Vacations - Vacation Planning - Discussion

GuardianAngel wrote:Great discussion going on!!  

Doats wrote:snipped.. Have I mentioned that you will probably love going through the locks--they are remarkable! Please let me know if more questions pop up and I will try to answer.

Where exactly are the locks you're referring too?

I live in an area along the Welland Canal which has 8 locks. I see big 740 foot ships come through the locks every day. It's a sight that never gets old.

@albean99 have a great times. Sounds fantastic!

We passed through several locks on the Seine and the Danube. Haven't done a Rhine cruise yet but have read that there are numerous locks including around Amsterdam.

I find locks amazing as you can look out a window and be only about 6 inches away from a concrete wall. And sometimes it seems as if you go down (or up) as much as 20+ feet.

@Doats I drove by my lock as I do everyday and there was a ship in the locks. I wanted to take a picture but couldn't pull over.

The concrete wall looks so small and it's unbelievable such a huge ship fits in there.

The Seaway Locks
Together, the locks make up the world’s most spectacular lift system. Ships measuring up to 225.5 metres in length (or 740 feet) and 23.8 metres (or 78 feet), in the beam are routinely raised to more than 180 metres above sea level, as high as a 60-story building. The ships are twice as long and half as wide as a football field and carry cargoes the equivalent of 25,000 metric tonnes.

Lock Lore:
Each lock is 233.5 metres long (766 feet), 24.4 metres wide (80 feet) and 9.1 metres deep (30 feet) over the sill. A lock fills with approximately 91 million litres of water (24 million gallons) in just 7 to 10 minutes. Getting through a lock takes about 45 minutes.
https://greatlakes-seaway.com/en/the-seaway/our-locks-and-channels/

We have one of these types of bridges.



Followed by two of these. All within a span of less than a mile. The good thing is if one bridge is up, it's not far and not really out of the way to get to another bridge.



Here's a diagram of how locks work.



Last summer a cruise ship came through. They planned to have a Great Lakes tour coming through our small city. This year there will be many more and I read it was Viking. What a site, when we are used to large tankers.

Taken last summer.



They had a real treat because a tanker was coming the opposite way in a narrow part of the canal, so they were up close. Everyone on the cruise boat came out to wave and watch the tanker go right by them. You can see in the corner the bridge was still up. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Never saw that before in our canal! My pup was pretty intrigued too.

Ok, today we purchased flight tickets to Switzerland and paid our balance to the tour company, it’s happening! Mid-June.

I am excited but also apprehensive, because I haven’t been on a plane since November of 2019, and now masks are not required for transportation and neither is Covid test for entering Europe.

Oh well, will get my second booster next week and pack tons of n95 masks, wipes, hand sanitizers.
Wish us luck !

@sdmom Have fun!

My brother was just in Switzerland. The company he works for is headquartered in Geneva and he goes there frequently. He always stays a little longer if he can to explore. The scenery is so stunning.

Please share some photos if you can.

@GuardianAngel Thanks for the lock info which I found fascinating. We got to visit the wheelhouse on our last cruise and the first officer told us that entering and leaving the locks were assisted by GPS. I love this stuff!

sdmom wrote:Ok, today we purchased flight tickets to Switzerland and paid our balance to the tour company, it’s happening! Mid-June.

I am excited but also apprehensive, because I haven’t been on a plane since November of 2019, and now masks are not required for transportation and neither is Covid test for entering Europe.

Oh well, will get my second booster next week and pack tons of n95 masks, wipes, hand sanitizers.
Wish us luck !

@sdmom Have fun and please post here when you get back. I'd love to hear more...

@Doats OMG...Just saw the Pharaohs and Pyramids Nile Cruise!!! 12 days and the excursions look fabulous. Oh, I will have to talk Cory into that one. You don't have to add anything to this one if you don't want...other that the flight. WOW

@sdmom sounds great! Let us know all about it.

@Sprite wow that's sounds amazing.

@Sprite After reading your post I went to look at the itinerary for the Pharaohs & Pyramids tour and the excursions sound amazing! (I am a history junkie and love this stuff!)

I did notice though that it looks as if this cruise is very popular and there are many SOLD OUT trips for 2022 and 2023. Just wanted you to be aware...

@Doats Yes. I noticed that. I think that one would have to be booked a year in advance...next year. But it sounds fabulous. Like you I love that kind of stuff.

The last few weeks I have been watching a series on TVO called "The Nile: 5000 Years of History" and they have shown a lot of this stuff already and some extra stuff that the narrator Professor Bettany Hughes got special access to that is usually off limits. It is a really interesting series. This is the second series of hers that I followed. The first was "A Greek Odyssey". She is really engaging and makes history come alive. After watching this, I was really excited when I saw that cruise. It has gone to the top of my bucket list!

All your trips sound Fabulous. I sell a lot of Viking Cruise and you will be in great hands. They do a great job.

I spoiled myself and doing 3 weeks in Italy in Late August.

Doing backroads of southern Italy and Sicily. I don't think I have ever done a vacation this long before.

@nikikass Glad you joined the discussion.

I'm so jealous! Where in Southern Italy?