Viking Helvetia 2014 8-Day Rhine River Cruise Review
Day 7 November 8, 2014
Kinderdijk, The Netherlands Arrival: 1:30PM Departure: 5:30PM
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Day 7 November 8, 2014
Kinderdijk, The Netherlands Arrival: 1:30PM Departure: 5:30PM
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Scenic Cruising: Our last full day of the cruise began with a fiery sunrise. It was a beautiful way to start the day! The morning was spent cruising through Holland’s green countryside with its grazing cows, a few windmills along the way, lovely homes on the banks of the river and a replica of Noah’s ark.
Fiery sunrise - Morning of last full cruise day
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Cruising through Holland
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A few windmills along the way
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Cruising through Holland
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Cruising through Holland
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Countryside along the river
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More windmills
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More homes along the banks of the river
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More homes along the banks of the river
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Life size replica of Noah's ark
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Lunch menu featuring Dutch foods
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Lunch: The menu for the day provided several Dutch choices – Dutch cheeses, Dutch Beef Stew and Flying Dutchman dessert. By the time lunch was over, we had arrived in Kinderdijk, The Netherlands. Kinderdijk is a small village in the province of South Holland, just east of Rotterdam.
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Shore Excursion: The afternoon was spent touring the Kinderdijk Windmills. This is a historic UNESCO site with a collection of 19 windmills that were built in the mid-18th century. Families live in many of the windmills and are required to keep them in working order. One of the windmills has been designated as a museum and a tour of the interior gives you a glimpse of what it would be like to live in a windmill. After everyone completed the tour, the ship cast off for Amsterdam, arriving around 12:30am.
Arriving at Kinderdijk, a UNESCO World Heritage site
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First glimpse of all the windmills
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A couple of windmills up close
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One of the windmills is designated a museum
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Interior is very small and compact
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Wardrobe for linens
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Display of women's clothing from days gone by
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Dishes in cupboard
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Iron stove in hallway, no actual kitchen
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Most windmills have families living in them
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Windmills were built in the mid 18th century
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Last glimpse of the windmills as we returned to the ship
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Captain’s Farewell Reception: Before dinner, the Captain introduced all of the staff and crew so we could show our appreciation for a job well done. A farewell toast was given to celebrate our journey and the new friends that were made during the week.
Captain’s Farewell Dinner: The farewell dinner was a delicious and special five course meal. Each of the courses, except for two, was the same for everyone. The two exceptions were the appetizer and the main course. Each course was wonderfully prepared and very fancy. It was an enjoyable time to have a last visit with the friends we had made on the cruise and to reminisce about the fun things we had done throughout the week. The after dinner entertainment was music by the pianist in the Lounge.
Captain’s Farewell Dinner: The farewell dinner was a delicious and special five course meal. Each of the courses, except for two, was the same for everyone. The two exceptions were the appetizer and the main course. Each course was wonderfully prepared and very fancy. It was an enjoyable time to have a last visit with the friends we had made on the cruise and to reminisce about the fun things we had done throughout the week. The after dinner entertainment was music by the pianist in the Lounge.
Menu for Captain's Farewell Dinner - 5 course meal
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1st course - Appetizers - either Crisp Tandoori chicken
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or Salmon Tartare
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2nd course - Roasted Forest Mushroom Veloute
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3rd course - Pumpkin Mousse Ravioli with Lamb Loin
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4th Course - Beef Wellington
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or Pan-Fried Prawns
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5th course - Crisp Dark Valrhona Chocolate Tart (the best ever!! worth waiting for!!)
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Departure Information: The newsletter, Viking Daily, had a detailed schedule of all the departure times for the next morning. Instead of having to put your luggage out the night before like we have done on ocean cruises, the luggage didn’t have to be put out until the next morning 30-45 min. before assigned departure from the ship.
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