April 8, 2026 Today we visited Rothenburg, a small town that still retains its medieval character. The Romanticists were charmed by this little town that was untouched by the industrial revolution of the time and insisted that it be preserved as it was. On the way, we drove along the "Romantic" route named for the movement that romanticized the past at a time when so many things were changing. Once in Rothenberg, we had a quick tour starting with the medieval wall that still

April 7, 2026 Today we had a long bus ride to Heidelberg. There was an accident so traffic was slow. The scenery was beautiful on the way and the charming town was worth the wait. They even had a tactile map that people who are visually impaired could use to discover the town. After a brief city tour, we had lunch with students from the Heidelberg University. Our student was a native German from Southern Germany who was studying anthropology with a particular interest in Lati

April 6, 2026 Today, we visited the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress. It was a fun tour as our guide was a local actor who took on the role of an Englishman who "spied" on the construction of the Prussian Fortress built to ward off the advancing French. He wrote a book that caused great consternation with the Prussian military because it revealed too many details about the fortress. He involved the tour group with his "spying" and it was a fun way to learn about the fortress. You can

April 5, 2026 We travelled along the Moselle River to Cochem. The highlight of today's excursion was a visit to the Reichsburg Castle. The tour of the inside was amazing. There were beautiful ceilings and such interesting details in each room. There was a bust of Louis Ravené, who purchased and renovated the castle in 1868. The castle even had secret passages which could be opened with a little button on the floor. From the castle, we had a splendid view of Cochem and the Mos

April 4, 2026 We toured the city of Trier today. It's population of around 100,000 is about the same as it was when it was a capital city of the Emperor Constantine in the Roman empire. Electoral Palace with Constantin Basilica behind. The Basilica was heated by fireplaces which produced heat below platforms and warmed the entire building. Church of Our Lady Trier Cathedral, the oldest church in Germany. The purple building, the Palais Walderdorff, is where Napoleon stood on

April 3, 2026 After enjoying a beautiful sunrise, we bid farewell to the our hotel, the Hyatt Regency Paris Etoile, and traveled to meet the river boat in Trier. On the way, we stopped in Reim to see the Reims Cathedral. The stained glass was stunning. The details within the panes were exquisite. We next stopped at the American Cemetery in Luxembourg dedicated to fallen American soldiers who fought in World War II. Soon after leaving Luxembourg, we reached Trier and boarded

April 2, 2026 Today we did a panoramic city tour with Viking. The highlight was a stop at the newly restored Notre Dame after the disastrous fire in 2019. We were lucky and lines were short so we were able to go inside. We then rode to Giverny to see the house and gardens of Monet. They were beautiful and filled with spring blooms.

April 1, 2026 Today we had a tour of the Louvre. We had initially had a 3 hour tour with Project Expedition, but they cancelled on us. Since it was last minute, we were only able to do a 1 hour tour through the hotel. It was very rushed which was disappointing, but was happy to be able to see the museum. We met the guide at a meeting place. We entered the Louvre area through a covered hall which gave good cover from the rain. We waited there a bit until closer to our meeting

March 31, 2026 We walked from the hotel to the Arc de Triomphe to our first stop on the Big Bus tour of Paris. We decided to stay on the whole time to get an overview of the city. After driving down the Champ de Elysee, we passed by the Grand Palais. Built in 1900 for the Universal Expedition in Paris, it boasts one of the largest glass roofs in the world. A statue of Charles De Gaulle, the leader of the French Resistance that fought the Nazis and later became France's first

April 30, 2026 We explored the area around the hotel today after making the switch for our booked room for the extra night to the room with Viking. Here is the view from our new room. Today we explored the area around the hotel. I had thought this metallic structure was some a sculpture or monument. It turns out that it is actually student housing! The Irene Joliot-Curie Student Residence stands out as an excellent example of contemporary French architecture by the way it mak

March 29, 2026 We arrived in Paris today. Here is a night view of the Eiffel Tower from our hotel room.

August 20, 2025 Today we entered the Northwest Territories in Canada by crossing the Dolphin and Union Strait. he highlight of the day was a sighting of some beluga whales. The small whales were off in the distance, but still visible. Beluga whales are sometimes also called white whales, melonheads (because of their rounded heads, and sea canary because of their high-pitched calls. We also saw a skua and a kittiwake. The sunset that night was beautiful.

August 19, 2025 We walked around the town of Cambridge Bay today. We started at the waterfront with its most well-know sculpture of the metal muskox. Made of recycled and repurposed materials, this sculpture symbolizes the resilience of the community of Cambridge Bay. A raven sculpture can be seen behind it. Nearby but closer to the beach were two metal sculptures of wolves. We next went to the Arctic Coast Visitor's Center and admired the Inuit art such as this whale bone

August 18, 2025 Today we visited Lady Franklin Point. It was named after John Franklin's wife who spent many years searching for him after his expedition disappeared in the Arctic. Years later it was the site of a radar station that was part of the North Warning System that the United States and Canada set up to help protect North America. Unfortunately, the station burned down in 2000 and is now abandoned. (Photo by ship's photographer - John Shedwick) The day began with a b

August 17, 2026 Once called Jenny Lind Island, after a famous opera singer, Qikiqtaryuaq provides many examples of Arctic plants. The photography group headed out to try our hand at some macro photography. We walked along a path with small rivulets of water and algae before coming to out destination where many examples of the arctic plants thrived. On our way we also saw the tracks of birds and musk ox that had also come this way. This miniature creeping willow seemed to take

8-16=25 Today we visited the hamlet of Gjoa Haven. This little town of about 1,500 came about because of another explorer searching for the Northwest Passage. The Norwegian explorer, Roald Amundsen, was destined to have move success than the Franklin Expedition. He was the first to successfully navigate the Northwest Passage in his ship, the Gjoa. Later he would be the first to reach the South Pole as well. However, before accomplishing either feat, he spent two years in Gjoa

12-25-25 (In Progress) On Christmas Day we visited the temple of Dendera dedicated to the goddess Hathor. Here are some highlight photos. I will fill in facts and other details later:

12/24/2025 - In Progress Today we flew to Luxor. Before transferring to the ship, we visited the Temple of Karnak. Later that evening, we saw the Temple of Luxor at night.

December 23, 2025 The Grand Egyptian Museum was amazing. Even with 4 hours to explore there wasn't enough time to see everything...maybe if we'd had 4 days! We visited the Pyramids of Giza next. Brent rode a camel, while I admired the overview of the 3 pyramids together. Then we were able to get close up to the pyramids to see the huge stones that formed the pyramids with no mortar to hold them together. Our final stop was to see the Sphinx.

12-22-2025 - still in progress, but here are some highlights. We visited the Saqqara Step Pyramid Complex this morning. Imhotep designed the first pyramid for King Djoser who ruled Egypt in 2667 to 2648 BC during the 3rd Dynasty. This innovation became the inspiration for the other pyramids that became the iconic resting places for the pharaohs of the Old Kingdom of Egypt. Its six steps are six mastabas stacked on top of each other, each a little smaller that the one below it