2022 Trade Routes of the Middle Ages Cruise - Part One

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 Day One - We flew from Albuquerque to Barcelona through Chicago and Frankfurt with no issues.  We arrived to our final destination right on time.   Traveling out of the country was different this year due to all the COVID-19 requirements.  Embarking the ship took a lot of patience as we had to wait in long lines to ensure that the requirements were in order.  We had to take a COVID test before we left the country and another Covid test at the terminal and lots of paperwork required by Spain.  We are required to take a daily saliva test.  The mask requirements had been lifted on the ship and at most locations so far. Wanting to increase our chances of getting through all 23 days without a positive test, we wore our masks more often than most people on these two cruises.  This is a view from our ship in Barcelona.

Day Two - we took an excursion to La Sagrada Famila and other works by Antonio Gaudi.  Construction started on the church in 1882 and is scheduled for completion in 2026, the centenary of Gaudy's death.  They still have a lot to get done and with a couple years lost to COVID-19, this finish date does not look optimistic.  While they are sticking to his design on the outside the inside has been designed by many different architects but still following his grand idea,  With this weekend being Palm Sunday there were large crowds, but sill quite a sight.

Day Three -We sailed to our next port by night and arrived the next morning Murcia (Cartagena), Spain.  Cartagena is has a very quaint marina and is one of the big ancient Roman cities in this area.  It is home to a 6,000 seat Roman Theater which was sitting under the town for more than 2,000 years and only just discovered and excavated in 1990.  Much of the original roman walls and other buildings still remain.  The old town still has the narrow cobblestone streets and is a pleasure to stroll around.  Again this is the Saturday before Palm Sunday but is still great to walk around town with other Spanish tourist and feel like a part of the celebrations. 

Day Four - Next port stop: Granada (Malaga), Spain.  We sailed to Malaga by night and arrived the next morning. Malaga is noted to be one of the oldest cities in the world.  This town has a history of the Romans and then the Moors and also the birth place of Pablo Picasso.  We first headed out to the  mountain town of Mijas at 1,400 feet above sea level. This town known for the small cobblestone streets and great views over the ocean.  After visiting, Mijas, we got back and take bus to explore the city of Malaga.  This town has many ruins of the Roman and Moors time here.  

Day Five - Day at sea: Cruise the Atlantic Ocean  from Malaga to Porto Portugal. 

                                Sunrise over the North Atlantic Ocean as seen from Deck 2

                                of the Viking Jupiter ship.

                                   

                                    Star Theater: The theater is the meeting place for excursions,

                                port talks, lectures, celebrations, and various entertainers. 

Day Six - We arrived in Porto, Portugal at 8:00 in the morning. We had a morning excursion planned.  Weather forecast called for rain most of the morning but we headed out to "The Best of Porto" excursion.  This is a beautiful city at the mouth of the Douro River that comes out of Spain and enters the Atlantic Ocean.  We walked through some old parts of town before getting to the Douro River for a boat ride up and down this river.  We embarked a traditional "rabelo", a specially built boat once used to transport barrels of port wine.  Unfortunately the rain started as we got on the boat and rained on and off for the duration of the journey.  I stubbornly sat outside and got soaked but it was a great way to see the city.  We then headed by bus to the Porto Cathedral which was built in the 12th century in the Romanesque style.  When the Portuguese explorers were taking a lot of gold and silver out of South America they used a lot of gold leaf to adorn many of the rooms in this church. We then visited an ancient wine cellar for a tasting of the city's world-famous port wine, served with typical tapas from northern Portugal and accompanied by the sounds of fado music.

Day Six - Day at sea, travel from Porto, Portugal to Falmouth, England.

                                Steve's breakfast stop, most mornings: the Explorer's Lounge.

RV Trip June 2021

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Clear Creek, Colorado, and Red River Trip 2021

The first five days our trip were spent with family at the Clear Creek campground in the Jemez Mountains just  outside Cuba NM:

We then moved on to Cortez, Colorado for two nights and quick trip to Mesa Verde National Park.  We never get tired of the high desert environment and the history left behind for us to experience.

We then moved on to Grand Junction, Colorado for eight days.  We took highway 141 starting at Dove Creek to Grand Junction. This highway is a scenic highway and deserves that designation. One of our excursions was spent in the Colorado National Monument.  Another excursion was taking a scenic drive through the Grand Mesa forest.  One of our days in Grand Junction was spent seeing the Cruela movie and then having lunch at Chili's.    

From Grand Junction, we moved on to Alamosa for two nights.  We then went on to Red River, New Mexico for five nights with family.  This is where we got the best weather with highs in the middle 70's.  I have never spent much time there before and have added it to my list of favorites.  

We then moved on to a campground just outside Salida, Colorado for five nights.  We went up to Monarch Pass, Saint Elmo ghost town, and the town of Salida.

FYI: If there is any question about the best sandwich civilization has come up with, the answer is:

 The Rueben

Grand European Tour - Part Three

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Day 12 - Middle Rhine River Cruising, Braubach, Germany, and Koblenz, Germany

Middle Rhine River scenic cruising:  Often called the Romantic Rhine, the Rhine River flows through one of Germany's scenic regions.  During this cruise, we passed vineyard-blanketed hills with steep slopes that require vintners to pick grapes by hand, keeping a century-old tradition alive.  We admired splendid castles and dramatic rocks along tall banks.  The most famous rock was the Lorelei Rock located at a dramatic curve of the river.  The legend of the Lorelei is the river maiden mesmerized sailors with her song and lured them to their demise at her feet.

Klobenz is a traditional German country town at the confluence of the RhineMoselle Rivers.  Founded more than 2,000 years ago, this former trading settlement rests on a massif of the Middle Rhine Highlands.

Marksburg Castle has watched over the town of Braubach since the 13th century.  This castle is the only castle in the Rhine Valley to have never been destroyed.  Because it was built with strong fortifications, it was never besieged by enemies.  From the grounds, we enjoyed views of Braubach, the Rhine River, and the surrounding countryside. 

Day 13 - Cologne Germany - An intriguing mix of old and new, Cologne reveals its Roman heritage in its city layout and the ancient ruins that lie scattered through the town. Cologne is the fourth most populous city in Germany.

This church is one of the biggest churches in Europe.  The locals call it the Dome Church but the official name is St. Peter's Cathedral. This church claims to have the bones of the three kings (the Magi) and they get a lot of pilgrims coming by to pay homage.  We were here on a weekend so the traffic was very active and we never made it inside the church.

Evening excursion: Cologne's Beer Culture Dinner.  (Also known as a Pub Crawl).  We started the tour with dinner and beer in a very crowded pub.  After a traditional German dinner and beer, we walked to two other pubs to sample the beer.  Cologne has a total of 26 different types of Kölsch beer.  Each brewery creates their own version and that is the only beer that they serve.  They serve it in 7 oz. glasses so it stays fresh and cold. When you are done drinking, you have to cover your glass with a coaster or the köbe  (server) will keep refilling your drink.  

Day 14: Scenic Cruising: Waal & Merwede and Kinderdijk, Netherlands

Our last excursion was a tour of the Kinderdijk windmills.  Kinderdijk has the largest concentration of windmills in the Netherland.  Built in the 19th century, these 19 windmills stand like sentinels on a hushed landscape.  We walked with our guide into the serene polder lands of South Holland.  As we crossed the dike to the windmills, we noticed that they are in fact lower in elevation than our ship.  The windmills are used mostly to pump water out of the land to the canals which are then drained into the river.  They still do some food grinding but the windmills now are used mostly for water management.  Most of the area shown here is below sea level.  Unfortunately it rained the whole time we were here.  This was really the only bad weather we had the entire trip.  

Day 15: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Overnight we sailed in Amsterdam and from there were dropped off at the airport.  What we should have done is elected to stay a couple extra days in Amsterdam.  Another interesting note about this trip is the 60 locks from Budapest to Amsterdam.  These are used to even out the rivers to make them much easier to go from one end to the other. Overall this was a great experience for both of us and we are sure that more of these trips will be coming.