Sleep7

Oh thanks so much for your sweet compliments KathyK13!! Plenty more to come!😃

Oh! Forgot to mention.. While I love my Iphone 13, Sam's Pixel 6 Pro has the most amazing editing feature. You can literally erase something (or somebody) with a swipe of your finger. AMAZING. I hope this nice fellow passenger was not insulted..😉 Now you see him.. Now you don't. MAGIC!

Happiest Hour of the day! From 6pm to 7pm.. CHEERS!🍷🍺🍹 We sat back and enjoyed the scenery and then our daily Port Talk from Bram at 6:45 just before dinner.

We walked around rainy Nijmegen in the afternoon. FEBO.. the modern Automat.

Back to the ship for lunch.. the sausage was particularly delicious swathed in mustard.

Oh yay!! So glad to help with the excitement YoungDubFan. You are going to have the most wonderful time! 😃

And then onto a military cemetery. It was a day that truly reminded you of the horrors of war and the heartbreaking sacrifices that are made.😢

Some cheerful daffodils outside the museum. dills

First you "parachute down" onto the battlefield. A sobering epilogue to a sobering experience..

As our included tour we chose the half a day guided tour of the Airborne Museum of Hartenstein commemorating the 1944 WWII Battle of Arnhem. This was the battle that the movie "A Bridge Too Far" was based on. The museum was OUTSTANDING. What at first looked like it would have been just a regular museum ended up being one of the highlights of the cruise. The upper floors had fascinating memorabilia from both sides but it was the basement that was really a wow. It had been turned into a life size and life like battlefield detailing the horrors of war that was on a scale as something that Disney would have created.

Oh my.. the daily breakfast buffets.. everything was amazing! "Fixin's" for the hot cereal. Omelettes anyone?

Day two dawned in Nijmegen.. say that 3 times fast!😁

At the Happy Hour we all met our Cruise Director Bram who was terrific!! So enthusiastic and friendly and FUNNY!! He was perfect.. just the guy for the job. Included was our safety drill from the inside warmth of the lounge which was great. Met the Captain and all the Department heads. And then dinner and onto bed.. it had been a first rate first day with VERY VERY little sleep.😴

Every evening at 6pm to 7pm there was a complimentary Happy Hour. Cheers to a great upcoming week!

We made our way back to the ship as all aboard time was 6:15

The light lunch menu and dinner menu for embarkation day.

Mmm... french fries, ketchup and mayonnaise.. what a combo.😋

🌷At the floating Bloemenmarkt.. alas these would be the only tulips we would see this week. But as I said in my first post it didn't detract at all from our fantastic cruise.🌷

Some well dressed dogs and well dressed ducks too!

Some scenes of the day..

It was lucky for us that we were the first cruise of the season because we were able to get into our cabin as soon as we boarded the ship. After a fast shower and a quick lunch and we headed out to spend our first afternoon walking all around Amsterdam.

😍Oh thank you so much Miss G!! I'm so glad you are along for the "sail." I'm sure it will bring back all the lovely memories of your cruise last October.

The ship was being readied and stocked for the first cruise of the season! Avalon reps in the lounge to sign you up for an optional afternoon tour if you so chose. Today's newsletter.. easily accessible on the Avalon Go app.

Our whispers for the week and some paperwork. Met Tri our WONDERFUL room attendant for the week. What a sweetheart.

Plenty of room in the closet for a compulsive over packer!