Danube River Cruise - 5/9/14

Up at 5:00 AM for a busy day in Budapest. We are packed and disembarking the ship at 9:00 AM.  All are ready to roll. We transfer to our hotel for the next 24 hours, the Sofitel, located in downtown Budapest at the foot of the White Bridge; an excellent location from which to explore the city.

After securing the rooms, we all struck out in separate ways, Don, Ann and Deb and I off to visit the Budapest Synagogue, the 2nd largest in the world (New York claims the largest.)  It was a stunning facility designed in the 19th century.  During WWII, it was commandeered by the Nazi's but not destroyed, although significantly damaged.  Totally rebuilt after the war to its former grandeur, it is now flanked by gardens commemorating those who died in WWII from this community, and also a research center.  Don and Ann stayed to go through the Museum while Deb and I struck out on our own.  We toured the National Opera building, walked the city, lunched at a wonderful sidewalk cafe, shopped the shopping area and finally back to the hotel by 5:45.

Don & Ann went on to the National History museum.  George and Karen napped some, shopped some, and took a trip to the hotel casino to collect on their free drink ticket.  Only cost them around $25.00. Jan and Judy, accompanied by their escort Larry, walked the shopping area, making a variety of stops at Swarovski and Pandora stores.  Gary wandered a bit, did some shopping and general resting. He did manage to add to his commemorative shot glass collection.

At 6:30 we walked to a local restaurant (Evidences) for native Hungarian fare.  We enjoyed ourselves, however all agreed that it was time to back off from the huge portions of food we have been served, and sometimes consumed.

We walked back to the hotel and all settled in for a final pack and rest.  Our transfer to the airport is at 7:00 AM on Saturday for the long trip home.  It was a grand trip; no one vowed silence towards another' and we all will look back fondly and eventually get together to talk about it and share pictures, after we recover.

Unless something goes gloriously wrong at the airport tomorrow, this is the end of this transcription of the ten touring and toddling folks from the great Midwest.  Enjoy.

Danube River Cruise - 5/8/14

Up at 5:00 and out to check email and send email.  A cloudy day to start as we continue down the Danube to our destination of Budapest, Hungary.  We arrive around 8:30 AM and the view from the sun deck as Budapest appears in view. A magnificent sight as we round the bend from Marguerite Island. We dock three deep at the city pier and then off to a City Coach tour for three and one half hours. We learned quite a bit about this city of 1.8 million.  Many monuments and dazzling buildings.

We ended the tour with a walk through the food market, a large building lined with vendors selling produce, butcher's stalls souvenirs and much more.  Deb and I bought some supplies of Hungarian pepper, sweet, spicy and smoked, together with some sausage that we hope makes it through customs. 

Back to the ship for a late lunch and then, 8 out of 10 members retired to their cabin for a short rest (nap) while one pair ventured back into the shopping area for another go round.

Before dinner, we were treated to Hungarian folk dancers and music.  After a locally themed dinner, we cast off for an hour's ride up and down the Danube to see the City all lit up - quite a sight and many photos were taken, a lot deleted, and some good ones left to sort out upon our return.

Packed our bags for a morning departure from the ship and our last night in a hotel (Soffitel) here in Budapest before we leave on early departure Saturday morning for home.

Danube River Cruise - 5/7/14

Awake and up at 4:50 this morning in Vienna.  Showered and out to enjoy coffee and task of recapturing the previous day's events for our growing (up to six) reading audience. A pleasant and clear morning; good to know as today should be a busy one.

Off ship at 8:45 for the trip into Vienna and the "Hidden Culture Tour."  Others are on a standard City Tour and a Gentle Walkers tour.  All spend about 3 hours in Vienna, covering the same things from different angles. We all come back with the same information.  Vienna is a very old City and the guides all seem to want to impress us with the city's former glory and the power and glory of the past Austro-Hungarian empire.

After a return to the ship for lunch, it is off again on another coach trip to Schonbrun Palace.  This was the "summer" home of the Hapsburg dynasty, leaders of the Holy Roman Empire and then the Austro-Hungarian empire.  According to our resident expert, Deb, they were going for a competitive run against Versailles; Hapsburgs lost, but it is hard to see how from the opulence apparent in the interiors. We toured the palace and then had an opportunity to tour the grounds and garden.  With only 40 minutes to cover 7 square kilometers of gardens, we didn't make much of a dent.  A gentle rain started shortly after we reached the grounds, refreshing given our lack of moisture back home, but it did put a damper on the strolling.

We returned to the ship by 5:00 and sat for a lecture on the coming day in Budapest.  Then down to change and back up for the Captain's Farewell dinner.  This was our group's night to dine in the private dining room rather than the main dining room, so we didn't get to see the Captain down his fare.  However, given the small size of the vessel, he is a constant presence and we speak to him almost daily, so missing the chance to watch him eat wasn't such a hardship.

An early evening turn-in for some in preparation for our arrival in the final city destination of Budapest in Hungary, tomorrow morning around 8:30 AM.