Daisi

We will be trying our tags out this weekend. I'll have to remember to turn my Bluetooth on, we tend not to use it unless doing Airdrop's between our phones. I can just see a panic coming on because I've forgotten. 🙂

Got a call from our TA yesterday, she had a "gift" for us from Avalon....a cable organiser and luggage tags. I looked at organisers before, and figured not worth it, but this one fits nicely under my camera in our knapsack, and frees up my front pouch. Pretty much ready to go, just have to do some final things, and we will be set. Best news is that Hurricane Lee has decided to take it's time, and not hit the East Coast until after we leave! Happy Dance!!!!!

Sorry for anyone out on the rivers today, but as Amanda Marshall sang... Let it rain...oh let it rain.

Funny, although we don't eat "English Tea" here, scones (true Scottish ones) are very common for our breakfast on weekend mornings. Never tried them with cream & jam though. 🙂

We can easily leave the cookies...it's making sure we are no where near the ship when 4:00 afternoon tea is served. DH has a bit of a sweet tooth, and I'll admit to enjoying the odd sweet as well. 🙂

@martinitime1, you don't say which cruise you are on, so can't offer specific help for the rivers or what to see. You also don't specify when you are going. If you are a FB member, you can join their page, they are very helpful. Avalon has a great reputation for solving problems as they arise, so don't worry about anything, pack some good walking shoes (or boots if travelling in the winter), and enjoy. We leave for Budapest to start our Danube cruise on Saturday, it's been a long wait, but well worth it.

We leave for Budapest Saturday...board on the 19th. Hoping we have decent levels, but if not, we'll get a tour of the countries we didn't expect!

I've never sailed with AMA, but you should receive contact #'s with your paperwork prior to your cruise. Most lines will have wifi, coverage will depend on the area you are sailing in. We did the Rhine with Avalon, and only had problems in Basel.

The CBC story also has the 2 dates, "As of Sunday" which would be Sep 3, and then a bit further, "As of Oct. 1". Very confusing. I wonder if as of Sept 3, you will be able to get the e-Visa, but not one when you arrive, and as of Oct. 1, you will no longer be able to use the e-Visa. This would enable those who are in transit, or shortly to be, to still be able to access a Visa, and give time for those who are traveling by Oct. 1 to get one from the Embassy or consulate.

@moonriver54 yes, that's quite common amongst all lines with river levels. Usually at this time of year, it's because the water is on the low side, but this year it's the opposite. Don't worry, Avalon will do their best (and they do a great compensation in case you can't) to ensure you get to see everything on your cruise.

Is that the one you are supposed to throw stones at? 🙂

Don't worry, there's the back lounge that is great for coffee & a snack. We don't normally eat lunch, but find that with the buffet breakfast & lunch, we get more than enough to last until dinner...and we eat early. 🙂

I think we are on the sailing after you, we get on the Envision in Budapest on the 19th. Take care of the crew & ship for us. 🙂

You can just join in with the rest of the waterlogged bikers...then raise your eyes at everyone else! 🙂 Actually, as a warning, we always try to be off ship for the 4:00 tea time. It's very dangerous, and I think if we indulged to much we wouldn't fit into our clothes for the flight home. 🙂

Avalon isn't dressy, as long as you are dressed neatly you will be OK. They do *request* that shorts are not worn for dinner, but I'm sure if it's hot, that suggestion goes out the window. Many people get back late from excursions, so they don't have much time to shower & change. I usually get some light tops that are light, and pack a sweater to wear over just in case the dining room is cool. I'll pair them with capris. My husband will wear a golf shirt and some slacks - nothing fancy. As for solo travel, most tables accommodate more than 2, so just ask if anyone is sitting in an empty spot and join in. Most travelers are more than happy to include others. There will probably be more than you as a solo traveler, so don't worry. It's not rude to skip activities, usually there are several going on at once, so you can easily join in another one. Or you can find the same tour that isn't "wine specific". You can always sit up on the top deck when they have the wine-master talks if you are onboard. Avalon's slogan used to be that they would rather see smiles on their guests faces than white gloves on their staff...and they live up to that. Go ahead and plan, you will probably enjoy it!

I like to linger, have DH keep an eye on the guide and I can shoot all I want. I also have a great zoom lens on my camera, so can be back quite a bit and still get that "close up" shot. Last cruise I used everyone's tip about the "gentle walkers", and about 1/2 way through the cruise our group had doubled in size, as everyone was doing it. We had partners stationed to watch for the guides, and took photos to our hearts content.

Sadly, it sounds as if most of the "entertainment" at night has gone, whether or not that's due to staffing problems from Covid, or just not enough people were staying there to qualify the costs, I don't know. It was nice to hear the pianist we had during times we were in the lounge, but usually after dinner, we went back to our room to catch up on what happened at home, and get our pictures sorted. Looking forward to our trip to Budapest, we have our tickets for the Parliament tour, they now do all languages at once, so you can book at any time. Much easier.

@steamboats thanks, looks like some parts are flooding. Not good.

When we sailed the Rhine, we were looking forward to meeting fellow guests. We went into dinner the first night, chose one of the tables for 6 and sat beside the window. Another couple came and joined us, but sat at the other end. It was great, we got to meet them, but also felt as if we were on our own....and I think we had more space between us than a regular 2 seater. We sat at the same table almost every meal, and it became a joke as we would go to eat, and someone would be sitting there. We'd go to look for another table, but no, they wanted to meet us, so they rushed to get there first! The only time we had a "runner" was the last night, as we were looking for one of the tables for 8. There were 3, 2 round ones that were taken regularly by a large group from the Philippines, and one other. We had to have someone stationed to get the other one that night.

Sorry @MisterBill99, missed your post!

Avalon has tables for 2, however you will be sitting quite close to the next table. If you wish to see how many, and what they look like, you can do a virtual tour of the ships. There are several, they run on the "inside" areas on both sides of the dining room. Here's a screen shot for you :

Hearing from someone on an Avalon cruise right now, they were to disembark in Vilshofen, but turning around and going to Engelhartszell. They were in Passau today and they were preparing for flooding. I want rain, but not *that* much! @steamboats, hope you and all manage to stay dry.

@steamboats, sorry, but I'm glad you are getting lots of rain...we sail on the 19th from Budapest, and so are really hoping we make it to Nuremburg. If we have to bus, we have to bus, but it would be nice to stay on the river. I also have been watching the weather over there, and yeah, I see your temps. We also don't have A/C, and have had temps in the 30's for 3 months. This weekend is the first time we have had the windows open for more than 1/2 day. We are finding out just how noisy all the birds, squirrels and chipmunks are..... 🙂

That's the problem with tourism.. tourists spend money, good for shops & restaurants, but makes the lives of those who have to live everyday in the towns a headache. Yes, on the rivers, you get a couple of boatloads in at once, but they leave in a couple of hours. We have towns here that triple their population through tourism in the summer months (and mostly a lot of extra vehicles on the roads that crowd transit), and then nothing. Some areas survive just on the 4 months of "tourist season", but for living in the area it's a pain.

We are looking forward to the trip to the Weltenburg Abbey. I found the "draft" beer for our cruise at our local liquor store, but unfortunately, no Weltenburg.