There are White Caps and Waves on the River Meuse!

 After spending a long weekend in Namur it was time for our friends Fran and Ed to join us.  In 6 nights we started in Namur, Belgium and visited Dave, Dinant, Givet, Fumay, Montherme and ended in Charleville Mezieres where we took them (sadly for us) to the train station and bid them a fond farewell.  We had all our meals on board except a 50th anniversary lunch in Charleville Mezieres which was amazing.  Fran and I were cooking fools.  It was great fun having her helping me in the galley.

In case you were wondering, the engine works, we have running water, the new pilot house goes up and down beautifully, and the biggest challenge was the river running at 5 kilometers per hour.  I'm not kidding when I say this morning there were waves and white caps on the river.  Because of all the rain the canals and rivers are overflowing.  There has been flooding in parts of France.

Once the weather cleared up, this is a sample of what our views are like.

Fran and Ed were all smiles upon arriving at the Namur train station and we were there to greet them.

The town of Dinant honors Mr Sax who invented the saxophone.  The bridge has saxophones painted by artists from countries around the world.  Mr Sax came from the town of Dinant.

Dinant has a beautiful chateau and fort which provides a dramatic background to the town.

Sailing thru tunnels is always a challenge.

We tied up one night across from our favorite chateau owned by Queen Fabiola in the town of Dave.

It is always interesting what we come across on our walks.

Everyone was very excited when we finally arrived in France.

The currents were so strong that this little baby hitched a ride on Mommy's back.

Tom's favorite lunch.  What could be better than a freshly baked baguette, pate, a selection of cheeses, salad, fruit and more!  Delicious.

Charville Mezieres has one of the most beautiful squares in France 

Montherme in the background.

Ok Fran, you will be invited back!  Mopping floors on your 50th anniversary?!?  You definitely get the Excellent Guest Award!