Rhine & Shine

Everything’s fine on the Rhine.

Picture this: A river running between lush hills and mountains where there are ancient fortresses and storybook castles perched defiantly on cliffs and terraces, as many as 40 castles  in one portion. This is the Rhine River, which runs from Switzerland to the Netherlands and passes through most of Germany.

It is said that “No other river in the world has so many old and famous cities on its banks — Basel, Switzerland; Strasbourg, France; and Worms, Mainz and Cologne, Germany, to name a few.”

Invited by AmaWaterways to experience its seven-day, seven-night “Captivating Rhine River Cruise,” I happily jumped on board the AmaStella, one of its newest ships.

A view of the Cologne Cathedral and the Hohenzollern bridge by the Rhine River.

Our well-traveled cruise director and Cate Blanchett look-alike Martina Valachova quotes Victor Hugo when describing the Rhine: “The Rhine is unique: it combines the qualities of every river. Like the Rhine, it is rapid; broad, like the Loire; encased, like the Meuse; serpentine, like the Seine; limpid and green, like the Somme; historical, like the Tiber; royal, like the Danube; mysterious, like the Nile; spangled with gold, like an American river; and like a river of Asia, abounding with phantoms and fables!”

A river cruise is really the best way to see Europe, or any continent where the cities and towns are linked by a river. You are in a floating boutique hotel that travels with you to an average of seven destinations per cruise, saving you the inconvenience of unpacking and packing again and again — oh, those toiletries to pack each time when you have to move out of your hotel daily! But in a river cruise, which is always within sight of land, the ship is your permanent home for the duration of your tour.

The river serves as the thread that sews up the color patches of your trip into one compact and colorful quilt of memories.

***

We embarked in Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, also known as the Venice of Northern Europe for its numerous canals. With its gabled houses and canals, Amsterdam, a city of 800,000 people and two million bicycles, is already a destination in itself. On our first day, we walked from the ship to the city center. I visited a traditional cheese shop where the shopkeeper told me that Gouda is not a kind of cheese but refers to the shape of the cheese (like a petal, because it is carved from a wheel).

On our second day, AmaWaterways organized a canal city tour of Amsterdam, home of the icon Anne Frank. It also offered a special tour to Keukenhof, one of the most beautiful gardens in the world, about 45 minutes out of the city. Our group, consisting mostly of travel agents, opted for Keukenhof, which springs with seven million flowers — mostly tulips. Keukenhof is so picturesque that if you gave your phone camera even to a five-year-old and let him click away in all directions, he will give you back postcard-like photos of tulips of every color, size and arrangement. Each tulip in Keukenhof is like a piece of colorful embroidery on a giant green carpet, except that each piece swayed with the wind and smiled at the sun.

AmaStella hotel manager Adile Wirth and cruise director Martina Valachova.

The 80-acre (about 32-hectare) garden, which used to be a countess’ vegetable garden in the 19th century till a group decided to make it a showcase of Dutch flowers in 1949, has, in fact, several gardens that you can meander in. Each garden is obviously landscaped, and yet the tulips grow riotously. Open only eight weeks a year (March to May), Keukenhof is a bouquet from God to all those who visit it — the feeling you get there is that you are being presented a gift to show how appreciated you are, how special you are and that today is like your birthday. After all, who was it who once said, “Say it with flowers”?

***

After settling back in the ship following our return from Keukenhof, we got ready for our river journey. The AmaStella, which had about 130 guests, now sailed for Cologne in Germany. According to our cruise director, the best way to enjoy a Rhine River Cruise is, “Of course with AmaWaterways and with a glass of a well-chilled Riesling from the surrounding vineyards!” Which is exactly what I did as our ship approached Germany.

That night, we had a Chaines des Rotisseurs dinner in a specialty restaurant at the back of the ship with floor-to-ceiling windows. All meals, and the wines that flowed with them, were part of the cruise price.

One of AmaStella’s suites.

We awoke the next day in Cologne, home to one of Germany’s most revered Gothic masterpieces, the Cologne Cathedral. The twin-spired Catholic Church is also the sanctuary where the remains of the Three Kings or Magi (Melchor, Gaspar and Balthazar) are believed to be. Near the high altar is the massive gold reliquary of the Three Kings. The shrine, a masterpiece of medieval goldwork, was begun by the noted goldsmith Nicholas of Verdun in 1182, completed in about 1220. Like the cathedral itself the reliquary survived 14 bombs during World War II!

Once the tallest building in the world (till 1884), the cathedral is the tallest in Northern Europe.

Aside from the cathedral, Cologne is famous for The Bridge at Remagen. I remember watching this movie with my grandfather when I was a little girl. The capture of the bridge by US soldiers during World War II gave the Americans clear passage over the Rhine, altering the course of the war.

In much of Europe, cities and towns are defined by whether or not they were altered by wars. If they were, their character was molded by their efforts to rebuild. If they were untouched, their source of pride is how they were able to preserve their authenticity.

This makes Europe very interesting, for history is blended with ancient edifices and breathtaking vistas. A river cruise ties this all in.

(To be concluded)

(For more information, call North Star Travel at 848-7802, 485-7272 local 214 or e-mail [email protected]. )