Robert Torte

Ah! Spring in the Netherlands!

Not in March. Seriously. Don't go in March. Yes, it's the least expensive time, and there's a reason for that. If you look at the attached folder, you'll see the only real tulips to be found were in the vase on the ship. We also saw three...yes, three..growing in the wild by a car park one day. That was it.

Having said that, it's still a great itinerary. Especially if you are not into flowers as much. For me, the chocolate factory was a real treat. And "factory" is a term used loosely. It was snowing that morning in Ghent. Ama took us to what was really just a kitchen, with a the chocolate maker (5th generation) and his parents. Mama served champagne, and we all learned about how they make chocolate. We also got to try our hand at making some as well. I'm sure we all consumed more chocolate than we made. Probably for the best.

And who could go to Holland without seeing the windmills? Not only did we see them, at Kinderdijk, but we also went inside them and got the entire full tour. It was a great excursion.

One of the stops I particularly enjoyed was Antwerp. It was a gorgeous city and the ship docks in a convenient location less than 10 minutes walk from the city center. The big excursion here was about beer, chocolate, and waffles. I think the whole ship did this. We also did a more traditional city tour, and stopped in the cathedral which had some Reubens paintings on display.

Definitely a great cruise.