Tag Archives: Viking River Cruises

Snapshot: Amsterdam

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We arrive in Amsterdam a day before we embark on our Viking Cruise through The Netherlands and Belgium, and check into our wonderful hotel De L’Europe. The hotel is an easy walk to the Museumplein, the square that’s home to the three major museums, the Rijksmuseum (famed for its collection of Dutch Masters including Rembrandt, Vermeer and Jan Steen), the Stedelijk, featuring works by Picasso, Matisse, Rauschenberg and Warhol, among many others, and the Van Gogh Museum.

But much of the art is the city itself, with its 16th and 17th century brick houses lining the streets and canals.

One of the best ways to explore the city is by boat
Bikes are everywhere, and they can come at you from any direction!
The newly restored Rijksmuseum is glorious
Our pre- and post-cruise hotel
The view from the room is not too shabby!
The gorgeous marble bathroom
En route to dinner

A Week Away

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Back in June, when it was becoming impossibly hot and boring living in our rental apartment (with molasses-slow progress on our home renovation), Dear Husband and I decided to brave the outside world and travel out of the country.

Armed with passports, vaccination cards, entry documents, and recent COVID tests, DH and I embarked on a short Viking river cruise to Lyon and Provence. The tipping point was their excellent health and safety program, in which every crew member and passenger takes a short, non-invasive COVID test daily. At least we’d be protected within our bubble.

A few highlights, as this is by no means a comprehensive travelogue:

  • Watching the world flow by from our little balcony
  • Cocktail hour with witty and cultured new friends K and S
  • Breathtaking mountain views of the countryside
  • Strolling through Arles
  • Morning croissants and coffee
  • A day on our own in Avignon visiting two museums (classic and contemporary) and finding a terrific place for lunch
  • The uniformly excellent food, wine, service and crew on board

And a couple of lowlights:

  • The airports in Marseilles and Frankfurt (our connection), which were overcrowded and understaffed, with insuffient time to check all passengers’ COVID documents
  • Not enough time in Lyon; we will have to return!
Tournon-sur-Rhône
Les Baux-de-Provence (from the bus)
Tournon
Just drifting along
Saint-Barthelemy-le-Plain
Soon to be sunflower oil
Arles
  • Yours Truly
  • My alter ego
  • Our HOA would never allow this!
  • Tarascon through a window
image
Arles Arena
One family’s multi-generational olive oil mill in Fontvielle