Sunday, June 26th - Cruising the Rhine from Amsterdam to Cologne

Phil woke me gently at 6:30 am -- he was all dressed and ready to have breakfast -- it would take me a little longer to adjust to the time change.  The weather looked to be more promising with expected temps in the high 70's.  

At 8:45am we boarded a bus to the canal boat for our tour of Amsterdam by waterway.   The canals are like streets here -- people live on them -- work on them -- and take pleasure in just being on the water.  To view the townhouses of Amsterdam is more interesting from this perspective as well.  Our guide told us that the "hooks" at the tops of the houses -- used to hoist furniture in the 19th century -- were installed in the 17th century for delivery of spices and dry goods, stored on the top level to avoid moisture and dampness. 

After cruising the canals for about an hour we boarded buses for a tour of Amsterdam and a stop at the Floating Flower Market with free time to explore on our own.   I just can't get over the number of bicylces in this city.  We were told that The Netherlands is the only country which has more bicycles than people (16 million people -- 18 million bicycles) -- it is certainly evident in Amsterdam.

At Clock Tower we are turned loose and start wandering down the street and "lo and behold" who do we see standing in front of the Carlton Hotel but Patte and Dave -- fresh off their flight -- luggage and all.  Maddy, our Cruise Director,  was kind enough to settle into a cafe with their luggage so they could join us in meandering through the Floating Flower Market.   This market has every kind of plant and tulip bulb one can imagine.   There is even a "cannabis starter kit" which might fun but also frowned upon by US Customs --- we decided to pass.

At the appointed time we are all gathered by the clock tower to board our buses to Utrecht where the ship is waiting. The rest of the day on board consisted of:   lunch at 1:00 -- history lesson at 5:00 -- next day briefing at 6:45 -- dinner at 7:00. 

Cruising the Rhine is delightful -- this river is used for commerce and pleasure all the time -- it is very busy.  On the shore people are promenading along the paths that follow the river.  At one point I notice some young people unloading equipment along the river.  I soon realized they were our evening's entertainment.  The ship pulled over and the equipment and musicians were taken aboard.  After the concert they would be let off the ship at another point up river.  

On the way to dinner Patte, Dave and I were coming down the stairs to join our group in the dining room when at the entrance another guest had a seizure and passed out practically in front of us.   The crew was there in a flash -- the German equivalent of  EMT's were called to meet the boat at a station ahead -- a guest who was a physician assisted and the gentleman was eventually removed to his cabin under his own power.  This process took about an hour -- nobody could enter or exit the dining room due to the positioning of the patient.  Dinner was now at 8:00 pm.

After dinner -- the concert was superb.  Three young musicians played:  bass, fiddle and guitar.  They were so talented -- two from Russia and one from Bosnia.  John bought 2 of their CD's.    However -- it had been a long day and we all found ourselves nodding off during the concert.  Maybe tonight we will sleep well.

On the Rhine moving toward Cologne, Germany.

Thanks for Reading --
Pat