Yesterday had plenty to see and do, starting off with a visit to Konlenz, at the confluence of the Moselle and Rhine. Built on the footprint of a battleship projecting into the river, a striking statue of the Prussian Emperor Franz Joseph the ? dominated our landing area.

Our guide was excellent, a retired tank commander, with a dry sense of humour. Our stroll into town was sprinkled with a history lesson of various tribes, armies and barons who populated the area. The town had squares and shops, not open yet 👍, with narrow streets winding between. Compared to Cologne we found it much more appealing. So many big cities are alike with their big brand shops, loud music and dirty streets. Oh dear I’m sounding like a grumpy old man….well it is my birthday tomorrow 🤫

We really enjoyed Koblenz, but it was time for one of the trips main highlights, the Middle Rhine Valley.

The plains rapidly gave way to steep sided valley with vineyards scattered on the slopes. The river channel narrowed, with the water flowing strongly. Navigation wouldn’t be easily.

The barges are huge, there’s a lot of traffic on this part of the Rhine. I’m amazed how close we get to some, at one point we had 5 vessels doing a Waltz around each other.

The Castles were coming thick and fast now, our program director was giving a narrative as we sailed past. Most of the “Robber” Barons who built them were of dubious virtue.

At one stage the river twists and turns so much there are traffic lights to control the one way direction.

After an afternoon of Castles under a blue sky the Mouse Tower appeared on its island, signifying the end of this particular section. It was an amazing cruise and well worth travelling half way around the world ! We seem to have been on Vidar for ages, but still have over 2 weeks to go ! We are getting to know a few familiar faces, and have greatly enjoyed their company and tales.

The only negative thing to happen is a fault in my Hasselblad camera, the eye sensor is faulty, making switching from the back panel and its controls to the electronic viewfinder difficult. I’ve tried every trick to remedy it, but it looks like a service in Sweden is due in the future. So the Leica CL is pressed into full service !

Later that evening we left the Rhine and are now on the much smaller Main. Passing thru Frankfurt saw a stream of planes flying off around the world. For us it was locks, the first of many to come. Sadly the top deck is now closed for 4 days…..just too many low bridges !