September 14th (sunny and just as lovely as it was in Holland the final day)
Sorry I did not call anyone or write about our surprise return, but thought it would be more exciting reading it "live" on our blog.
I look forward to talking with and seeing many of you very soon.
Affectionately, your friends,
Georg and Sandra Nerreter
Friday, September 14, 2007
September 13
September 13th (sunny and cooler)
After a better sleep, I awoke in a better mood now that I was also more resigned to the fact that we would be returning home a little earlier than was planned. Making the decision to return home so suddenly seemed so anticlimactic compared to all the hype and long-term planning when we came to Europe in May. I believe I personally just needed time to digest the spontaneity of the decision and deep down I was in agreement with Georg – it really was time to go home.
We immediately completed the last of the packing and cleaning of the van to be certain that it would be returned in much better condition than we had received it. When that was done and the gate to the campground was opened for us at 9 am, we drove the one hour to Utrecht and this time were able to find Donna's place immediately. Georg had listed the issues concerning the van along with a list of all the extras we were including with the sale of Susi. We are hoping to receive approx. 2,000 – 2,500 E’s upon resale -- 65% of the purchase price on consignment.
Donna was pleased with the foodstuffs and alcohol we gave her and after finalizing the paperwork and exchanging a few stories, she drove us to the Utrecht train station. We bid farewell to her and Susi and were on the train and going to the Shiphol airport within ten minutes. I had a bit of an accident when we got off the train. I backed up and fell over my backpack like a ton of bricks. My concern was that I looked like such a goof and once Georg and I determined that I had not done any damage, we both laughed. I was glad there was absolutely no one that saw it happen.
We had disposed of some of our belongings which made our knapsacks a little lighter than when we arrived in May. Off we marched through the airport to the KLM counter and paid the $200.Can each to change the date of our departure and what do you know, we were on the airplane within three hours and heading home. KLM is a great airline to fly with – the stewardesses are lovely and the service was great. The day went exactly as we had planned with everything falling into place perfectly.
We were hoping to get into our home without anyone knowing that we had returned early, but Georg did not have a house key. Reached Lucas by cell and he was able to pick us up returning home from work. Caught up on some of the latest with the kids, had a couple of beers and when Luke left, we had our first bath in four months, (we always showered), and collapsed into bed.
Unbelievable day, but just as Dorothy says, “There’s no place like home!”
After a better sleep, I awoke in a better mood now that I was also more resigned to the fact that we would be returning home a little earlier than was planned. Making the decision to return home so suddenly seemed so anticlimactic compared to all the hype and long-term planning when we came to Europe in May. I believe I personally just needed time to digest the spontaneity of the decision and deep down I was in agreement with Georg – it really was time to go home.
We immediately completed the last of the packing and cleaning of the van to be certain that it would be returned in much better condition than we had received it. When that was done and the gate to the campground was opened for us at 9 am, we drove the one hour to Utrecht and this time were able to find Donna's place immediately. Georg had listed the issues concerning the van along with a list of all the extras we were including with the sale of Susi. We are hoping to receive approx. 2,000 – 2,500 E’s upon resale -- 65% of the purchase price on consignment.
Donna was pleased with the foodstuffs and alcohol we gave her and after finalizing the paperwork and exchanging a few stories, she drove us to the Utrecht train station. We bid farewell to her and Susi and were on the train and going to the Shiphol airport within ten minutes. I had a bit of an accident when we got off the train. I backed up and fell over my backpack like a ton of bricks. My concern was that I looked like such a goof and once Georg and I determined that I had not done any damage, we both laughed. I was glad there was absolutely no one that saw it happen.
We had disposed of some of our belongings which made our knapsacks a little lighter than when we arrived in May. Off we marched through the airport to the KLM counter and paid the $200.Can each to change the date of our departure and what do you know, we were on the airplane within three hours and heading home. KLM is a great airline to fly with – the stewardesses are lovely and the service was great. The day went exactly as we had planned with everything falling into place perfectly.
We were hoping to get into our home without anyone knowing that we had returned early, but Georg did not have a house key. Reached Lucas by cell and he was able to pick us up returning home from work. Caught up on some of the latest with the kids, had a couple of beers and when Luke left, we had our first bath in four months, (we always showered), and collapsed into bed.
Unbelievable day, but just as Dorothy says, “There’s no place like home!”
September 12
September 12th (sunny and cooler)
Woke up very early and found that Georg’s back was in spasms. He stayed in the back of the car lying down and I closed everything up and began driving towards Paris. Just before Paris and the toll, Georg managed to get up and help with navigating through the city. Alas, we got lost and ‘round and ‘round we went until we saw the `Charles de Gaulle’ airport directions. With that beacon, we managed to find our way out of the city two hours after we entered it.
We drove another 680 kms today and camped 70 kms south of Utrecht and began to organize our bags and tidy the van for tomorrow morning. Georg called Donna Turner yesterday and confirmed that it was OK to bring the van around tomorrow for our planned departure.
Woke up very early and found that Georg’s back was in spasms. He stayed in the back of the car lying down and I closed everything up and began driving towards Paris. Just before Paris and the toll, Georg managed to get up and help with navigating through the city. Alas, we got lost and ‘round and ‘round we went until we saw the `Charles de Gaulle’ airport directions. With that beacon, we managed to find our way out of the city two hours after we entered it.
We drove another 680 kms today and camped 70 kms south of Utrecht and began to organize our bags and tidy the van for tomorrow morning. Georg called Donna Turner yesterday and confirmed that it was OK to bring the van around tomorrow for our planned departure.
September 11
September 11th (sunny and warm)
Both of us woke up in a bit of a sour mood in that this was not exactly the way we wanted to end our tour of Europe. As mentioned, we decided that we were not going to just sit on the beach for the next couple of weeks and sun tan, so basically what was the use of prolonging our trip. We have seen so much and everything now would be a “repeat” basically. I remember my mom telling me that “one day sitting in the sun and just tanning will not be that important any more”. She was right – I do not get such a bang out of burning myself brown.
We disagreed as to the ‘exit plan’ though. Georg’s was to drive until you drop until you get to Utrecht. I really was not sure what my idea of “finished” was, but I never thought that we would drive quite so much today – 780 kms. None of you know Georg as well as me and when he is finished he is like the horse racing back to the barn. I guess most of us are the same, but I felt like I needed to finish stuff – like the rest of the food and supplies, etc. I am a bit obsessive-compulsive that way.
I was in agreement with him in that we really have had a very full and exciting time travelling, but all of a sudden we both felt it was time to return home. Things like Else falling off a ladder and breaking her leg, my father being without my mother and hopefully needing me to talk with, our children and our friends to name a few. We are a very lucky couple in that we have such a wonderful network of family and friends and we hope that they have missed us as much as we have them.
Since it was very late by the time we finished driving, I thought we should free camp where all the truckers stay. During our whole trip, Georg has been adamant about not “free camping” unless it is an emergency. I felt that this was an appropriate time and again, we totally disagreed, but stayed with the truckers tonight anyway. He was so cranky that I was ready for a divorce. Georg gave me the name of a lawyer we can use. I must admit, it was noisier than I expected with the trucks coming and going, but it was alright for one night.
Both of us woke up in a bit of a sour mood in that this was not exactly the way we wanted to end our tour of Europe. As mentioned, we decided that we were not going to just sit on the beach for the next couple of weeks and sun tan, so basically what was the use of prolonging our trip. We have seen so much and everything now would be a “repeat” basically. I remember my mom telling me that “one day sitting in the sun and just tanning will not be that important any more”. She was right – I do not get such a bang out of burning myself brown.
We disagreed as to the ‘exit plan’ though. Georg’s was to drive until you drop until you get to Utrecht. I really was not sure what my idea of “finished” was, but I never thought that we would drive quite so much today – 780 kms. None of you know Georg as well as me and when he is finished he is like the horse racing back to the barn. I guess most of us are the same, but I felt like I needed to finish stuff – like the rest of the food and supplies, etc. I am a bit obsessive-compulsive that way.
I was in agreement with him in that we really have had a very full and exciting time travelling, but all of a sudden we both felt it was time to return home. Things like Else falling off a ladder and breaking her leg, my father being without my mother and hopefully needing me to talk with, our children and our friends to name a few. We are a very lucky couple in that we have such a wonderful network of family and friends and we hope that they have missed us as much as we have them.
Since it was very late by the time we finished driving, I thought we should free camp where all the truckers stay. During our whole trip, Georg has been adamant about not “free camping” unless it is an emergency. I felt that this was an appropriate time and again, we totally disagreed, but stayed with the truckers tonight anyway. He was so cranky that I was ready for a divorce. Georg gave me the name of a lawyer we can use. I must admit, it was noisier than I expected with the trucks coming and going, but it was alright for one night.
September 10
September 10th (sunny and getting warmer)
Being that we were just about the only people at the campground, we packed up early and were on the road towards southern France before 9 am. The scenery we drove through today was certainly not the prettiest we have encountered and the more south we drove, the more it resembled Arizona, even the homes.
As clean as Switzerland was, the opposite for this area of France – lots of garbage and messy piles of junk everywhere. In most of Europe, the recycling program for plastic and bottles is not like home – there is no deposit and refund program for the recyclables, therefore the incentive is not there for most people. I am sure if there was a “cash” return policy, there would not be as much lying around.
Today it seemed like we were continuously climbing with Susi, not as steep as some of the mountains, but all day. She performed perfectly again – lights blinking the whole way. At one point, it was like a light show beating along with the music.
By the time we settled at a large campground on the Mediterranean in France, the temperature was near 30. Very nice weather, but now comes the news. We have decided that since all of our planned objectives on this tour have been met, along with some unplanned side trips, there really isn’t too much left for us to see in Europe. We have decided to head north through the centre of France and come home.
Also the ongoing uncertainty with the van has also contributed to our decision as is the fact that both of us are not into sitting on the beach for another six weeks marking time. The $6,000 or so that we would be spending can be spent on another vacation at a later date.
Notables for the day: south of France must have been very hot, as it was in Greece because we passed through many burned-out areas. We saw flocks of “real”, as opposed to “plastic” pink flamingoes and the campground we stayed at on the Mediterranean outside of Sete now only charges 18E/night instead of 40E/night. However, the 1,000 pitch site is scheduled to close down the end of this week as are most sites – that could be another difficulty for us – finding one that is open.
Our plans are to be in Utrecht by this time next week – September 18th and be home approx. five days after that.
Being that we were just about the only people at the campground, we packed up early and were on the road towards southern France before 9 am. The scenery we drove through today was certainly not the prettiest we have encountered and the more south we drove, the more it resembled Arizona, even the homes.
As clean as Switzerland was, the opposite for this area of France – lots of garbage and messy piles of junk everywhere. In most of Europe, the recycling program for plastic and bottles is not like home – there is no deposit and refund program for the recyclables, therefore the incentive is not there for most people. I am sure if there was a “cash” return policy, there would not be as much lying around.
Today it seemed like we were continuously climbing with Susi, not as steep as some of the mountains, but all day. She performed perfectly again – lights blinking the whole way. At one point, it was like a light show beating along with the music.
By the time we settled at a large campground on the Mediterranean in France, the temperature was near 30. Very nice weather, but now comes the news. We have decided that since all of our planned objectives on this tour have been met, along with some unplanned side trips, there really isn’t too much left for us to see in Europe. We have decided to head north through the centre of France and come home.
Also the ongoing uncertainty with the van has also contributed to our decision as is the fact that both of us are not into sitting on the beach for another six weeks marking time. The $6,000 or so that we would be spending can be spent on another vacation at a later date.
Notables for the day: south of France must have been very hot, as it was in Greece because we passed through many burned-out areas. We saw flocks of “real”, as opposed to “plastic” pink flamingoes and the campground we stayed at on the Mediterranean outside of Sete now only charges 18E/night instead of 40E/night. However, the 1,000 pitch site is scheduled to close down the end of this week as are most sites – that could be another difficulty for us – finding one that is open.
Our plans are to be in Utrecht by this time next week – September 18th and be home approx. five days after that.
September 9
September 9th (sunny and cooler)
Before we left heading towards the Grenoble area in France, we walked down to take one last look at the Wasserfahlers. From the sounds of grunts and groans coming from the men pushing their way along the rocks, we know the competition will be intense today. We did not need to drive very far before we were out of Switzerland and into France, (for the third time this trip). We left Bern and drove through Lausanne, passed Geneva and Chambery and are parked about 50 kms from Grenoble. We will continue heading towards the south of France and then on towards Spain.
The campsite somewhat resembles a “ghost town” as lots of tents and trailers are here empty and are used on weekends only. There are only about six people here beside us. Susi ran well, but the “idiot lights”, as Lucas called them, were flashing on and off all day. Seems their old van did the same thing when they were here six years ago.
Our memories of Switzerland are the length tunnels – most expensive per kilometer system in the world. The many lakes and rivers, all glacial-blue in color, with most of the population of Switzerland living around the perimeters of these lakes. Monstrously high mountains and deep, tight valleys; very friendly, multilingual people; very organized and affluent society – the downside being that it is very expensive, i.e. one egg 75 cents, can of coke $3.25 out of a machine.
All in all, Switzerland has been the most beautiful country we have been.
Before we left heading towards the Grenoble area in France, we walked down to take one last look at the Wasserfahlers. From the sounds of grunts and groans coming from the men pushing their way along the rocks, we know the competition will be intense today. We did not need to drive very far before we were out of Switzerland and into France, (for the third time this trip). We left Bern and drove through Lausanne, passed Geneva and Chambery and are parked about 50 kms from Grenoble. We will continue heading towards the south of France and then on towards Spain.
The campsite somewhat resembles a “ghost town” as lots of tents and trailers are here empty and are used on weekends only. There are only about six people here beside us. Susi ran well, but the “idiot lights”, as Lucas called them, were flashing on and off all day. Seems their old van did the same thing when they were here six years ago.
Our memories of Switzerland are the length tunnels – most expensive per kilometer system in the world. The many lakes and rivers, all glacial-blue in color, with most of the population of Switzerland living around the perimeters of these lakes. Monstrously high mountains and deep, tight valleys; very friendly, multilingual people; very organized and affluent society – the downside being that it is very expensive, i.e. one egg 75 cents, can of coke $3.25 out of a machine.
All in all, Switzerland has been the most beautiful country we have been.
September 8
September 8th (sunny and cooler)
We woke up, had breakfast and did the 25-minute walk along the Aare River into Bern. Georg, not being a very good sleeper, was disturbed by the young couple who were serenading each other until 3 in the morning. Georg did not say anything just in case we got another flat tire.
At the end of the walk along the river, which runs at about 20 kms/hr, we came across an outdoor pool centre which had about six pools right adjacent to the river with the city of Bern rising up the hills around it. It was at this point that sirens began and we were witness to a river rescue attempt. Unfortunately, the river runs so fast that we were not able to see whether they rescued the person or even found him. That aside, we saw a lot of people swimming in the river – more like floating with the current. I noticed right away that this city, even though it is touted to be a ‘World Heritage Site’ is not as pristine as Lucerne. It could be that it is twice as big, but these were our first impressions.
We walked for about five hours through the old section of the city, up and down hills, in and through passageways and found it to be a most wonderful city to visit. In the main pedestrian area, we noticed what used to be street access to the basement have been converted to shops underground. Must say that this city’s shopping area is more crammed than any we have seen, but still delightful to walk through.
We returned via the river again and stopped to take in the 75th Annual Wasserfahrverein (Water Ride Clubs) two-man Swiss championships. This is only a Swiss event – a very grueling sport which has its origins in history as their mode of transportation up and down the rivers and lakes. The crafts are made with a shallow draft and uplifted ends somewhat like a flat gondola. The object of the competition is to navigate up, across and down the river circuit twice – best time wins. Had some beer and enjoyed the camaraderie of the “wasserfahren people”.
Returned to our site, had dinner, phoned our boys to wish Matthew a Happy 28th Birthday. Sounds like everything is AOK at home but Georg detected a need of his project coordinating skills to finalize their apartment renovation. Georg was particularly interested in the World Rugby cup and heard that Argentina upset the host country, France. As we are heading to France tomorrow, he is looking forward to possibly taking in some of the matches on TV at a pub somewhere.
We woke up, had breakfast and did the 25-minute walk along the Aare River into Bern. Georg, not being a very good sleeper, was disturbed by the young couple who were serenading each other until 3 in the morning. Georg did not say anything just in case we got another flat tire.
At the end of the walk along the river, which runs at about 20 kms/hr, we came across an outdoor pool centre which had about six pools right adjacent to the river with the city of Bern rising up the hills around it. It was at this point that sirens began and we were witness to a river rescue attempt. Unfortunately, the river runs so fast that we were not able to see whether they rescued the person or even found him. That aside, we saw a lot of people swimming in the river – more like floating with the current. I noticed right away that this city, even though it is touted to be a ‘World Heritage Site’ is not as pristine as Lucerne. It could be that it is twice as big, but these were our first impressions.
We walked for about five hours through the old section of the city, up and down hills, in and through passageways and found it to be a most wonderful city to visit. In the main pedestrian area, we noticed what used to be street access to the basement have been converted to shops underground. Must say that this city’s shopping area is more crammed than any we have seen, but still delightful to walk through.
We returned via the river again and stopped to take in the 75th Annual Wasserfahrverein (Water Ride Clubs) two-man Swiss championships. This is only a Swiss event – a very grueling sport which has its origins in history as their mode of transportation up and down the rivers and lakes. The crafts are made with a shallow draft and uplifted ends somewhat like a flat gondola. The object of the competition is to navigate up, across and down the river circuit twice – best time wins. Had some beer and enjoyed the camaraderie of the “wasserfahren people”.
Returned to our site, had dinner, phoned our boys to wish Matthew a Happy 28th Birthday. Sounds like everything is AOK at home but Georg detected a need of his project coordinating skills to finalize their apartment renovation. Georg was particularly interested in the World Rugby cup and heard that Argentina upset the host country, France. As we are heading to France tomorrow, he is looking forward to possibly taking in some of the matches on TV at a pub somewhere.
September 7
September 7th (sunny and slightly cooler)
The day started out with news from Carla via email that Oma broke her leg falling from a ladder and was in the Comox hospital. At first, Georg was angry in that, at the age of 82, she still hasn’t learned to stay off of ladders. We were a little concerned, to say the least. We will attempt to make contact with someone back home before the end of the day.
After we got underway, the scenery was the most beautiful we have ever witnessed. The drive through the Interlaken area was like “driving through a continuous post card”. We took a side trip to Gimmelwald, not Grindelwald, where all the tourists go. Rick Steve’s recommended this two-street, 700-year-old village situated halfway up the mountain as the quintessential Swiss village to visit. The only access is by gondola and I was a little weak-kneed looking straight down 4,800 meters.
We could have taken two more gondolas further up to visit the revolving restaurant where James Bond’s “007” movie was filmed, but we have already experienced a high-altitude gondola. We preferred to spend more time walking through the village of Gimmelwald. Interesting note – the 130 townfolk share three surnames – Allmen, Brunner and Feuz. The area was absolutely awe-inspiring. We also watched paragliders jump from about the 6,000 meter mark and float down the valley and land right next to our van. Looks something we might take up when we get home – ha ha!
As Gimmelwald is situated above a dead-end road, we had the pleasure of driving back through this wonderful valley. From there, we drove to Bern, found our campsite, which was virtually empty as the children are all back in school. We strolled around after dinner and noted that some type of a traditional two-man boating competition is being held right outside our campground on the River Aare.
We managed to get in touch with Gerlinde by phone and it turns out that Georg’s mom jumped off an unstable ladder whilst picking apples before their planned trip to Winnipeg. Regardless, her leg has been ‘pinned’ and consequently, the trip back east is now off. Ed, her son-in-law, with a dry sense of humour, brought a gift to her this morning to the hospital – an apple. The recovery should take about six months. We hope Georg’s mom has the patience.
The day started out with news from Carla via email that Oma broke her leg falling from a ladder and was in the Comox hospital. At first, Georg was angry in that, at the age of 82, she still hasn’t learned to stay off of ladders. We were a little concerned, to say the least. We will attempt to make contact with someone back home before the end of the day.
After we got underway, the scenery was the most beautiful we have ever witnessed. The drive through the Interlaken area was like “driving through a continuous post card”. We took a side trip to Gimmelwald, not Grindelwald, where all the tourists go. Rick Steve’s recommended this two-street, 700-year-old village situated halfway up the mountain as the quintessential Swiss village to visit. The only access is by gondola and I was a little weak-kneed looking straight down 4,800 meters.
We could have taken two more gondolas further up to visit the revolving restaurant where James Bond’s “007” movie was filmed, but we have already experienced a high-altitude gondola. We preferred to spend more time walking through the village of Gimmelwald. Interesting note – the 130 townfolk share three surnames – Allmen, Brunner and Feuz. The area was absolutely awe-inspiring. We also watched paragliders jump from about the 6,000 meter mark and float down the valley and land right next to our van. Looks something we might take up when we get home – ha ha!
As Gimmelwald is situated above a dead-end road, we had the pleasure of driving back through this wonderful valley. From there, we drove to Bern, found our campsite, which was virtually empty as the children are all back in school. We strolled around after dinner and noted that some type of a traditional two-man boating competition is being held right outside our campground on the River Aare.
We managed to get in touch with Gerlinde by phone and it turns out that Georg’s mom jumped off an unstable ladder whilst picking apples before their planned trip to Winnipeg. Regardless, her leg has been ‘pinned’ and consequently, the trip back east is now off. Ed, her son-in-law, with a dry sense of humour, brought a gift to her this morning to the hospital – an apple. The recovery should take about six months. We hope Georg’s mom has the patience.
September 6
September 6th (sunny and warm)
Woke up to about 3 degrees; all activity in a heightened state in order to get warm. After our breakfast, I packed a lunch and we took a short bus ride into Lucerne. We were immediately taken with its charm including the Chapel Bridge which we found out from some locals was destroyed in 1993 by Swiss hooligans who set fire to a barge underneath the 1300’s wooden structure. 95% of the bridge was totally destroyed along with about 70 period-paintings. One thing to note is that the river running through Lucerne is absolutely crystal clear.
Georg enjoyed using his new “old” camera again. We spent the day walking over bridges, along ramparts, through cobblestone streets and once in awhile sitting and watching the people go by. As mentioned to us by Rudolf, the kids’ vacations throughout Europe are scheduled in staggered times in order to decrease traffic congestion. At this time, the Swiss kids in this area are back in school. Kids, like anywhere else -- some are adorable and others you could just kick in the ass.
Items to note about Switzerland that we found interesting: 20% of the population are non-residents. That has a potential of some political unrest down the road. Also, was interesting to note that the Swiss nation, even though being neutral during two World Wars, is at a very high state of preparedness for its own defense. There are concealed, strategic bunkers at every pass and bottleneck. Every bridge is built with an internal, explosive charge which can be detonated at any time if the nation is invaded. Additionally, 90% of all the citizens have gone through the military and carry, or are in possession of, semi-automatic weapons and ammunition in their homes. That being said, the murder rate is nowhere near what we have in Canada even though there is `gun control’.
After dinner, we took advantage of the internet, went for a last long walk along the lake, watched some men fishing, played cards and went to bed.
Woke up to about 3 degrees; all activity in a heightened state in order to get warm. After our breakfast, I packed a lunch and we took a short bus ride into Lucerne. We were immediately taken with its charm including the Chapel Bridge which we found out from some locals was destroyed in 1993 by Swiss hooligans who set fire to a barge underneath the 1300’s wooden structure. 95% of the bridge was totally destroyed along with about 70 period-paintings. One thing to note is that the river running through Lucerne is absolutely crystal clear.
Georg enjoyed using his new “old” camera again. We spent the day walking over bridges, along ramparts, through cobblestone streets and once in awhile sitting and watching the people go by. As mentioned to us by Rudolf, the kids’ vacations throughout Europe are scheduled in staggered times in order to decrease traffic congestion. At this time, the Swiss kids in this area are back in school. Kids, like anywhere else -- some are adorable and others you could just kick in the ass.
Items to note about Switzerland that we found interesting: 20% of the population are non-residents. That has a potential of some political unrest down the road. Also, was interesting to note that the Swiss nation, even though being neutral during two World Wars, is at a very high state of preparedness for its own defense. There are concealed, strategic bunkers at every pass and bottleneck. Every bridge is built with an internal, explosive charge which can be detonated at any time if the nation is invaded. Additionally, 90% of all the citizens have gone through the military and carry, or are in possession of, semi-automatic weapons and ammunition in their homes. That being said, the murder rate is nowhere near what we have in Canada even though there is `gun control’.
After dinner, we took advantage of the internet, went for a last long walk along the lake, watched some men fishing, played cards and went to bed.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
September 5
September 5th (sunny, warm – cold and snow)
Our plans were to stop overnight at Chur, however upon checking the weather report on the internet, it was going to be -2 and snowing. We decided that we’ve taken enough risks with the van and will forego camping at Chur tonight and our brief foray into Liechtenstein. Instead, we will stick to the main road: the road we chose was to drive the highway instead of the byways even though they were parallel to each other because the highway barreled through the mountains with tunnels whereas the byways zigzagged their way up and down putting undue stress on Susi. We are very cautious as to the roads we use due to the “red light” syndrome.
Unfortunately the day started off a little stressful because the red light on the temperature gauge was blinking immediately at the get-go from Locarno. Again, taking into account of what the mechanic said, we carried on, but we still had our doubts. True to the weather forecast, it became cold, cloudy and yes – it started to snow upon reaching San Bernardino in the Alps. The blanket of white added impact to the already beautiful scenery that surpasses even our Rocky Mountains. At one of the high-altitude rest stops, we found out how cold it really was and how silly we looked running around in our shorts, short-sleeves and sandals. We quickly changed clothes.
As the weather has changed our itinerary, our new destination of the day was Lucerne, a city of approx. 60,000 inhabitants. In our travels towards the city, we passed a few lakes and over here the lakes are huge. The two large ones we passed were over 60 kms long. We even drove through an officially designated area called “Heidiland”. At one point in time, we were actually 60 – 70 kms drive away from Immenstadt where Seb, Susi and Steff live. Upon reaching our destination, we were taken aback by the unbelievable setting of Lucerne. Looking forward to hoofing around town tomorrow in what is expected to be a sunny day.
Before we went to bed, one interesting thing happened. As we have internet access, Georg decided to get more background associated with his first Canon camera which broke down in Nurnberg. He turned on the camera so that he could see the error message displayed on the screen and to his surprise when he turned it on, the lens actually worked. Upon several successful “on and offs”, we now have two working cameras although the original one still has some lens problems.
Our plans were to stop overnight at Chur, however upon checking the weather report on the internet, it was going to be -2 and snowing. We decided that we’ve taken enough risks with the van and will forego camping at Chur tonight and our brief foray into Liechtenstein. Instead, we will stick to the main road: the road we chose was to drive the highway instead of the byways even though they were parallel to each other because the highway barreled through the mountains with tunnels whereas the byways zigzagged their way up and down putting undue stress on Susi. We are very cautious as to the roads we use due to the “red light” syndrome.
Unfortunately the day started off a little stressful because the red light on the temperature gauge was blinking immediately at the get-go from Locarno. Again, taking into account of what the mechanic said, we carried on, but we still had our doubts. True to the weather forecast, it became cold, cloudy and yes – it started to snow upon reaching San Bernardino in the Alps. The blanket of white added impact to the already beautiful scenery that surpasses even our Rocky Mountains. At one of the high-altitude rest stops, we found out how cold it really was and how silly we looked running around in our shorts, short-sleeves and sandals. We quickly changed clothes.
As the weather has changed our itinerary, our new destination of the day was Lucerne, a city of approx. 60,000 inhabitants. In our travels towards the city, we passed a few lakes and over here the lakes are huge. The two large ones we passed were over 60 kms long. We even drove through an officially designated area called “Heidiland”. At one point in time, we were actually 60 – 70 kms drive away from Immenstadt where Seb, Susi and Steff live. Upon reaching our destination, we were taken aback by the unbelievable setting of Lucerne. Looking forward to hoofing around town tomorrow in what is expected to be a sunny day.
Before we went to bed, one interesting thing happened. As we have internet access, Georg decided to get more background associated with his first Canon camera which broke down in Nurnberg. He turned on the camera so that he could see the error message displayed on the screen and to his surprise when he turned it on, the lens actually worked. Upon several successful “on and offs”, we now have two working cameras although the original one still has some lens problems.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
September 4
September 4th (sunny and warm)
This campground at Locarno is extremely large; in fact there are 600 sites. At approx. $35 Can/site and every spot is filled for six months of the year that is ½ million/month. Take into account the store and all the other amenities; I believe owning a campground is a lucrative business. Anybody interested in a partnership?
We woke up to another beautiful day with scenery around us that doesn’t get any better. This has to be one of the most gorgeous settings in the world – a very large turquoise-colored lake surrounded by mountains all around. Locarno has a population of 14,500 and it seems there is a fair amount of money here. Everywhere are casinos, expensive restaurants, high-class hotels and stores.
There is a free boat service from various locations on the lake to Locarno centre. We began our day at 10 am and took the boat over to walk the town before riding the tram, then gondola, then chairlift up to the summit, around 2,600 meters, to enjoy our packed lunch. On the way up we noticed a lot of people wearing long jackets and pants. We found out why very quickly – it was freezing up there. The scenery overlooking the lake and the distant snow-covered Alps and surrounding mountains and valleys was extraordinary. With the aid of the binoculars we were able to hone in on some of the mountainside villages scattered throughout the region. These small villages, only accessible on foot, are the high-altitude cheese-making points.
After a fabulous afternoon walking and enjoying this most spectacular scenery, we returned to our camping spot via the bus. Georg made a comment that we reached a point where living out of 60 sq. ft. with a 2 ½ ft. ceiling in the bedroom area and a 6 ft. ceiling in the dining/kitchen area, is all we know.
We are that short of becoming perpetual `vagabonds’. I had a serendipity moment after devouring another huge plate of pasta with Van Morrison singing in the background, Georg asked me to lift up my top to see my girth. Just at that moment the Van Morrison lyrics went something like – “It gets larger all the time”. We both laughed.
We will be driving towards Chur and then Liechtenstein on to Lucerne and other points. Susi’s mileage hit 15,000 the other day and we hope she continues to be dependable.
This campground at Locarno is extremely large; in fact there are 600 sites. At approx. $35 Can/site and every spot is filled for six months of the year that is ½ million/month. Take into account the store and all the other amenities; I believe owning a campground is a lucrative business. Anybody interested in a partnership?
We woke up to another beautiful day with scenery around us that doesn’t get any better. This has to be one of the most gorgeous settings in the world – a very large turquoise-colored lake surrounded by mountains all around. Locarno has a population of 14,500 and it seems there is a fair amount of money here. Everywhere are casinos, expensive restaurants, high-class hotels and stores.
There is a free boat service from various locations on the lake to Locarno centre. We began our day at 10 am and took the boat over to walk the town before riding the tram, then gondola, then chairlift up to the summit, around 2,600 meters, to enjoy our packed lunch. On the way up we noticed a lot of people wearing long jackets and pants. We found out why very quickly – it was freezing up there. The scenery overlooking the lake and the distant snow-covered Alps and surrounding mountains and valleys was extraordinary. With the aid of the binoculars we were able to hone in on some of the mountainside villages scattered throughout the region. These small villages, only accessible on foot, are the high-altitude cheese-making points.
After a fabulous afternoon walking and enjoying this most spectacular scenery, we returned to our camping spot via the bus. Georg made a comment that we reached a point where living out of 60 sq. ft. with a 2 ½ ft. ceiling in the bedroom area and a 6 ft. ceiling in the dining/kitchen area, is all we know.
We are that short of becoming perpetual `vagabonds’. I had a serendipity moment after devouring another huge plate of pasta with Van Morrison singing in the background, Georg asked me to lift up my top to see my girth. Just at that moment the Van Morrison lyrics went something like – “It gets larger all the time”. We both laughed.
We will be driving towards Chur and then Liechtenstein on to Lucerne and other points. Susi’s mileage hit 15,000 the other day and we hope she continues to be dependable.
September 3
September 3rd (sunny and warm)
With sadness we left Levanto and ultimately Italy, and travelled towards Switzerland. Our memories of Italy are summed up as follows: happy, helpful, talkative and demonstrative people; warm weather and the beautiful, turquoise Mediterranean Sea; great ice cream (gelato); fragrances of cooking, especially pizza; long tunnels through the mountains; Piaggios; gold and orange buildings with green shutters and terraced gardens and homes on top of or on the sides of mountains. Simple Georg’s observations amount to: great beer and well-dressed, big-breasted women!
We decided to give Susi and break and drove the toll highways instead of the winding off-road alternates. She performed extremely well and we did not see a light all day (except the light at the end of each tunnel – ha hah!). We found the drive from Genoa to Milan quite drab. After Milan things started looking better. Once we crossed into Switzerland at 2 pm, the road was uphill all the way.
Just before Como, we were treated to a spectacular vista of a lake surrounded by deep, steep mountains which took us quite by surprise. Unfortunately, the highway systems over here do not afford stop-offs for picture taking. We hope that something similar would come our way in order for Georg to capture it on camera. The trip from Como to the Locarno campground was a wonderful ride through the Swiss countryside. Unfortunately, at an intersection just before Locarno, Georg confused it with “Lugano” and we found ourselves twenty minutes later heading back from whence we came. Eventually, we found our campsite. We are parked right up against Lago Maggiore, a lake which is about seventy kilometers long and has a spectacular view – quite a distinct change from the Mediterranean. We noticed that this campground is occupied predominantly by Germans. It is basically the southern-most part of a Germanic-speaking country which has palm trees and high mountains and skiing in the winter. Can’t get any better than that!
While I was preparing dinner, Georg took a long walk to obtain some Swiss francs and groceries. We had a wonderful dinner, found the site had internet access, did some updating and off to bed.
With sadness we left Levanto and ultimately Italy, and travelled towards Switzerland. Our memories of Italy are summed up as follows: happy, helpful, talkative and demonstrative people; warm weather and the beautiful, turquoise Mediterranean Sea; great ice cream (gelato); fragrances of cooking, especially pizza; long tunnels through the mountains; Piaggios; gold and orange buildings with green shutters and terraced gardens and homes on top of or on the sides of mountains. Simple Georg’s observations amount to: great beer and well-dressed, big-breasted women!
We decided to give Susi and break and drove the toll highways instead of the winding off-road alternates. She performed extremely well and we did not see a light all day (except the light at the end of each tunnel – ha hah!). We found the drive from Genoa to Milan quite drab. After Milan things started looking better. Once we crossed into Switzerland at 2 pm, the road was uphill all the way.
Just before Como, we were treated to a spectacular vista of a lake surrounded by deep, steep mountains which took us quite by surprise. Unfortunately, the highway systems over here do not afford stop-offs for picture taking. We hope that something similar would come our way in order for Georg to capture it on camera. The trip from Como to the Locarno campground was a wonderful ride through the Swiss countryside. Unfortunately, at an intersection just before Locarno, Georg confused it with “Lugano” and we found ourselves twenty minutes later heading back from whence we came. Eventually, we found our campsite. We are parked right up against Lago Maggiore, a lake which is about seventy kilometers long and has a spectacular view – quite a distinct change from the Mediterranean. We noticed that this campground is occupied predominantly by Germans. It is basically the southern-most part of a Germanic-speaking country which has palm trees and high mountains and skiing in the winter. Can’t get any better than that!
While I was preparing dinner, Georg took a long walk to obtain some Swiss francs and groceries. We had a wonderful dinner, found the site had internet access, did some updating and off to bed.
September 2
September 2nd (sunny and warm)
Our day today was pretty much the same as yesterday in that we spent about four hours at the beach and the rest walking about Levanto and eating great food and drinking good Italian beer and wines. It is a lovely spot and the weather has been perfect – high 20’s. Watching the elderly people in the evenings all dressed up and sitting in their separate groups, i.e. males together and females together chatting and sitting in the shade made me think about my friend at Telus, Josie Spartano, talking about her father enjoying his pals in our “little Italy” at home. Also, she would often mention what a great cook her sister-in-law was.
On one of our walks into Levanto, Georg saw a soccer game at a bar, we decided to go in, have a beer and watch the game. Right next to us sat a couple, Ian and Jenn Banks, Canadians from Deep Cove from all places. They flew in and are doing the five-day trek of Cinque Terre with overnight stops in each of the villages and then a Mediterranean cruise. We touched bases on a lot of subjects including the apparent lousy weather in Vancouver and Sam Sullivan’s premature involvement in the garbage strike.
We ended the day with another walk on the beach towards the three villas, owned by Fiat, (ownership of property other than by the locals is a thorny issue in this region). Topped it off with one more gelato. Bottom line for this stage of our tour – we would recommend this area to anyone – fly in, stay a week in a pension and enjoy the surrounding area.
Our day today was pretty much the same as yesterday in that we spent about four hours at the beach and the rest walking about Levanto and eating great food and drinking good Italian beer and wines. It is a lovely spot and the weather has been perfect – high 20’s. Watching the elderly people in the evenings all dressed up and sitting in their separate groups, i.e. males together and females together chatting and sitting in the shade made me think about my friend at Telus, Josie Spartano, talking about her father enjoying his pals in our “little Italy” at home. Also, she would often mention what a great cook her sister-in-law was.
On one of our walks into Levanto, Georg saw a soccer game at a bar, we decided to go in, have a beer and watch the game. Right next to us sat a couple, Ian and Jenn Banks, Canadians from Deep Cove from all places. They flew in and are doing the five-day trek of Cinque Terre with overnight stops in each of the villages and then a Mediterranean cruise. We touched bases on a lot of subjects including the apparent lousy weather in Vancouver and Sam Sullivan’s premature involvement in the garbage strike.
We ended the day with another walk on the beach towards the three villas, owned by Fiat, (ownership of property other than by the locals is a thorny issue in this region). Topped it off with one more gelato. Bottom line for this stage of our tour – we would recommend this area to anyone – fly in, stay a week in a pension and enjoy the surrounding area.
Sunday, September 2, 2007
September 1
September 1st (sunny and warm)
I woke up early this morning, put on the coffee as usual, showered, washed some clothes and read while Georg snoozed a little longer. First we had our coffee and then walked to buy some fresh bread for breakfast and to enjoy observing Levanto’s residents begin their day. We both agree that you could spend more time here enjoying the beach and the surrounding area, especially the Cinque Terre towns.
After breakfast, we quickly got into our bathing suits and wandered the short distance to the beach where we planted ourselves for the next four hours. We brought along reading material, but with all the happenings around us, including the fabulous ocean, it was pretty hard to focus on a book. Georg had no problems getting into the water and playing amongst the waves, however I still had the “Jaws” theme-song embedded in my brain since 1975. It took me a bit longer, but I eventually got out to the breakwater and had lots of fun in the big waves. It was especially enjoyable watching the family interaction on the beach. This was not just Italians as there are many tourists in the mix. Europeans, in general, seem to be more family-oriented than North Americans.
We enjoyed a home-cooked dinner of fresh spinach-ricotta ravioli with walnut sauce. The ravioli here is definitely more delicious. We also purchased some prosciutto which Georg likes, but I am not a real fan of, but upon sampling Levanto’s version, it was something to die for. When we return home we will definitely take our time to do daily shopping in the various ethnic areas of Vancouver, including the Commerical Drive area.
We closed the evening by meeting two families from Germany, one from Ravensburg, near Lake Constance and the other near the Algau, where Susi and Seb are from. After exchanging email addresses and notes, we decided to alter our next leg and take in Switzerland before heading towards Spain through southern France. I am obsessed with the chance of seeing the annual migration of the dairy cows adorned with flowers on their horns from the high hills down into the villages. This migration is celebrated throughout the Alpine regions of Europe.
I woke up early this morning, put on the coffee as usual, showered, washed some clothes and read while Georg snoozed a little longer. First we had our coffee and then walked to buy some fresh bread for breakfast and to enjoy observing Levanto’s residents begin their day. We both agree that you could spend more time here enjoying the beach and the surrounding area, especially the Cinque Terre towns.
After breakfast, we quickly got into our bathing suits and wandered the short distance to the beach where we planted ourselves for the next four hours. We brought along reading material, but with all the happenings around us, including the fabulous ocean, it was pretty hard to focus on a book. Georg had no problems getting into the water and playing amongst the waves, however I still had the “Jaws” theme-song embedded in my brain since 1975. It took me a bit longer, but I eventually got out to the breakwater and had lots of fun in the big waves. It was especially enjoyable watching the family interaction on the beach. This was not just Italians as there are many tourists in the mix. Europeans, in general, seem to be more family-oriented than North Americans.
We enjoyed a home-cooked dinner of fresh spinach-ricotta ravioli with walnut sauce. The ravioli here is definitely more delicious. We also purchased some prosciutto which Georg likes, but I am not a real fan of, but upon sampling Levanto’s version, it was something to die for. When we return home we will definitely take our time to do daily shopping in the various ethnic areas of Vancouver, including the Commerical Drive area.
We closed the evening by meeting two families from Germany, one from Ravensburg, near Lake Constance and the other near the Algau, where Susi and Seb are from. After exchanging email addresses and notes, we decided to alter our next leg and take in Switzerland before heading towards Spain through southern France. I am obsessed with the chance of seeing the annual migration of the dairy cows adorned with flowers on their horns from the high hills down into the villages. This migration is celebrated throughout the Alpine regions of Europe.
August 31
August 31st (sunny and warm)
Another beautiful day in paradise! Started off kind of funny in that I thought there was a scorpion, rattler, (or any other beastie that makes a rattling kind of sound) in my toiletry bag. After Georg gingerly picked it up with a stick, we checked inside to find that my battery-operated trimmer had started by itself. I am petrified of bugs, spiders or anything like that so it was quite amusing.
We were excited by our Cinque Terre excursion. The five cliff-hanging villages are connected by either small, tight, single-lane roads, walking paths, train or motorboat launch and only pedestrians are allowed. The residents have managed to resist corporate pressures to build hotels. Travelers, content to rent a room in a private home or simple pension, enjoy a land where the villages have almost no choice by to go about their business as if the surrounding vineyards are the very edge of the earth. Cinque Terre means “five lands” and is five villages clinging to the most inaccessible bit of the beautiful Riviera coastline. Our train took us from Levanto, where we are camping, to the five villages called, Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore. We were able to walk for an hour in each place with a train ride of about four minutes between stops. If you chose to walk Cinque Terre, it will take you at least ten hours of walking and looking. Most people take in the five villages over a five-day period either by staying at each place overnight or returning to a home base and starting again the next day.
Lots of walking, we were tired and ready to come back for a cold beer and dinner after a wonderful day. After dinner, we walked to the beach, watched the surfers, wake boarders, people enjoying the beach and the huge waves. The water is a beautiful turquoise and very warm.
Oh – have I mentioned how much I am enjoying the bread, fresh pasta, pizza, beer and everything else Italian? Loving it! Ciao for now!
Another beautiful day in paradise! Started off kind of funny in that I thought there was a scorpion, rattler, (or any other beastie that makes a rattling kind of sound) in my toiletry bag. After Georg gingerly picked it up with a stick, we checked inside to find that my battery-operated trimmer had started by itself. I am petrified of bugs, spiders or anything like that so it was quite amusing.
We were excited by our Cinque Terre excursion. The five cliff-hanging villages are connected by either small, tight, single-lane roads, walking paths, train or motorboat launch and only pedestrians are allowed. The residents have managed to resist corporate pressures to build hotels. Travelers, content to rent a room in a private home or simple pension, enjoy a land where the villages have almost no choice by to go about their business as if the surrounding vineyards are the very edge of the earth. Cinque Terre means “five lands” and is five villages clinging to the most inaccessible bit of the beautiful Riviera coastline. Our train took us from Levanto, where we are camping, to the five villages called, Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore. We were able to walk for an hour in each place with a train ride of about four minutes between stops. If you chose to walk Cinque Terre, it will take you at least ten hours of walking and looking. Most people take in the five villages over a five-day period either by staying at each place overnight or returning to a home base and starting again the next day.
Lots of walking, we were tired and ready to come back for a cold beer and dinner after a wonderful day. After dinner, we walked to the beach, watched the surfers, wake boarders, people enjoying the beach and the huge waves. The water is a beautiful turquoise and very warm.
Oh – have I mentioned how much I am enjoying the bread, fresh pasta, pizza, beer and everything else Italian? Loving it! Ciao for now!
August 30
August 30th (sunny and warm)
Left Florence using the smaller roads instead of the highway. The going was much slower, but very picturesque driving through vineyards and olive groves towards the town of San Gimignano which is situated high on a hill which at one time had seventy-five towers of which only fifteen are left standing. These towers were the defensive positions for the feuding families of the area. Lot of anger here at one time.
The climb was tough on the van and walking through the hilly streets was tough on my knee. Seems Georg is stuck with two `gimpy’ women. Susi ran well considering the heat of the day and the distance we covered. After visiting San Gimignano, we drove through Volterra, which was the plateau of this highway. After that, we were driving downhill the rest of the time which was good for the van.
We decided to bypass Pisa as everything was extremely smoggy and we have seen the Tower. Heading north on the highway we passed through the area where Carrarra marble is quarried. You could mistake the hills to have snow on them – this is how white the marble is.
We broke off the highway to get to our campsite in Lavanto. The drive was quite spectacular from the highway down to the fifteen kilometer drive into town. We have never had so many switchbacks and elevation drops – quite spectacular. Lavanto is situated in a bay, which when we arrived had sea mist surrounding the hills making it quite an eerie sight. The temperature and the air are quite different – Mediterranean air and cool mist and no bugs.
After setting up and having a delicious spaghetti dinner, we went for a long walk through the town. The enjoyment that we had during our walk again reinforced our belief that small towns are much more pleasing than larger cities. We walked through the back lanes at dusk listening to Italian families carry on conversations and took in the fragrances of the Italian kitchens.
Tomorrow we are planning to take the train through the five towns that make up Cinque Terre and because the weather is so fantastic and the Mediterranean so warm, we will probably stay longer than our normal two days at a site.
Left Florence using the smaller roads instead of the highway. The going was much slower, but very picturesque driving through vineyards and olive groves towards the town of San Gimignano which is situated high on a hill which at one time had seventy-five towers of which only fifteen are left standing. These towers were the defensive positions for the feuding families of the area. Lot of anger here at one time.
The climb was tough on the van and walking through the hilly streets was tough on my knee. Seems Georg is stuck with two `gimpy’ women. Susi ran well considering the heat of the day and the distance we covered. After visiting San Gimignano, we drove through Volterra, which was the plateau of this highway. After that, we were driving downhill the rest of the time which was good for the van.
We decided to bypass Pisa as everything was extremely smoggy and we have seen the Tower. Heading north on the highway we passed through the area where Carrarra marble is quarried. You could mistake the hills to have snow on them – this is how white the marble is.
We broke off the highway to get to our campsite in Lavanto. The drive was quite spectacular from the highway down to the fifteen kilometer drive into town. We have never had so many switchbacks and elevation drops – quite spectacular. Lavanto is situated in a bay, which when we arrived had sea mist surrounding the hills making it quite an eerie sight. The temperature and the air are quite different – Mediterranean air and cool mist and no bugs.
After setting up and having a delicious spaghetti dinner, we went for a long walk through the town. The enjoyment that we had during our walk again reinforced our belief that small towns are much more pleasing than larger cities. We walked through the back lanes at dusk listening to Italian families carry on conversations and took in the fragrances of the Italian kitchens.
Tomorrow we are planning to take the train through the five towns that make up Cinque Terre and because the weather is so fantastic and the Mediterranean so warm, we will probably stay longer than our normal two days at a site.
August 29
August 29th (sunny and warm)
Tried to make a call to Lucas this morning, but no answer. Not sure if his cell is working or not. Then we took the bus right outside our campsite to Florence and began walking the old city. Although it is still as beautiful as we remember, it has become just too `touristy’. We were entertained throughout the day by the ongoing interaction between the police and the illegal street venders, mostly Nigerian.
Today was very hot and muggy, but we managed to stay cool via the use of a towel that we continually soaked in cold water. On the way back to our site, Georg somehow lost our return bus tickets so we hoofed it up the hills which afforded us a vista we would never have seen had we taken the bus.
During the evening, we met up with the same “Top Deck” group of travelers at the camp restaurant that we had seen in Venice. Top Deck is a travel company that caters to a younger crowd using a tour bus, chef and tour guide in a campground setting. They are expected to make and break camp, do dishes and everything else is done for them. Enjoyed talking with all of them, especially a young couple from Toronto that we believe will rethink having children in the future. Before we knew it, we all realized we had not had dinner and it was close to 10 pm, so Georg and I returned to our van.
The evening ended with lovely conversation with the Italian family next to us.
Tried to make a call to Lucas this morning, but no answer. Not sure if his cell is working or not. Then we took the bus right outside our campsite to Florence and began walking the old city. Although it is still as beautiful as we remember, it has become just too `touristy’. We were entertained throughout the day by the ongoing interaction between the police and the illegal street venders, mostly Nigerian.
Today was very hot and muggy, but we managed to stay cool via the use of a towel that we continually soaked in cold water. On the way back to our site, Georg somehow lost our return bus tickets so we hoofed it up the hills which afforded us a vista we would never have seen had we taken the bus.
During the evening, we met up with the same “Top Deck” group of travelers at the camp restaurant that we had seen in Venice. Top Deck is a travel company that caters to a younger crowd using a tour bus, chef and tour guide in a campground setting. They are expected to make and break camp, do dishes and everything else is done for them. Enjoyed talking with all of them, especially a young couple from Toronto that we believe will rethink having children in the future. Before we knew it, we all realized we had not had dinner and it was close to 10 pm, so Georg and I returned to our van.
The evening ended with lovely conversation with the Italian family next to us.
August 28
August 28th (sunny and warm)
After a very nice couple of days in Venezia, we left for the 300k drive to Firenze (Florence) – Georg’s favourite city in 1972. As I have written before, it is amazing how differently we view our surroundings thirty-five years later. Priorities definitely change. You must be certain to look beyond the shops and tourists to see the beauty of a city like Venice. I never miss a `gelato’ shop though – the best ice cream ever. Before we left, I had a talk with the New Zealander who has been on the road for eight years and working this campsite for three months. He told us that the temperature a couple of weeks ago reached mid-40’s with 900 people on the site. That is a strain on their sanitary system.
Most of the drive was rather bland as far as landscape goes until we entered the Tuscany region. The Italian highway system is equal to some of the best in Europe as long as you discount their tolls. This just puts another `bottleneck’ into the system. Just like Austria, we pass through many tunnels. As we are taking it easy on Susi, we have decided to stick to the larger highways which use tunnels to level out the grade instead of the side roads which wind up and down the mountain passes. We will continue to use side roads in areas where the terrain is relatively flat. Susi ran exceptionally well today, with one of the lights flashing at the end of the day.
Hit our campsite around 3 pm up in the hills overlooking Florence. This is the same site we stayed at thirty-five years ago, except the olive trees have become much larger. We enjoyed ‘Happy Hour” with a couple of Scottish lassies, made some calls home to Diane, Bill and Echo and Tony and Carla. In conversation with Carla, she mentioned that she was using a personal trainer for her fitness. This elicited a comment from Georg that we are going to get a personal trainer as well – or a mortician.
Sat around looking at the stars – no bugs, no heat and nice breeze. Had a late dinner and too much red wine.
After a very nice couple of days in Venezia, we left for the 300k drive to Firenze (Florence) – Georg’s favourite city in 1972. As I have written before, it is amazing how differently we view our surroundings thirty-five years later. Priorities definitely change. You must be certain to look beyond the shops and tourists to see the beauty of a city like Venice. I never miss a `gelato’ shop though – the best ice cream ever. Before we left, I had a talk with the New Zealander who has been on the road for eight years and working this campsite for three months. He told us that the temperature a couple of weeks ago reached mid-40’s with 900 people on the site. That is a strain on their sanitary system.
Most of the drive was rather bland as far as landscape goes until we entered the Tuscany region. The Italian highway system is equal to some of the best in Europe as long as you discount their tolls. This just puts another `bottleneck’ into the system. Just like Austria, we pass through many tunnels. As we are taking it easy on Susi, we have decided to stick to the larger highways which use tunnels to level out the grade instead of the side roads which wind up and down the mountain passes. We will continue to use side roads in areas where the terrain is relatively flat. Susi ran exceptionally well today, with one of the lights flashing at the end of the day.
Hit our campsite around 3 pm up in the hills overlooking Florence. This is the same site we stayed at thirty-five years ago, except the olive trees have become much larger. We enjoyed ‘Happy Hour” with a couple of Scottish lassies, made some calls home to Diane, Bill and Echo and Tony and Carla. In conversation with Carla, she mentioned that she was using a personal trainer for her fitness. This elicited a comment from Georg that we are going to get a personal trainer as well – or a mortician.
Sat around looking at the stars – no bugs, no heat and nice breeze. Had a late dinner and too much red wine.
August 27
August 27th (sunny and very warm)
After beating Georg at crib again last evening, (I am on a winning streak), killing all the mosquitoes and finally cooling off, we had a great sleep. There is a fair amount of late-night partying here, but everyone kept the noise down considering. This campground has a round-trip shuttle service to old Venice in a big, beautiful air-conditioned tour bus. No sooner did we sit down and Georg mentioned that this was “stress-free driving”.
We arrived in town at 10 am and began our walking tour of Venice. Instead of following a prescribed walking tour, we just let the streets do the talking to us knowing full well that on an island, you are bound to run out of land sooner or later. I must say, Venice is very unique and there is really no other city that we have seen like it. We did not notice any stench coming from the water as we did 35 years ago. We do believe there are more pigeons here though.
We had a great lunch – Georg managed to blow the budget by having a $20 liter glass of beer along with a very delicious pizza. We also had the best ice cream (gelati) we have ever had. In fact, all the ice cream in Europe is exceptional. Sitting at the sidewalk café surrounded by the buildings in Venice, Georg noticed what we deem to be derelict looking, they look at it as being classic. Somewhere there, is a fine line.
We took a fifteen-minute bus ferry back through the Grand Canal and just managed to hook up with our return bus to the campsite. As it is around 37 degrees and quite humid, so when we returned to our van, we had a cold shower, a couple of beer and chilled. Today I taught a South Korean young man how to swim. With his persistency, he went from almost drowning to swimming the full length in two days.
While we were sitting enjoying the night air, one of our `neighbours’ asked if he could borrow a pot to cook spaghetti. Turns out they are travelling around the world with bare minimum supplies, i.e. their rangetop consisted of a 4” electrical probe. I took pity on them and cooked their noodles for them. I also let them have a couple of bowls and spoons to eat with. Nice young people, but I insisted that get more organized in the cooking department.
After beating Georg at crib again last evening, (I am on a winning streak), killing all the mosquitoes and finally cooling off, we had a great sleep. There is a fair amount of late-night partying here, but everyone kept the noise down considering. This campground has a round-trip shuttle service to old Venice in a big, beautiful air-conditioned tour bus. No sooner did we sit down and Georg mentioned that this was “stress-free driving”.
We arrived in town at 10 am and began our walking tour of Venice. Instead of following a prescribed walking tour, we just let the streets do the talking to us knowing full well that on an island, you are bound to run out of land sooner or later. I must say, Venice is very unique and there is really no other city that we have seen like it. We did not notice any stench coming from the water as we did 35 years ago. We do believe there are more pigeons here though.
We had a great lunch – Georg managed to blow the budget by having a $20 liter glass of beer along with a very delicious pizza. We also had the best ice cream (gelati) we have ever had. In fact, all the ice cream in Europe is exceptional. Sitting at the sidewalk café surrounded by the buildings in Venice, Georg noticed what we deem to be derelict looking, they look at it as being classic. Somewhere there, is a fine line.
We took a fifteen-minute bus ferry back through the Grand Canal and just managed to hook up with our return bus to the campsite. As it is around 37 degrees and quite humid, so when we returned to our van, we had a cold shower, a couple of beer and chilled. Today I taught a South Korean young man how to swim. With his persistency, he went from almost drowning to swimming the full length in two days.
While we were sitting enjoying the night air, one of our `neighbours’ asked if he could borrow a pot to cook spaghetti. Turns out they are travelling around the world with bare minimum supplies, i.e. their rangetop consisted of a 4” electrical probe. I took pity on them and cooked their noodles for them. I also let them have a couple of bowls and spoons to eat with. Nice young people, but I insisted that get more organized in the cooking department.
August 26
August 26th (sunny and very warm)
We said our goodbyes to the family from Israel next to us and packed up from a wonderful stay in Klagenfurt. We chose to take the small roads around the Worthersee this morning and head off into the mountain passes towards Italy. We stopped many times along the way to take in the spectacular scenery as well as stopping for our lunch at an equestrian demonstration. Again, we could not resist the bratwurst and potato salad that was being served. The restaurant hospitality industry in all of Europe is going full bore.
This corner of Austria reminds us again of “Heidi” land with the gorgeous flower-box displays and the Bavarian-style homes. We entered into Italy through the Alps and many ski resorts and then chose to take one of their “super toll” highways as we wanted to reach Venezia before the heavy weekend traffic. Then, it happened again. The temperature gauge was madly blinking away making us both very nervous. We stopped in a rest area options. I reminded Georg of what the first mechanic had said to us regarding the water temperature gauge – “if it blinks, but the temperature gauge does not rise, then it is probably an electrical malfunction”. He had sort of forgotten that.
After getting Susi cooled down a bit, Georg was a bit skeptical about continuing and asked me “What do you want to do?” I thought about it and immediately answered “Let’s continue!” That meant revising the computer again. The balance of the day towards Venice was uneventful other than the temperature reached about 38 degrees. About 20 kms from our freeway exit, the traffic started to back up and it never abated for the next two hours. Guess what it was? In Italy, they built these super toll highways so that you can drive from point A to B in rapid time. However, at the end they have toll booths with unmarked holding areas where people over a 500-meter range try to cross over eleven lanes. Utter chaos! We would have got here sooner had we taken a donkey over the mountain passes.
Finally arrived in a very large, youth-filled campground. Georg and I looked at each other and said, “Yahoo – we are in Venice again!” We spent the evening finding ways to cool down, sat by the pool, chatted with people and Georg called Bubi to let him know that we will not be in Nurnberg on Monday as we are continuing on with our tour as planned. Bubi mentioned that he has some reservations about purchasing the vehicle because of its age and the new laws coming down in Germany which doubled the insurance on vehicles of this type. We agreed to make contact beginning of October. Georg’s suggestion was that we forego the sale to him and take it straight back to Utrecht.
We said our goodbyes to the family from Israel next to us and packed up from a wonderful stay in Klagenfurt. We chose to take the small roads around the Worthersee this morning and head off into the mountain passes towards Italy. We stopped many times along the way to take in the spectacular scenery as well as stopping for our lunch at an equestrian demonstration. Again, we could not resist the bratwurst and potato salad that was being served. The restaurant hospitality industry in all of Europe is going full bore.
This corner of Austria reminds us again of “Heidi” land with the gorgeous flower-box displays and the Bavarian-style homes. We entered into Italy through the Alps and many ski resorts and then chose to take one of their “super toll” highways as we wanted to reach Venezia before the heavy weekend traffic. Then, it happened again. The temperature gauge was madly blinking away making us both very nervous. We stopped in a rest area options. I reminded Georg of what the first mechanic had said to us regarding the water temperature gauge – “if it blinks, but the temperature gauge does not rise, then it is probably an electrical malfunction”. He had sort of forgotten that.
After getting Susi cooled down a bit, Georg was a bit skeptical about continuing and asked me “What do you want to do?” I thought about it and immediately answered “Let’s continue!” That meant revising the computer again. The balance of the day towards Venice was uneventful other than the temperature reached about 38 degrees. About 20 kms from our freeway exit, the traffic started to back up and it never abated for the next two hours. Guess what it was? In Italy, they built these super toll highways so that you can drive from point A to B in rapid time. However, at the end they have toll booths with unmarked holding areas where people over a 500-meter range try to cross over eleven lanes. Utter chaos! We would have got here sooner had we taken a donkey over the mountain passes.
Finally arrived in a very large, youth-filled campground. Georg and I looked at each other and said, “Yahoo – we are in Venice again!” We spent the evening finding ways to cool down, sat by the pool, chatted with people and Georg called Bubi to let him know that we will not be in Nurnberg on Monday as we are continuing on with our tour as planned. Bubi mentioned that he has some reservations about purchasing the vehicle because of its age and the new laws coming down in Germany which doubled the insurance on vehicles of this type. We agreed to make contact beginning of October. Georg’s suggestion was that we forego the sale to him and take it straight back to Utrecht.
August 25
August 25th (sunny)
This morning, we purchased tickets for the bus and took in the sights of Klagenfurt. Both of us remembered visiting “Minimundus” when we drove through in ‘72. It is a miniature version of the most famous monuments and areas of the world and to our surprise, it was still there. Klagenfurt has 80,000 people and is a perfect size for sightseeing. Next year the European Soccer Championships will be held here, but today they had their annual flea market and every street was full of people selling everything from their attics and basements. Our friend, Echo would have gone into rapture had she seen this.
We successfully resisted the culinary temptations, purchased fresh produce from the market, returned home for lunch and spent time sitting on the Worthersee lakeside people-watching, swimming and wading. We found out that this was the biggest festival weekend of the year called Altstadtmesse, (Summer Festival), and there would be all types of music and lots of food and beer all weekend. As one local put it, “Nothing happens in Klagenfurt all year except for this weekend and then, all Hell breaks loose!”
After dinner, we hopped on the bus again into Klagenfurt and were amazed at how orderly the jam-packed venues were. Everybody was out having a great time and the weather cooperated perfectly. We walked around listening to everything from rock-and-roll, opera, traditional Austrian oompah-pah, jazz and even bagpipe and drums. Of course, we chatted with different people we met and one lovely lady, Isabella, told us she has a friend in the logging business in Vancouver. His name is Friedl (Gottfried) Brukermann. Wouldn’t it be a coincidence if our good friend Ken Pringle knew him?
The food and beer was flowing and everyone was having a wonderful evening. The only downfall was that we had to wait over one hour for a bus back to the camp. When we did get back after midnight, we both crashed.
We both agree that Klagenfurt turned out to be a most memorable stopover.
This morning, we purchased tickets for the bus and took in the sights of Klagenfurt. Both of us remembered visiting “Minimundus” when we drove through in ‘72. It is a miniature version of the most famous monuments and areas of the world and to our surprise, it was still there. Klagenfurt has 80,000 people and is a perfect size for sightseeing. Next year the European Soccer Championships will be held here, but today they had their annual flea market and every street was full of people selling everything from their attics and basements. Our friend, Echo would have gone into rapture had she seen this.
We successfully resisted the culinary temptations, purchased fresh produce from the market, returned home for lunch and spent time sitting on the Worthersee lakeside people-watching, swimming and wading. We found out that this was the biggest festival weekend of the year called Altstadtmesse, (Summer Festival), and there would be all types of music and lots of food and beer all weekend. As one local put it, “Nothing happens in Klagenfurt all year except for this weekend and then, all Hell breaks loose!”
After dinner, we hopped on the bus again into Klagenfurt and were amazed at how orderly the jam-packed venues were. Everybody was out having a great time and the weather cooperated perfectly. We walked around listening to everything from rock-and-roll, opera, traditional Austrian oompah-pah, jazz and even bagpipe and drums. Of course, we chatted with different people we met and one lovely lady, Isabella, told us she has a friend in the logging business in Vancouver. His name is Friedl (Gottfried) Brukermann. Wouldn’t it be a coincidence if our good friend Ken Pringle knew him?
The food and beer was flowing and everyone was having a wonderful evening. The only downfall was that we had to wait over one hour for a bus back to the camp. When we did get back after midnight, we both crashed.
We both agree that Klagenfurt turned out to be a most memorable stopover.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)