Day 18 - Thursday 29 September Zurich to Malaga to Benalmadena  31 degrees

Wake up early at 5 am and get on the first shuttle to the airport. We are sitting at the gate waiting to board at 6.30 am. We take off a few minutes late, but we have beautiful views of the Swiss Alps as we fly to Madrid. As we near Madrid the captain announces we are in a holding pattern.  Start to stress a bit as we have a tight time in which to transfer to our Malaga flight. After 10 to 15 minutes we are cleared to land. We land about 9.30 am but then have a 10 minute taxi to the gate. Our flight to Malaga is at 10.39. We have a brisk walk to our departure gate  and arrive well in time. Have a snooze on the flight and we arrive on time at 11.45.  As we wait for our bags we are approached by staff and informed our luggage missed the flight and wont be arriving until tomorrow. What else can go wrong!!! We suck it up complete the relevant forms and make sure our driver is waiting to take us to Benalmadena.  I contact  the apartment agent  to let him know we are on our way. As we arrive at the Marina our driver cannot find the address, It is very confusing and I ring the agent again and are told it is opposite the cab rank. We find it and everything is OK.

The apartment while old is still a good size and has great views over the marina. We now have to venture out to buy clothes and toiletries as we only have what we are wearing.  Hopefully the luggage will arrive tomorrow! We settle in and have a few well deserved beers in the 30 degree heat. The beers went down so well we had to restock! We send Ross and Luggy out for pizzas  and have an early night.

Day 17 - Wednesday 28 Sept Depart Amsterdam      

Today we leave the Pearl and head off for the second leg of travels to Spain. Scenic has been fantastic, the cruise exceptional, the food and wine, the guides cannot be faulted. While not cheap you really do get what you paid for. Scenic has organised a bus for us and others to go to the airport. It is an early start with a 7 am departure. We arrive at the airport at 7.45 am and it is extremely busy. All are carry on baggage are thoroughly checked.

We are due to board  at 9.45 am and we have a tight 55 min break to change at Zurich for our flight to Malaga. Shit starts to happen. We don’t board until 10 am and we are seated in the second last row. The plane heads out from the gate at 10.35 and we are 12^th in the line up for take off! We then get held up before landing, no chance of picking up our connecting flight. All due to early fog at Amsterdam affecting incoming flights.  We are told we have been rebooked and to go to the transfer desk. No more flights to Malaga today! We have been rebooked on a 7.15 am flight tomorrow to Madrid and then 10.15 to Malaga. We have been booked into accommodation at the Hilton and 2 meal vouchers per person for 20 swiss franc each – about $18 per meal. Boarding time is 6.30 am which means we have to get up at 5.00 am to get  a shuttle to the airport departing at 5.30 am. I ring Spain and advise them of the changes for our pick up and accommodation. After arrival at the Hilton we have lunch, a few beers and an afternoon nap.  We also take a walk into the village and it is quite pleasant with a lovely countryside. We have an early buffet dinner and an early night.

Day 16 - Tuesday 27 Sept Amsterdam  20 degrees    

Today we are in Amsterdam. After breakfast we have a canal tour and a trip to the flower market. After the beautiful towns of Prague, Hungary, Austria and Germany, Amsterdam feels dirty, cheap and overcrowded. As we cruise along the canal we pass bicycle parking stations which house 100s of bikes. When walking along the streets you need eyes everywhere to avoid the bikes! The flower market is particularly sleazy. It reminds us of Swanston Street. We do find some nicer and trendier shops on our walk back to the bus. After lunch Ann and I walk back into the city for a bit of exercise. It is a short walk back and we end up in the red light district and see some of the early shift. Not a pretty sight. After dinner we head back again into town and pick up a few other travellers who weren’t sure of the way. A lovely night but still crowded. The smell of marijuana fills the air. There are plenty of red lights and girls of all sizes and ages, all wearing fluro bras and knickers, sitting or standing in small glass fronted rooms advertising their wares. When engaged they retire to a back room to you know what.  Gets boring after a while and we head back to the ship for last drinks.

Day 15 - Monday 26 Sept Cologne  24 degrees          

This morning we cruise through the 2000 year old town of Koblenz, and we experience beautiful scenery as we make our way to Cologne. On arrival we have a tour around the city and the magnificent cathedral. An unbelievable sight but no sense of reverence inside. Claimed tomb of the Maggi. Back on board for lunch and we listen to the Brownlow count. Attend the disembarkation talk – very sad. Tonight is the captains farewell dinner and crew entertainment.  Have to think about packing – very sad.  Have some late afternoon drinks in the Johnstone's cabin and then off to pack. The crew entertainment performance was OK, but the highlight of the evening, maybe the whole trip, was the debut of "The Curtain"!  Tomorrow we arrive in Amsterdam.

Day 14 - Sunday 25 Sept Rhine Gorge – Rudesheim  26 degrees     

Early this morning we entered the Rhine river. We have an excursion in Rudesheim this morning, the last of the small towns. We board the Winzerexprees  a choo choo train ride into the city and then a tour of Siegfried's Mechanical Musical Instruments.  An absolutely fascinating place that has all manner of mechanical musical instruments. We then have a cable car ride up to the 125 foot Niederwal Monument and a winery, for spectacular views back down over the river and city.   Another spectacular day. Sunshine and clear skies. 

Back on board we continue sailing along the Rhine through the magnificent Rhine Gorge. Castle after Castle as we sip our wine on the sundeck. We sail past Lorelei, the legendary rock from which the siren lured men to their doom. For dinner we are taken to Marksburg castle a 12th century castle set high above the banks of the Rhine.  The only intact castle on the Rhine. We have a tour of the castle and then a medieval feast with wonderful entertainment and get back on board around 10 pm.