The second phase of our European adventure is a river cruise from Bucharest in Romania to Amsterdam.

We started out in Bucharest, spending two nights in a hotel with day trips and then boarded our river boat at Giurgiu, about a 90 minute drive from Bucharest.

Click here to see pictures from our time in Bucharest 

We boarded the boat at Giurgiu and travelled a very short distance to Rousse in Bulgaria (ie, the other side of the river!  We drove to Veliko Tarnovo and Arbanassi to see a 17th century church and a fortress.  We also had an authentic Bulgarian meal which was very nice.  The weather was misty and rainy so keeping the lens free of rain drops was a challenge that sometimes defeated me 😦

Click here to see pictures of our time in Rousse

Our next stop was Vidin, also in Bulgaria.  Here we took a bus to Belogradchik Bulgarian red rock country where a large rock formation dominates a valley and in which a fortress was built.

Click here to see pictures of our time in Vidin

From Vidin we sailed through the Iron Gate region, starting with two 15 metre lifts through locks.

Click here to see pictures of the Iron Gate region

Belgrade was the next stop.  In the morning Sue did a bus tour of the city and Jim did a tour by bicycle.  After lunch we did a quick stroll in the centre of the city.

Click here to see pictures of our time in Belgrade

We left Serbia for Croatia and our next stop was Vukovar.  The night before we arrived, Croatia had won their match in the Soccer World Cup to enter the final which was the cause of much celebration.  Consequently the streets were very quiet!

We did a short walk around Vukovar and then drove to Osijek to walk around the Old Town.  Lunch was in a local home where we had traditional Croation food. Our ship continued sailing up the Danube and we caught up to it in the afternoon.

Click here to see pictures of our day in Vukovar and Osijek

Next stop was Budapest.  We had an amazing view as we sailed up the Danube.  In the evening the Captain did a night time sailing where we saw the sights of Budapest again but this time illuminated.

Click here to see pictures of our time in Budapest

Click here to see pictures of our time in Slovakia

The river cruise continues with stops at Weisenkirchen, Passau, Regensberg, Nuremberg, Bamberg, Wurzburg, Rothenburg, Wertheim, Heidelberg, Rudesheim and Cologne.

All of these places were very photogenic but it was a very busy schedule… we are thinking we need a holiday to recover from our holiday 🙂

We finished the cruise in Amsterdam.  We flew to London and then home via Singapore, Sydney and Canberra.

Click on each of the towns above to see the photos.