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Cindy Glaze - Cruise Planners, 7238 Tropical Drive, Weeki Wachee, FL (2025)

05/29/2025

Greetings again from Lucerne. Our last day in Switzerland was a whirlwind of activity, and this author had an especially good day of celebrating her birthday with travel friends. She received a card first thing this morning and everyone sang Happy Birthday to her on the bus. We then traveled about 45 minutes to the small village of Engleberg where we were met by three horse drawn carriages. Everyone piled in and we had a fun ride through town and right down the middle of the historic district. We ended up at a small farm just on the outskirts of the village where we were met by the farmer's wife at their cow barn. They have approximately 40 acres which has been in the family for generations, and they have 20 dairy cows. During the summer months, the cows are moved to the higher meadows while the grass below is grown for hay. While they are up in the mountains, the milk goes to their nearby cheese making factory which is a co-op with neighboring farmers. The factory is on the mountain so they don't have to transport the milk down. During the winter months, the cows live in the barn. However, they are taken for walks around the barn every day to get some exercise. There is a huge spinning brush available for the cows to use if they need to have an itch scratched. We were served snacks in the barn which consisted of raclette (a wheel of cheese of which the outer melted layer is scraped off and served on bread), cheese pie which had a fabulous crust and the best apple juice we ever tasted which is produced in a neighboring village and sold locally.

We then rode on the bus back to Lucerne and enjoyed lunch at another folk show. While some of the elements were the same as the one we saw earlier on the trip, this one included more audience participation. Cindy was serenaded for her birthday and was obliged to perform a folk dance and some yodeling. Robin was enlisted to blow the Alphorn, and a cow with a long tongue stopped by to visit several people in our group. After all that merriment, we paraded across the street to the marina where we boarded a boat for a cruise on Lake Lucerne. We enjoyed the scenery, and after about an hour we docked at the small town of Stans. Our bus took us for a short ride to where we got on a lift system to take us to the top of Stanserhorn Mountain. The first leg of the ascension was on a funicular which has been operating there since 1893. At the midway point, we changed over to a state of the art Cabrio aerial cableway. It is the only one in the world where you can ride on the open upper deck. Upon reaching the summit we admired the views and walked to the tippy top to see a colony of marmots which are residing there. They are cute little creatures about the size of a beaver. They are in the rodent family, and they burrow in the ground and hibernate in the winter. What a great way to spend a birthday! Wish you were here!

We are flying home tomorrow from the Zurich airport, and we hope you have enjoyed taking this virtual journey with us. You, too, can be a part of our next journey. We have a trip to Machu Picchu and the Amazon jungle coming up in October as well as a cruise on the River of Gold in Portugal planned for March of 2026. Please message us for all the details or call us at 352/597-9924. Auf Wiedersehen!

05/28/2025

Greetings from Lucerne, Switzerland. This morning we rode on our bus to the train station in Montreux and stopped by along the way to see a statue of Freddie Mercury, the singer of the rock band Queen. The statue is on the waterfront promenade and is a tribute to his connection to the town and his positive impact on the local community. Once at the station, we boarded our train car on the Golden Pass Express, so named because of the incredible beauty one is able to see on this route through the Swiss Alps and valleys. After about three hours, we pulled into the station at Interlacken which means between the lakes. Upon exiting the train station, we immediately saw a big yellow postal bus. We have seen these busses many times on this trip, and we learned that they have been transporting both mail and people since 1906. The PostBus offers a network of over 800 routes, and the fleet is modern, comfortable and even includes specially adapted vehicles to cross the steep alpine passes.

We walked across the parking lot to the Coop (pronounced Co-op, but we call it chicken coop). Coop has about 2500 shops in Switzerland and employees more than 90,000 people. We have seen stores ranging from small quick mart type to very large supermarkets offering a wide range of products. The Coop we visited today had a cafeteria where we ate lunch, but more importantly, they had a free bathroom.

After boarding our bus, we drove for about an hour and checked into our hotel in Lucerne. After resting for about an hour, we were off again in the rain. Our bus dropped us off as close as possible to the historic old town. (Most of the places we have visited do not allow bus traffic in the historic centers.) We slopped through the rain to see the Lion Monument. It was carved into the side of a granite cliff between 1820 and 1821 and commemorates the Swiss Guards who were killed in 1792 during the French revolution. We then visited the Chapel Bridge which is a covered wooden footbridge spanning the river Reuss. It was built in the mid 1300s and is considered to be Europe's oldest covered bridge. Our tour guide left us in the city to do some souvenir shopping and eat dinner on our own. However, he did give us tickets to ride the city bus back to our hotel and instructions for how to get to the bus stop, so all was well. Wish you were here!

05/27/2025

Greetings from Vevey, Switzerland. Our journey today started with a tour of Chillon Castle which was built on a rocky island in Lake Geneva. The castle was built to follow the shape of the small island instead of the normal rectangular shape of most castles, and construction started in the late 11th century. Significant expansion occcurred in the 13th century and further alterations continued throughout the 14th and 15th centuries. Lord Byron visited the castle in 1816 and carved his name on a column in the dungeon. After he toured the dungeon, he was inspired to write "The Prisoner of Chillon," about a monk who was imprisoned there for six years in the 1500s. We enjoyed touring the castle and imagining how it must have been to live there many years ago. The two chairs in the dining hall date back to about the 17th century, and the faded paintings on the walls of the master's bedroom are from around the 14th century.

When our castle visit was over, we rode along the lakeshore for about 30 minutes and started seeing many vineyards, as this area has a microclimate that is perfect for growing grapes. We visited the C***e family vineyard which has been owned by the same family for about 300 years. The grapes are grown on vine-clad hills sloping down to Lake Geneva, and all of the vine tending and harvesting must be done by hand. We sat on a terrace overlooking the lake with a view of France while tasting local wines, cheeses, cured meats and bread. Our visit was topped off by a slice of apple pie eaten out of our hands. We ended the day at the Modern Times hotel in Vevey. The hotel honors Charlie Chaplin, as he lived in Vevey from 1952 until his death in 1977. Wish you were here!

05/27/2025

Greetings again from Brig. After a bus ride and a train ride yesterday, we arrived in the enchanting mountain village of Zermatt, Switzerland. Zermatt is surrounded by some of Europe's highest peaks and is widely considered to be one of Switzerland's top ski areas. However, we were not there to ski, we were there to see the famous Matterhorn up close and personal, and we soon got our first view of the majestic peak. After walking through the town with chalets in every direction, we arrived at the taxi stand. Cars are not allowed in this mostly pedestrian place, so small electric vehicles are used as necessary for town business, and electric taxis are available for tourists. Seven of us crammed into each taxi and we were soon at the bottom of the lift system that would take us to the top of the Klein (small) Matterhorn. We were required to change cable cars at three different stations, and we all walked to a viewing terrace at station two to get a group picture with the Matterhorn in the background. After the third leg, we arrived at the top of the mountain and walked through a tunnel. After taking an elevator up, we exited and immediately saw the breathtaking view of the famous Matterhorn. The day was sunny, and our guide said that we were very lucky to see the top as it is covered with clouds much of the time. We took some pictures and then visited a small cafe to have a quick snack before heading back down the mountain. We were at an elevation of 12,740 feet, and some of our folks were feeling a bit dizzy, so we made our way back to Zermatt on the aerial tramway. A handful of the group got off at the Furi tramway station and walked the rest of the way down while most of us explored the village. We strolled through Mountaineers' Cemetery which is located behind the church. The tranquil site is a memorial to all climbers who have lost their lives here. Sadly, there were six people who lost their lives in an avalanche the day before we were there. The group met up at the Swiss Chalet restaurant and enjoyed raclette and fondue. (Melted cheese served in a communal dish.) We then boarded the train and made our way back to the hotel. Wish you were here!

05/25/2025

Greetings from Brig, Switzerland. After departing our hotel this morning, we headed southwest down a steep mountain pass. Our bus driver took the hairpin curves with finesse as we looked down in the valley at the road ahead. After about three hours, we arrived at the famous Lake Como in northern Italy. This is an upscale resort area known for its dramatic scenery set against the foothills of the Alps. The lake originates from a glacier in Lombardy, Italy and has a maximum depth of 1358 feet. The lake is about 29 miles long and up to 2.5 miles wide, and you must have piles of money to live in one of the numerous towns/villages that line the steep shores. Due to the way each town is situated on the face of the mountain, there is very little road access, and many residents have installed elevators or funiculars to get to their homes. There are approximately 36 distinct villages on Lake Como, and they each have their own city government, schools, etc. The children are known to take a bicycle or boat to school and many adults also commute to work by boat. We took a one hour boat ride on the lake, and our tour guide gave a running commentary on the beautiful villas and homes that we saw as we cruised along. The most famous current resident is George Clooney, but his house was not visible through the trees. After our boat ride came to an end, we had some free time in the historic section of the city. Some of us thought we had to eat pizza while in Italy, and it was very good. What made it even better was dining al fresco under the umbrellas in Piazza del Duomo. We could see the majestic Como Cathedral located just across from us as we enjoyed lunch. Many members of our group enjoyed some gelato as we made our way to the bus.

The next leg of our journey took us northwest back into the beautiful snow covered Alps. There are many granite mines in Italy near the Switzerland border, and we were able to see the scarred face of a mountain where the stone had been extracted. Historical records document quarrying activities in the area dating back to the 16th century. We arrived at our hotel in time for the evening meal together. Wish you were here!

05/24/2025

Greetings from St. Moritz, Switzerland. Here is a synopsis of our activities for the last two days:

Friday, May 23, 2025 - As we headed to Innsbruck, Austria, the terrain became gradually more mountainous with every mile. Innsbruck is located in a valley within the Alps and is surrounded by snow capped mountains. We checked into our hotel which was across the street from an Olympic ice skating and ice hockey venue. We were also able to see a ski jump from our window in the hotel. We all enjoyed visiting the Old Town which has been the same for about 700 years. We strolled along the cobblestones admiring the beauty of the original buildings and then crossed a bridge over the Inn River to view the colorful houses located along the river banks. All of these houses sport vibrant facades and are part of the historic district that reflects the traditional architectural style of this area. Our guide informed us that the weather is gray and dreary here for much of the year, and the colorful houses were designed as a way to brighten up the neighborhood and lift the spirits of the residents. Some of us visited the Swarovski cyrstal store and were impressed by the array of merchandise on display. We learned that Swarovski crystals are man-made and manufactured near Innsbruck using a secret formula and precision glass cutting.

Late in the afternoon we made our way to a dinner theater to see the Gundolf Family Folk Show which has been in business since 1967. The family's musical history can be traced back to the 18th century, with Franz Gundolf, a mountain farmer, founding the first village brass band in the area. The musical tradition has been passed down through generations, with the family actively involved in preserving and promoting the folk music and culture. The show included traditional folk music played on a wide array of instruments, dance, shoe-slapping, and yodeling. We even got to see two gentlemen playing Alphorns....the long, conical musical instrument seen in Ricola commercials. The show was highly entertaining, and we laughed and clapped our way through the program.

Saturday, May 24, 2025 - We left early this morning and made our way on the bus across the Bernina Pass. From beautiful green valleys carpeted with yellow wildflowers to high mountain peaks covered with snow, we made our way to the city of Tirano just across the Italy border. We had a short while to explore the small town and eat some gelato before boarding our train car on the Bernina Express. We saw some crops and a vineyard growing along the tracks before we left Italy, and we also saw a young couple in wedding attire cavorting in a meadow. As the train climbed the tracks, we were captivated by the awe-inspiring Alpine panoramas, including the shimmering glaciers and pristine mountain lakes that dotted the landscape. We saw several small villages in the valley that are in danger of damage or destruction from avalanches. Therefore, they have installed avalanche fences high up on the mountains above the villages to mitigate the risk of these disasters.

Upon arriving at the swanky town of St. Moritz, we checked into the Hotel Reine Victoria which is 150 years old. St. Moritz has hosted the Winter Olympics twice, and every winter its frozen lake hosts, polo, cricket and horse racing on the ice. Wish you were here!

05/23/2025

Hello again from Austria. Thursday found us exploring Vienna, the capital of Austria and home to roughly two million people. Vienna is a large modern city, but her rich history stretches back to Roman times, and development has been marked by periods of significant artistic and social achievement. Our first stop of the morning was at the Hofburg Palace to see a training session of the famous Lipizzan white stallions. The riding school has been training horses and riders for 460 years, and they have had permanent quarters at the palace since the arena and stalls were built for them there in the 1720s. Each horse has their own trainer, and everyone employed in any capacity with the Lipizzan operation is a full-time government employee. We spent an hour watching one of their daily training sessions which was nowhere near as exciting as one of their gala shows set to music, but it was still enjoyable. The horses are generally born with a black, brown, or gray coat and gradually lose their coat color, eventually turning white. The whitening process typically occurs between the ages of six and ten.

After a bit of souvenir shopping and lunch, we took a walking tour of the historic center admiring the beautiful architecture, sculptures, and fountains we encountered along the way. Erected after the Great Plague epidemic in 1679, we saw the Baroque memorial commemorating the devastating Black Death. It is one of the best known and prominent artworks in the city. It was pretty gruesome as one side shows an emaciated body in a prone position with head hanging down and mouth open wide.

After a brief rest at the hotel, we set off for dinner and a show. However, the show was probably like none you have ever seen. We attended a concert held in the Great Gallery of the Schonbrunn Palace which was the main summer residence of the Habsburg rulers. Vienna has been called the "City of Music" due to its musical legacy, as many famous classical musicians such as Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Haydn, Mahler, Mozart, Schoenberg, Schubert, Johann Strauss I and Johann Strauss II lived and worked there. We enjoyed hearing some of the works from these musical giants as we were serenaded by the Schonbrunn Palace Orchestra. The ambiance and music made it easy for us to imagine we were actually rubbing shoulders with the king and his court in the days of old. The show ended with the playing of "The Blue Danube" waltz which is the unofficial anthem of Vienna. It is widely considered to be the greatest waltz of all time.

The rest of today will be spent travelling on the bus as we head to our next adventure in Innsbruck. Wish you were here!

05/21/2025

Greetings from Austria. Tuesday morning, we were on the bus early in the morning and fighting the Zurich rush hour traffic. About a half hour later we started seeing beautiful lakes and farms. Everything is so green and fresh looking now, and our guide said it is because for about a week every April, the cow barns are cleaned. The cows are sent to the high meadows which is communal property, and a winters' worth of manure is liquified and spread over all the fields causing a terrible odor.

By mid-morning on Tuesday, we had crossed over into the tiny country of Liechtenstein and stopped in the town of Vaduz. We wandered around for a while, and took a picture of Liechtenstein Castle high on a hill above the town. The current castle, which was built starting in 1840, was erected near the site of the original castle built around 600 years ago. The castle is the family seat and home of the Prince of Liechtenstein. The Rhine River starts from glacier melt high up in the Alps and forms the natural border between Switzerland and Liechtenstein. As we continued our journey, we saw a covered bridge which spanned the braided river. It is not suitable for river cruise ships at this point, but by the time it reaches Basel, it is big enough to handle boat traffic.

We soon entered the country of Austria where there are 170 tunnels in use which have been built right through the mountains. This makes for faster and safer journeys as the residents no longer must use the winding mountain roads. The longest tunnel we went through was about 10 miles long. Our route today took us through a small part of Germany where we drove on the Autobahn, and we realized that we had visited four countries in one day. After crossing back into Austria, we made a pit stop which was a big production. Most of the public restrooms require payment before use, and the cost is around seventy cents to one dollar. Payment may be made with Euros or a credit card, and the line to the restrooms really backed up because each person was required to make their payment at a machine which then allowed that person to enter through the "toilet tollgate."

We arrived in Salzburg, Austria by mid-afternoon and began our city walk. The area around Salzburg was first occupied about 2000 B.C., but the Salzburg we know today was founded in 696 A.D. Salzburg got it's name fom the rich salt deposits which were mined nearby and transported along the river. Salt was known as "white gold," and there are still two salt mines operating in the area. We saw Mozart's second childhood home in the "new city," and after crossing the Salzach River, we saw the home of his birthplace in the "old city." We visited the street of the guild houses where ornate signs hang above the doors picturing the activity that went on there. This was done becuse most people in the seventh century were not able to read. We enjoyed visiting Mirabell Palace Gardens where some of the "Sound of Music" scenes were filmed. Our group posed for a photo on the steps where the children sang the Do-Re-Mi song and we all burst out singing, "do, a deer, a female deer..." We continued walking through many town squares and admired the architecture of the surrounding churches and buildings before checking into our hotel around 7:00 p.m.

We got an early start again today for our visit to Hi**er's Eagle's Nest on Obersalzberg Mountain. The land was under the control of the N**i Party during the Hi**er era, and they decided to build a beautiful building on the summit. It's amazing that the the building and access road with tunnels was erected in just 13 months by 3800 paid workers between 1937 and 1938. The area is under snow for six months out of the year, yet we saw pictures of men working in bad snow conditions to finish the job. The mountain stands at an elevation of 6017 feet above sea level and is in the Bavarian state of Germany. There are no bedrooms in the place, as it was used exclusively by the N**is for government and social meetings. Hi**er's home was down towards the base of the mountain, and it was destroyed by bombs during WW II. However, the Eagle's Nest was spared, and it is thought that it was not visible at that time due to weather conditions on the mountain. Everything in the building is still original and it was a really interesting place to see. It was not presented as a "shrine" to Hi**er, but instead brought to mind the atrocities that he committed diuring that terrible chapter of history. Proceeds made from entrance fees are used for charitable purposes.

The rest of the day will be spent traveling on the bus as we head to our next adventure in Vienna. Wish you were here!

05/19/2025

Greetings from Zurich, Switzerland. There were fifteen of us who flew from Tampa yesterday to Zurich, and today we met ten other folks who had flown in the day before from all over the United States. We had flown all night and were tired. but we had places to go and things to see. After we checked into the hotel and greeted the rest of our group, we took off to explore Zurich. Our bus drove through the modern city and we saw a large train station. It is expensive to live in Zurich, so many workers live in villages outside the city and commute by train. They store their bicycles on double racks outside the station and ride their bikes to work after getting off the train. Our destination was Zurich's Old Town which is the historic center of the city. It consists of narrow cobblestone streets where guild houses, churches, historic squares, restaurants and shops abound. The Old Town has a history spanning over 2000 years,

We got off the bus and walked to see the Polytechnic University. It's a beautiful old school situated above the Limmat River which runs through town. The public university was founded in 1854 with the mission to educaate engineers and scientists. They have succeeded admirably, as they have produced over twenty Nobel Prize winners, including Albert Einstein. We all posed for a picture on the terrace in front of Polytechnic and were afforded spectacular views of the city, the river, and the distant snow capped Alps. The river is so clean and crystal clear that you can see the bottom, and it is a favorite summer activity to swim in the river. Our guide estimated that there are over 1200 p***c drinking fountains all over Switzerland which are supplied directly by area springs. The water is high quality and is commonly consumed directly from the fountains, so some of us just had to take a sip.

We rode the Polybahn, a red funicular, down the rail line which links the terrace with Central Square. Many students use the funicular to commute to their classes. We then had dinner at a restaurant in a beautiful old building before returning to our hotel for a much needed rest. Wish you were here!

04/23/2025

Greetings from Seattle, Washington. We left Sequim this morning and headed south for the Bainbridge Island ferry. There was no waiting when we arrived, and after a half hour ride across Puget Sound, we arrived back in Seattle very close to where we got off our cruise ship last Sunday. We made a short stop at the Washington Park Arboretum and strolled around for about an hour admiring the relaxing hues of green and the beautiful spring flowers that are just starting to bloom. We returned the rental car and checked into our hotel near the airport for one last game of cards.

We are flying home tomorrow, and we hope you have enjoyed taking this virtual journey with us. You are invited to really be a part of the fun in September when we travel to see the fall colors of New England followed by a trip to Machu Picchu and the Amazon jungle where we will celebrate Day of the Dead. In December of this year, there will be a short Carnival cruise from Tampa, and March of 2026 will see us on the "River of Gold" in Portugal. You'll wish you were there, so please message us through Facebook or call us for all the details at 352/597-9924.

04/22/2025

Greetings again from Sequim, Washington. We picked Lorri up at her house this morning and visited the Dungeness River Nature Center. There were nicely done displays on local wildlife, a gift shop, and a trail with a bridge overlooking the Dungeness River. Our next stop was at a local lavender farm. Though the bushes don't bloom until late June through August, it was very interesting seeing the plants and looking at the many lavender products for sale in the gift shop. Most of us bought a vanilla lavender ice cream bar to see what lavender tastes like. We didn't know what to expect, but to be honest, the plant leaves smelled like sage, and the ice cream seemed to have a mild taste of sage. It didn't make our top ten flavor list.

After piling back in the vehicle, we made our way to the cute little downtown area of Sequim where we continued to support the local economy. Since Sequim claims to be the "Lavender Capital of North America," their park benches, garbage cans, and some of the buildings are painted purple. They have a street crossing method that we have never seen anywhere else. There are orange flags in cans on each side of the street. When you want to cross, you take an orange flag and wave it at the traffic to get them to stop. You then proceed across the street and leave your flag in the can on the opposite side from where you started.

The afternoon found us in Washington's Olympic National Park. After checking out the park's visitor center, we ascended to the top of Hurricane Ridge which is an easily accessible mountain area. At 5242 feet, we were afforded great views of the other snow capped mountains in the Olympic range.

We ended the day by celebrating Chuck's birthday at a local Chinese restaurant. Wish you were here!

Cindy Glaze - Cruise Planners

05/29/2025

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