We arrived on Easter Monday morning in the Black Forest region…how exciting to be back! Unfortunately, Mitch was not feeling well with some GI upset and was not able to join us for the day and spent it sleeping.
Our first breakfast on board was quite the spread of eggs, meats, cereals, fruit and the option to order off the menu. Feeling the effects of jet lag, wine and sleeping on a moving boat, coffee and nourishment helped bring us around for the day. We boarded a bus and took a scenic bus excursion through mountain landscape, rolling meadows and dense forests. It was very nostalgic for me, and I feel very grateful to be able to be hear, longing to spend more time exploring.
We decided to hike into the Black Forest and Jody ran ahead, trail running 4km ahead to the top of the trail. Gloria and I walked about 1 hr total and then back to the shops to look at cuckoo clocks, blown glass and local wears. Then we boarded the bus and made out way back to the ship, via the autobahn (oh the memories of our 1985 Jetta speeding down the autobahns with my brother and I nested in the back while we went on family vacations!)
Upon arriving back at the ship, we were greeted with cranberry and mint shooters and we delivered cookies and electrolytes delivered to Mitch. Then it was time for the mandatory safety evacuation training, where we went to our rooms, donned our life jackets from under our beds and waited for an announcement to proceed to the lobby. Mitch stayed in bed, only for the cleaning lady to wake him and try to get him to participate in the drill. No luck, he wasn’t going anywhere!
We then took walked into Breisach, and explored the cobblestone streets and Munster – the large church on the hill. As it was Easter Monday, a bank holiday, no shops were open but we explored nonetheless and then headed back to ship for a beer and a nap on the sun deck. We got ready for the Captains toast (our captain is 27 years old with 5 years of vessel experience and from the Netherlands) and Port talk before supper. We dined with a couple from Chicago, (and Mitch joined us!!) and had a great meal of French Onion Soup, New York Steak and Vanilla ice cream and raspberries. Yum!
The boat departed the dock as we where finishing supper, and we were heading toward a Lock, so we got some cookie treats and headed to the top deck to wait for our turn to enter the lock. Over about 10 min, we entered, the water level dropped about 40 feet and we exited under a bridge, under a gate on the other side, continuing North on the Rhine to our next destination. How interesting!
