a three
course lunch together with the retired shoe maker and his wife. He is a
very interesting man who wanted to say what a good thing the European
Community was (a contrast with other people on the tour who were filled
with disgust at seeing the EC buildings in Brussels - “that’s where all
our tax money goes!).
Back
on the coach we had a short drive to Calais where in typical
Travelsphere fashion we had a two hour wait for the ferry. However, it
was on time and so we got back to England for 5.30pm and were met by our
feeder coach which took us back to Eastbourne Pier. A taxi arrived in a
couple of minutes and took us home, ending what had been a very
successful and enjoyable holiday.
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