Aren’t coincidences the craziest and most wonderful things?

After today, I feel inclined to say yes.

You see, this morning, I found myself squished inside a tiny hotel elevator, crammed like sardines alongside a French couple as I raced down to the lobby for my 6am check-out. I had a bus to catch for my next cruise, and admittedly, I was worried about my hopeless sense of direction. Leaving the hotel way later than intended, I quickly dropped off my key card and charged out the door, praying to the travel gods that I wouldn’t somehow get lost.

As I pushed through the glass doors of the hotel however, I once again saw the couple from the elevator, and this time, something special caught my eye…

They had CroisiEurope luggage tags hanging from their bags!

Feeling curious, I mustered up the courage to employ my rusty French and I asked them what they were doing and where they were headed. To my complete surprise, I found out that not only were we headed to the same station, but we were there to catch the same bus and board the same river cruise.

Seriously, what are the chances?

It was at this point that I found myself in a stranger’s car, in the middle of Strasbourg, wide-eyed at how crazy the world can be. I had planned to walk to the station on my own, but a ride was too tempting to refuse! I know you’re not supposed to get into cars with strangers, but hey, those rules don’t apply when it comes to fellow cruisers, right?

After we arrived at the station, we boarded our coach for Linz, where the MS Vivaldi eagerly awaited our arrival. Most of the day was spent whizzing through the German and Austrian countryside, a great taste of the views to come on my next cruise along the Rhine! … But before we get to that, I should explain an even crazier coincidence that happened today after we boarded the MS Vivaldi.

Now, I’ve written before about how small the world can be, and that belief was 100% affirmed today as I walked into the cruise lounge for a small presentation about life on board.

Stepping into the lounge, I heard a strangely familiar voice coming from the left side of the room. It took me a second to locate the speaker, but as soon as I did, I couldn’t believe it. Sitting there, in the middle of this cruise on the Danube, was an American man that I met on my first cruise along the Seine, just 2 weeks ago. Out of all the river cruises in Europe, what were the chances that we would meet again here in the middle of Austria?

I tell you, the world is a crazy place, my friends.

To cap off a mind-blowing day of coincidences, I ended up meeting a young couple (both recent university graduates) while in the lounge, and by some incredible stroke of luck, we ended up being placed at the same table for dinner! My luck on this cruise has so far been unbelievable, and I really can’t wait to see what comes my way next.

Tomorrow might be the busiest day of the Photo Tour yet! I have a total of three excursions lined up for the incredible city of Vienna. Fingers crossed the bar has enough espresso to keep me going, right?

Talk to you all soon!

- Christina