Friday, September 13

I got up and was out by about 8:30. I went to the coffee machine in the lounge area and sat and had a couple of lattes. Then I realized breakfast was over at 9:30 and I had missed out. They did have a German ‘brunch’ of sausages, some sort of ‘meatloaf’ and sandwiches of tomato and lettuce to go with the meatloaf at around 10:00 so I got a small sandwich there. There was supposed to be pretzels but I later heard they had them at breakfast, so I never got a German pretzel. Next time.

I went to the sundeck for a while and enjoyed the weather and listened to my book. Then I met up with Don, Frankie, Barb and Celia in the lounge for the light lunch. I had green salad, Asian noodle salad and a couple of chicken wings.

Up next was the trip to Heidelberg Castle. We bused into Heidelberg from Mannheim. Then went around the ruins of the castle. The guide, Roland, was good but not quite as humorous as Marcus. He did lighten up a bit towards the end.

The drive up to the castle was a bit scary at times since the roads were very narrow and twisty and come to find out the driver had never been there before. He did a good job but I wouldn’t have wanted to be the one driving.

We then went into a cafe on the square and had some wine and shared a plate sausages, sauerkraut and frites. There were beautiful Alpine geraniums around the square. They are different from the ones we have at home. Don said they have tried to find them and were able to order some once but they didn’t do as well as these.

Barb got some shopping done. The big bonus was a pair of Josef Seibel shoes for €33! I used to wear them when I worked and paid more than that! After that we met up with the guide and got on the bus that took us back to Mannheim in rush hour traffic. Reminded me of home!

The dinner was to be a special event. The AmaWaterways is a member of the World’s Oldest Gastronomic Society, Confrerie de la Chaine de Rotisseurs. Membership is by invitation only and is extended to those possessing world-class culinary acumen. All of the European Amawaterways ships are members.

The starter course was fabulous. It was Pâté de Foie Gras, Beef Carpaccio with a Walnut Brioche, Fig Chutney and Port Wine Onion Confit. We all loved the little swirls of pâté so much we wished we had a half a cup or so to save for later. Someone mentioned it to the waiter and we ended up all getting another plate.

The main course was MustardCrusted Rack of Lamb, Tarragon Sauce, Ratatouille, Broccoli, and Potato Gratin. It was all excellent. We didn’t hint for seconds this time, even though it was excellent and cooked perfectly.

Dessert was Opera Gateau, Raspberry Sorbet, and Dark Chocolate Kailua Ganache. There was a slice of orange on top of the sorbet that was dried or caramelized somehow and it was very tasty. The gateau was soft and melted in the mouth.

It was a very pleasant dinner and evening, but I went straight to bed again afterwards.