Live from Viking Kadlin Eastern European Capitals Cruise and Post Extension to Transylvania April 28-May 17

[Canal archive]

How crass and again were being overseen by the ******** few. 

[Australia08]

2 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

That word is not censored because of the historical meaning, but because people use it on Cruise Critic as a slur for people they consider controlling, eg about spelling. 

Interesting. Thanks for the clarification. 
 

 

[pontac]

I recall a large official building by the waterside with the name Mohacs on it where we had to moor in the afternoon  and line up on board to show our passports as we were leaving Hungary. 

 

Did you have to do same?

 

This was in 2019 on Viking's Passage to Eastern Europe cruise from Budapest to Bucharest. The Viking people told us that coming back they reached this place  after midnight - the time 3am resonates - so everyone had to be got out of bed for it. Which is the reason I didn't want to do Capitals of Eastern Europe starting in Bucharest.....

 

 

[Australia08]

Sunday, May 5 - Vukovar/Ilok, Croatia

 

After breakfast, we were off on our buses on about a 40 minute drive through the beautiful Croatian countryside.  Again, it was a wonderful sunny day.

 

 

 

Since it was a Sunday, our morning tour which normally includes some time for free time and shopping was changed up a bit and some items for purchase were present at the city hall in Bilje, where we heard a lovely concert by a local woman.  

 

 

Everyone, included tours and the optional tour we took (Highlights of Croatia) stopped at this location and later went to the Old City Walls of Osijek, a former Hapsburg fort.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the great walking tour, it was nearing lunchtime.  The optional tour we were taking included lunch with a Croatian family.  We’ve taken these kinds of tours before and always enjoy them.  Our guide divided us into groups.  Our group of 11 got dropped off at House 2.  Our family was ready to greet us and begin to entertain us.  The husband and wife who had been married for 53 years did not speak English, but their adult daughter was there to translate and give us a lot of information about the family, their history (including info about when they had to leave their home when the bombing during the Balkans War of the 1990s occurred), and lots of information about the wonderful foods we were eating for lunch.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I highly recommend this home lunch aspect of the tour.  Every group on our bus argued over who had the best experience.  The food and hospitality were exceptional cultural experiences!

 

After leaving our home visit, it was back on the bus to head to our afternoon Croatian wine experience in Ilok (where the Viking Kadlin was now moored).  On our way, our bus made a quick stop for us to see the bombed water tower, of the city of Vukovar (where we had started our day). In 1991, Vukovar came under siege during the Yugoslav Wars, becoming the only town in Europe to suffer such destruction since World War II (unfortunately, it was not the last).  We also learned about the two men from the town (they are pictured on a nearby sign) who kept putting up another national flag on the top of the water tower each time one was destroyed.

 

 

 

After our brief stop at the water tower, it was off to the winery in Ilok.  This town has been producing wines for over two thousand years.  Along the way to the winery, we saw many vineyards from the bus.

 

 

We visited the KAST wine cellar on the main street of Ilok.  After a quick tour of the winery, it was off to the tasting room to sample three whites and two reds.  

 

 

 

 

 

It was a great way to cap off our first day in Croatia.

 

By this time, it was time to head back to the Kadlin, take a last view of the medieval town of Ilok, with its captivating castle on the hill, and get ready to head on down the Danube.

 

 

Edited May 10 by Australia08

[Australia08]

3 hours ago, pontac said:

I recall a large official building by the waterside with the name Mohacs on it where we had to moor in the afternoon  and line up on board to show our passports as we were leaving Hungary. 

 

Did you have to do same?

 

This was in 2019 on Viking's Passage to Eastern Europe cruise from Budapest to Bucharest. The Viking people told us that coming back they reached this place  after midnight - the time 3am resonates - so everyone had to be got out of bed for it. Which is the reason I didn't want to do Capitals of Eastern Europe starting in Bucharest.....

 

 

 

No, we did not have this problem.  It could be because some of the countries are now part of the Schengen countries, making travel between them much easier.  I remember taking a night train from Budapest to Munich in 2000.  We, too, were woken up in the middle of the night to produce our passports.  I had kind of forgotten about that.

 

[franski]

Am enjoying your thread...  We did Bucharest to Budapest with Viking a number of years ago so this is bringing back some great memories.  LOVE Budapest - and it seems that you had time to experience a few things while you were there. 

 

Am interested to see what your trip to Transylvania will include.  We re-sailed the lower Danube with Scenic a couple of years ago, and did Transylvania pre-trip with them.  Amazing country...

 

Will continue to follow you along!!

 

Fran

[LFS517]

Viking shows the "Croatian Countryside & Wine Tasting" excursion as "Demanding."  Did you find the tour demanding, and if so, could you please tell me why?  We are booked on this cruise in 2025 and enjoy wine tastings, but I have some mobility issues and am trying to determine whether or not I can handle this excursion.  Thank you!!

[pontac]

Thanks for asking that @LFS517. I meant to ask to ask the same question for the same reasons.

[pontac]

2 hours ago, Australia08 said:

No, we did not have this problem.  It could be because some of the countries are now part of the Schengen countries, making travel between them much easier.

 

That's good. Serbia is not in the EU, and Croatia, Romania & Slovakia are, but Croatia and Romania activated Schengen after I was there. So perhaps since the cruise ends in Romania and the excursion to Serbia is less then a day it doesn't count

[twototravel]

@Australia08 The visit to Ilok and wine tasting is on our optional excursion list for consideration. Thanks for sharing.

[Australia08]

12 hours ago, LFS517 said:

Viking shows the "Croatian Countryside & Wine Tasting" excursion as "Demanding."  Did you find the tour demanding, and if so, could you please tell me why?  We are booked on this cruise in 2025 and enjoy wine tastings, but I have some mobility issues and am trying to determine whether or not I can handle this excursion.  Thank you!!

Our tour was entitled “Highlights of Croatia,” so I’m not sure it’s the same. It was not very demanding. The only real walking we did was in the town of Osijek. It was on some cobbles, but the walk was very slow paced. You could always sit on a bench or stop at a cafe during the walk because we entered and left the Old Town at the same spot. I recall a few people did this. 

[twototravel]

@Australia08 There is a two excursion off the ship titled Highlights of Sofia and Northern Bulgaria on our upcoming cruise. Know anyone on your trip that did this? It's expensive but looks interesting.

[Australia08]

Twototravel:  I know one couple who did this.  They said they probably wouldn’t choose it again, but did say that it was mainly because the weather was rainy the entire time they were there.  They did like the hotel that Viking put them in while in Sofia.  My husband and I went on a Rick Steves tour of Bulgaria two years ago, so did not consider going off the boat for an overnight.  We did like Sofia quite a bit, but we were there for about a week total (with out time before and after our tour).  

[Australia08]

Monday, May 6 - Novi Sad

 

We actually had a wonderful view of Petrovaradin Fortress as we arrived in Novi Sad last evening.  Again, we lucked out with our veranda facing this great nighttime sight enticing us to enjoy a bit of a nightcap outside. 

 

 

In the morning after breakfast, we started our touring day with the included Walking Tour of Novi Sad.  Novi Sad is Serbia’s second largest city. The Old Town is filled with a variety of baroque, neoclassical, and secession styles of architecture.  Again, we were enjoying beautiful weather.

 

 

 

 

We passed by the local market, but since it was Orthodox Easter Monday, most of the stalls were closed.  But there were a few hard-working market sellers who must have decided to open since a Viking boat was in town.

 

 

 

One of our first tour stops was outside a cafe to enjoy ustipci which are fried dough balls served with several fruit sauces and whipped cream.

 

 

 

Wandering through the quaint streets, we eventually reached the Grand Cathedral and the main square of the Old Town.

 

 

 

We continued our walk to the former Jewish Synagogue.  There we enjoyed a concert performed by members of the local Jewish community.

 

 

 

 

After the concert, we walked a different route back to the Kadlin.

 

 

 

After being fortified with a great lunch on the Kadlin, it was time for our afternoon excursion, “Fruska Gora National Park Hike and Monasteries”. This is a fairly demanding excursion.  You are bussed to the first monastery, the 14th century Velika Remeta Monastery.  Since this was Easter Monday, lots of families were out enjoying the day off and the great weather.  A priest was at the first monastery, handing out traditional hard boiled Easter eggs to celebrate the holiday.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After our visit inside the monastery, we were off to hike to the second monastery.  The hike is through Fruska Gora, Serbia’s oldest national park.  Altogether, it is home to sixteen medieval monasteries, all built between the 15th and 18th centuries.  

 

A map showing all the monasteries linked by the hiking trails

 

Michal, our Serbian program director, had described this hike as a nice walk through the woods.  Yes, we did enjoy a walk through the woods, but, the first half of the hike is “up.”  I think you need to be in pretty good condition to hike this first half.  Of course, the treat once you reach the top is that it is downhill to the next monastery, Grgeteg Monastery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

No photos were allowed in the Grgeteg Monastery, however, our timing meant that we were able to experience a short bit of a service that was in progress.  Beware, however, because there is lots of incense that is used in the service!

 

After our visit to the Grgeteg Monastery, we walked just outside the monastery gates to a nearby guest house, where we were served platters of local meats and cheeses.  We also got to sample three quite generous pours of local wine - a white, a rose, and a ‘black,” what they call their red wine.

 

 

 

 

 

After eating and drinking a bit more than we probably should have, it was time to get back on the bus and head back to Novi Sad.  I really enjoyed this excursion and would highly recommend it to anyone who is in pretty decent health (mobility-wise).

 

By the time we got back to the Kadlin, it was almost time for the daily port talk followed by dinner.  I did have a nice surprise when we returned to the room.  Earlier when we returned from the morning walking tour, the flower arrangement in our room had been removed.  It was beginning to droop just a bit, but I was sad that it was gone.  When we returned from the afternoon hike, a new flower arrangement had appeared.  I was so thrilled - funny, how fresh flowers can brighten my day!

 

 

Notice the plate of cookies, too.  We received a fresh plate of various kinds of cookies everyday (another reason my weight is definitely not decreasing on this cruise).  They tried to counter this with different fresh fruits everyday, but somehow it was the cookies that disappeared each day, not the fruit!

 

 

 

 

Edited May 13 by Australia08

[Australia08]

Tuesday, May 7 - Belgrade

 

Up and going early.  Our tour was called “The Best of Belgrade.”  We started off seeing several of the things that the included tour saw - one of the most important was Kalemegdan Fortress. Very little remains of the old fortress atop the white stone ridge on Kalemegdan Hill which gave Belgrade its name - “white city,” but a nice park, some museums and beautiful views are still present.

 

 

 

 

 

View toward modern Belgrade

 

 

The confluence of the Danube and Sava Rivers - one of the reasons Belgrade was such a strategic city

 

Next, we were off to St. Sava Cathedral, which is one of the largest Orthodox churches in the world.  The church is named for St. Sava who was one of Serbia’s greatest saints.  It was built on the site where St. Sava’s remains had been desecrated by the Ottoman conquerors.  The building was begun in 1935, but discontinued until after WWII.  The dome was finally finished in 1989, but work on the interior continued until it was finally opened to the public in 2004.  The gold and mosaics inside are breathtaking.

 

 

 

 

 

 

After our visit inside St. Sava’s, it was on to Tito’s Memorial (museum and gravesite).  It was interesting to see the outside of the home he lived in that was near the gravesite and museum.  Tito is quite revered by most of the citizens.  Our tour guide felt that he was able to negotiate well, preventing Serbia from coming under the thumb of the Soviets (like Hungary and Czechoslovakia), but remaining free of too many Western ties, allowing Serbia to have more independence.

 

 

Tito’s home

 

The view from outside the House of Flowers where Tito’s grave is located (looking back toward St. Sava’s)

 

After our visit to the Tito site, it was on to our wine pairing lunch in some of the underground tunnels owned by the Panajotovic wine-making family.  This was the best wine experience we had on the cruise.  Our hosts led us through each of six wines, providing a delicious course for each wine.  The wine was great and the food choices were well-planned.  

 

Our journey through the underground tunnels to our dining spot

 

 

 

 

 

 

After our extended lunch, it was back to the Kadlin for a quick nap.  After dinner that evening, there were Serbian folk musicians and dancers in the Lounge to entertain us.

 

 

 

Earlier in the day, we had noticed lots of Chinese flags around the city.  Our guide had told us that Chinese leader Xi Jinping was arriving in Belgrade that day.  That evening, we noticed that they had lit the major bridge in red and had the flag and Chinese greetings on one of their tallest buildings.  Interesting to see as we got ready to set sail at 11:00 pm.

 

 

Edited May 13 by Australia08

[Australia08]

As is quite obvious, I have fallen way behind on my LIVE reporting. As a matter of fact, the Viking portion of the trip is over, but we are still traveling in Europe so it is hard to really catch up.  I know that people are still curious about this itinerary, however, so I will finish reporting on the entire Viking journey, even though my reporting will be delayed.

 

Wednesday, May 8 - Donji Milanovac

 

A beautiful morning arrival to this small town.

 

 

 

We took the morning included excursion which was a walking tour.  Our young guide first took us to the local school where the guide taught us about the Serbian alphabet and language and middle school students told us about their school routines.

 

 

After that, it was off to St. Nicholas Church, the local Orthodox church, where we were greeted by the priest and introduced to an a cappella singing performance by the choir.

 

 

 

 

 

As we headed back to the Kadlin, we had a chance to admire the roses that were growing throughout the town.  

 

 

 

While this town didn’t have a lot to offer, we thought the short walking tour and concert were a nice change from the hustle and bustle of Belgrade the previous day.  

 

We only had about 20 minutes to hurry back to our room and take a quick bathroom break before it was time for the optional excursion - in our case, “Lepenski Vir.”

 

I loved our excursion to Lepenski Vir, a UNESCO site often referred to as the “first city in Europe.”  When Tito and  Ceausescu decided to joint forces to build a dam on the Danube, a group of archeologists quickly worked to explore the area that would be flooded.  During this relatively short period of exploration, they discovered sixteen Mesolithic and Neolithic sites in the area.  They only had time to carefully move one, Lepenski Vir, to higher ground.  This is the site we visited.  Based on their excavation and study, we learned that the site had been founded more than 8500 years ago.  The excavation also revealed the different levels of settlement.  

 

The impressive mountain that the people of Lepenski Vir saw from their settlement and probably used for its solstice properties

 

The iron in the area rock that led to the area’s name, Iron Gates

 

Although they made replicas of the artwork, pottery, and other items of daily life to place in the settlement which is undercover at the site, the actual amazing artwork, pottery, and items of daily life that were found on site are protected behind glass and located in the museum room to see.  These pieces were amazing!

 

Undercover site moved by the archaeologists

 

Replicas of artwork found in the settlement

 

Actual artwork from the site

 

Actual artwork from the site

 

Actual artwork from the site

 

Actual item from daily life found at the site

 

Actual pottery found at the site

 

There were 136 graves, holding 180 people at Lepenski Vir.  Obviously, these graves provided very valuable information about the population of Lepenski Vir.  

 

After leaving Lepenski Vir, we made a stop at Kapetan Misin Breg, an art gallery of statues and wooden carvings located on a picturesque hillside.  The art work is to enjoy (it is not for sale).  We were treated to a nice plate of Serbian snacks and some rakia, however.

 

 

 

 

While the art gallery stop was nice for the snack and views, the real reason to sign up for this excursion is to see Lepenski Vir.  It was amazing!

 

We were all back on board by 1:00 pm for lunch.  By 3:15 pm, we were sailing through the Iron Gates area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After several hours of our scenic sailing, it was time for the daily port talk, followed by a special Balkan dinner served family style.

 

 

 

Bulgaria tomorrow!

[pontac]

It's a chore and takes much longer than expected, so I really appreciate your detailed report, @Australia08

[Australia08]

Thursday, May 9 - Vidin, Bulgaria

 

Today, was our first truly rainy day on the trip.  Mike and I had been to Vidin before (we were in Bulgaria for a total of 3 weeks, part Rick Steves’ Tour and part on our own about 2 years ago). Vidin was one of the cities we visited then.  We laughed that it was a “Vidin” day because it was raining the last time we were in Vidin.  

 

Our included walking tour went ahead as planned since we had a nice pedestrian way to use most of the tour and everyone had their umbrellas.  

 

 

We started the tour at the Vidin sign (written in Cyrillic, of course), then headed right into the center city.  We saw a mix of earlier Hapsburg architecture as well as the ubiquitous Communist-bloc architecture.

 

 

 

 

We walked by the memorial to the Jewish population of the city which was actually saved during WWII.  The Bulgarian leader during the war had refused when Hitler wanted the Jews of Bulgaria sent to the concentration camps.  Interestingly enough, most left Bulgaria for Israel after the war.  

 

 

As we continued to walk, we also saw signs of the old walls of the city, too.

 

 

We walked by the area dubbed the “Triangle of Tolerance,” where you could see an Orthodox Church, a preserved mosque, and a neo-Gothic synagogue.  Ironically, only the Orthodox Church is being used for its intended purpose since there is no real Jewish or Muslim population in the city any longer.

 

St. Nicholas Orthodox Church

 

Osman Pazvantoglu Mosque

 

Vidin Synogogue - now a cultural center

 

The real highlight of the tour for most people was the 10th-century medieval fortress, Baba Vida Fortress.  Long a symbol of Vidin, the fortress hugs the river with its thick medieval walls, solid towers, and strong gates.  We had been through the fort before (spending more time then than this time), but we did enjoy visiting it again.  

 

 

 

 

 

While there was certainly time that one could stay in the city to visit other spots, or shop, almost everyone headed back to the dry Kadlin. We actually didn't leave Vidin until around 3:00 pm. Later in the day, we did make a quick stop in Nikopol to pick up the passengers who had taken the tour to Belogradchik Rocks and Fortress (they had left earlier in the morning from Vidin).  By the way, we obviously did not take the Viking tour of Belogradchik, but we did take a tour of this site two years ago.  It is in a great setting.  The rocks surrounding the fortress are huge and had many fantastic shapes, over time being given names to represent their shapes. The way the fortress is built into the rocks is interesting, too.  If we hadn’t already been there, I think we would have chosen that optional tour.

 

In the late afternoon, the program director gave a talk in the lounge on the Post Communist and recent history of the Balkans. After the port talk, it was time for a bit of a chilly dinner in the covered Aquavit Terrace area.  Most nice evenings, it was impossible to eat out here. While dinner was served here as well on in the Restaurant, there were several couples who claimed these tables each evening, by sending one person to hold the table.  This was very irritating to most of the other passengers who felt it would be nice if everyone would do a bit of sharing.  We, definitely, didn't want to be part of the drama of laying stake to a table prior to the port talk.  Therefore, we didn't usually eat out there unless the whole terrace (uncovered, too) was open.  This only happened if we were staying in port until the dinner hour was over.  Tonight, however, we were finally able to sit out there because it was too cool for most passengers due to the rainy weather.

 

Edited Monday at 03:38 PM by Australia08

[Australia08]

Friday, May 10 - Pleven, Bulgaria 

 

This morning was another gray morning.  We took the included Panoramic Pleven Tour.  Others were heading out to Veliko Tarnovo and Arbanasi.  I would highly recommend this second optional tour since we visited both locations when we were in Bulgaria two years and really thought they were great.  We only spent an afternoon in Arbanasi, but we spent two whole days in Veliko Tarnovo.  In Veliko Tarnovo, you’ll see several interesting monuments, but it’s the landscape of the city hanging on the hillside that is so beautiful.  The highlight in Arbanasi is the Nativity Church, where there is a guided tour in this church that is filled with striking frescoes.  So do this tour, if you haven’t been there before. 

 

Since we had seen Veliko Tarnovo and Arbanasi before, we did the Panoramic Tour.  Actually, we really enjoyed seeing Pleven Epopee, a monument created by thirteen Russian and Bulgarian artists to commemorate the Siege of Pleven during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877.  This panoramic artistic display is very much like the cyclorama display at Gettysburg.  Since we had seen several other battle sites of the Russo-Turkish War while we were in Bulgaria two years ago, this display just added to our knowledge of how Bulgaria gained its freedom from the Ottoman Empire.

 

 

I took this photo to try to show the circular nature of the mural - didn’t work too well.  I did take some panoramic shots that are great, but they won’t load on this platform.

 

 

 

Following our visit to the Epopee, we headed to the pedestrian zone of Pleven.  While we saw several fountains, went inside the St. George Chapel Mausoleum, and took a quick visit into St. Nicholas Church (a wedding was taking place there so we couldn’t stay long), almost everyone agreed this was a very lackluster part of the tour.  The damp weather didn’t help improve our opinion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was back to the Kadlin for lunch.  Many afternoons, lunch tables were also set up in the Lounge.  It was a great spot where you could have a table for two for a change.  It also had the added benefit of being able to hear Emil’s piano music while dining.

 

 

Our afternoon was spent doing some packing since we had to tours planned for the next day and Sunday would be disembarkation.

 

The Kadlin spent the afternoon moving from Svistov, where we had been picked up from our Panoramic Tour, to Russe, where the Veliko Tarnovo tour guests were picked up.

 

 

The evening, as usual, consisted of dinner and then after dinner cocktails.  The beautiful sunset was much appreciated after the drizzly start to the day.

 

 

 

Edited yesterday at 02:43 PM by Australia08

[2552phxcrzr]

On 4/29/2024 at 9:34 AM, Australia08 said:

After our coffee break, we still had time to take a quick look inside St. Stephen’s before our time to meet the guide again to head back to the Viking Kadlin.

 

@Australia08 I assume it is possible to stay in town instead of returning to the Kadlin with the guide (we did this several times when we did the Christmas Markets.

[2552phxcrzr]

@Australia08 ... Thank you for your report; looking forward to future posts as you have time.  I write a blog and often have to finish it up after we return home (case in point our 4.5-month trip to Australia that just ended on 1 May).  Your efforts are greatly appreciated.

[Australia08]

17 hours ago, 2552phxcrzr said:

 

@Australia08 I assume it is possible to stay in town instead of returning to the Kadlin with the guide (we did this several times when we did the Christmas Markets.

Yes, many people used this option to stay and do their own thing. We did a few times.