Cologne, Germany
Copyright © 2025
by Ralph F. Couey
Images and written content
We gave in to our itchy feet syndrome and decided to go to Europe. We were intrigued by the possibilities of a river cruise, and scheduled a Rhine River cruise starting early November. Of course, we mixed in a side trip to Virginia to spend time with our son's family, but also to soften the blow of traveling across 10 time zones in one day.
We enjoyed the two weeks in Virginia, and yeah, it was cold. We got to watch Ian play a few games of tackle football, as well as NFL Flag. He's so much fun to watch!
We boarded our flight at Dulles on November 3 and did the 7-hour transit to Amsterdam. When we arrived, Viking representatives met us outside of immigration and walked us to our bus. We drove across Amsterdam for about an hour, arriving at the place where the ship was docked. While we traveled I took time to look at the city. Most of what I saw reflected a gray, grim, industrial look. The apartment blocks were sad, many deteriorated and as residences go, pretty sad.
We boarded the ship and our luggage was taken by the crew. We were early, so we had to wait in the lounge for awhile until our cabin was ready. Once we were moved in, we went into Amsterdam, the part called "Old Town" and walked through the area.
Much of the original character of the city is preserved here. Some buildings date back to the late 1700's, The section is now a hotbed of bars and restaurants with some boutiques mixed in, obviously a place for the young and young-at-heart.
There were still some vibrant fall colors around even given the lateness of the season.
We went by the house where Anne Frank lived, and was betrayed by a neighbor, a sobering reminder of a dark time.
Cheryl stopped at a place to indulge in some of the famous Amsterdam Pancakes, which we didn't even realize was a thing.
Being a diabetic made these verboten to me, but Cheryl assured me they were gooey delicious!
After logging a solid 4.5 mile trek, we returned to the ship for what we in the Navy would have called a Pre-Sail Brief. The staff gave us a preview of what would happen over the following seven days, as well as briefing us on the safety rules, including a warning not to lean out of our cabin windows and lick the sides of the canal locks as we passed through.
Hmmm.....
We met the Captain, the Hotel Manager, the Head Chef, and our cruise director, an absolutely charming young man named Gavin. Originally from England, he lives in Southern California. He was a ball of laughs and a ton of fun.
The biggest difference between this river cruise and the big boat trips we had previously been on was eating. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner were rigidly scheduled, and outside those times, the only option for food was bar peanuts. Our first meal aboard was...underwhelming. Possibly the worst Reuben sandwich I've ever had, burned on one side and soggy on the other. I hoped it would get better. Fortunately, it did.
The ship got underway before midnight. Cheryl and I after a very, very long day were oblivious to that event. We awoke the next morning moored at a place called Kinderdijik, pronounced "Kinder Dike." Here were 19 classic windmills, exactly what you would expect to see. Most of the Netherlands is about six feet below sea level, and hundreds of windmills were built to remove water from those lowlands.
The windmills are still part of the Government Water Authority, so they're not just decoration. Families live in them, maintain and operate them. We learned that in order to get them turning, the Millers would open up sails, catching the wind. It didn't take much time to get them going, and standing near the blades as they whooshed by was impressive.
It was fascinating technology. Using hard woods and some iron they would be able to pump about 44,000 gallons per hour. Modern electric pumps have taken much of that load today, but despite their age, the mills are still in operation.
The ship left just after 12:30 headed for the city of Cologne. I took some time to sit on the sun deck (bundled up for sure) and watched the world go by.
These river systems are highways for commerce and transportation. Long boats by the hundreds ply the rivers hauling fuel, scrap iron, sand, grains, all manner of goods. They travel rapidly, 10 knots upriver, and 20 knots downriver.
Cologne is a city reborn in a way. Druing World War II, Allied bombers leveled the place except for the cathedral, partly for religion reasons, but mostly because the twin spires provided a precise navigation reference for the pilots. We were a bit ill in the morning, so we missed the walking tour, but in the afternoon we walked through what is left of the old town section. Like Amsterdam, this area is well-stocked with bars and restaurants. We saw a few high-end stores and some shops, so we did some shopping. 
Friday morning we spent in Koblenz and toured the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress. This is an amazing structure. Occupying the site of an earlier fortress destroyed by the French in 1801, it was built as the backbone of a regional fortification system by Prussia between 1817 and 1828 and guarded the Middle Rhine Region, an area that French troops repeatedly invaded. The Prussian fortress was never attacked. The walls are 12 feet thick and are full of rifle ports, embrasures, and artillery sites. If an enemy force penetrated the fort, they would have been under fire from as many as six fortified positions. There have been structures on this site mentioned in history as far back as 1139 CE. When the fort finally fell, the cause was not structural, but human. The garrison was starved into surrender.
It's not just Chiefs Kingdom, it's Chiefs Planet!
In Cologne there is what is called the Bridge of Lovers. It is a tradition for couples to purchase a padlock, attach it to the bridge, then throw the key into the river over the left shoulder. As long as the lock stays locked, the love will last.
A commanding view of the Rhine Valley
In the afternoon, the ship cruised the South Rhine River Gorge. We were treated to a parade of ancient castles and fortifications, a testament to the region's complicated politics. It was cold and windy out on deck, so we didn't spend a lot of time on the top deck. There was a sheltered area up on the bow that screened us from the wind, so that was the vantage point for us.
This rooster atop the church is a testament to the
moment when Peter betrayed Jesus three times
before the "cock crowed."
This was a toll booth from which money was
collected from passing ships.
These signs graphically portray the nature
of the businesses operating there.
Sunday was Strasbourg, which was unfortunate because on that day most of the businesses are closed. But still an interesting place.
Monday, we took a bus ride to the Black Forest. The scenery up the winding mountain road was spectacular, but the bus had tinted windows, so none of my pictures came out good. Our guide was a young man, and easily the worst guide of the trip. He barely escaped being annoying. We stopped at what we Americans would call a tourist trap, home to a place that made cuckoo clocks, and other assorted items. It was a beautiful sight, home to the largest cuckoo clock in the world. Yes, we bought a clock and a huge glass stein which we shipped home. There was a presentation where we were told how the clocks were built. They're very complex, made mostly out of the native wood. After looking carefully, I was able to determine that these were actually German-made, and not from Hong Kong.
Monday evening we had our departure brief where we were told how things would work the next day. Our luggage was to be packed, tagged, and set outside our rooms by midnight. Sometime after, they were picked up and moved to the gangway. We mustered there about 7 AM, and taken by bus to the airport in Basel, Switzerland. Again, the Viking staff were superb, and everything went smoothly. Our flight boarded and departed on time, and we returned to Virginia.
Having been on a big boat cruise before, this river cruise provided some interesting contrasts. The food, while mostly good, was not as good as the price we paid for this cruise may have dictated. Serving times were strictly observed, and if you were hungry between, all you really had available were bar snacks. The crew and staff were absolutely amazing. They really spoiled the guests, and some real friendships were made there. We made some acquaintances among the other guests and spent a lot of time with them. These were people who were roughly our age, and all had fascinating stories to tell. Many of them were on their 4th or 5th cruise with Viking, and were convinced that this was the way to go.
Our stops were not ports, but mainly places along the river bank were the ship tied up. At several points, the ship went through locks, raising or lowering the ship as the river dictated.
There were two medical emergencies aboard, one a diabetic crisis, a man who forgot how much sugar there is in wine. The other case involved a man with two prosthetic legs. On one of the debarkation sites, he fell on the gangplank, broke his hip and suffered a concussion. As we discovered, there were no medically trained people aboard, so the only option was to call for an ambulance and pull alongside the river bank. Given the advanced age of the clientelle, this is kind of scary.
Overall, it was a good time, although the cost of the cruise made our expectations too high. But, to each his own, so your experience may be completely different.
Visiting this part of Europe was a great learning experience. We were visiting towns and villages that had been around in some form for eight or nine hundred years, and the continued existence of those structures was a testament to the quality of craftsmanship of the native people.
We spent a week in Virginia on the way back, softening the blow of crossing 10 time zones. Getting back to Hawai'i, we found the transition back to tropical weather not as severe as we thought it might. But after all those adventures, it sure was good to be home!
