Book Entry 176: 1986 Our Big Adventure Across the Sea (Part 5)

    

        One afternoon, while driving in Italy, we saw a ferry out on a lake, and in a whim, took it for a ride.  While on the ferry we saw some sort of tram on the mountain ahead of us.  If you look closely you can see it in the middle of this mountain.  As we got closer it got bigger and we could make it out.  People were riding to the top and down again.  We decided to give it a try too!

I think we stood two in a bucket, and believe me, there was no extra room!  The view was fantastic! 

I was once again amazed at all the red tile roofs.  I think everyone in Italy had a red tile roof!  When we arrived at the top of the hill we followed the only path we could find.  We saw the initials WC on a small building and made our way in that direction.  I need to inject here that our first day in Europe I had a lot of time finding a restroom.  I kept looking for a familiar sign.  In desperation I asked a very nice young woman who pointed to a door marked WC.  She laughed and said, “Oh, you are looking for the Water Closet!” 

You can be sure once I knew what to look for I never passed one without taking advantage of it in fear I might not find another person who could help me.  We were all eager to use the Water Closet.  I was more than a little disappointed when it turned out to be another adventure behind the door.  

Yep, it was another type of porcelain surprise.  A fixture on the floor!  Ugh!  We never knew what the facilities would be like.  One was actually just a hole surrounded by tile so I didn’t complain about this one. 

 We continued following the path.  At the end of the path was a platform.  On the platform was a gentleman gearing up in a hang glider.  We watched him finish buckling his harness.  He smiled at us, turned around, and stepped off the mountain.  We all stepped forward to the edge and watched him glide.  We watched for about half an hour as he swooped and dove back and forth within a hundred yards of us.  A woman next to us, who happened to speak English, told us this place was famous in the area for hang gliding.  She said hand gliders could go for hours because the drafts and uplifts in the mountain at that spot were perfect. 

After about an hour the fellow yelled back at the woman who was standing with us.  They waved and he turned and started in the other direction.  She said he would be gliding for about another hour and she needed to catch the tram down the mountain to go meet him.  That was really a fun thing to stumble upon. 

The sights in Austria were wonderful!  We spent one night over a family owned tavern.  The people spoke only a little English.  We communicated a lot with smiles and hand signals.  When she gave us a menu to order our dinner we found out if the dishes were chicken or beef by pointing and making animal noises.  It was really fun

When dinner came three of us were served on glass plates and Larry was served on a wood board.  It was hard to talk to the owner but when someone mentioned Disneyland and Mickey Mouse she was thrilled and hugged us like we were best friends. 

She took Larry and me to the back of her home and showed us a mural painted on the wall.  She told us a long story about it.  We nodded in agreement every time she paused but we had no idea what she said.

The bed in our room that night was a double bed.  It was one of only two double beds of the trip.  All the other nights were spent in twin beds.  I thought that was interesting.  The bed had two pillows and four very thick feather comforters that were rolled and lined up on the bed.

The next morning we did not have the right type of currency to pay our new friends for the night.  We had been through several countries and they all have their own money.  When Larry was able to tell her of our problem she simply smiled and pointed us in the direction of a bank.  We all got in the car and drove down the street with her smiling as we went.  When we returned with money to pay her she did not seem to have been worried.  When we left we gave her a bottle of  Pappy’s Seasoning.  She was thrilled beyond words.

It was odd to see babies left in strollers outside the grocery stores and other stores.  When I’d look through the window I could see the moms and shop keepers watching the strollers.  I’d never seen that before.  The crime rate must be very different there.

The next morning we did not have the right type of currency to pay our new friends for the night.  We had been through several countries and they all have their own money.  When Larry was able to tell her of our problem she simply smiled and pointed us in the direction of a bank.  We all got in the car and drove down the street with her smiling as we went.  When we returned with money to pay her she did not seem to have been worried.  When we left we gave her a bottle of  Pappy’s Seasoning.  She was thrilled beyond words.

It was odd to see babies left in strollers outside the grocery stores and other stores.  When I’d look through the window I could see the moms and shop keepers watching the strollers.  I’d never seen that before.  The crime rate must be very different there.

The clock shops were fascinating.  

Of course Larry found a Real Estate office for a picture!

        When our trip was over and we returned to the airport we noticed many armed guards on the upper deck looking down on us.  At one point I began unzipping the outer pocket on my suitcase.  I had purchased a book all about Noah and the Ark.  It has wonderful thought provoking pictures and few if any.  I suddenly became aware of someone standing next to me as I heard an odd clicking sound.  When I turned around a guard was standing right by me with a rifle pointed between my face and my suitcase.  He moved the end of his rifle over and over to the zipper on my suitcase.  I slowly unzipped the compartment and took out the book to show the guard.  His lips remained in a stiff frown but his eyes sparkled when he saw the book.  He waved his rifle at the suitcase again and lowered his rifle.  I quickly put the book away and stood. 

        My incident was memorable but the fellow traveling with us had an even better one.  He noticed he had some foreign currency and went into one of the shops to spend it.  He bought his mother a set of steak knives and put them in his carry on case.  That didn’t go over very well when it went through the x-ray!  The knives were rudely taken away.    He retrieved his knives in New York when we landed.

        When our plane was about to take off we called home to find Justin and Charlie each had what appeared to be a few chicken pox spots.  When we landed in New York I found a phone and called home again.  Heidi told us they now each had dozens of spots.  By the time we landed in San Francisco and called home again Heidi said they were covered with spots!

        I’ve not flown much but I loved every minute of the flights.    Again, everyone kept saying how jet lag would make us tired, but I was so excited to get home I didn’t feel tired.  When we got into the car in San Francisco it was just Bob, Larry and me.  I laid on the back seat and immediately went to sleep.  Sometime later, in Modesto, Larry hit the brakes at a light causing me to roll onto the floor.  We all had a big laugh.  I didn’t care.  I was glad to be awake.  I was just thirty minutes from my kids!

        When our car rolled into the driveway we were smothered with hugs, kisses, and questions about our trip.  It was nice to be home again, spots and all!