Rhine River Cruise Part 2 - Strasbourg

Strasbourg, possibly the best European spot we visited on this trip. Partly due to our earlier than expected embarkation and partly due to our willingness to ditch the lunch on the ship in order to spend more time in this charming French city.

Our boat docked about a ½ hour’s walk from the old city. To reach the center we passed by the old citadel walls, the botanical gardens connected to the University, and the river or canal surrounding the city.

As an aside, whenever we were on our own in a city, we always sought out the W.C.’s. These public toilets (at least for the women) always came with a specific charge or an expected tip, but every one of them were clean and spotless. Well worth ½ a Euro.

As we crossed the bridge going into the center of Strasbourg, we caught our first glimpse of the cathedral. How magnificent and awe-inspiring! It boggles the mind that our ancestors were capable of building such a magnificent structure, yet, the majority of the population dwell in such lowly abodes.

Strasbourg Cathedral draws its fame from the astrological clock which parades about the apostles at noon…except on Sunday when we happened to be there. Thus, we looked at the clock, but missed the procession.

No matter. We did climb up to the top of the cathedral (all 66 meters!). Since it happened to be Sunday we were allowed to climb for free instead of paying 2 Euros for the privilege.

After our climb we scouted around for a place to eat. Shops and cafes in the main square were open to cater to tourists, but the primary retail boulevard rested on Sunday.

After a few wayward turns we ended up at Place Gutenberg, about a block from the cathedral. The place contained a few cafes all with outdoor seating and a double-decker working carousel.

As with every day of our trip, it was a beautiful autumnal afternoon. We sat outside at the Bierstub and ordered a bottle of Alsatian Pinot Gris – a full-bodied, food worthy, white wine. Fruity, yet, fat. (My Dad had a beer.)

For our dining pleasure we indulged in a frisee salad with boiled eggs and lardons, onion tart, Quiche Lorraine, and steak frites. Typical French and oh so yummy! Locals and tourists alike ordered wine served in ceramic pitchers, and feasted on sausages or grandmere’s casserole. My folks also had a view of the cathedral worth a heavy sigh. Aaahhh… The interior of the boit also captivated our imagination with the carved wooden chairs and the painted plaster walls.

After a mighty fine lunch we browsed the tourist shops and came upon La Cure Gourmande, an Artisan Sucrecuitier. A cookie and candy shop! And they offered a seemingly endless supply of samples. Madeleines, nougats, hard fruit candies, and candy-coated chocolate covered almonds (referred to as olives). We needed no other dessert.

We then headed over to Petite France, the oldest part of Strasbourg dating back to the 14th century with the storied half-timbered structures and the cascades of colorful blooms in the multitude of flowerboxes. Expectations well met.

We disembarked from Strasbourg after dinner. Once again we left our cabin curtains open to catch any interesting glimpses as we headed back into Germany. We were not disappointed, but in a more surreal and quite industrial way. We cruised by the BASF chemical plant, apparently, the largest one in the world. The complex carried on for miles and employed 60,000 workers. Basically, a small city. In the morning we docked at Worms…

Rhine River Cruise Part 1 - Basel, Breisach, and Locks

“I never saw so many castles, barges, bicycles, or half-naked women in all my life” pronounced my father at the end of our journey. He had also never climbed up so many cathedral steps or drank so many Beck’s beers either.

My husband and myself, along with my parents cruised along the Rhine River for the better part of eight days. The beginning of October turned out to be an excellent time to travel. We were blessed with rain free days and the temperatures reminded us of what autumn weather should be (our run of hotter than usual weather here in Richmond has been maddening).
Our cruise reservations were made via Gate 1 Travel. I had spotted their advertisement on Fromer’s. The package included all meals, the cruise itself, airfare, and transfers. While we had some difficulty with the cruise (the ship experienced propeller trouble twice) and had to end our trip in a hotel situated in the middle of the Holland farm fields, I mainly focus on our good experiences (and there were many).

We flew from Dulles to Heathrow to Basel, Switzerland to begin our trip along the storied Rhine. And, first of all, I must say that Heathrow Terminal 4 had the best array of shops in which to browse putting the Dulles offering to shame. Heathrow had even set up a caviar bar in the middle of the concourse and the duty free shops offered tastes of whiskey as well as martinis featuring a New Zealand vodka called 42 Below. Of course, the pound to dollar exchange rate prohibited us from purchasing anything, but for pure entertainment (to make us forget that our connecting flight was delayed), Heathrow ruled.

Upon arrival at the Basel airport we made our way by bus to the center of this Swiss city. Road construction or reconstruction met us frequently.

We stopped near the art museum which housed a free toilet. In the courtyard stood Rodin’s Burgers of Callais. As we wandered up to the cathedral, we passed by an impressive water fountain. All of the fountains in the city spouted drinkable water. We traversed the Ritterstrasse (Knight’s Street) and were treated to buildings dating back to the 14th century.

As we approached the cathedral we were struck by the tiled roof – such precision and color. We also were awed by the size and the carvings around the courtyard or entry way.

The cathedral led us to a small square overlooking the Rhine replete with picturesque buildings as well as industrial complexes beyond the old city.

At this point we piled back into the bus and taken to the boat, which was not located in Basel due to propeller difficulties that needed to be repaired.

Thus, we bid Switzerland a fond farewell and headed to Breisach, Germany and our cruise ship, the M. S. Deutschland.

Beisach was a tiny town with a main square, a few cafes and shops, and a cathedral looming over the town from a hill.

We had a couple of hours before dinner and decided to climb to the cathedral.

A majority of Breisach was destroyed during World War II and had to be rebuilt. Most of the rebuilding focused on the traditional to maintain the town’s charm. We simply drank in all of the old-looking commercial signs and the incredible flower boxes dripping with color hanging from the windows. Yes, we imagined that Germany would look this way. We were not disappointed.

Back on the boat we experienced the first of many cruise boat meals – an appetizer/salad followed by a soup of either consume or cream of the vegetable of the day. The entrée almost inevitably was braised meat (there was also a fish option for dinner, but not very appealing). Dessert held the most variety sometimes good, sometimes not so good. Dinner included Beck’s beer or a choice of Riesling (very tart and thin) or Lemberger (the German equivalent of Beaujolais). Although the cruise brochure boasted all the wine you wanted at dinner, it turned out to equal three glasses per night. We could imbibe the wine, but the stuff grew old after a few days. Lunch was a repeat of dinner minus the alcohol. Breakfast offered a buffet. My husband enjoyed the European yogurt. I indulged in flaky croissants with butter as well as Nutella on toast.

The boat set sail after dinner headed for Strasbourg. Locks dotted the upper part of the Rhine and travelling through one at night left us somewhat creeped out and claustrophobic. We were tucked away in our twin beds with the cabin window open to the night. We awoke to us sidling along a concrete barrier seemingly two inches away from the boat. We then stopped and began dropping – very similar to an elevator ride. The concrete continued to rise above our cabin window as we continued our downward journey. We dropped for a long time and steadily faced concrete right outside our window. Very spooky. Eventually, we stopped dropping and slowly inched forward out of the lock toward our next destination…Strasbourg.

Happy Birthday to Belmont Butchery!

The Belmont Butchery is a year old and going strong. Congratulations to Tanya and her crew for providing a much-needed service for Richmond. If you already shop there, keep doing so. If you have not stopped by, what are you waiting for?

This delightful place is located at 15 North Belmont Avenue, just 1 block off of Cary Street.

Hours are:
Monday thru Friday 10:00am to 7:00pm
Saturday 10:00am to 6:00pm
804.422.8519

Captain Buzzy and Libby Hill

After the Italian Festival we stopped in at Captian Buzzy's Beanery. We did not want our day to end, and we discovered that we were thirsty. As we entered we were greeted by a marvelous coffee aroma. But neither of us felt like coffee. I ordered a Limeade. This was more like a limeade extreme. Very sweet and very tart (the juice of an entire lime for the small size!). I loved it. My husband wanted an Arnold Palmer (1/2 tea and 1/2 lemon). Alas, no lemons. But the Captain's crew member suggested a Tiger Woods - 1/2 tea and 1/2 lime. A fitting substitute.



With beverages in hand we strolled over to Libby Hill Park and admired the view.