Double lucky

 

 

We are incredibly lucky having had the opportunity for such a memorable trip, and double lucky everything went well. 

There were horror stories from others on the cruise, like an Australian couple who endured a 12 hour layover in Hong Kong because the middle east air space is closed. Others dealt with last minute cancelled flights from the east coast. And so on.

Viking (I thought) gave us a too tight connection in Copenhagen, so I upgraded to seats at the front of the plane in case we had to run for it.  They turned out to be first class (duh) which gave us access to the KLM Crown Lounge in Amsterdam. 

There we learned how the other half lives. We helped ourselves to espresso, juice and made croissant sandwiches with cold cuts at the bar, feeling slightly guilty. Why? There was a full hot food breakfast buffet, free alcoholic drinks and people were lounging around looking bored, as if this was normal airport stuff. Well, not for us. 

Long story short, we were sure glad for those front row seats, because the short flight was indeed late and we raced about a mile to a far away gate in Copenhagen, only to hit a wall of people at the immigration checkpoint. (The same thing happened in Frankfurt.) Fortunately, the Seattle passengers were allowed to use an expedited lane so we made the flight just in time. 

We have nothing but praise for Viking service. Every detail was handled meticulously. For example, the bus didn't just drop us off in the weird Amsterdam airport underground, we were met by representatives who escorted everyone to their check in counters. Just like having a careful caring nanny, watched from start to finish. 

The upside to escorted travel is you see much, much more than you could solo. The downside is the strict schedule-- early morning tours, bags out in the hall at an ungodly hour, many transfers, group dining. 

"Relaxing" isn't one of good adjectives I'd use to describe a Viking river cruise, but it was an unforgettable and enriching experience. The local guides and tours were amazing, the ancient cities and towns beautiful, the people we met friendly and interesting. I didn't even have a chance to practice my pitiful German. 

And now we're ready for a quiet summer at home. Speaking of which, only two weeks away and the garden looks like something from Sleeping Beauty. 

 

Our kind neighbors watered my flower pots and watched over things. John also turned off as many faucets as possible before we left-- no water disasters. 

 

The next project is getting a handle on this jet lag. The goal is to make it to 8 pm tonight. 

 

Don't look for an early blog tomorrow.