Relaxing on the Rhine

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May 22, 2022

PHOTO: The Rhine River is alive with all manner of watercraft, from the large luxury long boats of Viking Cruise lines and equally long barges toting everything from scrap metal to construction materials to youngsters in kayaks, small outboard motor boats, and even pontoons….. You’re never far from land along this narrow river.

I wrote this article for the Atlantic Highlands Herald, the Nations first official online newspaper back in 2015 when I took a River Cruise on the Rhine with Viking Cruise Lines

Just back from my second Viking Cruise, this may end up sounding like a paid advertisement for the company that does an incredible job both in cruising European rivers and customer service. It isn’t. It’s simply an account of the week fellow traveler Jane Frotton and I enjoyed aboard the Viking Sun, sailing from Amsterdam, Holland, to Basil Switzerland over eight spectacular days.

The Sun is different from the longboats Viking specializes in for most of its cruises, a bit smaller perhaps, with smaller cabins…though still big enough and most with great full wall sliding glass doors to let you breathe in the wonderful air, touch the side of the lock as you’re going through, or simply to say Hi to youngsters on the riverbank grinning and waving as you pass. The slightly larger longboats offer some cabins with verandas complete with table and chairs, but we quickly learned to live with the smaller cabin without a veranda. All come complete with private baths, big closets and drawer space, lots of little amenities, bottled water in the room, tvs, and beds high enough to let you shove your suitcase underneath and out of the way.

The Sun is about 400 feet or so long, with cabins on three decks, a dining room on the second, and a lounge and library on the third deck at opposite ends, with cabins in between. Up above, there’s the sun deck easily accessible to all, the wheelhouse and wings from which the captain operates the ship going through the locks. There were just under 190 travelers and a crew, from Captain Bartosz Balwierz to dishwasher, of 53…which works out to about just over three crew members per customer, an incredible ratio! It also means the waiter who serves you your cocktail in the lounge is the same one who serves your mushroom soup at dinner or helps carry the luggage off the boat. I never got to meet executive housekeeper Bilyanna Vancheva, but her standards are exceptionally high, given the excellence of her entire hard working and always pleasant housekeeping staff.

And you get to see and talk with them all, another great benefit of small ship cruising! They come from all over the world to work for Viking…. Bulgaria, Rumania, Hungary, Germany, Poland, the Philippines, South America, Portugal, Holland and more…and they’re all wonderful! They all speak far better English than I could muster in any of their languages, even with my three years of high school French…and they all know a lot about our country. Talking with some crew members from Portugal and Bulgaria late one night as they relaxed after their shift at the stern of the ship, they were delighted to hear I came from New Jersey….and eager to tell me of the greatest singer from here! To my surprise, it wasn’t Bruce! Or Frank! It was Bon Jovi and they asked if I could please tell him how much they love him and admire his style!

Viking Cruise| Holland

By

Muriel J. Smith

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May 22, 2022

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While the initial cost of a Viking River cruise might seem a bit high, read the small print, and look for their two for one specials which seem to always be available.

The good news is, other than beverages you might have during the day or evening (beer and wine are freely included at both lunch and dinner), and tips for staff at the very end of the cruise, it’s possible not to spend a single cent other than your initial payment for cruise and airfare, if Viking has arranged your flight accommodations as well. When they do, they meet you at the airport and deliver you back to it at the end of the cruise.

Also included in that initial price is at least one tour a day every time the ship is in port, educational programs relative to the sites during the day or early evening, and music and superb local entertainment in the lounge every night.

Take Kinderdijk, for example. Since it’s in Holland, the land of windmills, there’s a program, presented by the program director, on water management, and how the Dutch manage to keep their land beneath sea level dry.

You learn about water boards…the efficient kind, of course … the committee that maintains the water controls, essential because without them the entire country would flood within three days.

You learn that those picturesque windmills have been pretty much replaced by modern technology and efficient diesel operated plants.

You learn how Holland is giving up some sections of the country to the water and why, and that at the same time they are teaching other countries how to pump and adapt.

Then you are invited to leave the ship for a walking tour to the UNESCO site windmills, and you set out on your tour. A slight drizzle doesn’t dampen spirits at all…Viking not only provides each passenger with a bottle of water before heading off the ship, but also a large and sturdy bright red Viking umbrella.

If you’ve taken the time to read your daily schedule and information newsletter before breakfast, you know you’re in the province of South Holland, about 15 kilometers from Rotterdam, and the 19 windmills you’re about to see are among the 28 still standing across the country as opposed to the more than 150 at its highest peak.

At each tour along the way, Viking has local guides to ensure its passengers are learning from the best. Such was the case here, where the short walk led to a windmill and an almost instant lesson in all the terms associated with one… sails, millers, the language of the sails, how millers spread both good and bad news among themselves by means of the sails (those big paddles that keep the water moving from the polders by scoops into reservoirs.)

Guides will explain what determines the number of sails which are used and point out the huge beam that holds all the mechanisms to keep this very necessary process ever active.

You can take a visit inside the mill, where the miller and his family lived, since the mills had to be kept operating both day and night. It’s worth the climb up very steep ladders to the second and third ‘floors’ of the miller’s home and workplace.

The buildings are round, of course, and the huge oak trees used to create the beam where all those mechanisms are in the center. It’s probably a matter of efficiency, but I would have preferred the winding steps of a lighthouse to the straight-up ladders inside a mill.

It was only perhaps a half day stay in this part of the Netherlands, before getting back aboard the Sun, and a departure for Cologne, our first stop in Germany. Once back moving on the river, we had our mandatory safety program and safety instructions course before lunch and an afternoon program on Dutch Masters.

Of course, with three meals never enough on a cruise, there were some great Dutch treats at teatime and the opportunity to visit the wheelhouse and see Captain Bartosz happily at work as we slowly cruised upriver in a southerly direction.

Before dinner, the Captain and Jan Petersen, the hotel manager, also welcomed all guests to the Lounge for a meet and greet, a bit of the bubbly, and an opportunity to learn about the wonderful people who make life aboard a Viking cruise ship such a terrific experience. We also learned that every night there would be a brief briefing before dinner to let us know what’s in store for the next day.

If you still have energy enough, and travel partner Jane Frotton and I always managed to, there was music, dancing, and entertainment in the lounge, more time to share laughter and conversation with newly discovered good friends and a friendly and still efficient staff ready to do your bidding until the wee hours of the morning.

Tonight, it’s goodbye to Amsterdam because tomorrow, it’s our first day visiting Germany.

Kissing the Blarney Stone

By

Muriel J. Smith

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May 22, 2022

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So we climbed up Blarney Castle to kiss the Blarney Castle. Those clever Irishmen!

For 200 years they’ve been so coyly and sweetly convincing us it’s worth the walk up 100 or so thick, cold, winding concrete steps to get to the top of a run down castle so you can lie down, lean over backwards enough to see the ground 80 feet or so below you, then kiss a hunk of rock sticking out from the outer wall.

That, after walking through lovely gardens, along a long path, and up a few small groups of steps. All this to ensure the Gift of Gab. As if the likes of Jane Frotton and I needed that!

But thanks to our own nearness to the Twin Lights, even thick, cold winding concrete steps aren’t so hard to take.

But there’s so much more to Blarney Castle than the stone with the magic power. There are magnificent gardens that border on both the weird and the eerie.

The Fern Garden, for instance. It’s at the end of a grassy path that’s lined with wild flowers of many colors. All of a sudden, you’re at the edge of a limestone cliff…well … hill, after seeing the Cliffs of Moher….looking down on a waterfall that flows down one side of the hill.

Continuing down the path, you eventually come to a canopy of ferns…more than 80 varieties of them, including one fern that’s said to be the tallest of its kind in all of Ireland.

Then there’s the arboretums, several groups of many varieties of trees, again, among them the largest in all of the island. There are pines, and foxglove, the Ailanthus altissima, more commonly known as the Tree of Heaven which grows entirely too fast, yews, chestnuts, and other trees more than 600 years old. While a lot of the trees are rare and unusual, the Castle garden people add new specimens every year to keep the collection old and new at the same time.

There’s a Water Garden and a rock close, said to be on the site of an ancient Druid settlement. It’s a trail through yew and oak trees that form another canopy overhead, and a water garden with two waterfalls, along with the Wishing Steps. The fable here is….every Irishman has kissed that darn Blarney Stone….that if you walk down the 20 or so steps backward, with your eyes closed, concentrating on a particular wish, it will come true. At the very end, there’s a fascinating natural stone that truly looks like the silhouette of a witch’s head, complete with jutting chin and a crooked nose.

The best of all the gardens, though, is the Poison Garden, even with all its signs not to touch, smell, sample, or brush against any of the plants. Of course it includes the Wolfsbane and Mandrake from Harry Potter fame, but there are also numerous other beautiful plants, including some that were used for medicinal and health purposes…until users found they were more poisonous than healthy.

The garden is on the site of what was probably a Physic Garden, a common garden kept inside the castle walls to grow medical and culinary plans during Medievil times. A lot of the plants grow both in the wild and in gardens, and in actuality it’s really only the misuse of most of them that causes fatalities….the opium poppy, for one, can be used for medicinal purposes but an overdose will kill; both morphine and heroin come from this.

The Cherry Laurel is a pretty shrub with leaves that when handled, can release cyanide, and has the almond smell connected with cyanide. And that rhubarb you enjoy in pie and other desserts? It’s in the Poison Garden as well, since its leaves are toxic, contain oxalic acid that can cause burning in the mouth, nausea, and a few other unpleasant side effects. But the stalks are just fine.

Of course there’s a charming little town outside the castle walls, and a huge gift shop with mountains of Irish wool sweaters, hoodies, scarves, crystal, pottery, china, books, musical instruments, and every little souvenir the enterprising Irish hope will attract the eye.

Relaxing on the Rhine: Cologne Germany

By

Muriel J. Smith

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May 22, 2022

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I wrote this article for the Atlantic Highlands Herald back in 2015 after my terrific cruise on Viking cruise lines with my friend and fellow world traveler Jane Frotton of Atlantic Highlands

It was sometime during the night when the Viking Sun sailed into the Cologne, Germany area, and once again, it was evident that the Viking Cruise ships folks strive for perfection at every turn.

They also believe in precise, on time performances, so actually, the boat first docked in Zons, a fortified wall city from the 1300s, which in actuality is part of Dormagen, a town named after a chemist form the 19th century, where the Bayer company has a business now. It was there where we passengers could disembark and head to sparkly clean Mercedes Benz buses (after all, we are in Germany!) for a half hour bus ride to meet a guide and get ready for a walking tour of Cologne.

You don’t want to miss any of these tours; they’re all included in the price of the trip, and in every case, Viking has arranged for local guides, so you’re certain of having an English speaking person who really knows the area telling and showing you all the things that make it great. Even the slight drizzle (yes, Viking again provided everyone with bright red umbrellas and a bottle of water as they leave the ship!) didn’t cloud the magnificence and diversity of the city center and its cathedral.

Cologne isn’t the prettiest city along the Rhine, but it is Germany’s 4th largest city, a major cultural center, and the home of a University, so you know there are lots of college students and locals blending in with all the tourists. It’s also the site of the Romans’ first settlement, so there are plenty of ancient ruins.

The Gothic cathedral, the largest in northern Europe, is the primary focal point in the center and for very good reason. Aside from the magnificent architecture, the sheer awe that construction began back in the 13th century and continued for another 700 years to completion, the beauty of its twin spires stretching to the sky, it is a cathedral which remained pretty well undamaged during the Second World War Traveling through this part of Europe, as through so many other countries, the ravages and impact of war are horrific reminders we better find some means and ideas pretty quickly on how to get along with each other. It was nice to see the cathedral escaped unscathed.

The Cathedral also has magnificent stained glass windows, but I was more impressed by the windows at Notre Dame of Strasburg, and that’s a story for another day.

PHOTO: Courtesy of Jane Frotton

The bus was right there to bring us back to the ship for lunch, then we had the afternoon to either relax aboard in the lounge or library, or our rooms, or go back into the city for another look around.

While Atlantic Highlands’ Jane Frotton and I weren’t traveling with anyone else, once we met up with Norman and Jean from Scotland and Trudy and Heather from Canada, we became a sextet that was quickly recognizable, a force to be dealt with, and a half dozen travelers who managed to probably be a bit louder, a bit happier, and certainly a bit more outgoing than the others among the 157 aboard.

So it was an easy decision when all made our choices for the afternoon….Jane and Trudy were opting to try out the spa (yes, the ship’s staff made all the arrangements,) Norman and Jean opted to do more visiting around town on their own, and Heather and I decided to take the taxi back into town with the spa-goers and walk around that area, arranging to meet them later.

Cologne is a city divided by the Rhine, and it appears that all of the industrial part is on one side of the river, the shops, tourist attractions, museums, on the other. The thermal bath/spa complex was on the industrial side, so after leaving Jane and Trudy there, and walking a bit, Heather and I decided to take the tramway back across the river and the short walk back to the ship. It turned out to be a terrific choice! Like everything else in Germany, the tram is efficient, on time, and clean. And for about 5 or 6 Euros, it offers a scenic panorama of “Old Father Rhine,” the nickname for their beloved river, as well as the Cathedral city, all in a 15-20 minute ride in the sky. It was just one more very pleasant surprise on a very pleasant trip.

Later on, Heather headed back to introduce the spa-goers to the tram home, and I went up on the sun deck to see how the city looked from there.

Travel to Cobh Ireland

By

Muriel J. Smith

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May 22, 2022

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The Irish treasure their long history over thousands of years and the country is dotted with castles, memorials, remains of castles, grounds where castles once stood grandly ….and legends to remember them all, interspersed with the facts they really know and proudly re-tell.

The Irish take great joy in mixing up fact and fiction for the enjoyment of their guests..us tourists….make no mistake about it…the Irish are great story tellers and in the end, who knows?

Maybe some of the legends really are true. Leprechauns? I’m certain I saw one at the end of the rainbow I spotted near the Guinness Storerooms!

But the Rock of Cashel is real. And so is the charming waterfront town of Cobh, probably the town that most closely resembles Highlands.

The Rock of Cashel is in County Tipperary…it’s a long way to….and is actually an ancient fortress, or the remains of such, that was the home of the kings of Munster centuries ago. They’ve done excavating there and also turned up evidence of burials and church buildings from the 9th century as well as proof it was a matter century for the Christian faith as early as the 12th century.

It’s a long, steep, and slippery in the dampness, walk up a hill from the road to the Rock and only a handful of us decided it was worth delaying an Irish Coffee to make the trek. It truly was well worth it, and yes, made the Irish Coffee taste that much better upon our return!

The castle remains, but we weren’t able to see all of it since a part was closed to visitors while experts continued uncovering the secrets of centuries past. They have found some incredible paintings and sculptures etched in the walls and are in the process of restoring them; the areas not covered by canvas were proof enough there is magnificent ancient artistry to be seen on future trips to Tipperary.

There’s also a cemetery at the top of the hill within the fortress, and stones there date from the 1700s through the 1900s, each telling its own story of life and death. And the view from the top is spectacular, overlooking horse country, open fields, sheep and lambs, and more of those 40 shades of green. Stopping along the countryside for photo ops and inhaling fresh country air, we also met up with a few shepherds, who, recognizing American tourists like the different and the quaint, brought a few of their goats, lambs, dogs, and even peat to smell and feel, to be admired, photographed and petted. It’s wonderful being in a country where the natives really love us.

On to Cobh…pronounced without the H at the end….and another exhibition of how the Irish revel in the good, lament the sad, but cherish them both.

This unique port town stretches from the church on the High Road at the top of the hill, down the hill to the Heritage Center that captures so much of its past, and finally to the base of the hill where most of the villagers live. In between there’s a great little pub called The Quay, still high on the hill and overlooking the Atlantic.

But the Heritage Center is the biggest story in this charming little town once known as Queenstown. Since it’s a port, Cobh has also been the site of so many comings and goings of the Irish and others, and it’s depicted in all its harsh reality in one of the finest museums or cultural centers I’ve ever visited. There are the stories of the Coffin Ships, the cheapest way for Irish immigrants to escape the Great Famine and those others in the highlands escaping the great Highland Clearances. The ships were jammed packed with fearful Irish looking for a better life, disease-ridden, with little food and water, and in the end, leading to a mid-19th century typhus epidemic, all perfectly within the law at the time, but leading to the deaths of one out of every three passengers. The moving exhibits, audio and visual effects in the museum bring tears to your eyes but are ever mindful of what many of our ancestors went through to get to Canada or America.

There are exhibits of the convict ships that left Cobh for Australia in 1801, when sending prisoners to that distant country was the norm.

And not too far off Cobh, in Cork Harbor, is where the Lusitania was sunk leading to our entry into World War I, and the museum has horrific exhibits of that bombing and the loss of nearly 1200 lives.

On the bright side, there’s a monument in the museum to Annie Moore and her two brothers; Annie was the first emigrant to be processed at Ellis Island, and you can see a similar monument to her on this side of the pond at that Island.

But Cobh was also the last port of call for the ill-fated Titanic, and that experience is the primary make-up of the museum.

Between movies, newspapers, the relative recent history of the ship, and for us on this trip, a visit to the Titanic Quarter in Belfast, so many of the details and stories of the Titanic are well known. But at Cobh, instead of getting a ticket into the museum, you are handed a “Passenger Contract Ticket” for a specific passenger on the Titanic.

Because I was handed the contract ticket for Jeremiah Burke, I was eager to learn more about this young man who was provided with steerage passage from Queenstown to New York but did not survive. A 19-year-old teenager, Burke was traveling with a cousin from his farm life, half a dozen siblings and parents in County Cork to live with relatives in Massachusetts; his mother gave him a small bottle filled with Holy Water for his trip.

More than a year after the ship sunk, that bottle washed up not far from Burke’s home in Ireland, with a note inside, both of which were identified by his mother as coming from her son. The note said simply, “13/4/1912 from Titanic Goodbye, all. Burke of Glanmire, Co. Queenstown.” The note and bottle are part of the Heritage Center’s exhibit.

After the Center visit, we once again boarded the bus to continue our journey to Cork, and checked in to the Imperial Hotel, another magnificent hotel right in the heart of town, with huge comfortable beds, fluffy soft duvets, even heated floors in the tile bathrooms….

But that’s another story!

A Trip Down Memory Lane

By

Muriel J. Smith

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May 22, 2022

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I published this a couple of years ago for the Atlantic Highlands Herald, but it was written from a lifetime of love and laughter, family and faith

Taking the opportunity to ride from Monmouth County to Columbia South Carolina as my daughter Tracie took my grandson Angus back to the University of South Carolina, I knew would mean a fun, exciting yet relaxing trip and an opportunity to spend some quality time with my youngest daughter.

With Angus driving his own car down, and Chris his dad not able to get the time off work to make the trip last week, it was necessary for Tracie to drive the pick-up to transport all the accoutrements, clothes and furnishings which apparently are now necessary when a young man is off to for his second year at college.

Keeping her company in the truck for the ten to 11 hour drive each way, and armed with junk food and drinks, games, puzzles, and novels to listen to, we were looking forward to the drive, stopping only for fuel or emergencies, and taking in the beauty of western Virginia, a far prettier way of making the trip than the busy, heavily trafficked 1-95.

What I didn’t realize was that this very wonderful, unforgettable trip, would in itself conjure up memories of three different time periods in my life, memories of happy times, exciting times, and, in this trip, hopes and dreams for the future of another generation.

It all started as we neared the Delaware Memorial Bridge and Tracie told me to search through the bag of treasures she had brought and find the package marked #1.

My eyes filled with tears as suddenly visions of 50 years and more ago flashed through my mind. I could suddenly see our station wagon, four kids sitting in the back …no seatbelts, of course….and a rag top trailer hitched on to the rear.

That rag top magically transformed into a huge, (it seemed that way at the time!) double-sided tent where we six spent so many nights camping under the stars in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, the White Mountains of New Hampshire, the desert around White Sands, New Mexico, the shores of the Atlantic through so many states as far south as Florida. In another year, the rag top was replaced with a large canvas tent, also with dual sides to make plenty of room for six sleeping bags at every campsite.

They were wonderful memories, and those once little kids still talk about them today.

But every trip started with little numbered gifts. I’d wrap little mementoes for each of them, a coloring book, a comic book, a game, a toy. As we entered a state, I’d dole their gifts out so each could read the message on top: “open after you count five green cars and two trucks,” or “open after you see a dog in a car, or a diner on the side of the road…” Then for the next minutes, or sometimes half hour or more, the kids were cheerily calling out the things they had to find, then joyously opening the gifts and settling back to quietly enjoy them.

Wow, I thought. Tracie was going to have me count trucks, or cars, or wave to people in cars. She was treating me to what I knew my children loved when they were small.

I was partially right. It the difference came in the things I had to know before I could open my gift! As I read my first direction, I knew it would be a fun trip, and a bit of challenge for my mind. The message read: “Open when you can name the man who settled Delaware in 1638!” Come on, Tracie! I know it was one of the 13 original colonies, I know the colony was name for Lord De LaWarr, the first governor of the Virginia Company, but I don’t know any other names!

With a few hints, (Tracie had already done the research!) the information it was first settled by Swedes, and the first letter of the settler’s last name….M…I finally got it. Peter Minuit! The answer gave me the right to enjoy the package of Baby Ruth candy Bars neatly wrapped.

Maryland was easier. There are enough signs along the roadside to keep me informed that Larry Hogan was the state’s first Governor. A Republican. I answered that with ease and opened a LED cover lite she knew I wanted.

Virginia, one of my favorite states….eight different Presidents were born there… was the easiest. Or so it seemed. Name the state tree. Easy…the dogwood, it’s on their logo. The State Bird. Easy again, the Cardinal, again on every Virginia logo, sitting on a branch of the Dogwood tree. But the state flower? It threw me. I guessed all the spring blooms, determined with a hint from Tracie, it wasn’t a bulb flower, and finally accidentally hit on Dogwood, the right answer. Why would the tree and the flower be the same?

North Carolina caused a bit of controversy. Name all the US Presidents who came from North Carolina. Couldn’t think of one, let alone ‘all.” Narrowed it down with some hints from the all-knowing Tracie, and learned that Martin Van Buren, who I knew was the first President to be born an American citizen rather than a British subject, and James Polk, who I only knew was the 11th president, were both Tarheels by birth. The controversy came over Andrew Jackson, whom I was positive was from Tennessee…I’ve been to the Hermitage….but learned he wasn’t. The controversy is between the two Carolinas…he was born right on the border region and both states claim him. Research showed me that he himself claimed South Carolina as his birthplace.

I had a ‘gimmee’ if we had passed South of the Border, but since we since we had taken 81, I got to open a great little folding candle lighter without having to try to be smart.

But South Carolina was another tough one. “In 1954, Strom Thurmond was elected as a US Senator. What was so special about this particular election?” Really Tracie? I had just graduated from high school in 1954, I knew Thurmond was from South Carolina, and I knew he was a Democrat…isn’t that enough? What I didn’t know, but Tracie informed me, is in that election he became the only person elected to the Senate on a write-in ballot. And he did it with 63 per cent of the vote!

Even if I didn’t know it, my reward for opening the package was the best. A coin, similar to my collection of challenge coins I wear on neck chains; this new one recalls the honor, courage and commitment of a Naval officer or sailor.

The gifts had me come full circle. The times when we were a young family and enjoyed all our camping trips, the time in the 1980s when Tracie herself graduated from the University of South Carolina and was commissioned by the former Commandant of the Marine Corps, Alfred M. Gray, as her parents stood so proudly (and tearfully) at her side. And now, the 21st century, and a reminder I was once again in South Carolina, this time with my youngest grandson, Angus, who, in three more years, will be commissioned at the same university where his mom was commissioned and carry on the Naval tradition of both his parents.

They all make me so proud.

Ireland | Galway | Ashford Castle & Scones

By

Muriel J. Smith

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May 22, 2022

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So Galway was the last big city we visited on this wonderful trip to Ireland with a terrific group of folks from OLPH and St. Agnes parish as well as a few other parishes where Msgr. Salemi has served as pastor.

Like all of Ireland, it’s filled with happy, musical, smiling Irishmen who love Americans, want to entertain us and are eager to hear all about us. Well, not exactly all about us, but when we said we came from New Jersey there was an entirely new and inquisitive air about them.

Sensing they wanted to hear more about the Garden State, I was eager to share all the facts about our Revolutionary War history, our beautiful hills that go down to the sea similar to Ireland, our wonderful beaches, the Statue of Liberty which is really within our borders, our boardwalks…you know, all the things that make New Jersey great.

They weren’t interested. What they wanted to know was…..”The Sopranos! Have you been to the restaurant? Do you see them? Do you know them?” One very friendly gentleman in one of the pubs proudly told me it’s on his bucket list to sit all the places in the Sopranos serial!

But back to Galway. As in every other town, Peter from Nuovo Tours, who arranges all of the Salemi trips, had us booked into a wonderful, four star hotel right in the heart of the city, making it easy to take a short walk to quaint shops, museums or beautiful churches to say nothing of all the pubs.

The Hotel Meyrick is elegant yet comfortable, offering terrific breakfasts with lots of fresh fruit, sensational views of the park across the street…that’s Kennedy Park, by the way… and the shops and pubs surrounding it, and including a rather nice pub of its own on the first floor, with huge windows for people-watching. While there, we took a short ride to Ashford Castle, and what an experience that was!

Ashford Castle was originally built in the 1200s, and “modernized” in the mid-1800s. It’s a magnificent, sprawling castle elegantly situated on 26,000 acres of lush green lawns, wonderful woodlands, and lots of flowers … lots of flowers … with so many in bloom while we were there, but also budding with even more that would keep the grounds colorful for yet another season.

The Castle itself is now a hotel and we strolled across the bridge over the river where anglers were knee deep and fly fishing (but still had the time for a friendly wave) to go through the public rooms. Elegance in chandeliers, paintings, furniture, draperies and floor coverings. It was so easy to see why this was the setting for The Quiet Man during the John Wayne/Maureen O’Hara era.

Rather than dine in the hotel, we opted for Tea in the adjacent lodge, and here again, we were in for another treat! Seated in sumptuous rooms, surrounded by huge oil paintings, fine furnishings, and French doors opening out to the tranquil setting of trees and flowers, we were served tea and scones with strawberry preserves and clotted cream. Hey, if that isn’t your normal afternoon refreshment, try it in Ireland! It’s a step back in time and a delicious treat!

Scones, by the way, are served all over in Ireland in all kinds of cafes, hotels and restaurants, and though they’re basically baked flour and water, they taste differently every time; some have raisins, some don’t, some even had chocolate chips. All were great. But served with clotted cream and preserves made then very special. (Though, that isn’t to say they’re not sensational warm with some rich Irish butter, too!)

Because we had a talkative, knowledgeable and really enjoyable tour guide the entire trip, we also learned a lot about the everyday life in Ireland. Folks without jobs can go on Solus…unemployment….but it’s required that they work one or two days a week in community service in order to get the assistance. Everyone has health care, including two dental visits a year and a no cost tooth filling…only one…a year.

Pensions are awarded at age 65 and include a medical card, a bus and train pass, telephone, and even a fuel allowance in the winter. Pensioners also get butter and beef vouchers to ensure they eat well. School age youngsters all wear uniforms, and both shoes and uniforms are provided them free of charge. Primary school is for 5 to 12 year olds, secondary for 12 to 18 year olds, and…oh, yes, university education is also offered at no charge!

There was so much more we saw and did in way too short a time on this beautiful island…the Ring of Kerry, the Wild Atlantic Coast, Dingle Bay, the Killarney National Park which stretches for miles, Connemara, known for its marble of all shades, white, green black, and more shades of each. It’s a beautiful country, with happy people, lots of music, great Jameson’s, Guinness, and even Shandies…that’s lemon soda and beer, and don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.

And the Irish are always ready and eager to welcome you for a visit!

I Love to Travel: Cross Country by Train

By

Muriel J. Smith

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May 22, 2022

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Three Amtrak trains … about four and a half days … and a cost of under $300 if you don’t mind coach seating, or about $800 if you want a private roomette … will get you a leisurely and enjoyable trip from New Jersey to Sacramento, California.

Double it, throw in an overnight in California’s capital, and you can get there and back in ten days!

And during that ten days, you get to see up close and personal, just how incredible the United States of America truly is. You get to travel from sea level to 10,000 feet without stepping off the train … cross the Continental Divide through a six-mile-long rail tunnel … go through 15 states and Washington, D.C, albeit some in the dark of night … and cross both the Missouri and Mississippi rivers.

All the while, you have the chance to meet fascinating folks, enjoy terrific food, learn some history and important facts of many cities and towns along the way and spend time in each of the nation’s four-time zones.

That’s what I opted to do earlier this month to quench my thirst to see the Rocky Mountains in the winter.

At the start, I didn’t realize I’d be mesmerized by the Sierra Nevada as well, captivated by the more than 30 tunnels wrapping around the mountains that the trains pass through, and in awe of the magnificence and diversity of America.

It’s not that I haven’t seen a lot of it before. During ten years of living in an RV around the turn of the century when home literally was where we parked it, I’ve already been to each of these states, though in those days and that mode of transportation, we opted for Southern states in the winter.

Still, seeing it from a comfortable seat by picture windows that went up to and covered part of the roof of the train’s lounge car certainly beats even the comfort and ease of viewing it all at road height through RV windows, many times on interstate highways.

The route from Metro Park to Washington, DC is familiar to anyone who has taken Acela, or any of the north-east corridor trains to the nation’s capital.

It’s a quick three hours or so west through Trenton and beyond, Philadelphia, Delaware, and Union Station, which is a great place to spend a couple of hours if you like lots of shops, a variety of food, and spectacular views of the Capitol without ever leaving the building.

It’s probably one of the best of all the Amtrak stations, given the amenities offered. By contrast, while the Great Hall in Chicago’s Union Station is a magnificent study in architecture, it is totally devoid of any shops, food, or attractions, though there is a food court and private lounges available at no cost, for first class passengers on overnight trips, or even coach passengers, for a $20 fee.

The other option for New Jerseyans is to take the train to New York, board another train to Washington, and you still meet up with the Capitol Limited, since it’s a once a day departure. I opted for the Washington trip since I like the convenience of Metro Park and the comfort of Washington’s Union State compared to New York’s Penn Station.

Photo: Interior of Union Station

Taking the Washington-bound train scheduled for the time outlined by Amtrak, it’s a three hour wait from the time you arrive in Washington until the Capitol Limited leaves for Chicago in the late afternoon. Certainly enough time to pop next door to the station and visit the Post Office Museum, one of the Smithsonian’s magnificent buildings tracing our nation’s history. Or visit some famous name stores, have a snack, or simply enjoy watching other passengers in either the train departure area or the main section of the beautifully restored historic building.

For whatever reason, the Limited left 42 minutes late, with conductors profuse with apologies and explaining we were waiting for another train to clear the track. A walking tour of the overnight train led me to see the dining car was actually half the lounge car, so it was a short walk from enjoying a pre-dinner cocktail to a full three course meal.

Opting for coach seating for this portion of the trip, I also found the seats are spacious, offering lots of leg room, leg rests that go up and seat backs that go back, ensuring a decent night’s sleep even for those of us who did not bring blankets along. (Jackets do well as blankets in a pinch!)

There’s no difference in menus or seating between coach and roomette passengers; seating for all opting for dinner is at tables for four, so you’re sure to meet other travelers. The menu offers five choices for dinner, always including chicken, beef, vegetarian and a rice or pasta, along with salads and desserts. Entrees range from $18 or so to $40.00 for a steak and seafood special, with most in the $23 range. (They’re included in roomette travelers’ rate, including dessert) Those not wanting to eat in the dining car have the option of bringing edibles of their own, or visiting the lower level of the lounge car for snacks, beverages, and light meals they can bring back to their coach seats.

Sitting with a couple from Scotland who moved permanently from the British Isles to West Virginia last year and were now enroute to their condo in Hawaii for the rest of the winter, we enjoyed great conversations that ranged from the Peacock Throne which became a spoil of a war between India and Iran in the 15th century to sailing on the North Sea, something I had done with those terrific Sea Cadets from NWS Earle a few years ago … But that’s another story.

Viking | Marksburg Castle

By

Muriel J. Smith

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May 22, 2022

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The Viking Sun departed the pier at Cologne just after midnight, but not before the Viking folks brought a spectacular duo aboard for an incredible evening of entertainment in the ship’s lounge. You don’t have to be a classical music enthusiast to appreciate the excellence of Vivaldi, Gounod and Mozart played and sung by a very talented violinist and singer, accompanied by a guitarist equally talented in music.

The musical interlude following another spectacular dinner under the capable hands of Chef Matthias, who frequently came out of the galley so intent was he….as his boss, Igor, as well, to please. In my constant hunt for really good beef to be served rare…or “dead and warm, as I usually ask for it…” I learned that in Europe, and apparently many American kitchens as well, the term for beef the way I like it is “blue.” Don’t know why blue instead of bloody red, but c’est la vie. Matthias rose to the occasion once we established the correct meaning, and life continues to be spectacular.

Also impressive was the evening all interested guests were invited to tour the galley, a surprise in itself but almost mind boggling when they allowed us into the galley right after dinner, when I would think it would be at its messiest. Never fear. The galleys aboard Viking ships are spotless, orderly, efficient, and hot as heck from all the stoves and hot water in use.

By morning on the fourth day, we were in Koblenz, Germany, a name that means confluence since that’s where the Moselle River meets the Rhine. On deck was a scheduled trip to visit Marksburg Castle in the nearby town of Braubach. Viking cautioned the trip included rugged walking over 2,000 year old rock steps and a hike up a steep hill before entering a sandy-colored fortification built at the very top about 700 years ago, and remarkably, never taken over by enemies any time since.

Before boarding the bus Viking had waiting for our trip to the castle, we learned something else about this very efficient company. Wanting to offer as much of the spectacular scenery and history along the Rhine that it could, Viking opted to let the passengers off for the Castle tour, while the boat continued to another pier, ready to receive us once again to continue the cruise along what has to be the most beautifully scenic part of the entire Rhine River.

Efficiency in time and convenience.

Trudy and Heather, that stalwart couple from Canada, and I opted for that strenuous hike to the castle, (ok, I had to stop and rest twice alone the way but it was worth it!)

It was fascinating.

The castle tour by yet another knowledgeable local representative, included a walk through the gardens that featured the herbs and other plants used in the middle ages, then inside to the rooms on several levels of more of those cobbled steps to the very top. Since all castles were fortifications, there were lots of cannon and apertures at precise locations for their effectiveness, but also the castle’s chapel with its Madonna paintings on the walls, the kitchen with its massive hearth and ice box, the dining room complete with the “necessary room” adjacent, and large rooms with more interesting displays.

One room had an array of armor and a knowledgeable person to explain how improved changes in coats of armor had emerged over centuries; another room had some of the tortures in popular use during the Middle Ages, tortures that make our present day executions and life imprisonments look weak. After a few minutes admiring the view from the top, a chance to pick up a souvenir or two or grab an ice cream, it was back down to the bus, back to the boat, and on to a spectacular part of the Rhine.

It was one of those days where you couldn’t ask for the weather to be any better, so almost all of the passengers gathered on chairs on the sundeck for a two hour commentary by the program director as the Viking Sun passed small villages, more castles, wonderful vineyards growing horizontally on the sides of small mountains, and simply perfect scenery all around.

There’s much talk about Lorelei, a temptress on the Rhine, and the cause of the deaths of so many Sailors over the centuries.

In actuality, Lorelei is a rock formation, a huge hunk of earth that juts out into the Rhine, creating what is the most narrow and apparently the deepest part of the river. It’s tough for captains to navigate their craft through this winding section of the river, and any seamen’s deaths over the years most likely were caused by navigation troubles rather than a haunting melody from an invisible temptress luring sailors astray.

Regardless, seamen are always filled with legends and mysterious stories and this one is as terrific as most.

Besides, sitting on a sundeck, with Viking staff happily quenching your thirst serving whatever beverages you request, watching the world glide by while you soak in both breathless natural beauty and ancient ruins and architecture is an adventure never to be forgotten.

But still Viking offered more.

Late in the afternoon there was a demonstration in the lounge on how to create Rudesheim coffee, a blend of coffee, brandy, sugar, whipped cream and chocolate, both the brandy, Asbach, and the chocolate, also named Asbach for the company founder Hugo Asbach, originating in this area. Heather, our Canadian friend, was invited to show her talent in creating the coffee, and while we were all served cups of the delicious beverage in the unique cups which are traditional, Heather was invited to keep hers as thanks for her part in the demonstration.

Cocktails, dinner, dancing and music, and at midnight, the Viking was off again.

Next stop: Heidelberg

Relaxing on the Rhine | Breisach

By

Muriel J. Smith

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May 22, 2022

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We were up and had breakfast before the Viking Sun docked at Breisbach, Germany, and it was enjoyable up on the sun deck watching the little villages glide by, youngsters along the water front playing in the water or waving to us as we passed.

It was also an area where there were dozens of mute swans, the beautiful white bird with their graceful necks and more graceful gliding through the water without a care. It was our last full day aboard the Viking Sun, and many of us wanted to exchange e-mails, take group photos, and simply talk about all the good times we had and the new friends we met.

For a change, the pace was even more leisurely since there were no land tours planned for the morning, and a four hour bus tour…more of those comfortable Mercedes Benz varieties through the Black Forest in the afternoon.

The Black Forest was surprising in that it is neither black nor a forest. At one time it was both, the darkness caused by the huge mass of trees that grew there. But over the centuries, the area has been logged for shipbuilding and other uses, land has been cleared to make agricultural use of the rich fertile soil, and the result is still many tall pines, some birch, and plenty of open fields and fruit, vegetable and flower gardens.

The Black Forest covers many towns, a few cities, lots of villages, and includes many lakes and rivers, making it one of the most popular tourist areas of Germany. It seems to offer something to everyone, from boating, kayaking, swimming and fishing, to camping, hiking, cycling, upscale hotels and gorgeous scenery all around.

There are few of the original Black Forest style homes remaining, but there is so much charm and beauty in other areas they are hardly missed. Some of the overlooks have vistas over lush valleys, great forests and higher mountains, some just let you enjoy the sparkling cleanliness of the small villages.

We were greeted by our guide for this tour…as in all Viking Sun tours, guides for the land excursions were always local, always knowledgeable, and always very proud of their own special part of the world. Here, the guides were dressed in the native garb, girls in flowing skirts, weskits, white blouses, and wearing the bollens that pretty well told their life history before they could talk!

As in many parts of Germany, there are legends galore, great stories of how something came about, what something means, or how it got there. Such is the case with the bollen. Not a particularly attractive headpiece, it is worn with huge pompoms on top…if the pompoms are a bright red, then girl beneath them is single.

Allegedly, she trades them in for equally large, but black, pompoms after she is married.

This is also the land of the cuckoo clock, glassmaking, and of course, the Black Forest Cake, so the tour included visits to see each of these three local wonders.

Cuckoo clocks have been around for 300 years or so, and were originally made by farmers as a means of supplementing his income and passing the time.

At the clockmaker’s, we got to see a number of varieties of the clocks, all manner of figurines dancing, cavorting and marking time on every quarter hour.

Outside, the huge clock on the building included four couples who came out and danced around every half hour. The clockmaker explained that it’s the size and weight of the weights that keep the clocks precise, and the larger the weight, the less frequently the clocks need to be wound.

Engineering specialists that the Germans are, there were also cuckoo clocks operating with solar power, a mix of the old with the new that was fascinating.

Because of potash mining in the Forest, glassmaking has also been a source of employment and income for centuries, and the trip included watching a glassmaker blowing some intricate vases and bottles.

Of course there was also a demonstration on building a black forest cake from an already made sponge cake, though chocolate cake could also be used.

The recipe includes splitting the cake into three layers, saturating the bottom layer with kirsch or any cherry liquor, smearing the whole layer with cherry preserves and another inch or so of whipped cream; topping it with a second layer and more of the cream and preserves routine, followed by a top layer where halved cherries were added to the mix and the entire cake covered with more whipped cream than anyone should whip up in a day.

Final touches are shredded chocolate shavings on top, a bit more whipped cream to make little mounds for more cherries to sit on, and voila! 10,000 calories in a single bite!

Back aboard the Viking Sun, we were all ready for a memorable farewell toast with the Captain and his crew, a sumptuous dinner which, if possible, was even better than the nights before, and some last drinks, music and camaraderie in the lounge before calling it a night for an early rise on the last day.

Veni Vidi Scripto

Veni Vidi Scripto

Veni Vidi Scripto

Veni Vidi Scripto

Relaxing on the Rhine

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Viking | Marksburg Castle

Relaxing on the Rhine | Breisach

Veni Vidi Scripto

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