Monday, December 1, 2014
Our farewell dinner and photo
Chuck and I woke at 4am to catch our flight from Basel Switzerland airport the next morning. What a fabulous trip it was! And with the 6 family members who joined us... it just made the trip that much more fun! I miss them already!
Day 7 - Fri Nov 28,2014 Black Forest
We docked in Breisach Germany and after breakfast disembarked for a scenic coach excursion through the beautiful Black Forest. This densely forested, mountainous region is famous for its traditional cuckoo clocks, cherry schnapps and is the setting for legends and fairy tales.
Day 6 on Thanksgiving Day was an excursion to Strasbourg France
The 7th largest city in France and on the border close to Germany, Strasbourg has an interesting history. The country has ping ponged between being a German city and a French city. Our guide told us her grandmother's nationality was changed 4 times during her life between being a French citizen and being a German citizen. She said overnight all the street names were changed and all the citizens' names changed. And the official language would change from French to German and back to French and so on! She said the people had a real identity crisis!
Friday, November 28, 2014
Embarking the Viking Var
And what a lovely welcome home we received from the staff after a full day in Heidelberg.
Keyed locks on the bridge
The idea is that you and your sweetheart buy a lock with you names engraved on the lock. After locking it onto the bridge hardware the two keys are to be tossed into the river. This signifies uniting the couple forever.
Another view of the monkey
Is our group touching the mirror, the fingers or the mice? Looks like the monkey also gets lucky once in a while.
The entrance to the Old Bridge in the Old Town of Heidelberg
The brass monkey statue holding a mirror in his hand with mice all around. Local superstition is that you should touch the mirror for wealth, the outstretched fingers to ensure that you return to Heidelberg and the mice to guarantee many children.
Patisserie window on the streets of Heidelberg
Actually I should be using a German word. How about konditorei for pastry shop or bäckerei for bakery.
Roxanne and Alex at Heidelberg Castle
Frederick assumed the crown of the Protestant King of Bohemia against recommendation from his advisers. To make a long story short this event resulted in the eruption of the 30 years war between the Protestants and the Catholic Church from 1618-1648. Frederick and his family were forced into to exile.
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