Monday, February 12, 2024

Rhine and Mosel Cruise: Day 7: Riquewihr, France and sailing May 21, 2023

 At some time during the night, I added vomiting to my stomach woes. That is something I handle so poorly, that when my daughters had it as children, they were trained to go to their father for help.

My husband K got up at  7 and I got up at 7:30. It was clear that I couldn't eat breakfast any more than I could have eaten dinner. So, he and our daughter J went to breakfast without me and then left to tour Riquewihr without me.

I napped and continued to empty out. I could have had an upper and a lower GI with no extra prep. K had gotten me a Coke Zero before he left and I sipped that. I tried to drink the mineral water, but couldn't get past the taste.

When the cabin steward came, I let him in to take care of the bathroom. He immediately asked how I was and could he get me anything. I told him that I really couldn't stand the Gerolsteiner mineral water and could he find something else. He promised he would look.

Shortly after he left, there was a knock at the door. It was the purser with a case of boxed water called Joyce (my sister's name). She said that this is what they gave the passengers when they went on excursions and I could try it. I thanked her and she left.

The water was fine. I even felt human enough at one point to go down the hall to the center of the deck where there were restrooms and an ice machine. The ice in the water back in the room was very nice.

Around 10:15, I ventured onto the balcony to see what I could see. Based on the fact that our cabin was on the right side of the boat, I figured I was looking out at Germany, which was fine by me. Somehow, I couldn't see the gangway. So, maybe it wasn't Germany, but that would mean the boat was pointed south, which didn't make much sense even to my addled brain. Anyway, it wasn't as built up as I expected it to be along such a major river. Supposedly, we were docked at Breisach, Germany. Google at least recognized the second picture below as showing the Breisach bridge (Rheinbrücke Breisach) to France and I can see a dam beyond it.



K and J returned at 12:51, having left Riquewihr at 12:11.  They convinced me that I should try some lunch. So, we went down to the dining room, which was in the front of the boat a  half level below us. (J's cabin was on the deck below that and a lot of stairs down after coming up the half level from the dining room.) Lunch started at 1, but they had needed a few minutes to get rid of things from their outing. We were there at 1:30, which was about 15 minutes after we set sail. We got our own booth for four.

I hadn't seen last night's menu. So, the extensiveness of courses surprised me. There were Cover (freshly baked rolls and butter) and  Appetizers both of which were just delivered to the table without asking. The appetizers for this meal were Crispy Fried Calamari / Chicken Mediterranean Salad
Guacamole / Onion Tart - LS (Local Specialty). I took a pass. I did order a Coke Zero, which was free at meal time.

There was 1 salad and it was Swiss Potato Salat / Baby Radish Julienne / Chives - LS. I decided to order that and see how I did. It was good, but I did not eat the purple lettuce.

There were two soups, which no one ordered. I think there was only one sandwich, which wasn't ordered. There were two main courses, one of which was fish and I bet K ordered it, but I didn't photograph it. J chose the offering from the Front Cooking Station: Swiss Pork Ragout / Mushrooms / Vichy Carrots / Sautéed Spring Onions - "Rösti" Potatoes %, - LS. She enjoyed it.

There were 4 desserts offered, including cheeses, fruits, pistachio ice cream, and J's logical choice of Double Chocolate Moist Cake / Cherry Ragout / Whipped Cream. She said it was good.

As we dined, we could see out the window, which was just above the water level it seemed. We had a nice view of Volgelsheim, France.

After lunch, I napped again, but wasn't quite so cold. I also managed to keep lunch in me. Hurrah!

Around 4:30, I awoke to a strange sound. I looked out the window and saw a wall and we were below the top of it. I realized that we were going through a lock. Honestly, before this trip, I didn't even know there were locks on the Rhein and Mosel. Rolf said we'll go through 40, I believe.

At 7, we went down to dinner with J. When we got to the table, a tray was brought to use with the rolls. We only used the butter.

For my appetizer, I chose the Lemon Peppermint Smoothie, which struck me as a very different appetizer. It was quite refreshing. K got the Truffle Mushroom Panacotta Wild Mushroom, Puff Pastry, Cream Fraiche, Potato Chips. He liked it.




There were two soups and both were shared.  The first was Creamy Green Peas Soup, Croutons, Rosemary Foam. The other was Beef Consommé, Meatballs, Chives. Both were unusual and good.


For my main course, I went with the seemingly safe White & Dark Turkey Meat Cranberry Sauce, Broccoli, Glazed Carrots, Bread Stuffing, and Sweet Potato Mash that contained alcohol. It all was delicious. J got that, too. K went with one of the items that was always available -Prime Beef Steak with vegetables and fries.

For dessert, we ordered "Prinz Regent' Ganache Topped Vanilla-Chocolate Layered Cake, Strawberry Sauce for J and me and Ice Coupe "Mozart" Hazelnut Ice Cream, Chocolate-Brandy Sauce, Marzipan Cookie, and Whipped Cream for K. Very nice desserts.

The dinner was a leisurely affair and we did not get back to our cabins until 8:35. I was worn out, but really felt that I could go see Straßburg.

We were not to arrive in Straßburg until 11:30 pm, but when I looked out, when we got to our cabins, we were looking at the Straßburg North Terminal. It didn't register with me, but I also don't know if we docked then.



My phone showed a mere 384 steps for .13 miles. Not a shock.

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