Just Back.. Our Bloomingly Beautiful Tulip Time Cruise Aboard Avalon's Imagery II. Full trip report with tons of pix!

[xRoadWarrior]

Incredible trip report! So excited to find this as we board the Imagery II on April 16 on the same itinerary.  I will be following closely.

[Queen of my Heart]

I think you should ask for a discount from Avalon for your next cruise with them. Having read your trip report, I have just booked to go on this!

[Sleep7]

14 hours ago, xRoadWarrior said:

Incredible trip report! So excited to find this as we board the Imagery II on April 16 on the same itinerary.  I will be following closely.

🤗Thank you so much for the compliments xRoadWarrior. How exciting that in two weeks you will be aboard.  You are going to have a fantastic time!

[Sleep7]

3 minutes ago, Queen of my Heart said:

I think you should ask for a discount from Avalon for your next cruise with them. Having read your trip report, I have just booked to go on this!

Oh my Queen of my Heart!  Now you are queen of my heart. 😍  What a sweet sweet compliment. I'm so glad you are enjoying my report and wow that's awesome that you booked this cruise!  Honestly.. it's just so much fun to write and to relive the week that it's win/win for me.😊

[Sleep7]

🤗If it's Tuesday it must be Maastricht!

 

[Sleep7]

LOVED waking up facing the wall of windows in our cabin.

 

 

We were told that the bare the trees outside had balls of mistletoe (which is a parasitic plant)  growing on them.  Learn something new every day!

 

 

[Sleep7]

Ready for our walking tour of the city.. in the rain of course.

 

 

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

More from Maastricht.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

Say CHEESE!📸

 

[Sleep7]

Saw this Stolperstein, or "stumbling stones," which are bricks that are installed in the cobblestone sidewalks in European cities to commemorate the victims of the Holocaust. They are slightly higher than the other stones to make them more noticeable to people walking over them.

 Over 75,000 stolperstein have been laid in 18 European countries. The project was was initiated by the German artist Gunter Demnig in 1992

 

[Sleep7]

Last stop on the tour before lunch was a working mill and a church that was beautifully illuminated by candles.

 

 

[Sleep7]

😋Back to the Imagery II for a tasty lunch.. always with a glass of wine.🍷

 

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

☀️SUNSHINE at last!☀️

 

 

And Easter candy.🐰

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

And a feathered friend outside our stateroom window.

 

[Sleep7]

A delicious dinner with delightful company and day 3 is fini.

 

 

 

I actually chose "alternative choices" grilled beef tenderloin every night at dinner.  It was absolutely delicious and cooked just right.  We rarely eat steak at home so it was a real treat.

Each evening the alternate choices included a grilled chicken breast, the beef tenderloin or grilled salmon.

[Sleep7]

Wednesday in Namur and Huy.

Ahh.. a leisurely morning is a nice change of pace.🤗

We have been getting up early since boarding the cruise for morning tours and this was the first day we could sleep in.

 

 

 

Leisurely morning or not we always started off our day with a coffee from this wonderful machine. Two on board.. on in the aft lounge and the other in the Panorama Lounge.

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

Sailing to Namur..

 

 

 

Chatted with Bram for a bit. 😊

 

 

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

And then onto lunch.  If you aren't a buffet lover..  each day there are a few choices that are served to you at your table.

 

 

From the buffet.. Yum!

 

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

We arrived in Namur at 1:00 and the tours began soon after.

We chose the walking tour of the town which started with a bus ride up to the top of the hill at the Citadel overlooking the city.

 

 

 

The flag reminded us that we had crossed over into Belgium.

 

 

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

Then onto the city tour..

We left the group for a bit to find the local Petit Bateau store.

Looking for a baby/child gift or a beautifully made cotton basic for women.. this is the place.

If you miss the store in Namur there is one in Amsterdam and one in Brussels too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

Back to the tour! We just happened to find the group after we left Petit Bateau.. perfect timing.

💁‍♀️All we could think when we came upon this tower is "Rapunzel.. Rapunzel.. let down your golden hair."

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

Right next to the tower there was a building that still bore signs of heavy damage from World War II.

We were sad to learn that the bombs were actually dropped by the Allies by mistake in August of 1944.

 

 

 

 

[Sleep7]

Also sad to learn that the Germans and groups that sympathized with them dropped leaflets from the sky in Namur saying that the Allies did it on purpose.  Something along the lines of that you can't make an omelette without breaking some eggs.

 

 

[Sleep7]

Back onto the ship after the tour and then set sail for Huy.  This is something new since we last sailed on Avalon 7 years ago.  When you leave the ship you scan your key card and when you get back on you scan it again to confirm you are back on board.  Good system. 👍

 

[Sleep7]

Oh gosh.. Thursday already! Where has this week gone??