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We were treated to the illumination sail by the night of Jan. 1 of this year as the Uniworld SS Maria Theresa was repositioned from its dock in the city center to the dock downriver past the Parliament Building for disembarkation the next day. Spectacular. Now we feel very lucky to have experienced it.

I agree -- I was surprised, too, but judging by only this one challenge, I liked his designs best.

i would be interested in a special episode about what previous winners end up doing, after mentoring and funds to start their own lines. Or even how some of the talented runners-up do.

A few years ago I was able to stop their incessant mailing with one email. Apparently this is no longer true. I wasn't successful in getting Oceania to stop their frequent mailings, after one cruise with Regent. These mailings are such an ecological waste. I appreciate Uniworld's one catalog mailing a year.

I spent a semester studying in Madrid, immersion except my American roommate and I spoke English in our room. I was once asked for directions on the street, which I was able to give in Spanish. The person I spoke to asked if I was French as of course my accent wasn't quite right.

23 minutes ago, boblerm said:

No worries, just make sure you maintain your French attitude, and you will be just fine!😉

LOL.  I also have a little trouble with the "r" and all the darn silent letters. I've been working on teaching myself French online (Duolingo) for a while. Also picked up some German and a little Welsh, preceding trips to where those languages are spoken, but have returned to the French. Learning languages is supposed to be good for the brain!

Thanks so much for the well written review and great photos! I enjoyed reliving our trip, and deciding what I would have ordered from the dinner menus -- chicken soup only once. 😄   I look forward to your final thoughts.

PS Pronouncing Rouen eludes me. Sounds like someone clearing their throat! 

Wow! We so enjoyed our time in Viviers, even returning in early morning on our own before proceeding onward the next day, but your visit to Frances' home -- what a wonderful memory. I agree, Viviers seems a medieval village, almost untouched by time. 

21 minutes ago, boblerm said:

It is a little odd that they offer it so often.  I had it once or twice, it was ok, nothing special.

The Bea Tollman salad dressing at the lunch buffet, on the other hand was great, I had it pretty much every time.

I agree on both recipes.

8 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

 

amazon is your friend

Very true -- but enemy to the diet!

After visiting the chocolate factory, we still buy Valrhona chocolate if we see it for sale. Last time was at Harrod's in London last spring.

7 minutes ago, Roz said:

I'm noticing that every evening Bea Tollman's chicken noodle soup is on the menu.  I've taken 3 Uniworld cruises, and don't recall it being offered every night.

 

Roz

7 cruises with Uniworld and it wasn't offered so often.

We sailed this itinerary with Uniworld May 18 - 30, 2012, so it's been a while. I don't think there is a preferred side of the ship. We were on the starboard side with a balcony, which happened to be docked on the "port" side at most stops. In Moscow, we were docked next to a park, and it was interesting to watch Russian families enjoying the area. As we were preparing to sail from Moscow, a small brass band serenaded our departure; most pax missed this, especially those on the port side of the ship.

As far as which side while sailing, I don't think it makes a difference. Both sides are picturesque most of the time, often with long stretches of forest on both sides. You probably know there's a lot of daytime sailing due to the long distance that is covered, unlike on most river cruises. Several onboard activities were offered during sailing -- Russian history talks, blini making, vodka and caviar tasting, Russian language lessons come to mind. I left a paperback book in the ship's library, which is probably long gone; it described the sights along the way, so using that, I would go to the sun deck if the sights were not on our side of the ship. We did enjoy bundling up and sitting on a forward deck after dinner -- there is a long time of daylight at that time of year.

We had no issues with water levels. Kizhi Island, however, was iced in until about a week before we sailed.

We weren't aware of noises and vibrations, as I remember. Slept very well.

This was one of our favorite trips. As someone who grew up during the Cold War, walking in Red Square was something I didn't think I would ever do!

Please ask if you have other questions, although as I said, it has been sometime since we enjoyed this trip.

On a Caribbean cruise one night we were watching Mama Mia! outdoors on a big screen when a light rain started, just when the fountain in the film burst out. Great coincidence!

It was the Uniworld Grand France itinerary in 2015.

2 hours ago, boblerm said:

Day 5 May 21  Normandy Beach

I have already posted my photos from this day (post number 30), as I felt the need to share those particular photos on the D-Day anniversary day.   But I just wanted to give a few details of the itinerary for the day.

 

We were docked in Rouen, and it was a 3 hour drive to the landing beach area.  The time was well spent, however, as our tour guide gave us a wonderful overview of the history of the operation. 

 

Our first stop was at Utah Beach, we then went to Sainte Mere-Eglise, which was a major site of paratrooper landing, and the first town to be liberated.  It is the site of the Airborne Museum, which is a fabulous museum that could easily take up the better part of the day exploring.  We had to pretty much breeze through it, as we had to spend part of our time there having lunch  (on our own).

 

Next stop was Pointe du Hoc, where Army Rangers scaled high vertical cliffs that were slippery and  full of brush and barbs, it just doesn't seem possible that this could have been accomplished, but accomplished it was.

 

Then the American Cemetery.  One down side of visiting a site when it is close to a large celebration is that sometimes access is somewhat restricted due to arrangements being made for the commemoration,  and that was the case when we visited, only 2 weeks prior.  But still, an incredibly moving experience to be among the graves of the brave men that gave their lives for our freedom.

 

Lastly, we went down to Omaha Beach.  A bugler played the Star Spangled Banner, and then Taps.  2 veterans from the group placed a wreath at the foot of the monument.  I think it is safe to say that there was not a dry eye on the beach.  

 

We arrived back at the ship at 7:30.  Rather than the usual dinner menu, dinner was a buffet that night, with a relaxed dress code.  I think this may be the first time in my cruising life that I wore jeans to dinner (Jeannie and I enjoy dressing a bit at dinner time)

 

There were 2 other choices for itineraries.   One of them included the  Bayeux Tapestry Museum, where is housed what I believe to be an incredible tapestry that depicts another battle, that of the Battle of the Hastings in 1066.  I have no doubt that this is a great place to visit, but we preferred to have more immersion in the D-Day story.  Perhaps another time.

The other choice substituted Juno Beach for Utah and Pointe du Hoc.  Juno was the landing site for the Canadian Infantry.  

I wanted to mention that later in the cruise, we were chatting with a Canadian couple who had chosen that excursion, but they were the only 2 to chose it.  No matter, the 2 of them were taken on the excursion anyway.  Good job, Uniworld!

 

 

 

 

You were taken to more sites than we were. We didn't go to Utah Beach, Pointe du Hoc nor Ste. Mere Eglise. Wish we had. We saw a cinema in the round about the landing and investigated bunkers near Arromanches, where we had free time for lunch, then time on Omaha Beach. Our 5 Canadians were taken to Juno Beach by taxi. Then of course quite a bit of time at the American cemetery and a wreath laying ceremony there. Left the ship at 8 and returned at 7. Certainly enjoyed the beautiful Norman countryside and thatched villages on the coach ride.

6 hours ago, Roz said:

Beautiful and moving photography.  Thank you again for doing this.  I had to chuckle at "Cauliflower Steak" on the menu.  

 

Roz

That's not a menu item that used to be offered in restaurants! 

We thoroughly enjoyed the Grand France experience in 2015, at about this time of year. We were on the old River Baroness before her dramatic makeover, and the beautiful SS Catherine. Due to high water on the. Rhone we had to be bused from port to port so the Catherine was our floating hotel. We had a great time anyway so I'm looking forward to your report. 

(Our favorite ocean experience was our one cruise on the Regent Voyager.)

Some companies might have back to back Passau to Budapest, Budapest to Bucharest itineraries.

Before you decide if you want that type of excursion, you can ask the cruise director on board for details of the itinerary. We have enjoyed the few we have chosen, with a more laid back vibe and insights from the local guides. We learned things we wouldn't have if we had wandered around on our own.

Thanks for posting this. We've stopped in Durnstein twice but never hiked up the hill.

You definitely don't need fancy clothes on this itinerary. On the Nile there is a special night when passengers are invited to wear galabeyas, which are sold on the ship as well as on shore; they are not expensive. A couple of the restaurants at the Four Seasons in Cairo are rather fancy, but "elegant casual" would be fine. We so enjoyed this trip in January 2017. I would be excited about your whole itinerary. Sounds wonderful.

39 minutes ago, Coral said:

We had those things also. I actually spoke some Russian back in the day and also had studied Russian history in college so these were very basic to me. I am guessing others enjoyed it.

 

I do like blinis (best food of the trip) and did enjoy the Matryoshka doll painting session.

 

Yes, very basic! Were you on Uniworld?

13 minutes ago, Coral said:

I actually looked at my Russian River Cruise as I swore we had sea days also when this topic came up. On mine we did not have any full sea days but we did sail a lot. We would stop for 3 hours or so at a variety of ports and then sail the rest of the day. I would agree with your friends that it was mostly boring scenery. There were a few highlights but few and far between.

Similar experience on our Russian cruise but we enjoyed the extended sailing time. There were a vodka/caviar tasting session, blini making session, lectures about Russian history and Russian language lessons when the scenery was forest after forest. We rather liked the relaxed pace, unlike the active European cruises, and spent a lot of time on the sundeck. 

As a long-time Uniworld traveler, I can verify that dinner is casual. I usually wear Dockers type pants for excursions, sometimes changing my blouse for dinner. There are usually two dressier dinners; some ladies, including me, wear dressier pants and blouse or dress for those nights. I have seen ladies (and men) in nice jeans at dinner. Depending on the excursion schedule, dinner is preceded by a port talk for the next day and short presentation about that dinners'wines, in the lounge where many guests enjoy pre-dinner drinks. You can also watch the presentations  on the tv in your room. The dining room is usually open from 7 to 9, with guests typically arriving between 7 and 8 and finding seats at tables for 2, 4 or 6, for the most part. We've met many interesting solo travelers, who seem to feel welcome and have a good time. I'm sure you will, too. How can you not, in Italy!

Ha! Good point, Roz!

I have had one seasick day on every ocean cruise I've been on (loved the cruises anyway), but only once, very slightly, on a large lake on our Moscow to St. Petersburg cruise, and that was during a brief thunderstorm. Definitely not an issue on the other five rivers we've cruised.