Europe2013: Day 38 Monday 22nd July – Macon, Tournon, Chalon

Our last full day on the ship and forecast 33⁰ It’s HOT and the sun beating on the windows of our cabin makes the glass very hot to touch. Luckily we have pretty good air conditioning.

Today is Murray and Lorraine’s 46^th Wedding Anniversary and they went on an optional tour to The Chateau of Cormatin - a castle with a complete moat around it. Paul & I decided to have a sleep in and just relax on the ship. The ship cruised silently and peacefully along the Saone river and its perfect for sailing with not a ripple on the water. The scenery has become more like the Rhine and much prettier than the South of France. We stopped in a little town called Tournus and although it’s Monday everything is closed. The people on the optional tours joined the ship again and off we sailed.

After lunch we had a cheese tasting on board and then sailed for Chalon. We have left the Rhone and are now sailing on the Saone. (pronounced the same as Rhone or phone)

Once again we had to pack our bulging suitcases. It has been wonderful not having to pack and unpack on the ship and I could highly recommend river cruising.

Our last farewell dinner was a real celebration and we joined 4 farming friends from WA to celebrate Murray & Lorraine’s Anniversary. I organised a surprise cake for them. We spent some time in the lounge after dinner saying goodbye’s to all the wonderful friends we had met. Although most of us are travelling by coach tomorrow to Paris we won’t see a lot of them, as they will all go their separate ways. We all agreed that this cruise was so much better than the last one (even though the last ship was brand new and same company) There was a real buzz to this cruise and I’m sure Tony, our wonderful cruise director, was the reason for the camaraderie.