The Wicks’ Itinerary – Everything You Might Want to Know and More!
May 11, Fly to Europe!
May 12, arrive– We begin a 10 Viking Cruise up the Rhine and Moselle Rivers, taking us
through parts of Switzerland, Germany and France. The trip ends with 2 days in
Paris, which we have extended to 4.
Day One in Zurich, Switzerland – what time
is it?
May 13 Day
Two, Viking Cruise - Zurich
Walking Tour and Lake Cruise in Zurich. See the city’s Altstadt, or
Old Town, and see the Rathaus, built in 1690, and many churches: Fraumünster,
which ruled the town until 1336; Grossmünster, founded by Charlemagne; and St.
Peter’s Church, which boasts the largest church clock face in Europe.
May 14 Day
Three, Viking Cruise - Basil,
Switzerland
We will take a walking tour of
Basel. We will visit the Marktplatz, and
the 13th-century Munster Cathedral. We also hope to see the home and church of
Karl Barth.
May 15 Day
Four Viking Cruise - Strasbourg, France
This city is equal parts French and
German culture. We will drive through the German Imperial District and the
European Quarter and take a walking tour of the Petite France area. In
Cathedral Square we will view the restored Strasbourg Cathedral. It was the
world's tallest building from 1647 to 1874.
May 16 Day
Five, Viking Cruise - Speyer, Germany:
We will visit two of Germany’s most
historic cities: Worms, where an edict declared Martin Luther a heretic for his
religious beliefs and continue to Heidelberg to see the university founded in
1386.
May 17 Day
Six, Viking Cruise - Mainz, Germany
This city is over 2,000 years old. We will
walk through the streets of the Old Town, stopping to explore Mainz Cathedral. We
will continue to the Gutenberg Museum, dedicated to the inventor of movable
type and book printing.
May 18 Day
Seven, Viking Cruise - Koblenz, Germany
We will enjoy a walking tour of
Koblenz’s old city.
May 19 Day
Eight, Viking Cruise - Cochem, Germany
Our tour begins with a drive up the
mountain to the 1,000-year-old Reichsburg Castle, conquered by Louis XIV in the
Nine Years’ War. During a walking tour of Cochem, we will see the old city,
including the 15th-century St. Martin’s Church and the 17th-century Capuchin
monastery.
May 20 Day
Nine, Viking Cruise - Trier &
Bernkastel, Germany
We will see the Bernkastel side of
these two cities in the morning: cobblestone streets lined with timber-framed
houses, the marketplace and its 1608 Town Hall, and visit the narrow, tiny Spitzhäuschen,
the “Pointed House,” built in 1416.
We will tour Trier in the
afternoon, Germany’s oldest city, and a once-mighty outpost of the Holy Roman
Empire. We will see the Roman amphitheater, see the massive Roman baths, and the
Roman city gates, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We will also visit the Cathedral
of Trier, built under the direction of Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine,
and the Liebfrauenkirche, the Church of Our Lady, one of the earliest Gothic
churches in Germany.
May 21 Day
Ten, Viking Cruise - Luxembourg
Luxembourg City’s Old Town is also a
UNESCO World Heritage Site perched atop a gorge cliff. We will stroll through the old city and visit
the American Cemetery which is the final resting place for 5,000 US soldiers buried
in WWII.
May 22 Day
Eleven,Viking Cruise/ Day one: Paris
Viking Bus Tour: (morning) Bus
tour provides an orientation to the city, driving by all of the major sites in
the heart of Paris.
Afternoon: Self guided Garden walk
along the Seine River.
May 23 Day
Twelve, Viking Cruise/ Day two: Paris
We
will visit the Eiffel Tower and proceed to
the Louve.
We
will take a break mid day to walk to and visit The
Catheldrals of Notre Dame and Sainte
Chapelle before returning for
more of the Louve in the afternoon.
May 24 Day three: Paris
We
will visit the Arc de Triumphe and
the Palais Garnier Opera House where we will take
the tour. In the afternoon
we will head south of the Seine to visit the Eglise
St. Germain de Pres, built over a 6th century Abbey
and shop some of the historic shops in St. Germain.
May 25 Day four: Paris
We
will visit the Musee d’Orsay which houses Paris’s
Impressionist collection and the Musee Rodin, is
which the sculptures of Rodin are displayed including “The Thinker.” In the afternoon we will visit SacreCoeur,
built to honor St. Denis, the patron saint of France and we will wander the
Montmartre backstreets and see some of the works of local artists.
May 26 We
fly to Thessalonica, Greece and
settle into the Veenendaal apartment.
May 27 – 28 We
will get oriented to Greece and Thessalonica!
May 29 Ouranopoulis, and Mt. Athos
We will rent a car and drive to
Ouranopoulis where we will take a Boat tour around Mount Athos which is home to
20 monasteries supervised by the Greek Orthodox Church. It has been a spiritual home for monasticism
since the 10th century. Its
first constitution was signed in 972 and 1,400 monks inhabit Mt. Athos
today. Women are not allowed on the peninsula,
so we will take the boat tour around the southern edge of Mt. Athos.
May 30 Karvalla and Philippi, Greece
We will continue our journey to
Karvalla, Greece where the Apostle Paul first set foot on Greek soil. We will drive on to Philippi to see the ruins
of the city, where Paul founded the church of Philippi.
May 31 We will
continue sightseeing in Karvalla and return to Thessalonika.
June 1– Jun 4 More
time to explore Thessalonika’s ancient history and churches along
with time to read and relax.
with time to read and relax.
Jun 5 - 7 Patmos, Greece
We
will fly to the Island of Samos and catch a Ferry to Patmos. We will visit the
Shrine to the Apostle John and see the cave where John received his vision and wrote
the Revelation of John. Then we will see
the Monastery of St. John founded in 1088 – also a World UNESCO site.
Jun 8 – 9 Thessalonica, Greece
Jun 10 – 20 Begin
10 Day Rick Steve’s Italy Tour
We fly to Venice for an extra day in Venice before the Rick Steve’s Tour
begins
Jun 11, Day One: Venice, Italy
Walking Tour of Venice and Traditional Venetian
dinner
Jun 12, Day Two: Venice, Italy
See historic Venice including
St. Mark’s Square and Cathedral
Jun 13, Day
three: Venice, Italy
Visit the Accademia Gallery and boat ride on
the Lagoon
Jun 14, Day
Four: Florence, Italy
Renaissance Tour of city center
and cathedral followed by a Tuscan dinner.
Jun 15, Day
Five: Florence, Italy
Backstreets
of Florence, Palazzo Davanzati, and Italian cooking class for lunch
Jun 16, Day
Six: Florence, Italy
See the great Renaissance
art in the Uffizi including Michaelangello’s David
Jun 17, Day
Seven: Rome, Italy
Drive
to Rome via the Italian wine country
Evening stroll through Rome
See: Piazza Navona, Trevi
Fountain, and the 2,000-year-old Pantheon
Jun 18, Day
Eight: Rome, Italy
Tour
Vatican Museum and St. Peter’s cathedral
Sistine Chapel and Michelangelo's
Pietà.
Jun 19, Day
Nine: Rome, Italy
Morning: Tour San Clemente - a 12th-century
church, Colosseum and the Forum.
Afternoon: Explore the Palatine
ruins, St. Peter-in-Chains Church (home
to Michelangelo's Moses), and maybe the Catacomb of Priscilla – early third
century paintings
to Michelangelo's Moses), and maybe the Catacomb of Priscilla – early third
century paintings
Jun 20, Day
Ten: Rome, Italy
RS Tour
ends today (breakfast provided)
Tour
of San Sabastian church – catacombs dating to 250 AD, possible original resting
place of Peter and Paul
place of Peter and Paul
Jun 21 - 27 Santorini, Greece
We fly
to Santorini for a week of rest and sunshine
Jun 27, Fly back to Thessaloniki
Jun 28 – July 1 Thessalonica
Jul 2 – 4 Trip south to Meteora (the hanging
Monsteries) and Delphi on the way to
Athens.
Athens.
Jul 5 Athens
See the old city, Acropolis,
the Agora ( old market), Mars Hill (where Paul preached.)
Jul 6, Photo Tour of the Peloponnese
Jul 7 - 9 More
of Athens and day trip to Corinth
Jul 10, Good
bye to Greece and on to England.
Fly to
London and Drive to Oxford
Jul 11 – 12 Explore
Oxford and visit our niece, Julie and her husband.
Jul 13, Drive to Salisbury, England
See the old town, Salisbury
Cathedral, Stone henge?
Jul 14 – 23 Newlyn, Cornwall England
Stay at the Sea
Shimmer apartment
We will visit with Sally’s
English cousins, visit St.
Michael’s mount, visit the
Bolitho church in Penzance, rest, read, drive around Cornwall, and breathe the sea air.
Bolitho church in Penzance, rest, read, drive around Cornwall, and breathe the sea air.
Jul 24, Fly
home to Chicago.
Jul 25, Home
(What time is it?)
Jul 26 - 31 Crystal Mountain Family Reunion with
Sally’s parents; brother Dean,
Stephen and Liz; Austin
and Alicia; and Terry!
Jul 31 - Aug 2 Home
in La Porte – rest from all the family!
Aug 3 - 6 Fly
to Dallas to visit with Mike’s sister, Kathy and her husband
Aug 7 - 13 Study
time in Petoskey Michigan to prepare for return to the churches
Aug 14 - 18 Home
to La Porte: reopen the house, and dig out the gardens.
Aug 19 First Day back in the churches.
