It was Boxing Day, another day when Germany’s town and cities would be deserted. The ship was still tied up at Frankfurt’s industrial harbour and tour director Alex was having to come up with interesting destinations within reach of coaches. We were given a choice of a palace (whose name escapes me) and what he…
Given yesterday’s news about the low bridge we couldn’t pass, nobody was surprised to learn we were still in Frankfurt. Only instead of being moored near the city centre, the Scenic Jasper had moved to Frankfurt’s industrial harbour. There were good reasons. It would be easier to service the ship for fresh water, sewage, food,…
After our stop at Rüdesheim the Scenic Jasper headed up river. And stopped at Frankfurt on the Main River. The city wasn’t on our schedule and Cruise Director Alex had to explain. It seems there’s an old, no longer used railway bridge upstream from Frankfurt and because of the height of the river, the ship…
Having been on river cruises several times over the years, we’ve sailed up and down the Rhine Gorge a few times. But this time the ship was really having to work against the current. Many of us donned our cold weather gear and went up on the sun deck to admire the view as we…
The Scenic Jasper docked at the lovely town of Koblenz where the Moselle River joins the Rhine. We were offered the choice of visiting the reconstructed town of Cochem and Reichsburg Castle that stands on a height above the town. We’d been there before, read my account here, so we opted to visit a nearby…
Our first stop after Amsterdam was Cologne. Like most German cities along the Rhine, Cologne was flattened in World War II and although the cathedral suffered fourteen hits, its twin spires remained as a landmark for Allied bomber pilots crossing from Britain for their raids. The origins of the building go back to 1284 but…
Our visit to England had been absolutely brilliant. Linda and Mike went out of their way to make sure we had a jam-packed six days filled with fun activities and we couldn’t thank them enough. They did all the hard work – we just had to turn up. Sadly, it was time to say goodbye….
Visiting Harry Potter world was always going to be on my list of things to do on a visit to England. But it became an absolute bucket list item when we visited New Zealand last year. One of the people in our group hadn’t been all that interested in visiting Hobbiton, since she wasn’t a…
Part of what makes these winter festivals sparkle is the camaraderie, the joining together with neighbours. After our visit to Waddesdon Hall we moved on to the village of Little Horwood where everybody gathered around a bonfire on the village green to sing Christmas carols, musical accompaniment provided by the Great Horwood band in which…
Yule is, after all, a season to celebrate the return of the light after the long days of darkness. Our friends took us to the Christmas fair at Waddesdon Hall to enjoy a truly spectacular light show. That was where I discovered my special nifty gloves that kept you warm while allowing you to fiddle…