Friday - June 8

While we're still dealing with jet lag, been keeping busy on the home front with the unpacking, laundry, mail, yard work, etc.    Mark is flying to Florida tomorrow – he and Philip will tackle the Catrina job list and he plans to return home Wednesday.    I have plenty to keep me busy plus work in Daisy who is back in the side yard – she needs a good cleaning inside and then prepare for next big trip out east end of June.

The Discovery II - 440 feet

Here's a brief wrap-up of our river cruise....we traveled in 5 countries (Hungary, Austria, Germany, Czech Republic and the Netherlands). We started in Budapest and enjoyed the extra bonus of my cousin, Karen as our personal all-day tour guide. We then cruised 800+ miles to Amsterdam. The Discovery II (its maiden voyage was this past March) thru Vantage World Travel was our home for 15 nights with beautiful accommodations and fantastic staff and crew. The ship's passenger capacity is 176 and we had 169 on board with a crew of 40. California had the biggest representation (43 passengers). There were 5 Pat's and one Mary Pat and a very dear 93-year old man, Keith from CA who traveled by himself and was an avid bridge player. We met so many neat folks from all over the USA and one lady from Alberta, Canada. Paul and Mark (the boaters) enjoyed the specifics on the boat's unique mechanical equipment and the 68 locks we went thru.

Along with the larger cities of Budapest, Vienna, Frankfurt, Cologne and Amsterdam, we so enjoyed the little picturesque villages along the way. Several of these areas had a specialty that they were well known for such as “paprika” in Budapest and Szentendre; “apricots” in Durnstein; “Asbach brandy, chocolates and coffee” in Rudesheim and “mustard” in Amsterdam.

We enjoyed many lectures, Albert, the ship's very talented pianist and other musicians who came on board, and demonstrations on making apple strudel (Vienna) and glass blowing (Wertheim, Germany). Other special events included a concert in Vienna, cake and coffee in a German home, cruising thru the Wachau Valley and wine tasting, shopping at Kathe Wohlfahrt's Christmas shop and touring the kitchen with our darling Chef Predrag. The cuisine was so delicious (with unique presentation) each and every day along with wonderful wines and beers.

Each quaint little village, whether nestled in the valley or high on a hill, had their church with the tall steeple seen from far away. The castles were magnificent with so much history. We were always in awe of the architecture wherever we went and loved the cobblestone streets and beautiful blooms from all the flower boxes. And now to sort thru over 2500 pictures that Paul, Kathy, Mark and I took – planning to put together a photo book this summer!    

It was a "dream" vacation!

Had cookout at Anne and Patrick's last night and of course, enjoyed the boys and sounds like they will have a busy, fun summer! Visited our friends Ed and Donna Rae this afternoon. Ed is still in nursing home recovering from hip surgery.

Enjoy your weekend – turning hot here!!!