Gliding through time

An Amsterdam-Budapest cruise on Viking River Cruise's (877/668-4546) Viking Pride one May evoked these observations:

The Danube, immortalized as “blue,” is actually a dirty gray color.

There is no more relaxing moment than reclining on the ship’s sundeck while ancient castles and fortresses float by on pristine hilltops. The only interruption was the waiter who dropped by occasionally to offer a cool one.

A river cruise boat is literally a floating hotel where each passenger invests several thousand dollars to cruise for two weeks through a part of the world where every building is older than our country! Some small towns claim to be the temporary home of Napoleon, Richard the Lionheart or others.

CARROLL CHANDLER

Dallas, TX