Danube River Cruise - Linz, Salzburg, Cesky Krumlov

We braved the cooler weather to tour Linz in the morning.  Linz was a strategic city during WWII and is steeped in history.  The people have endured so much and yet have rebuilt a beautiful city.  In the afternoon, we were given optional tours to Salzburg or Cesky Krumlov.  Salzburg is, of course, the home of Mozart and memorabilia is everywhere, including Mozart chocolates!   Cesky Krumlov is a UNESCO World Heritage medieval town just over the Austrian-Czech border.  It is one of the jewels of the Czech Republic and is a snapshot of life in medieval times.  It seems that prices in the Czech Republic are very reasonable.  We may need to do some power shopping while in Prague.  Stay tuned!

Danube River Cruise - Vienna and Durnstein

Our ship crossed the Slovakian-Austrian border during the afternoon and landed at the port of Vienna in the evening.   We were treated to an exclusive dinner in the private ErleBnis restaurant at the rear of the ship.  A private cook, server and wine steward served us a truly excellent dinner of salmon tartar, beef tenderloin and an assortment of apricot deserts.  A gastronomical delight!  After dinner we were escorted to a traditional Viennese Wine Tavern "Heuriger" and were entertained by a musical duo with dancing, plenty of wine and singing.   Can't wait to try to get up tomorrow morning!

Another beautiful day was spent in Vienna with an escorted tour of the city.   It's not surprising that Vienna is a UNESCO  World Heritage site.  The architecture is stunning.  Our tour included the  famous Ringstrasse, St. Stephen's Cathedral and, of course, sitting at a coffee house eating traditional goulash soup and calorie-filled Sacher Torte. Some of us visited the Schonbrunn Palace which was the summer palace of the Habsburgs who ruled Europe for over 600 year.   Our evening highlight was a Mozart and Strauss concert at a Viennese palace.  What a contrast to last night!

Overnight we sailed along the Wachau Valley to the Medieval village of Durnstein. Along the way we passed the ruins of an ancient castle where Richard the Lionheart of England was held prisoner in 1193.  Of course we had to taste the local wine.  After touring Durnstein, we continued to Melk and toured the Abbey that was built over 1000 years ago.  Here we are enjoying the night life on the ship.

Danube River Cruise - Budapest and Bratislava

 

After a long trip we were greeted like honoured guests aboard the beautiful AmaLyra. It was so nice to stretch our legs and get comfortable in our rooms.  In the evening we were delighted with a Captain's cocktail party and elegant dinner.  The highlight of the evening was an hour-long cruise around the Budapest Harbour to see grandeur of this beautiful old city lit up at night with millions of lights on the parliment buildings, bridges, castles and old churches.  What a spectacular sight!

The next day started with a tour of the twin cities of Buda and Pest.  We viewed Buda Castle, The Fisherman's Bastion, the Royal Palace and the magniicent St. Stevens' Basilica.   Budapest is steeped in history and old European grandeur.  In the afternoon we explored on our own.   Of course, the Market was a big hit!  So was the evening dancing to the sounds of Peter in the lounge. No sore feet for us!

After a good night sleep cruising down the Danube, we woke up in Bratislava, capital of the Slovak Republic and took a walking tour of the city’s major sights, including the Old Town Hall, the Mirbach Palace and Gothic St. Martin’s Cathedral. This afternoon we are sailing to Vienna. We are making new friends and creating life long memories!

Sedona, Vortex tour, chapel rock and Telaquepaque

This morning we had an 830am pickup for our Red Rock Jeep tour of the Vortex energy centres. Mary is our guide and she seems to be very knowledgeable. She took us to the Airport lookout point where we enjoyed the view and she led us through some mini meditations . The energy is wonderful, the sky is clear and the sun feels warm. Next stop is chapel rock  which is located in a lovely park.  We ha a leisurely stroll along the pathway to the river where Mary led us through another mediation. She explained the difference between masculine and feminine energy fields.  Chapel rock is a female vortex. The energy felt calm and peaceful. It was a wonderful morning.  We went back to the hotel only to turn right around and head back to town. First stop is Chapel rock a charming little chapel with a fantastic view of the  valley and famous Bell rock.  The cactus are in bloom which look stunning against the backdrop of the red rocks. 
Next stop is the quint shopping area of  Telaquepaque. Allen , our driver guide kindly posed for photos dressed in his Indian clothing.  He is from the  Sioux/Lakota tribe.

Grand Canyon tour day

We started out early on this cool morning to visit the Grand Canyon national Park,  It's a picturesque  2 hour drive along one of the most scenic drives in the US.
Our driver/guide Allen Redowl stops by the riverside to do an ancient Indian ritual uniting us as one family for the day.  I can tell its going g to be a fun day with this group of women.. First stop is the Imax theatre where we watched an amazing film about the brave men and women that endured hardships to discover this incredible canyon.  Back on the bus to the Grand Canyon. Our fist glimpse is incredible, the depth and width is amazing and the layers of colour spectacular.  It's very cool today but we are glad the 50 mile an hour winds from yesterday have subsided. 
After some photo taking we enjoyed a delicious lunch at the historical Eltovar hotel.  The weather changed to windy and very cold and then the snow moved it. It's quite dramatic to see the snow move through the canyon.  Lucky for us the snow would subside long enough at each stop so were were able to get a glimpse of the canyon and take photos from the various viewing points.  This canyon certainly deserves the title as one of the 7 natural wonders of the world.
On the way back to Sedona we stopped at the Cameron trading post where some of the ladies purchased hand made Navajo Indian jewelry.
The drive back is a bit long due to the snow,  Allen had to take it easy as the snow and hail made the roads a bit slippery.
That evening we had an impromptu party in Debbie and Nancy's room.  A fun day was had by all.

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