On 2024-09-30 14:19, -hh wrote:
> On 9/30/24 2:00 PM, Tom Elam wrote:
>> On 9/6/2024 1:07 PM, -hh wrote:
>>> On 9/6/24 11:12 AM, Tom Elam wrote:
>>>> On 9/1/2024 10:27 AM, -hh wrote:
>>>>> On 8/31/24 5:13 PM, Tom Elam wrote:
>>>>>> On 8/30/2024 9:38 AM, -hh wrote:
>>>>>>> On 8/30/24 9:15 AM, Tom Elam wrote:
>>>>>>>> To sum it up, fun but not as much as we thought it might be.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> That happens.  On our own last trans-Atlantic outing, we both
>>>>>>> caught some sort of not-CoVid bug around ten days in, which was
>>>>>>> unpleasant.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Arriving Paris on time we elected to take a taxi to the hotel.
>>>>>>>> Given it was 4 of us the taxi was not that much more than the
>>>>>>>> train/Metro and a lot less hassle. The hotel transfer was on us
>>>>>>>> as we arrived several days before the Viking tour started.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Price break on four makes it worth doing AFAIC, even before
>>>>>>> considering your later comment about your travel companion's
>>>>>>> lower physical shape.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Took our friends to see some museums, the tower level 3, other
>>>>>>>> spots, and had some incredible meals. However, the friends are
>>>>>>>> not in the best physical shape and that limited our options. We
>>>>>>>> traveled by Metro, Uber, taxi and RATP. They were fascinated by
>>>>>>>> the Notre Dame crypt, Montmarte and Musee D'Orsay.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I've really enjoyed the Orsay; its also a nice place to plan
>>>>>>> taking a lunch break, in the cafe that's "inside" of the clock face.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> The tower experience was slightly compromised by rain and poor
>>>>>>>> visibility, but at that point we had no other options for
>>>>>>>> another day. The just-concluded Olympic games had a few streets
>>>>>>>> closed and the Champ de Mars still occupied by venues and
>>>>>>>> blocked off.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Leaving Paris by Viking bus via the Luxembourg American cemetery
>>>>>>>> we arrived the Viking ship at Trier. Spent a week+ on board,
>>>>>>>> visited some Moselle/Rhine River towns in Germany and France. A
>>>>>>>> WWII buff, I was amazed the the Allies ever made it across the
>>>>>>>> part of Moselle valley we saw.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I learned awhile back that my father did one of those Mosel
>>>>>>> crossings, somewhat proximate to the town of Zell, if I recall
>>>>>>> correctly.  I understand that the river looks somewhat different
>>>>>>> today, as the dam system for ship navigation has changed over the
>>>>>>> decades (less current; possibly slightly higher average water
>>>>>>> levels too).
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Viking's U.S. marketing portrays the company's river cruises as
>>>>>>>> exceptional. In our experience with prior European river cruises
>>>>>>>> they are not. The ship needed some cosmetic refurb, on day 1 a
>>>>>>>> "technical issue" delay caused us to miss our first stop, and
>>>>>>>> the food and crew service was very good, but not great. We also
>>>>>>>> had a few tour guides that did not speak great English. My wife
>>>>>>>> had to assist one with translating the excellent French of a
>>>>>>>> local vineyard owner.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I don't recall the details why we skipped using Viking in EU, but
>>>>>>> we've had good success with Uniworld and AMA Waterways.  One
>>>>>>> trade- off for comparing these two is that Uniworld had free DIY
>>>>>>> laundry onboard (helps lighten the bags) but AMA had better wines
>>>>>>> & wine stewards at dinner.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> On the other hand we had a medical emergency that led to an
>>>>>>>> unplanned stop. It was handled well and did not cause any issues
>>>>>>>> for the schedule.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Arriving Basel we did the ship's included city tour that was
>>>>>>>> very well done. That afternoon we departed for Zurich, toured
>>>>>>>> that city center for a day and a half by tram with a lake boat
>>>>>>>> ride thrown in, and had a great meal on the last evening. Jolly
>>>>>>>> good fun.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> There's a traditional swiss restaurant that I'd like to get back
>>>>>>> to in Zurich, IIRC, not far from the Fraümunster: a good spot for
>>>>>>> Rösti.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Had a bit of a tram experience. The hotel was a few miles west
>>>>>>>> of the lake and city center. Departing the hotel on line 4 for
>>>>>>>> our dinner the tram stopped after about 10 minutes and it was
>>>>>>>> announced that there had been an accident ahead involving a tram
>>>>>>>> and car. Line 4 was being delayed and diverted. Almost all the
>>>>>>>> passengers left the tram. Two young locals offered to show us
>>>>>>>> how to get to our destination. We followed their instructions
>>>>>>>> and arrived via a different route with minimal delay. Could have
>>>>>>>> figured that out ourselves but their assistance was very helpful.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Things like that happen.  Fortunately, you weren't time-stressed
>>>>>>> such as heading to the airport for a departure flight.  Have had
>>>>>>> that happen with a train issue in Belgium.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Flights back through Philly were both on time. Got to experience
>>>>>>>> the 787 for the first time too.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> IIRC, the 787's Polaris is a bit more roomy than on their 757
>>>>>>> version.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Next year? I'm voting for 2 weeks in southern/western France via
>>>>>>>> rental car. The wife has veto power but there is a still lot we
>>>>>>>> have not seen. And Hugh, I checked with National. My age is not
>>>>>>>> an issue for them.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Been meaning to get around to a "drive around" in FR as well:
>>>>>>> several different directions though (Normandy, Mont-Saint-Miche,
>>>>>>> Bordeaux, Chateaus, etc).
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Plus one probably unknown to Americans sight is the city of
>>>>>>> Bourges, as there's a huge cathedral there that gets compared to
>>>>>>> Notre Dame (but without crowds), plus an evening walk through its
>>>>>>> old timbered houses section is nice: tastefully lit.  A single
>>>>>>> overnight is adequate; figure it as 3.5+hrs (175mi) drive due
>>>>>>> south of Paris.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> And on the rental car, the important thing here is that the risk
>>>>>>> of age restrictions is now on your checklist to verify in
>>>>>>> advance, instead of getting blindsided at the last minute by it.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> -hh
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> We ate in that same D'Orsey restaurant. Much nicer than the small
>>>>>> snack bar on the ground floor.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I think the onboard AMA experience is every bit as good as Viking.
>>>>>> But their excursions are better and the cabins a bit larger. My
>>>>>> take is that Viking has become so big that with multiple ships in
>>>>>> a port as seemed to happen frequently they have issues with
>>>>>> smaller places some of the AMA excursions we liked. Example - the
>>>>>> small music museum at Rudesheim. I also remember that the guides
>>>>>> were better and we had more free time in port.
>>>>>
>>>>> FWIW, some of this also depends on which river you're on, as the
>>>>> ships on the Rhine have grown in size which limits where they can
>>>>> dock.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>> I just today watched a YouTube on touring France that may change
>>>>>> my mind a bit about next year. https://www.youtube.com/watch?
>>>>>> v=d8RdNGT1jz8
>>>>>
>>>>> [rearraging]
>>>>>
>>>>>  > We have done 2 weeks in Normandy/Brittany and about the same in
>>>>> Paris
>>>>>  > plus 2 trips that took us to the south coast. Time to branch out.
>>>>>  > Massif Central, Loire Valley and Alsace are high on my list.
>>>>>
>>>>> Yes, there's a huge number of regions in France that US tourists
>>>>> are utterly unaware of.  There's some pretty wild scenery/canyons
>>>>> someplace that I can't recall at the moment.  I think I could
>>>>> easily do 5-6 trips, not too much unlike we've already done in
>>>>> Germany.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>> Taking the TGV to a city then renting the car if you need it could
>>>>>> be a lot of fun, even if a bit more expensive. Thoughts?
>>>>>
>>>>> We used the TGV to go from Paris (Gare de l’Est) to Colmar/
>>>>> Strasbourg (near the Rhine) in 2022:  it was straightforward,
>>>>> pretty easy, and quite fast city to city:  Strasbourg's just 1:45.
>>>>> I've also used the Brussels to Paris "Thales" express too; IIRC,
>>>>> its just ~90 minutes or so as well.
>>>>>
>>>>> For Colmar, the train station's not super-central, so it was an
>>>>> easy 4-5 block walk pulling our bags.  Once there, there was one
>>>>> day where it would have been good to have had a car, but it was
>>>>> also good to not have to worry about parking a car the rest of the
>>>>> time. The 'car day' was a trip out of Colmar to an outlying village
>>>>> of Eguisheim, which is known for the Church of Saint Peter and
>>>>> Saint Paul (a 13C chapel) and several Alsatian wine producers, as
>>>>> the shuttlebus the city offered was over capacity & ran too
>>>>> infrequently.  But it is just as well though, as many of the
>>>>> Eguisheim visitors were loading up their cars with cases of wines
>>>>> to drive home; carting away a lot isn't really an option when flying.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> -hh
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> You should have gone to this gem too: https://riquewihr.fr/fr/ or
>>>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riquewihr
>>>>
>>>> Just 7 miles east of Colmar. Very small and great wines. I just
>>>> ordered a case of Riesling from a small winery we know there.
>>>> Shipping was a lot more than the wine!
>>>
>>> Riquewihr is similar and was the either/or choice, as we also visited
>>> Srasbourg too.
>>>
>>> There's a lot of such small towns w/wineries in the Alsace region; I
>>> think we have a Karen Brown guidebook which has a couple of self-
>>> driving routes that's on the "to do" list .. my basic conclusion is
>>> that if one wants to get to such small villages, it is better done
>>> with a rental car than by mass transit as we had done.
>>>
>>>
>>> -hh
>>>
>>>
>>
>> The case arrived Saturday. It was shipped by a local wine merchant.
>> I'm guessing the vineyard/store owner just put the case together and
>> paid a friend who does this more often to send it via FedEx. It was
>> clearly labeled as wine, but I did not get an itemized receipt.
>>
>> That shop's Riesling is incredible. Smooth and with a pleasing mineral
>> finish. Great with seafood.
>>
>
> There's a lot of quite pleasant Rieslings out there.  Because they're
> also a young wine, they're rarely expensive (often "close to downright
> cheap") until you start to look for Spatlese & Auslese variants.
>
> FYI, for a dessert Riesling, instead an Eiswein, consider trying the
> often obscure and slightly less super-sweet Beerenauslese.  Some folks
> find the Eiswein to be too sweet, so this a good alternative, plus
> they're less expensive from the same vintner.  Can be hard to find in
> the USA, though.
On the subject of dessert wines, if you haven't had the opportunity yet,
go mad and buy a bottle of Chateau D'Yquem some time. I've had the
chance to enjoy it two or three times in my life and there is a bottle
in my refrigerator waiting for the right occasion to enjoy it again.

Very sweet, but also amazingly complex.