Bouncing Around Bonn

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Our ship is docked in Bonn, Germany. This morning we took a two-hour guided walking tour of the heart of the shopping district, the Bonn College, and I took a tour of Beethhoven's house where he was born and raised. Since it has three levels with narrow stairs, Zee took a pass. It had a lot of paraphernalia relating to Beethoven, his life and music, including several paintings of Beethhoven's. As a younger man, he was quite handsome. As he aged he seemed to get a wild look in his eyes and expression. He was going deaf, had a drug problem, and this may have drove him slowly mad.

We returned to the ship, had a nice lunch, and Zee took a nap. I and a friend walked back into town and went into the local church, which was bombed extensively in WWII, but has been rebuilt. As most of the old churches are in Europe, it was quite impressive. After another 1 1/2 hours of walking, my friend and I returned to the ship and got the coldest and largest beer they had. Ah, it tastes so good. And, it feels good to sit in air conditioning and relax.

Later, we'll have a nice dinner followed by some entertainment of one fashion or another. During Happy Hour a guy places nice background music with a guitar and piano -- rotating back and forth between the two. Tonight we'll sail to the next town while we sleep. The ship travels a lot at night so we can have a full day of sightseeing at interesting sites. However, later on the Rhine we cruise during the day so we can see all the castles and other sights along the scenic river.

Yesterday we got to tour the kitchen, where a staff of only six, in a small kitchen, prepares the most exquisite meals for 140 people. It is amazing the precision with with they handle all the meals. No one waits for the next course, and they are so well organized. They explained how they coordinate all the courses so all the meals arrive hot (or cold, as the case may be), and in a timely fashion. The staff are all so pleasant with humor thrown in, which makes for a pleasant dining experience.

A most pleasant way to travel......Jim

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