I was in search
but could not find the missing
until I saw the field of poppies”
―
This post is part of my 33 Days in Europe series. Visit the hub page to follow along, see the full itinerary, and sign up for email updates.
Breakfast and the Road to the Black Forest
After a delicious breakfast aboard our Viking longship, we set out on our first full day of exploration—technically Day 2 of our eight-day river cruise up the Rhine River from Basel, Switzerland, to Amsterdam. We’d sailed overnight and docked this morning in Breisach, Germany, ready to explore one of Viking’s included excursions: a scenic drive into the storied Black Forest.
The route matters. The Black Forest isn’t just a sea of trees; it’s a region defined by endurance and ingenuity. It’s where cuckoo clocks and the decadent Black Forest cake were born, both products of precision, patience, and pride.
A Detour of Red Poppies
Unbeknownst to us passengers, our drive from Breisach into the Black Forest took an unexpected detour. Our guide told us Viking wanted to show us something special—a stretch of countryside where thousands upon thousands of poppies were in bloom. As we rounded a bend, the bus fell silent except for a few oohs and aahs. Field after field of red rolled beyond the window. That sight, paired with the tour guide’s story, cemented for me that we were passing over hallowed ground—and also that the world keeps turning. No matter the history, no matter the heartache, flowers still rise and bloom.
There’s a lesson in that somewhere.