How the Other Half Lives

Unfortunately, this is not a rags-to-riches tale. Instead, it's the start of my understanding of all of those cruise ships that flood the docks of the Elbe downtown.

This ship was home for 15 days: the MS River Harmony

River cruises are big business. Hamburg has an annual festival welcoming them to town, with booths along the river and celebratory events.

Last year when I learned about it, I avoided the river. I did not want to be caught up in the throng of wide-eyed tourists, trying to capture the measure of a town in mere hours.

But that's exactly what I've been doing for the past two weeks.

Here we are leaving the waters of Amsterdam and starting our
journey along 3 rivers, a couple of canals, and 66 locks.

My trip was not along the Elbe, but on a Rhine/Main/Danube riverboat sailing from Amsterdam to Vienna.

The cruise was a celebration of my mother's recent retirement, so it was nice to be able to drag Larry away from work, see my family, and be reunited with family friends from our long-ago time living in Germany.

Angela raises a glass for the yummy beer
we had at the abbey in Weltenburg--
the oldest brewery in the world.

That was already enough to make it a great vacation. But it turns out that a whirlwind tour through the history of towns along the river (though exhausting) was informative, exciting, and inspirational. And I met some wonderful people on the trip--passengers and crew.

My parents enjoy shots in a
traditional German restaurant in Rudesheim.

Despite appearances it wasn't all about drinking--
we had a lot of decadent meals and desserts reflecting
the towns we were visiting. :)

The Pratts, the Todhunters, and the Mellons

Over the next little while, while the weather here in Hamburg tries to make up its mind between muggy summer and chilly spring, I'll share my version of "postcards" of the places I've been on this trip.

I hope you enjoy the ride!