We had a wonderful and thoughtful two weeks exploring the National Parks in Arizona and Utah. I came away with about a thousand photos – 147 of which are posted here – and a couple of impressions. My first impression from the trip is that the diversity of our country – in climate, geography, and people…
Author: Jack Schaller
Photos from Provence
Here is a photographic journal of my trip on the Rhone River from Avignon to Lyon, with an extra stopover in Paris. Click this link to access the photo site: https://flic.kr/s/aHskV7mBME
Visiting the Pope’s Home…and Drinking His Wine
On Friday, while in Avignon, we paid a courtesy call on the Pope at his “chateau” here. Unfortunately, we missed him by about 700 years. We decided to take a tour anyway. This was the home of a series of 14th Century Popes (Benedict XII, Innocent VI, etc.) who decided to move to Avignon when…
Arles and Les Lumieres
We spent our first full morning in France traversing the streets of Arles, famous for the quality of its light, which drew Van Gogh and others to the area. Except there wasn’t much light this morning. Cloudy, overcast, windy, and 10 degrees Celsius (you do the math). Nevertheless, intrepid travelers are never deterred by a…
Starting the Journey
We arrived in Marseilles about 11:30AM (Paris time) this morning, and had a seamless transfer of baggage and bodies to the Viking transport that would carry us to our ship in Avignon (about a one hour drive). Customs clearance in Marseilles was pretty long and slow, and there were lots of hijabs visible in line…
Off to France!
On Tuesday April 25 we will depart for our river cruise on the Rhone, through Southern France, aboard a Viking river ship. Fascinating time to be traveling to France, with the run up to the runoff election between Macron and LePen hitting full stride. Thoughts and photos will be posted daily, depending on the wifi…
A Modern Plague Pillar
I recently did some traveling through Eastern Europe and Germany. In some of the cities I visited I was struck by the appearance of so-called “Plague Pillars.” These pillars were erected in various town squares, from Budapest to Vienna to Prague, during the Middle Ages. Their purpose was either to ward off the spread of the…
Moselle Barge Trip Photos
Click here to see my photos from an eight day trip exploring the Moselle in Germany, Luxembourg and France aboard the Dutch barge Merlijn. We started in Koblenz, and sailed south through various picturesque German river towns, to Wasserbillig in Luxembourg, and then to Metz in Eastern France.
Danube Cruise Photos
Click here to see the photos from our 2015 cruise on the Danube, from Budapest to Nuremburg, then on to Prague by bus. A memorable trip with some long time friends.
Regensburg
Wednesday morning found us docked in the historic medieval city of Regensburg, in the heart of Bavaria. This was perhaps my favorite of the Danube river towns, with its interesting mix of historic structures, its blending of many different cultures and architectural influences, and its modern shops and amenities. Of course it, too, has its…