Wake up, breakfast, pick up shore passes, onto bus. Hmm, here we go again. Today we have a half day tour visiting the town of Vidin and Belogradchik. We head into the countryside to Belograchik first. This place looks very run down. Lots of deserted factories, etc. in the towns and countryside. Very poor looking country. We get closer to the town and we get a great view from the road in. Huge rock outcrops in some weird looking shapes, the rabbit eating some cabbage, the kissing girls, etc. finally get to the fortress which is built on these rocks. Off we go, we had been told it will be a tough walk. Not wrong. Cobblestones, rock paths then steps. Some of the steps are well formed, others are stones that have worn in lots of ... read more

The capital of Serbia, Belgrade today. Off on another city tour. Mostly by bus but we also got off and did a few walks. First was to the St Sava Cathedral. This is still being built following the Nazi occupation and NATO bombings. The place is huge and the guide told us that the cupola alone weighed over 400 tonnes and a special crane had to be built to lift it into place. There is no money coming from the government so they are relying on donations to try and complete it........ Back to the bus, then into the main central pedestrian plaza for free time. We wander down to the markets and walk amongst the fruit, vegies and bric a brac. Nearly every stall had cartons of cigarettes on display, and a lot had all ... read more

Today we head off for a tour of 2 cities in Croatia (and yes, I do have my Croatia t shirt on today). Firstly we visit Osijek, a little town about 20 minutes for our docking place at Vukovar. We get to see lots of interesting countryside and then a local farm visit to sample some locally made fruit brandy (Slivovic). The guy who runs the place was quite the comedian. Lots of stories about how to fish with a net, then he ran through a powerpoint of the local area with running commentary. Afterwards, we got to sample some of his local wines (red and white - very young indeed). Then we went to a local church where we had a private recital. One young lady on the piano and a singer. Beautiful piano work, ... read more

A day of rest and pampering. Wake up slowly, as we aren't doing any of the optionals today. We decided that a massage might be on the cards to try and relieve the aching muscles. We cross the Elizabeth bridge to the Gelert Spa facility. This place is huge. An indoor and outdoor swimming pool, 2 thermal bath houses, massage facilities and other spa type functions. We book our massage for 1545, and Chris a pedicure for 1710. That done, we decide to do some more walking and shopping in town. We end up in the plaza around St Stephen's basilica. Drinks and then we wander off to Chris's other beautician appointment (waxing). Arrive early, but beautician also there and starts early. I might have dozed off a little when Chris comes and says all done ... read more

Wake up very refreshed and Chris heads off to the beauty parlor to see if she can get some grooming happening before the cruise. No luck, so we decide to just head for the Hilton via train (we know this one quite well now), pick up our bag and then to the Intercontinental to check in for the cruise. All goes well and bag in hand we walk through the park to our meeting point. Get greeted at the front steps by the porters who carry our bags up the stairs for us. The Avalon desk is in front of us and we check in - on the list and we are told that we have a meeting at 1300 to fill us in on the itinerary. Hmmm. We have about 2 hours to kill so ... read more