Serbia

Leaving Bulgaria we entered the Iron gate gorges. To do this you must pass through a double lock. This extraordinary feat of engineering raised us 34m and then we sailed along enjoying the magnificent scenery which in this beautiful weather was being enjoyed by a mass of holiday makers in small boats. We were rather like a huge whale amongst a sea of small fish. Riding the Irongates would be a great experience. The road on the Romanian side looks suicidal with lines of massive trucks, however on the Serbian side the traffic looked light. The gradient looked reasonable- we saw quite a few tunnels. We got off the boat at Lepinski. Vir to view a remarkable archaeological site of ancient Danube culture dating back to 8000BC. Also we saw for the first signs for the EV6 and at the site ran into some real live cycle tourists from Spain who confirmed it is a great ride.

A massive carving of the ancient ruler Decibal Rex

We woke in the morning as we sailed down a short length of the Sava to dock at Belgrade. Off the ship and on to the buses Belgrade impresses as a lovely city. Out impression is that Serbia is a more affluent country than either Romania or Bulgaria. It seems obvious that the Tito style of communism has meant that the transition from communism hasn't been nearly as painful as it has been in many countries.

When we got off the ship at Belgrade we began to see signage for the EV6

Our lunch at a winery in the Serbian countryside

Back on board at Novi Sad we were greeted by the news that the water level has got so low we will be unable to sail all the way to Budapest. Today we will dock in Mohacs, Hungary. After another night on board we will ave a two hour bus ride to Budapest to finish the 'cruise'

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Pat FinnieHi. It appears to have been a really good experience and never a dull moment. Shame about the water level. I guess it has disrupted quite a few journeys. , but you almost finished it. Await the next episode. Xx pat
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5 years ago

Jack WatsonVery interested in your cruise. I've always been fascinated by inland waterways, but our experience of them was limited to a week on the Thames from Oxford to Windsor on a hotel barge in 1981 (magical experience), and a traverse of the Llangollen canal on a hired narrow boat in 1987. (Hard work, but quite rewarding.)
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5 years ago