We were kind of glad to say good bye to Paris after all the drizzle
and grey skies we had had. But we were
not glad to say goodbye to the very personable and enjoyable crew that we had
spent the week with. We were also sad to see most of our new friends
leaving for home or Paris extensions.
Only 38 of the 141 guests on board were going on to the south of France
to complete what had been marketed as France’s Finest. This was a new thing for Viking this year and
we were only the second cruise to do it.
We had found out Saturday night that there had been a slight
change of schedule. Disappointing to be
sure but not critical. Turns out that
the Soane was too high for our new boat, the Hermod, to sail under the
bridges. So we were going to leave early
for a longer drive to Lyons instead of Chalon sur Soane. Many were very, very upset, but with all the
rain we had been experiencing it was easy to see this was possible.
We boarded a not too comfortable bus, more like a city bus
than a tour bus and headed out on our eight hour drive. Since as a farewell present to us, Paris
decided to have sunny skies to celebrate Easter and spring the drive was at
least beautiful. Lush green fields
dotted with Charleroi cows and little lambs seemed appropriate. The pastoral scene was highlighted with
classic French manor houses. They were
turreted and displayed beautiful mansard or thatched roofs. What we would call peaceful streams to the
French are rivers and we crossed many.
Traffic was light and not many people were about as they were probably
in church or already visiting relatives for the holiday.
For lunch we stopped in Dijon. Our guide led us to the center of the old town
and pointed out several restaurants that were open. Ruth and I chose a place that advertised soup
but the French Onion was not ready so she had cheesecake that was delicious and
I had American Fries which were hot, and salty and served in the cutest little
fryer basket. The clock on the wall was
something I wish I had. It told the time
in words, not numbers!
After the break for lunch on our own, the only meal we have
to buy this week, we met everyone for a walking tour of the city center. Interestingly enough, Dijon, known for
mustard, imports 90% of the mustard seed they use from Canada as not enough
grows in France. The city is represented
by an owl and little plaques in the street lead you to the important churches and
monuments to see.
Back on the bus we continued to Lyons and found our ship
docked in the Soane near the confluence with the Rhone. Yes, disappointing to miss 233 miles of
scenic sailing but most of it would have been at night anyway. The Viking Hermod is one of their new long ships. It is indeed longer and gives more spacious
public spaces and cabin room because it carries a capacity of only 42 more
people. The lady captain met us at the
door to welcome us aboard. Check-in is
quick and easy. A quick and easy. A glance at the passport to see if you are
you and a glance at the computer to see if your name is on the list. Eh voila, you are handed a key card and good
to go. Once again our luggage
practically beat us to the room and we were delighted with the comfort and the
warm, heated floors in the bathroom. On
the Pride, the bathroom was very cold.
No changing for dinner and we sat with friends from the old
ship. Max the chef, is delightful. His rosy red, chubby cheeks do not allow you
to mistake him for anything but the Austrian he is! Dinner was very good, and service was
excellent. The only thing is that the
dining room is noisy because of a low ceiling.
Music in the lounge, unpacking, a hot shower, and bed
finished off our day and our first week in style!
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