GeorgeCharlie

As the article notes, the European visa waiver fee is still a lot less then the $21.00 United States charges for its visa waiver. Canada only charges $7 (US$5.50) for its waiver fee.

You could also try the following contacts: Primary ContactMichael SmithSenior Vice President Guest Experience450 Third Avenue WestSeattle, WA 98119(206) 281-3535msmith@hollandamerica.com Or if you want the chief honcho of everything: Chief ExecutiveJan SwartzGroup President, Princess Cruises, Holland America, Seabourn, P&O Australia, Carnival Australia Holland America Group Shared Professional Services450 Third Avenue WestSeattle, WA 98119(206) 281-3535jswartz@hollandamerica.com

🙂Thanks and I'm sure you will have a fantastic cruise.

Couple of videos showing some of the street views.

After a sea day, we arrived in Cherbourg, France. As I have previously covered our visit earlier in this review, I’ll now review our next port, which was Zeebrugge, Belgium. Zeebrugge is an important fishing port and the wholesale fish market located there is one of the largest in Europe. And of note, considering the present situation in Europe, Zeebrugge has the largest LNG terminal complex in Europe. The ship docked at an industrial port and with nothing much to see around that area, they provided busses to take people to Bruges, which is close by. Another popular place people can visit is Brussels, which is about 2 hours away. We had a nice look at the old town tourist area when we visited Bruges in 2015. Not finding anything else interesting to see in the area, we decided to go and spend some time just wandering around it again. Bruges, the capital of West Flanders in northwest Belgium, is distinguished by its canals, cobbled streets, and medieval buildings. Bruges may be small, but it has over 80 bridges making it easy to navigate the city and get from one side of the canals to the other. Due to the sheer number of canals and bridges, Bruges is known as ‘Venice of the North’. Something not mentioned much is that there is a 12 km canal which links the centre of Bruges to the port of Zeebrugge. Of course, with all the water, there is no shortage of swans and ducks. Including handmade Belgium chocolate swans. Being in Belgium, we just had to have a fresh made Belgium waffle, covered in fresh strawberries and Belgium chocolate. Another thing Belgium is famous for is beer. The toughest part of having a beer is deciding which one you want! Unsure? You can always get a one metre sample tray - which includes 12 glasses of different beers! Fairly subdued signage for a McDonalds. In the city center’s Burg square is the 14th-century Stadhuis (City Hall). The nearby Market square features a 13th-century belfry with a 47-bell carillon and 83m tower with panoramic views. To reach the top of the Belfry Tower, you have to climb a whopping 366 steps. Market Square also contains the Provincial Court House. Not far away from the square is the Church of Our Lady, which is best known for its marble Madonna and Child sculpture by Michelangelo named ‘Madonna of Bruges'. (Internet picture)

After enjoying an ice cream cone, we boarded the bus and headed back to Dublin. We were dropped off at Trinity College and from there, it was only a short walk over to the Temple Bar tourist area. We wandered around for a while, before catching a cab over to see our evening Irish dinner & show. One of the carriage rides being offered in the Temple Bar area. We had a quick look into some of the bars and found them to be quite interesting in their décor, but even though it was only the late afternoon, they were already very busy and boisterous. We had some difficulty finding a cab and when we finally managed to get one, the driver said it was going to be a very hectic evening. Not only was Friday night; there were also several major concerts and other events going on. The dinner wasn’t all that great, but I’d suggest going with the dinner/show option, as the people who had the show-only option were seated at the back of the room. The show itself was fairly good. A short video of some of the show. After the show we had the reception desk call us a cab, which surprisingly arrived after only a short wait. As we were not that far from the dock, it didn’t take us long to get back to the ship. It was a full day for us, but overall we found it an enjoyable short visit to Ireland.🍀

We exited the Monastic Site at St. Kevin’s church and walked past the Lower Lake to the Upper Lake parking lot, about a one mile walk. Our bus was waiting for us at the Upper Lake parking lot. Glendalough, with the tranquility of the lakes and glacial-carved valley, creates one of the most picturesque natural settings in the Wicklow Mountains. Waterway feeding into the lower lake. The lower lake. The caher (stone fort), located between the two lakes, is probably the oldest of the structures. The walls are 3m thick in dry masonry, while the outer diameter is just over 20m. The walls were for protection, just as the stone wall around the monastic city. This area between the two lakes contains the highest concentration of upright inscribed stone slabs and crosses at Glendalough. The crosses may have marked the boundaries of monastic lands or stations on the pilgrims' route. The upper lake. The visitor centre.

After lunch it was just a short drive over to Glendalough. The bus dropped us off at the Monastic Site and the guide gave us a walking tour of the ruins. Glendalough is one of the most important medieval ecclesiastical landscapes in Ireland and since the nineteenth century one of Ireland’s premier tourist attractions. Glendalough is the Anglicized version of ‘Gleann Dá Loch’, which is Irish for ‘Glen / Valley of Two Lakes’. As its name suggests, there are two lakes in this valley, the Upper and Lower Lakes. Evidence for human activity in the valley possibly goes as far back as the Neolithic Period. Recent excavations have uncovered industrial activity that may be contemporary with St Kevin’s (a hermit monk) reputed foundation of a ‘monastery’ around 600AD. Most of the buildings that survive today date from the 10th through 12th centuries. Despite attacks by Vikings over the years, Glendalough thrived as one of Irelands great ecclesiastical foundations and schools of learning until the Normans destroyed the monastery in 1214. The ruins at Glendalough Monastic City include a gateway, a round tower, seven churches, two high crosses, as well as a graveyard. The graveyard reflects the close ties between the church and the local community with families buried there for many generations. In the past, the monastic city was enclosed by a wall, though little of it has remained. Fortunately, its gateway still stands – it is said to be the only surviving example in Ireland of a gateway into an early monastic city. Just inside the gateway is a sanctuary stone with a cross inscribed on it. Anyone who passes the stone could claim refuge within the monastery’s walls. One of the most impressive of remaining buildings is the Round Tower which stands 30m (98 feet) high. The tower is considered by many to be the most finely constructed and beautiful tower in Ireland. It is still in near perfect condition even though it is almost 1,000 years old. The tower is divided internally into seven stories by timber floors, connected by ladders. The four stories above entrance level are each lit by a small window, while the top story has four windows facing the cardinal compass points. In medieval Ireland, round towers provided landmarks for approaching visitors and were built as bell towers. They also served on occasion as store-houses and places of refuge in times of attack. The door is about 3.5 meters (11 feet) from the ground, which is commonly believed to be a defensive practice with refuge seekers raising the ladder from within. St. Kevin’s Cross is a fine example of a plain cross remarkably carved from a single granite stone. The arms of the cross are over a metre in length. The imperforate cross stands about 2.5m tall. It may have marked the boundary of the cemetery in which stands the priests’ house. This cross is a fine example of how St Patrick trying to help the once pagan people of Ireland acclimate to Christianity. This was done by combining the cross with the circle representing the sun, because the pagans worshipped the sun and moon. A local legend surrounding St. Kevin’s Cross says that anyone who can wrap their arms around the entire width of the cross body and close the circle by touching fingertips will have their wishes granted. The ruins contain two High Crosses. Whereas St. Kevin's cross is rather plain, the High Celtic cross is carved in much higher detail. The High Celtic cross is off the right shoulder of our guide. Glendalough, also known as the city of the seven churches, with Cathedral of St Peter and St Paul as the largest of the seven churches. It was built in several phases from the 10th through the early 13th century. Large mica schist stones, which form the foundation up to the height of the west doorway, were re-used from an earlier smaller church. The earliest part is the nave with antae for supporting the wooden roof. The chancel, sacristy, and north door were added in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. The chancel arch and east window were once decoratively carved, but many of the stones are now missing. The north doorway to the nave also dates from this period. Inside there is a wall cupboard, a stone font, many grave slabs, and the remains of a decorated arch. St. Kevin's Church is unusual in that it has a round tower or belfry with conical cap integrated with the church. Perhaps because of its small size, or the tower resembling a chimney, it is frequently called "St. Kevin's kitchen."

We have also stayed at Hotel Gaudi. Have to love their tiny elevator.😉