Tag: Hilliard Chamber of Commerce

Scotland & Northern England Highlights Day 1 & 2

Wednesday, March 19th, 2025

This was our first international trip of 2025. We traveled with the Hilliard Chamber of Commerce. We have traveled on other trips with them and have found their itineraries to be well planned and the price better than if we put this trip together on our own.

On Wednesday we left Columbus for Atlanta on time. We were all in our zone lines for our second leg, KLM flight to Amsterdam, when the flight was delayed 10 minutes, then 50 minutes and then three hours. We were finally in the air four hours later than scheduled. That meant we would miss our connecting flight to Glasgow. Due to the late departure we were served one dinner, no breakfast because the flight attendants needed a regulatory rest. Also, because the flight was delayed so long our plane was not completely full. We sat in a row of three and had an empty seat between us. Even though we had an empty seat it was difficult to get any sleep. The plane was warm and the seats weren’t comfortable.

The early morning sky out the plane window.
From pinks to blues with the white clouds.

When we landed in Amsterdam, our tour company had rebooked our group on a noon flight to Glasgow so we only lost half a day. Unfortunately all of our checked luggage did not follow us onto the plane. Thank goodness we always pack 2 days of clothing in our carryon!

Thursday, March 20th, 2025

When we arrived in Glasgow we were met by our tour guide, Laura. She introduced herself as we traveled from the Glasgow airport to our hotel. We checked in, freshened up and some of us went walking around the area.

St. George’s-Tron Church
George Square and the City Hall of Glasgow
A shopping mall near our hotel.

We stopped in for a drink at a great bar for Happy Hour. It was really busy.

The Counting House- we sat in a back room.

This evening we had a group dinner at a restaurant close to our hotel called The Spiritualist. It was a great dinner of fish & chips.

The Spiritualist Restaurant
Inside the restaurant
Irn-Bru is a Scottish orange colored carbonated soft drink that is very popular and just behind whisky!

After dinner we walked back to our hotel, Ibis Styles Glasgow George Square, and went to sleep pretty quickly!

The Hotel sign by the front door.

Rhine River Cruise Day 10 & 11

Friday, November 8 and Saturday, November 9, 2019

Our last day in Amsterdam and it was a full free day.  A group of us took the tram to the Rijksmuseum.

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The Rijksmuseum

We got there not long after the museum opened.  Our first stop  was the
“Night Watch” by Rembrandt.  It was painted in 1642.  It was fascinating how they are using computers/technology to scan the painting and work on the restoration process which I believe will take a year!

The workers doing the scanning of the Night Watch
The Night Watch by Rembrandt
Do you see the eye in the background of Rembrandt?

Below is a copy of the Night Watch.  They feel it depicts the original size and it will be studied to gain information.

The copy of the Night Watch.

We spent several hours exploring the rest of the museum.

Unique dolls’ houses
Department of Navy set up a model room.
The Rijksmuseum Research Library
Collection of Delft Blue Pottery
The Battle of Waterloo by Jan Pieneman

It was fun watching the school groups explore and learn about the museum.

The Hard Rock Cafe is close by so we went in and got a pin!

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As we were heading to the floating flower market on this cloudless day.  What a difference a day makes in the weather from yesterday!

One of the places we visited was the floating flower garden (since 1862) which is known locally as the Bloemenmarkt and had lunch across from it.  You can purchase all kinds of tulip bulbs, fresh flowers, Dutch souvenirs, and Christmas decorations.  It was fun visiting all of the shops!

Part of our group hadn’t been to the Red Light District so we walked through the area.  In Amsterdam there are bicycles everywhere.  As a pedestrian you really have to pay attention to the bicyclists so you don’t get run over!

 

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We stopped in and saw the inside of the Basilica of Saint Nicholas.

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Basilica of Saint Nicholas

Another landmark is the Central Train Station in the heart of the city that opened in 1889.

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The Amsterdam Central Train Station

We still had our tram passes so we took it until the line ended and then back.

In doing this we got out of the city center and saw other parts of Amsterdam.

Our view from our hotel on our last evening in Amsterdam!IMG_9009

Our wake up call Saturday morning was very early so we could board our bus for the ride to the airport!  We flew Air France from Amsterdam in the morning and arrived in the United States in Atlanta and then had a flight on Delta Airlines home.

Both flights were close to on time and we were home by 5:00 PM on Saturday.  Our Hilliard Chamber of Commerce group was so fun to travel with and Aventura World made sure everything went smoothly.  We made new friends, new memories and explored new cities!  We can’t wait for 2020’s adventures!

Rhine River Cruise Day 4

Saturday, November 2, 2019

This morning we walked off the ship and met our guide for a walking tour of Speyer.  Our first stop was the Speyer Cathedral, which is over 1000 years old.  It opened in 1106 and was added as an UNESCO World Heritage list in 1981.

Looking at the town after visiting the cathedral.

The Old Gate is the medieval tower with the clock. It is one of the 68 original towers.

We also visited the Trinity Church that was built in the 1700s.  The organ is in the middle in the front altar.  The paintings in the church were done by local artists.  The pews were double so you could see the front and switch sides and see the back of the church.

One of the trees I noticed with unusual fruit is called a mispel or as the local’s call it “dog’s ass”!  The fruit is used to make schnapps and jam!

The Jewish Quarter was one of our stops.  We saw the remains of a Romanesque Synagogue.  It was built of sandstone in the late 13th century.  There were two areas: the woman’s prayer hall and the men’s synagogue and it was used until 1490.

In the courtyard was a subterranean Jewish ritual washing baths.

Some free time was built into our day so we could explore the city on our own before returning to the ship and then sailing to Mannheim.

Lunch was on board as we traveled on the Rhine and it was raining.  We’re hopeful that it clears up for our afternoon explorations.

This afternoon we visited the town of Heidelberg, Germany which is a university town.  Our first stop was the Heidelberg Castle.  Below are pictures of Heidelberg as we drive up to the castle!

Our guide was full of great stories as we walked around the castle grounds.

The arch pictured below was built in 1615 for Elizabeth as a birthday present by her husband Frederick.  The arch was built in sections and erected overnight!

Frederich and Elizabeth
Elizabeth Gate

There were spectacular views from the castle looking down on Heidelberg.

After touring the grounds of the castle, we then went into town.

Hotel Zum Ritter built in 1592.

Many tried the Vetter Beer.  We walked in but it was very crowded and warm.  Instead we walked across the Old Bridge which expands the Neckar.  On the right bank is the 2 km path on high ground which we could see from the castle.

We visited the Jesuitenkirche which is a Baroque style Jesuit Church.  It was built during the 18th century.

After we visited the Jesuit Church it was time to meet our bus for our ride back to the boat!

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Rhine River Cruise Day 3

Friday, November 1, 2019

We started our day with a bus and then walking tour of Strasbourg, France, the capital of Alsace. The weather was in the 50s and the rain was more of a drizzle.  We didn’t see the sun at all today!

We drove by the Place de la République Kaiserplatz which is one of the main squares of the city in Strasbourg.

Place de la République Kaiserplatz

On our walking tour of Strasbourg we passed by the Janus Fountain which has also been called the Tomi Ungerer (its creator) fountain.  It was built for the 2000th anniversary of Strasbourg in 1988.  This fountain has a face on both sides which represents the city’s double identity with France and Germany.

Strasbourg is the formal seat of the European Parliament and is located close to the German border.  Today is All Saints Day so many stores were closed and kids didn’t have school.

The streets were not busy because of All Saints Day.
Almost empty street.
Strasbourg Town Hall
War monument for Maréchal Leclerc at the Square Place Broglie.
the Opera House in the square.
Trimmed Sycamore trees

In the center of Strasbourg, we walked along the pedestrian street, Rue Des Orfévres.

We saw the outside of the Gothic Cathedral of Strasbourg. Because it was All Saints Day, mass was being held so we weren’t allowed inside.  The church tells stories on the outside and is filled with many statues on the front!  It was a beautiful church.

A model of the cathedral.

We enjoyed exploring this city where you experienced German and a French influence.

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We saw half timbered homes.

We boarded a boat for a ride on the Ill River.  We saw medieval bridges and 16th century half-timbered houses.

Seat of the European Parliament
Another view of the European Parliament Building.

The town is beginning to put up its Christmas decorations to get ready for the Christmas Markets.

On our way to the ship we saw this beautiful flower market and country distance signs!  They were fun to see how far we were from these other cities.

After our boat excursion we arrived back to the ship for lunch and then we headed back out to catch our bus for our afternoon trip.  We drove through the Alsace countryside and some quaint villages.  We caught the name of two of the villages; one was Roshime and the other was Boersch as we traveled to Obernai.  We parked in the bus parking lot and then walked to the city center.  In the town square is the St. Odile Fountain.

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The Belfry on the left and St. Odilie Fountain is on the right.

We then had free time to explore some of the city.

Visiting Obernai.
part of Obernai’s medieval walls.
part of Obernai’s medieval walls.
Half timbered houses
Corn Exchange Market
One of the many stork nests we saw in France.
This is called the Six Buckets Well from 1579.
How often do you see a cat sleeping in a store?
Bride and groom walking down the street!

Our last stop today was wine tasting at the Fritz- Schmitt Winery in the town of Ottrott.  We tasted Crémont d’ Alsace Brut, Muscat, and Rouge d’ Ottrott Reserve.  This area mainly produces white wines.

The Fritz-Schmitt winery in the town of Ottrott.
Heading to our tasting room!
Our wine tasting menu!
One of the family owners.

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Part of our Chamber group!

A perfect ending to a busy day!

Rhine River Cruise Day 1 & 2

Wednesday, October 30th, 2019 and Thursday, October 31st, 2019

We joined the Hilliard Chamber of Commerce for a Rhine River Cruise and an extension in Amsterdam, Netherlands.  It was a rainy day when we left Columbus so we were ready for our adventure!  Our flights were from Columbus, OH to Atlanta, GA, then to Paris, France and on to our destination of Basel, Switzerland. IMG_8035 There weren’t any issues with our three flights so we were happy about that.

After collecting our luggage and going through customs, we boarded our bus for a tour of Basel.  Part of the tour was on the bus and part of it was a walking tour and then we had some free time before meeting again and going to our ship!

Our guide shared that Basel is the third largest city in Switzerland and borders France and Germany.  Its population is about 180,000 with about 40 museums.  It is considered to be the cultural capital of Switzerland. (at least she thought so)

After our city tour we had time for lunch and walking around the town.

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Where we ate lunch with Jackie and O’Neal.

Our group met our bus to take us to our boat.  We boarded our riverboat and were shown to our room for the week!

After unpacking, we went to the top deck to watch the ship leave Basel!

Leaving Basel!
Tea and dessert as we left Basel.

Taking a shower after an overnight flight and a day of sightseeing was next on our agenda.  We felt refreshed and went to the ship lounge for our mandatory safety and life on board presentation from our cruise director, Svenja!  Dinner was delicious and the wine was excellent.  The servers kept filling our wine glasses. 🙂   It was an early night for us because we were exhausted from our flights.  Tomorrow will be another adventure!

 

South African Adventure

Day 1

September 11, 2018

We were up early to get to the airport because we needed to check in. We were unable to check in ahead of time because of traveling internationally. There are 8 of us traveling together through the Hilliard Chamber of Commerce.

It was rainy when we left Columbus but very foggy and rainy in D.C.

On the plane from Columbus to Washington Dulles, we are all smiles! I wonder what we’ll look like after our 17+ hours flight to Johannesburg, S. Africa?

We arrived in Washington with plenty of time to spare (About 5 hours)! We had a nice lunch at Carrabba’s and then we will walk the airport and do some reading to pass the time.