We awoke to sunshine this morning for the first time since arriving in Amsterdam. It was also the first morning we slept a bit later as we had nothing planned for the morning.

A short walk from the hotel brought us to a little cafe where we enjoyed lattes and bagels as we sat in the sun.

Cyclist

By 12:30 we had checked out of the hotel, caught a taxi and had been deposited by our boat, and home, for the next 2 weeks. Our rooms aboard the Viking Skadi weren’t ready yet so we enjoyed some drinks while relaxing in the lounge. Soon the Aquavit Terrace at the bow of the boat cleared out a bit and we enjoyed lunch in the open air. We had just finished lunch when Rick and Linda arrived.

Viking longships

Around 2:30 we were shown to our cabin which proved to be quite comfortable. After unpacking I headed ashore to stock up on a few beverages. One nice thing about the River cruises compared to ocean cruises is that there is no problem bringing your own booze on board.

Amsterdam canal

Amsterdam street scene

Prior to dinner we had a ship orientation and a preview of tomorrow’s activities. A great dinner rounded out the day. Our ship will leave Amsterdam at about 11 pm and we will arrive at our first stop, Kinderdijk around 8:00 tomorrow morning.