Little Town, It’s a Quiet Village
Today we will be going out on our first excursion! Overnight, our captain cruised us safely to port in Germany. However, today we will be visiting the bordering Alsace region of France. Riquewihr is classified as one of the most beautiful villages in France (we will be the judge of that) but first we enjoyed a lovely breakfast on the boat. We were then rounded up for a forty five minute coach ride to our destination. Our Disney guides regaled us with some history and facts about the area along the way.
The Hotel De Ville greets you at the entrance of the medieval village. This is actually the town hall. Hotel just means “large building” in French. This 1930’s structure doesn’t really give you much of a hint of what lies beyond it.
This tiny cloistered village was just stunning. Having spent so much time in “Disney fake Europe”, it’s hard not to think of these buildings as “sets” and not real historical dwellings. There is a Disney connection, however. The village of Riquewihr is said to be the inspiration behind the town from Beauty and the Beast.
The layout and structure of this village is unchanged since the 16th Century. The half-timbered buildings, oriel windows, beautiful inner courtyards, elegant fountains and ancient wells are just stunning.
Riquewihr is known as a Winzerdorg or a “wine village”. The gorgeous vineyards on the mountain slopes can be seen from alleyways creeping down to the gates of the village.
It was now time round up the “Adventurers” for a group Sausage and Cheese tasting. You don’t have to ask me twice!
We were ushered up a narrow staircase to this charming dining area. We claimed our spot and anxiously awaited the grub.
I expected some cubes of cheese and meat in tiny toothpicks but boy was I wrong. The servers brought out huge pewter trays of sausages and gorgeous cheeses along with baked terrine, pickles and warm baguettes.
This cruise was an all inclusive affair that provided three meals a day with much wine and beer. On this day our lunch was presented in the form of cash. We were given a few suggestions for restaurants in the village, but did you guys see all the meat and cheese we just ate? We decided to keep the cash and just wander around this adorable hamlet some more.
While we weren’t hungry for lunch, I was quite prepared for cappuccino and dessert. There was no shortage of cafés to visit.
Throughout the trip we were given little extras. This day we got to visit one of the many macaron shops in the village and choose a dozen “free” (after having paid $$$$ for the trip) cookies.
Next on the agenda was a wine tasting. We walked on over the the Dopff Winery, just outside the village walls.
This trip is a Food and Wine adventure. I booked the package and then shortly after decided to stop drinking. Timing is everything! There will be many more tastings, but there was also so much to do and enjoy that it really was not an issue. This tasting included Kuglehof! I ate more than my share of cake.
It was time to round up the group and make our way back to the coach. It had just started to rain a bit as we were getting ready to head out. The forecast for the entire week was pretty dire, with the rain seemingly following us all the way up the Rhine. I was pleased we got the day in. Back on the ship, we had a bit of down time before dinner. I took a wee video from the balcony:
I mentioned in the last post how outstanding the food was on the ship. We were blown away. I regret that I didn’t take a photo of the menu each night for descriptions. I also neglected to get a pic of each course each night but there will be a smattering of pictures throughout the trip.
Stacked Antipasto 
I had a soup with foam every night. They were all stunning. 
Chicken Roulade with Risotto
This was a proper good first outing. We got a feel for how things would run and how tired we would be at the end of the day. There was entertainment in the lounge each evening. We went down on this first night and were, let’s just say, disappointed in the quality of the act. We decided cozying up in our room and reading/watching movies would be the better choice. All in all it was a wonderful day.
Tomorrow we will be moving on to Strasbourg France where my jaw will be dropping to the ground at the sight of the most amazing structure I’ve ever seen.
Beautiful , the food is incredible and the scenery and buildings are beautiful. Again it was like I was along with you . Looking forward to the next installment!!
Excellent writing and pics, Rick Steves would be proud! The Rhine River trip is a bucket list item for Ann Marie and I, looking forward to seeing more posts.
Thank you, Jim! This trip was a long time coming and so worth it! Not to spoil anything…but the locales get even more stunning as we move along.