River Cruise, Sept.27/14

Day 2 of our river cruise started with a rude awakening by the fire alarm on the boat at about 4 a.m.  We had quite a "pajama party"!  Actually, we had heard the commotion and got dressed before leaving the boat, unlike many, who were in night clothes, and even some in bare feet.  The fire, which started in a drier, soon "cooked" the electrical system, and many had to find their way out in the dark.  We assembled dock-side, and when it was certain that all were off the boat, we walked to a nearby shelter.  The boat ahead of us invited us to use their lounge, and gave us coffee and bottles of water.  It was a cold morning, and many were cold until then.  It's quite a way to start a cruise, but it seems like the 63 passengers bonded in an unusual way because of this.  The fire was in the back of the boat, and the main damage, aside from electrical, was smoke - our clothes and belongings all smelled strongly of it for the remainder of the trip.  Once the fire was out, we went back to the boat, and the kitchen people did the best they could to feed us, after which we went to our cabins to pack up all of our belongings for a bus ride to a very nice hotel on the other side of the river.

You can see where the fire burned a bit of the starboard side of the boat - I think there was more smoke than actual fire.

 
 Nice Mercedes firetrucks.

The fire-boat station was just down the way.

This "Viking" boat was just finishing a cruise, some passengers were already leaving for the airport.  This is the boat that took pity on us and invited us aboard.    

Found this little bird happily munching on some berries.....

.....and this pigeon roosting in a corner of a very historic building.

We were taken to a very nice hotel in the center of town on the east side of the Rhine, and there was a small circus just across the street from us.  We wandered around the park they were in to see the animals.  "Stripes" is my favorite!

 


There were a couple of camels as well.

Attached to the hotel was a huge conference center, and there was a car show going on.  There were literally 100's of cars - some VERY high end, like the price of a very expensive house!  This lovely vehicle was made in Canada.

 

 Megs, I think this one was meant for you.  :-)

This one was getting lots of attention from young boys.  The one above was more to Paul's liking.  I wonder why....

As we walked down to the east side of the river, we watched as this old man very nearly stepped in front of a street car.  I was SO pleased to see this young man take him by the arm, and lead him across the street to safety.

Not quite a Starbucks on every corner, but lots of coffee shops everywhere we went.

We were so surprised to see so many people relaxing by the river on this gorgeous summery Saturday afternoon - picnicking, having a drink, visiting, sunbathing, etc.  We walked a couple of miles on the edge of the river and saw 1000's of people.

The poor disabled Da Vinci on the other side of the river.  She was eventually fastened to the side of a barge and taken to the Netherlands for repairs.

We walked back on the upper level walkway by the river, and there were just as many people up there as well.

We saw a few hardy souls actually in the water.  The current is so strong, you hardly need to swim if you are going downstream.