The Continious Rambling of a Mother

July 23 Saturday – Florence – “The Market”

Okay people, I am finally having the time to update this blog. I am currently writing this on Tuesday 11:30a.m. 7/26/2011, sitting in Italian traffic on the autostrada (major toll highway). So far 8 Italians have gotten out of their cars to converse with one another. We finally turned off our little VW Polo. Cute car but not sold in the USA. Get about 51 mpg or liter or whatever.

Anyway, I am just waiting for someone to bring out the wine and cheese so we can get to know one another.

We do not have wine and cheese but have coffee and chocolate cookies and Bekah just shoved one cookie in my mouth. Oh boy, now we are moving. I swear European tractor trailers dwarf ours – maybe I am just used to being in an SUV. I keep asking dumb geography questions and Bekah said I need to go back to geography class!

Now back to our adventures in Florence, Italy and the street market. WOW! Not like a craft fair AT ALL but I did get Christmas shopping done except for a few more things for my “boys” from Germany and Switzerland. We really did not haggle as much as we could have but still got some great deals and finished off the shopping spree with a restaurant recommendation from our “bible”; Rick Steves’ ‘Best of Europe’ book. Bekah forgot it when she left for Belgium and I started reading it on the way over and we have carried it with us every day. Since we could not find the restaurant and were trying to figure out which direction to go, Bekah overheard two ladies across the street speaking English so we asked them if they knew where this restaurant was. Turns out they were from California and trying to meet the rest of their “women’s tour group” who were already there. So off we went to Trattorio “da Giorgio as recommended by Steve and were not disappointed. Since I am used to the Italian Restaurants in St. Louis I picked something close to what I could have there. I was not disappointed with the ravioli in meat sauce with a side of cooked spinach and of course cheesecake. It was not like our STL cheesecake but still good. One other thing I cannot get used to is their idea of coffee. They have espresso in tiny cups and I like my Seattle’s Best in a large mug!

I may not have walked as much as I should have in preparing for the “hoofin’” I expected to do in Europe but so far I think I’m doing pretty well keeping up with Bekah since she has walked or taken public transportation everywhere here. There has been one exception to that and will expand upon that when I get to Monday July 25, 2011.

Okay, traffic update – we have gone through 31 tunnels so far and still in Italy. Beautiful countryside but Italian drivers >>> let’s just say they are NOT our favorite people.

July 24, 2011 Sunday

Today was supposed to be the Vatican but it is raining and Basilica and the Sistine Chapel were closed then. So plan B was to go to the beach in Livorno but as I said it was raining and we met a new friend at breakfast, Allison from NYC and said the beaches there are NOT like in the states with sand but sharp rocks. Nix the beach! So we decided to go shopping and Allison knew about a great leather glove shop on the recommendation from a friend. Since we have a rental car and did not want to walk we drove over there. She was not kidding! The lady there was most helpful even though Allison and I speak NO Italian, but Bekah was able to communicate with her and get across what we were looking for – somewhat. This was a tiny little shop as are many shops in Europe but what made this ‘glove shop’ amazing was the intense colors of the gloves. They were all lamb skin “BAAA”!!!!! ….sorry – had to add a bit of animal humor into this story. So you had the choice of unlined gloves or lined with cashmere and with or without a bunny fur cuff. Allison purchased and was on her way to a “Pisa tour” leaving us to choose our gloves. Frankly I am used to going to Sam’s and picking out the pair that fits reasonably well and won’t show all the winter snow and slush stains and is washable. I have never been to a “glove” store. This is the type of store I think my parent’s generation probably patronized. So 3 pairs later we walk out of the store and realized we are seriously hungry and stop at the first outdoor seating eatery. Big mistake! Bekah order a pesto pasta (was cold and noodles barely cooked) and my Veggie Pizza warm and not cut and the beer we had (no wine available – let me see – we are in Italy – they make wine, sell wine and we pick a place that does not serve it ---damn!) Let us also say Italians don’t do beer at all and should stay out of the business! While I am on a rant about this place – I think it was called Café Mediterranean, IS NOT some place to patronize. Poor service, never asked if you were happy with your meal, needed anything and to add insult to injury I had to ask for the bill to pay and scoot out of there. We had figured to bill to be 24.50 Euro and it comes back at 26.50 Euro - 1 Euro each to sit down to be served. Our server (if you wish to call him that) waited for a tip --- When hell freezes over.

As I write this we are still on the autostrada and just paid & passed a toll booth.

We did some sightseeing and started looking for our car. Well, let’s just say it took ‘quite’ a while to find it and walked through some very questionable streets. Me praying – Lord protect us and guide our feet to the car. Italy does not believe in street signs as we do in the states. It took us a while to realize that the street names are on the side of the buildings and you cannot always see what street you are on until you passed it up. Building addresses are also interesting as they have ‘red’ and ‘blue’ numbers, same side of building – so even if you have an address you are not always exactly sure where the heck you are.

Side note – for those living in the states - If you think drivers are rude where you live try driving in Italy. No concept of the use of blinkers, rarely give any warning that they are coming into your lane and just expect you “to move your bum over” and that includes the tractor trailers!

On Sunday we decided to visit Roma on Monday since that would be our only opportunity.

Only one minor problem – we need a room for the night! We have a reservation for Niederhorn starting Wednesday and today is Tuesday.

July 25, 2011 Monday

Yesterday we left later than we wanted for Roma but visited with Allison one more time in the restaurant and exchanged info to info to keep in touch. We arrived in Roma without incident (Italian drivers aside) and parked the car. We took the subway to Vatican City (about 2 miles across town) and was immediately hustled for a tour. Since it was near 2 pm and the last tour was at 4pm and we had no clue where to start we took the tour and there ended up being only about 10 people in our group and we had a wonderful guide.

A teeny tiny young woman who not only knew all there was about all the sights we saw but you could regal our tour group with different side stories in history that played a part in the making of the Catholic Mecca. I will fill you all in more about our getting close to Switzerland - first tunnel and computer is out of juice. Bye bye!

Had 19 tunnels after the big break...one was 10.56miles long and in general had 8 LONG tunnels.

7/20/2011 Eagle's Nest in Germany

Today was the exact opposite of yesterday's sunny 75 degree weather. After breakfast we drove about 35 minutes from Salzburg, Austria into Germany to see Hilter's and his minions summer hideout in the Alps. We both threw on a jacket but I thought "oh it's just a little rain" and wore flip flops. Seriously wrong move! By the time we drove up the 'mountain' to the restaurant area the temperature was about 50 or < degrees and I am in flip flops and Bekah in shorts! Holy Smokes it was cold. I am going to guess we were about 1500 ft above sea level. If I figure out I am wrong I will edit this post. Anyway, after getting some picutres outside we opted for an early lunch in the restaurant at the Eagle's Nest. Oh - one other item is definitely different - the amount of dogs, all sizes and shapes in stores, (including grocery stores), at tourist attractions, and the biggest surprise was at the 'restaurants! But I must say they are incredibly well behaved and many were not on a leash. Just to clarify we took a tour bus up to the hideout from the parking lot (or you can opt to take a 2 hour hike "up the road" to the Eagle's Nest. *not an option in my book* I must say if you could go any further up the mountain you would be at heaven's gate!
When you are looking down on tree tops that are probably a minimum of 100 to 150 feet tall you know you are up there. The Alps are absolutely magnificent! Bekah will post pictures as soon as she is able. She has already downloaded about 300 pictures from just the trip not including todays. The pictures from today unfortunately are not terribly crisp b/c of all the fog and cloud cover BUT the majesty of the Alps is beyond belief. God's handiwork is pretty cool! I very glad we took the tour bus up there - (no one can drive up there as it is private property) and glad someone else drove that - no way I would ever drive that. Actually maybe my son Nathanael would! Took some pictures, drove back and stopped at a Harley shop in Austria for a shirt for someone special (she knows who she is!)

Since we had a pile of dirty clothes we went to the local mall and found a "Washalon" (a laundromat) and hit McDonalds where they messed up the order and drove back to the hotel.
Tomorrow we leave for Venice, our halfway point to Florence. Lord willing summer weather!
It is pouring down rain here as I post and all over Germany. Once Bekah gets the pictures up here you will hopefully understand the awe we had seeing these mountains. Not a terribly exciting day - oh wait, Bekah just reminded me of the snooty sales person in the gift shop while waiting for the tour bus. We were just looking around and touched some of the fabric of a dirndl dress (austrian/german) dresses and she said the store was for people buying not waiting for the bus, and not to touch the fabric then it would get dirty and not able to sell and to top it off we were disturbing her lunch but that was okay if we bought something. No way - not from her, besides I already purchased what I wanted the day before when we missed the last tour bus by 15 minutes (and would have had a sunny day to get some fabulous pictures.) Later......

My journey to Brussels

July 11, 2011 I am joining my daughter Bekah in Europe for 3 weeks of traveling, just mommy and her Boo and then flying back to Missouri with her in tow. Not having traveled abroad before I was terribly nervous but a 3 hour delay in Philly calmed me down and then I was just anxious to get going. Thankfully my husband Rick gave me a bag of trail mix to snack on and that was my lunch until I had dinner on the flight crossing the "pond". I felt really bad for the men sitting around me as they were considerably taller than my 5'1", and had to be incredibly uncomfortable. I know I was! Think of yourself shoehorned into a seat for 7 hours!
After I get through customs in Brussels - a piece of cake compared to going through TSA in STL, I call Bekah to let her know I am here and she and Christy (a friend she met at Schmalkalden in summer school)got on the right train to meet me....just the wrong direction! So I purchased a sandwich and coffee and waited. My first attempt at ordering food in a foreign language.
They finally show up and off we go to rent our economy car. A VW Polo. To my knowledge it is not available in the US probably b/c of all the gas "cafe" standards mandatory in our country. It is small and barely fits all our luggage. (It will be very interesting to see us 'totally' packed up for the flight home and how much extra boxes or luggage will cost us.) The economy of the Polo is GREAT compared to my SUV with at best 18 mpg. So far we have gotten 41mpg on the first tank and 51 mpg on the second.

I stayed in Bekah's apartment in Liege (which she has until 7/31) . That same evening Bekah and Christy prepared an American dinner for her friend Pauline's sister and mom - unfortunately Pauline could not make the dinner. They were delightful and the girls discussed their college experiences and what they want to do with their degree. We told them about life in the states. The one thing I do not get is NO SCREENS on the windows. Not just in Liege but so far now in Germany and now Austria. The bugs were terribly annoying in Liege as they bit but I took care of that with some Skin So Soft bath oil from AVON. Thank you AVON!!!!!

July 12th/13th/14th/15th - We take Christy to the Frankfort Airport and after much wrangling with too much in her suitcase she boarded and we got some Starbucks and pastry and off to Aushaufanburg, Germany to visit Schmerber relatives. Bekah had stayed with Ziggy & Anni during the first part of her Spring Break but since then Ziggy lost his battle with cancer but we were able to visit with Anni and her family for a couple of days. A beautiful town with picturesque cottages and flowers blooming everywhere. * We toasted Dad on what would have been his 89th birthday.*

July 16 - We head out to Vilseck, Germany to visit Christine and her family. Christine and Bekah met up in the Volos Airport in Greece. I am not entirely sure of the circumstances but maybe mom does not really want to know. Christine's husband is in the Army stationed there so we stayed on base at their home. 7/17 Sunday we went to a medival festival out in the country. Apparently this is a huge once a year festival - thousands of people come for this 3 day (?) event. Bekah and I only went Sunday and left for Salzburg, Austria mis afternoon. Think Branson - Think Silver Dollar City Fall Craft Festival only Medival! Beer, brats, corn, huge baked potatoes, roasted corn on the cob and pretzels the size of a magazine and about an inch thick. Add ketchup and mustard and you are good to go.

July 17 night - Arrive in Salzburg, Austria the home of "Sound of Music". Interestingly enough most Salzburg natives think S.O.M. is just a Hollywood movie and do not realize it is based on the real lives of the Von Trapp family who eventually moved to the states, I believe Vermont b/c it reminded them of Austria. BUT the people of Salzburg have NO problem with making a whole economy out of anything and everything S.O.M.! I will continue tomorrow sometime after Bekah and I head out to the Eagles Nest ( missed the last tour by 30 minutes this afternoon). The Eagle's Nest was Hitler's hideout. I will have Bekah add pictures b/c frankly I have no idea how to do it. Talk to ya'll later. Nite! Besides my b..tt hurts from sitting so long.