Thursday, May 22, 2014

If this is Thursday it must be Hungary

I have not posted the last couple of days because I realized that I was repeating myself.  We have cruised through Romania, Serbia, Croatia, Bulgaria and are now in Hungary.  Tomorrow we leave our boat and spend two nights in Budapest before flying home on Sunday.
It has been an interesting experience.  The people are nice and the tours are interesting.  There has been a lot of turmoil in this part of the world over its history so we are learning  quite a bit.  Our accommodations have been very nice.  The boat holds about 200 passengers and it seems to be full.  The weather has been friendly with a few storms that we have managed to avoid for the most part.  The temps are very pleasant so we have been comfortable.
Lunch is coming soon so will end for now.

Monday, May 19, 2014

A day of sailing

Well I tried again to upload pictures but it didn't work.  Maybe it is because we are moving but 'so it goes' I will just have to accept the poor Internet connection.
Today we are sailing up the Danube past the Iron Gate locks. It is a beautiful day and the scenery is very nice.  Tomorrow we will be in Belgrade for the day.  Bud has decided to go with a group in the afternoon and do a bicycle tour of the city.  We will do a bus city tour in the morning together.  I will go on  an excursion in the afternoon to an artist community and on to a craft shop where violins are made.  I am NOT planning to bring home a violin but who knows what I will find in the artist community.
This area has been in the news here because of the unusual rains and flooding.  I don't know if that news has reached the states.  Our boat is fine and we are promised to be able to dock in Belgrade tomorrow.
We are really enjoying this trip.  The history is fascinating and we have met some interesting people.  Today is really our first day of relaxing so we are enjoying the 'down time' by reading and sitting in the fresh air.  All and all we are happy with the cruise line and the activity level.
T-t-that's  all for now.  will keep you posted.

Sunday, May 18, 2014

still floating above the water

In the event you are getting any European news, there is major flooding in this area but we are still floating above the water line.  Today we had another great day with a bit of a thunderstorm in the afternoon.  We were smart enough to head back to the boat before the downpour.  A nice nap and then an in cabin movie used up our spare time in the afternoon so there are lots of ways to keep us occupied.  We have decided to skip the evening entertainment of 'music trivia' and watch another movie. It looks like most of the teams have indulged in a little too much wine at dinner.
Tomorrow we will be sailing all day so I hope to find some time to post a picture or two depending on the scenery.
Love to all.

Saturday, May 17, 2014

Bulgaria

Sorry, no pictures still.  I didn't even try them today.  The service is so slow.  I know that my MANY readers are so disappointed but you will have to wait until I get better service and suffer through DAYS   DAYS of slide shows.  We are doing very well.  The weather is pleasant with a little rain now and then.  The sky is blue outside my cabin window and I am looking at the shore which is covered with forests and a small town in the background.  It is just after 8 in the morning and we have been moving all night on the river.  (I don't have pictures so I must describe my surroundings to you)
Yesterday we had excursions all day starting at 9 and we arrived back at the boat about 6 in the evening.  The have a bus pick us up at the dock and take us to various towns.  Sometimes the drive time is about an hour or more but the countryside is interesting and the guide tells us about the area while we are riding.  We visited an old home built in the middle ages and a beautiful orthodox church with frescoes on the walls and ceilings.  It was very well preserved.
Today we are in Bulgaria again for the second day on the boat. We should be docking pretty soon as we have an excursion in about 45 minutes  We are going to a fortress and then having some time to walk around in the afternoon on our own.
I did manage to find myself a ring as a souvenir  of the trip so I am all set.  They are very willing to take our American money here so I haven't had difficulty finding something for myself.
We are having a great time and learning a lot about this part of the world which suffered under Communism for over 50 years.  They are just coming out of that difficult time and are very 'westward' looking.  They are part of the E.U. but have't  started using the Euro yet.
Bud is looking to use the computer so I will sign off my dialog and try later to upload some pictures if possible. They keep us pretty busy all day but tomorrow we have a day on the boat as we are traveling via boat through an area that has great scenery.

Friday, May 16, 2014

SLOW service

I Thought I would upload some pics but our internet service is really slow.  We have arrived and so did our luggage so that is wonderful.  We had a great day in Bucharest and are now on our boat.  I just wanted to let family know that we are fine.  I will continue to try for better service at another date but it is late and we have a full day of touring tomorrow so good night to all.

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Amazing Music

Thursday I was invited to join Sue and go down to Kalamazoo to watch Charlotte perform at the Michigan Youth Arts Festival.  It was a great couple of days.  
We arrived just in time for Charlotte's rehearsal.  I took this picture at the rehearsal knowing that I would not be able to take one at the performance that evening because I wouldn't be able to use a flash.  She looked and sounded fantastic at the rehearsal.  

 The whole family showed up for the Thursday evening performance.
 Brittany wasn't here yet but she came in time for the concert.
 Charlotte was the second prize winner and she had her own dressing room.
 After the concert we took another picture that included Brittany.  Everyone agreed that Charlotte was a star that evening.  I enjoyed the time with the family and feel blessed to be a part of the group. What a beautiful family.  
Friday she also sang with her group the Choral-Aires.  She is a senior and will be attending Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin this fall.  She has a beautiful voice and it has been so much fun to watch and listen to her grow in the last few years.

Blessings also arrived on Saturday in the form of a beautiful new baby born to Jessica and Doug.  I am looking forward to seeing this little gem and spending time together.

SO, as one generation grows up and joins the world, a new one comes along to bless us with the beauty of new life.

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

I've got plenty of Nothing

For those of you ;that don't recognize that title, it is the name of an OLD song and it appropriately describes what is going on here which is why I haven't posted anything of late.  Now I am just going to give in to my desire to share NOTHING with you.  I am even going to include pictures of the nothing that is going on here.


 This past weekend we attended a Kentucky Derby party.  We aren't really racing fans but it was a fun party.  It is a potluck so I decided to try my new recipe for some kind of tasty treat.  I posted the recipe on an earlier post but it is simple.  1 large bag of chocolate chips, one large bag of peanut butter chips, and one large bag of butterscotch chips.  Melt the chips together and then stir in one large bag of ruffled potato chips that have been crumbled up into small crumbs.  I decided to 'fancy it up' by drizzling melted Carmel  over the top.
 After letting it cool I had a little trouble cutting it into uniform pieces so it kind of broke up in irregular pieces and the Carmel didn't cut very well but I took it anyway.  It was a BIG hit.  Oh, I also sprinkled a little sea salt over the top too.  I must admit it was pretty tasty and a lot of people complemented me on its addictive qualities.
 Bud has been noticing some deer in our neighborhood and we saw these two in our back yard/wooded area.  I hope they stay in the woods and don't come after our Hosta plants.

I have discovered that one of my favorite Paris pastries is now made right here in my home town.  I have great memories of discovering these little treats in a small bakery where broken pieces were sitting out on the counter to tempt us and the owner was in the back.  I am positive that I displayed a disgusting American trait of having a few too many of the 'samples' before buying a few.  I hope they didn't have video surveillance but I DID buy some.  They are expensive little treats both in Paris and here in TC.  I bought 2 for myself since they were $2 each.  I don't think I will be going back for a dozen or two just snack on.  They were delicious though and brought back great memories with the wonderful women in my life that shared that terrific week in Paris with me.

SO, I was right, nothing much to share but I don't want to get out of the habit of posting even though it seems to be very infrequently read or commented on.  I am sure that no one is going to contact me to put advertising on my blog but I keep on posting.  Next time I should have much better posting to share with you as exciting events are coming my way.