2013-7-31 to 8-7 - Aboard Viking Pride

7/31 We dumped our luggage & headed straight for the dining room - I loved what I saw of the boat even if it was a quick look around. Even though the Pride is a mere 10 years-old, she has the look of a much older boat which we like very much. On the main deck, she has a walk-around deck, mostly covered with teak benches so if the open deck is closed, people have a place to go to be outside. The public rooms were warm & cozy but the boat had pretty much the same amenities as did the Aegir...big breakfast/lunch buffet & order from menu; free wine/beer; live music in lounge & a 1 1/2 hr happy hour... etc.
She is 374 ft long; the beam is 37 ft with a 6 ft draft.

Out on the deck after dinner & this is the amazing sight I saw. WOW!!!

It was sunny & in the upper 90's the next day. Viking had a coach city tour - Wayne went on the tour to the Louvre Museum - he said it was a mad house & couldn't get any decent pictures.  I have no idea what I did that day-probably unpacked - boring!! I know I enjoyed a nice lunch served to me in the restaurant. One of my few favorite things. No standing in line with a tray & I don't have to cook.

We met Captain Dario Weber & the officers that evening. Dario was yummy!! no other way to describe him. (WAY better looking than in this pic)

 

 

Warm reception area

 

Dining room

 

 Bar & lounge

 Looking Aft - notice no balconys

Looking forward - walk-around above the wide red line. you can barely see the seats

 

Upper, open deck

Small groups at a time went on a galley tour. I was amazed at how small the galley was, but very clean & organized. Don't forget, they're feeding 150 passengers & crew at least 3 meals & snacks a day. There are 9 cooks in the galley at one time. They make almost everything from scratch.

 

Our Chef de Cuisine, Stephan Bauch

 

 

 

(I have hat hair & obvious evidence that I'm eating too much of his good food)

We left the dock at 7:30 during dinner on 8/1...Next stop Vernon. Continued to unpack after dinner & missed the French lesson at 9pm.

 

..."The Seine is dredged & ocean-going vessels can dock at Rouen, 120 km (75 mi) from the sea. Commercial riverboats can use the river from Bar-sur-Seine, 560 km (350 mi) to its mouth. At Paris, there are 37 bridges. The river is only 24 metres (80 ft) above sea level 446 km (277 mi) from its mouth, making it slow flowing & thus easily navigable.
The Seine Maritime, 105.7 km (65.7 mi) from the English Channel at Le Havre to Rouen, is the only portion of the Seine used by ocean going craft. The tidal section of the Seine Maritime is followed by a canalized section with four large multiple locks until the mouth of the Oise River at Conflans-Sainte-Honorine. Multiple locks at Bougival / Chatou and at Suresnes lift the vessels to the level of the river in Paris, where the mouth of the Marne River is located. Upstream from Paris seven locks ensure navigation to Saint Mammès, where the Loing mouth is situated. Through an eighth lock the river Yonne is reached at Montereau-Fault-Yonne. From the mouth of the Yonne, larger ships can continue upstream to Nogent-sur-Seine. From there on, the river is navigable only by small craft. All navigation ends abruptly at Marcilly-sur-Seine, where the ancient Canal de la Haute-Seine used to allow vessels to continue all the way to Troyes. This canal has been abandoned for many years.
The average depth of the Seine today at Paris is about nine & a half metres. Until locks were installed to raise the level in the 1800s, the river was much shallower within the city most of the time, & consisted of a small channel of continuous flow bordered by sandy banks (depicted in many illustrations of the period). Today the depth is tightly controlled & the entire width of the river between the built-up banks on either side is normally filled with water. The average flow of the river is very low, only a few cubic metres per second, but much higher flows are possible during periods of heavy runoff. Special reservoirs upstream help to maintain a constant level for the river through the city, but during periods of extreme runoff significant increases in river level may occur".