The Italian Riviera (need I say more?)I thought that after Rome and Florence my parents would like a little break…me as well. I had been to a beach during my trip, but my roommates had gone to Cinque Terre while I was in Paris with John and told me I had to go.
So my parents and I decided we would stay there for a few days. There are five cities in Cinqe Terre (hence the name), and we stayed at the last one, Monterosso. It was a sleepy fishing village that was known to have to best beaches.
Just the view from the train was amazing. It looked like something straight out of a postcard. The water was clear and you could see where the color changed from light bluish green to dark blue. The beaches were lined with striped umbrellas and lounge chairs. People we floating in the water, and sun bathing on rocks.
We took the first night to settle in. We went to dinner near the beach, and then walked around the town, with a few stops for gelato.
The next day we walked down to the beach, got our umbrella and chairs and settled in for the day. The beach we were at was less crowded and a bit calmer. There was a line of rocks a ways out and my dad immediately got in the water and swam out to the rocks. After a bit of persuading he got me out there. I climbed on them and sat there for a bit. It was such a relaxing day. We later ate; I had sea bass, which was amazing. And after dinner we called it a night.
The next day we were planning to kayak and see the next city over. We woke up to grey clouds and a little rain. When we got to the water, we saw the grey day had not only affected the land but the ocean as well. The waves were crashing against the rocks and there was a red flag up announcing, “no kayaking”. So, we decided to take a look at the next city, Vernazza. It was supposed to be the most picturesque according to Rick Steves', but I would have to say the Monterosso was.
I liked Vernazza very much, up until we went to the cemetery. My dad really wanted to see it so we hiked up to it. I found myself a bit ahead of my parents and I began looking at the graves. These graves were large wall like marble structures. The coffins or bodies were placed in the wall. On each tombstone there was a vase and most of them had flowers (many fake). I fixed one of the flowers that had fallen to the ground. As I was walking by some of them I grazed past the flowers and read the dates and looked at the pictures. My mom caught up with me and was looking as well. I reached the end of one wall and went to look at the one behind me. As I walked up to the wall something moved in the flowers closest to me. I quickly examined it and saw a SNAKE! (for all of you who don’t know me when it comes to snakes, I really really dislike them. I used boast that I never saw one in the wild and asked that the Lord take me home before I did…that obviously didn’t happen…but it was close). I screamed as loud as I could (and I am not a screamer). My mom looked at me like she wanted to help but it was in between us. There was a cliff next to me and I could have jumped off right then and there…thankfully the Lord gave me restraint. The snake slithered down the wall and we were waiting to see where he was headed. He was black with yellow stripes and in between 4 to 5 feet long. His belly met the tile floor close to me, and I screamed again (I don’t listen to the whole stay calm and quiet). He slide across the tile to the other wall where I had just come from and parallel me to the brush. When he was gone I ran to my mom who said, “Where is your father we are leaving.” Dismissing all quiet rules in the cemetery, as I had done earlier with my screaming, my mom quickly walk to the different sections yelling, “Michael!”…”Michael!”. My dad finally came out and we told him we were leaving.
We got to the bottom of the hill and back on the train to Monterosso. We all headed to the beach to read and enjoy the rest of the sun.
When we were on our way through the garden to dinner, we were met with another snake, a baby one this time. Baby or not, I really really really do not like them.
That night I had dreams of snakes and Gatorade (don’t ask me about that Gatorade), needless to say I didn’t sleep well…and was ready to get going to my favorite city in the world…Venice (snake free Venice).
(My last day in England)
A Piece of Home in England
I would have to say, one of the most restful days of my two months had to be with Colin and Ann. Jessica and I agreed we should have missed our flight and stayed with them for another week…but seeing as we were out of funds and reaching the end out our trip, we settled for an afternoon.
Colin and Ann were informing us of places we might want to stop on our way back to London, but Jessica and I just wanted to hang out with them a bit longer…so we asked if we could see the beach near them. And it was set…we would sleep in a little and then off to the beach we would go.
As planned we slept in (really slept in according to Colin’s days…his day was half over by the time we opened our sleepy eyes). At 10:00 a.m. we were ready to go. First they took us to an old castle. I felt as though I had been dropped right into the middle of an afternoon with the Bennett’s…getting ready for a ball…(Mr. Darcy possibly in attendance). I LOVED IT! I could have sat there for hours and had a spot of tea (which is what Ann does with her lady friends).
We moved on to the beach. We took a nice walk down to the beach and along side of it. We stopped for a drink…Colin went back to fetch the car while Ann took on “tour guide” role as we walked to the fishing town at the end. Colin and Ann used to have a boat but timing never allowed them to take it out. At first I didn’t understand this concept, but once I saw the boats sitting on sand I fully understood. When the tide goes out the boats left are sitting on sand. Apparently it is an issue if you are out in the ocean during this time because you cannot get back to dock.
We had a wonderful time…but it was coming to the time when Jessica and I had to catch our train to London, so we could make it to the airport on time.
We said our goodbyes, and though I was sad to leave it made me even more excited to plan another trip back.
We made everything in excellent time. The only thing that didn’t work out “brilliantly” was that by the time we got off our flight and to the train station, the last train to Florence had already left…leaving us to sleep in the Bologna train station. I called John to see what I should do and he told me to sit near some guys and see if they would keep an eye out for us (yes…this is very surprising coming from John).
For a while Jessica and I were in a room full of people sleeping, waiting for their train to arrive…but some seemed to be eyeing us and waiting for the moment we feel asleep. So we left the room and decided a little fresh air would do us good. We settled on a little piece of tile flooring overlooking all the beautiful tracks. We decided we wouldn’t sleep…we would have to entertain each other for a few hours. Well 2:00 am rolled around (our train wasn’t until 5:45) and I was getting a little sleepy. Jessica was talking on her cell phone and I decided to close my eyes.
After a little (maybe 5 min) catnap, this Italian guy near us asks me if I have any “chocolate cakes”. Surprisingly I did, I had this roll of “Hit” cookies John had given to me. The man smiled and rubbed his tummy with a little wince on his face. Suddenly he just got up and left. He left all his stuff sitting in the floor. Jessica and I were trying to figure out what he was doing, but we soon found out he asked people for a lot of things. He had gotten a few cigarettes from someone down the way.
I tried to get comfortable again when he addresses us again. He said, “You sleep, I will watch over you.” We thanked him and I tried to get comfortable again. Then I heard his voice again, “Where do you come from.”
Needless to say we didn’t get any sleep, but time really flew. He was a riot, Jessica and I were laughing at him. He was trying to teach me Italian, and I sadly was a bad pupil. I cannot remember a thing he taught me. 5:45 a.m. rolled around and we checked our train to find it had been delayed over 30 minutes.
We had nothing to do but sit and wait. 6:30 rolled around and finally our train arrived. Our friend, Carmen, said goodbye and pulled a bracelet off his wrist and gave it to me.
We boarded the train ready to sit in a normal chair only to find the 6 men ahead of us had taken the last chairs and we were left to sit in the walkway next to the door and the water closet.
I was sitting there looking at Jessica and we both started laughing, this day had been too much. We were just glad we were on our way home.
The sun was just rising. I gravitated to the door to get a glimpse. This was the first time I had seen the sunrise in Italy. There is something different about the sun in the morning; it looks so much fresher than the evening glow of the sun. It was touching the top of the hills running down the valley, causing the trees to shake off their sleep and straighten up for the day ahead. I immediately thought of Colin and how he sees the sunrise every morning. While we were overlooking the beach he told me he had been there earlier that morning he said, “Its amazing how I am alone, I get the entire beach to myself. Sometimes I am worried that other people will discover it, and I will no longer be alone.”
Seeing the sunrise that morning, as tired and worn out as I was, made me think of how much I miss in my own neighborhood or surrounding areas by just going on with my daily routine. I don’t want to be one of those people “asleep” missing out on treasures…but anyone who knows me knows, I do enjoy my sleep!
Ciao Firenze.
Today...I am leaving Florence. The girls taxis came at 7:30 a.m., and I was left in the silence of my apartment. We have had our sad moments the last couple of days. Last night the 8 of us, plus my parents went out for dinner, I was taking my parents to the Piazza Michelangelo after dinner, so I had to say my goodbyes to Scott, Jane, Melissa, and Jr. I didnt expect it but everyone started crying. This morning I said goodbye to the girls and it happened again. After that I tried to fall back asleep and managed to for about 10 minutes, but that was it. I have grown to love this city, it has been my home. It was sad to close the door and walk down my street of the last time.
For class we had to write a final reflection paper. This was my paper.
This trip has truly been a trip of a lifetime. Coming on trips like these, and being a woman, you daydream and think of how perfect it will be: leisurely mornings, endless shopping (because there is an endless money supply of course). But then life happens: conflict arises between roommates, tomato sauce splashes on your favorite white tee shirt and you schedule an appointment to visit the doctor for your sinus infection. Life, it follows you wherever you go.
I had dreams of getting up in the morning and popping in to my regular coffee bar, sipping my café, making small talk with the baristas (because I would know them by now), and strolling to school. But instead my morning friend is my alarm “Bob” whom I grumble at to “be quiet”, and give him a few nice taps, I quickly get ready and run out of the apartment, past the coffee bar filled with “regulars” sipping their café, weaving in and out of the travelers window shopping on the Ponte Vecchio. By the time I make it to class I am 15 minutes late and sweating like a beast. That is just a little different than I had planned.
The thing about “life” is that it is comforting. Having things go wrong, break, or emotions arise; oddly make things feel more like home. This has been my home for the last two months. The place I have laughed until my stomach hurts, the place I have napped when I cant move because of the heat, and the place where I have found my comfort after various travels abroad. Via Dei Sapiti, #2, this has been my home. But I will soon find myself leaving this residence and taking residence up back in Chino Hills. I can’t remember what it is like to drive a car; I have spent most of my time dodging them. I will be expected to quickly step back into the flow of things, the fast pace flow of living in southern California. I will miss the simplicity of Florence, oddly enough I will miss walking everywhere, I will miss my “Italian Family”, and I will miss my evening gelato runs down the street.
Despite the major adjustments made and the culture shock, I have been blessed to have learned about the culture while staying here. I am no longer surprised when our waiter yells at someone for cutting the spaghetti, and I am no longer the last to be helped at our local grocer, because in this short amount of time I have been here I have done my best to fit in and “do as the Florentines do”.
(I will now resume with England)
Pubs, Ponies, and Pesky NeighborsThe train to Colin and Ann’s was delayed for 30 minutes due to the fact that there had been a line fire. So we agreed it was much better to wait than be in a fire. The train ride was sticky and long but finally we made it, we stepped of the train to a warm breeze and Colin waiting with a smile on his face. He ushered us to the car and helped put our bags in the back. As he was talking I walked to the right side of the car door to sit in the front seat and as I looked at the car passing me realized that I was walking to the driver side door. It was the weirdest feeling. Colin drove us back to the house and suggested some things we could do that night. We were so happy to be there we wanted to anything that worked best with their busy schedule.
So, we went back to the house, dropped our stuff off and left for their new home. Colin and Ann have been working on a new house they bought and a lot of things have taken longer than expected. So we went to meet the “gate man”, who was going to make their gate. Colin gave us the grand tour, which was amazing. The house was so beautiful and quaint. Their front yard is so beautiful it reminded me of the secret garden. The view out their front gate was a long walkway of trees overlapping each other at the top, causing it to be a long shaded walkway.
While Colin waited for the “gate man”, Ann took us to see a church near their house. We had a nice walk and even got to see inside the church. We went back to see if the “gate man” had graced Colin with his presence (which he had not). So, Ann took us an a little driving tour around their new city. We stopped at a Pub with a bit of history…a history of violence…this man who used to live near this area used to shoot everything in sight…if I remember the story correctly, he single handedly killed thousands of birds. So we stopped at the Gun Inn, and I drank a ginger ale.
We headed back to the house and were greeted by Colin and the very eccentric “gate man”. They decided upon a gate and gate security (which I didn’t think was good enough, they should have gone a bit more high tech, but that is another story…one that I have to keep between Colin and myself). It seems as though they have this lady next-door…Naomi…whom, before they had moved in, they were warned about. So I think desperate times call for desperate measures! (Right Colin?!)
We said “cheers” to the gateman and started our tour, guided by the wonderful, informative, witty Colin Clegg. I joked around with him, telling him I felt like his seat should be turned around to face us (like they do in tour buses). We drove through the New Forest, apparently they have some vicious animals like ponies and squirrels. Colin told me that my cousin John has a story about the New Forest squirrels for me when I get home.
Colin and Ann have the most amazing spirits they see everything with a fresh eye, and they inspired me so much on my visit with them. While we were driving through the New Forest, they were looking at it like it was the first time. We had a wonderful time. We stopped to eat. We had great food and even better conversation. Our first day with them was “brilliant”.
(I was so eager to write about London, I forgot one of the highlights of my trip in Rome)
Past Frozen on Time While Italy Celebrates History in The Making OnWhile in Rome, we had a day trip scheduled for Pompeii. It was a really good tour…but it was extremely hot, and our tour guide was a bit distracting. But that is beside the fact. Pompeii was a bit eerie. It was a city frozen in time. People were captured doing what they were doing at the time of the eruption. It was a sight. Men sleeping, others seemed aware of their fate…strange.
Our trip was supposed to continue down to Naples, but their was a delay with our tour guide getting to the bus, so one guy, Jonathan, suggested we just head back to Rome so we could be there in plenty of time for the World Cup final game…and so it went, the bus headed back to Rome. (I hear I didn’t miss much in Naples)
We got back in plenty of time to get ready and rest a bit. Jessica and I were lone rangers because Scott, Jane, Melissa, Jr., Aimee, and Shannon had planned on going to Capri. So Jessica and I met up with Laurel, Gaby, and Jenny to go to the Circus Maximus to catch the game with the “Romans”. Just walking down there you could feel the energy; the people were so pumped up, dressed up waving their flags around. Once we were there we were greeted by a crowd of 60,000 fans (that later grew to over 120,000). It was a sight that I will never forget.
The game was fun to watch, their were two big screens and if you missed something you were sure to know if it was good or bad for Italy by the response of the crowd. The game went into overtime, and I decided that because of the size of the crowd, our group should try to get out of the middle of it and near the back…because win or lose their would be mayhem. So we all made our way to the edge near the street so we could make a run for it when the game was over.
The first overtime was over, and they were on to the second one. The crowd was getting very antsy, which made me antsy. The goal kicks were so nerve racking it was hard to watch, it was the final kick, the crowd was hushed, no blow horns, flags were steady…and they made it in. ITALY HAD WON. The crowd went nuts, things were being set on fire, people were hopping on cars waving their flags, and the people walking were hugging complete strangers. It was so much fun.
The city partied all night, but I had my share, and was tired from all the excitement of the day.
A Sunny Day in London TownJessica and I decided we needed a break from the heat and we were gladly accepting of the rainy, dreary reputation London has. So we dusted off our sweatshirts and long sleeve shirts and went to London.
We had a long day of traveling but finally made it to our hotel at 3:00 a.m. and fell asleep. The next day we had planned to make our way to New Milton, where my Uncle Jeff’s friend Colin lives with his wife Ann. So we got all of our stuff together rolled our suitcases to the train station and called Colin. He informed us that they were having problems with their bathroom, they had other visitors and that Tuesday would work better…which was fine. So Jessica and I called the hotel we had just left and asked if they had any availability for the next two nights. Luckily they did and we rolled out suitcases back on the tube and dropped them off.
As for our sightseeing that day we decided to start from the farthest point and work our way back. So we took the tube to the Tower Bridge. We walked from the Tower Bridge to the Westminster bridge (if you don’t know how far it is look as a map), but we had a lot of fun and go to see most of the city.
We found a small place to eat and made it back to our hotel to rest our tired feet and bodies. The next morning we had many things we still needed to see. We woke up and went to the Buckingham Palace to see the changing of the guard. (Now, I will make reference to those sweatshirts and long sleeved shirts we dusted off to pack with us). We were lucky enough to visit London during some historic, record setting times. This new record that was set was a weather record…it had not been that hot since 1911. The temperature outside reached 100 and the temperature inside the tube and the buses reached 126. They even had a nice public service announcement in the tube saying, “If someone near you becomes ill, please wait for the next stop to seek medical attention.”
Evening came and it was still pretty hot, but Jessica and I were hungry so we went to Covent Gardens to eat some famous fish and chips. We had a wonderful dinner, and walked around a bit more, just taking in the city.
The night John was flying in due to the fact that he had missed his original flight home the week prior, so he made his way to our hotel and slept for a few hours. I woke up and accompanied him to Heathrow the next day…it was our three-year anniversary…but at least we were together. We said goodbye and I met up with Jessica to leave for Colin and Ann’s. We were ready to leave the sunny days in London town, and find out what New Milton had in store for us.
A Grey Day in Florence and RomeI had two days in Florence before I found myself packing my bag yet again to go to Rome. The night before we left we had a “family dinner” at out apartment with Shannon, Amy, Jane, Scott, Jessica, Jr, Melissa, and myself. During our dinner thunder bounced off the Tuscan hills and into our windows. Soon after it began to pour, without letting up all night, it actually got harder and harder.
We were to meet at the train station at 8:00 a.m. to catch our bus to Rome. My alarm was set for 7:00 but instead I woke up at 6:00 to thunder rattling my open shutters and the wind had changed causing rain to hit my face and my bed.
I closed the windows and went to the kitchen to make myself some tea. The rest of the house had woken up as well and we lay in our beds drinking tea trying to figure out how we should get to the train station. I unpacked my small rolling luggage and stuffed everything in my backpack. The four of us decided to walk. We slowly made our trek through the puddles and around the busses spraying waves of dirty water on the sidewalk. Wet and tired, we made it in time to through our luggage in and find seats (A group of girls from our class were not so lucky, they had called a taxi, which was late, and missed the bus to Rome).
Four hours later we made it to Rome. We immediately were rounded up and taken to Vatican City. We toured the Vatican museums and ended in the Sistine chapel. It was beautiful…but extremely crowded, which caused the room to be very hot and cramped. Jessica and I saw what we wanted to see and made our way through the crowd to get some fresh air outside.
I sat down for a while looking through my camera, when Jessica hit my arm and pointed at some guy with blue hair coming out of the Sistine chapel. I could only see the back of his head, so I looked at her and said, “nice, whatever floats your boat’, and looked back down at my camera. She immediately hit me again and said, “he looks like George from Grey’s Anatomy.” After he turned around I saw his face and sure enough it was.
We argued for a few minutes deciding whether or not we should ask him for a picture. Another girl came out and caught on to what we were talking about, and grabs us to follow him. When we got close to him, we noticed another familiar face…it was Justin Chambers who plays “Alex” on Grey’s Anatomy. They were traveling together with their families. They stopped in front of St. Paul’s Basilica and we went up to T. R. Knight and asked him for a picture. He was very nice and talked to us for a minute. Justin Chambers was in the middle of his family and we decided we would not bother him.
After all the excitement we toured St. Paul’s Basilica and went back to the hotel. Our group decided to go eat and see some of the city. So we all agreed upon the Trevi Fountain. It was a wonderful choice because at night it is all lit up and beautiful. All the shops are open and people are just hanging out eating gelato, throwing coins into the fountain in hopes to come back to Rome someday.
We stayed their for a while and enjoyed each others company, ate some gelato, and headed back. The grey clouds had swept in and the rain had begun to fall. It had certainly been a grey day of adventures.
The Long Kiss GoodbyeI woke up at 4:30 a.m., got my stuff together and walked into the kitchen to find Hans and Helga waiting to say goodbye. They handed me a bag with some rolls and spread and a large diet coke for my journey.
We said our goodbyes and I hugged Hans. He wrapped his arms around me and started to rock side to side, it was a very sweet moment. Helga gave me a hug, and I was off to catch my train.
We got to the train station and as the train approached Timo said goodbye. The train halted in front of me and the door opened, John hopped in to put my luggage away. He said goodbye and turned to walk out. I glanced out the window to see Timo waving his arms, signaling for John to get out. Just as John reached the door, they slammed shut and the train shuttered and began to roll away. John was stuck on the train.
He came and sat with me, we laughed for a few minutes and he tried to get a hold of Timo. Timo had left his phone at home, se we figured John would just get off at the next stop and figure things out from there. We said goodbye before the next stop and he made it safely off the train.
I was on the train for another 45 minutes. I arrived in Stuttgart and immediately got on my 2nd train. 2 1/2 hours later I arrived at my destination, to meet with a shuttle bus for another hour ride to the airport. I had finally made it to the airport, after 6 hours of traveling, got my boarding pass, and sat the time away. I only had a 2-hour flight and a 90-minute shuttle to the city center of Florence left…. I was almost home. My flight went well, and the shuttle felt like eternity…. but I finally found myself pulling my luggage through the streets of Florence heading back to my apartment. I was “home”.
A Red White and Green 4th of July
The next morning I slept in and I joined up with Timo and John for a trip into town. We shopped around for souvenirs, and Timo took us into St. Michaels Church. It was one of the areas 1st Romanesque churches, which was consecrated in 1156. Timo was our little tour guide, and was full of information. It amazes me how much history these people know, and how much a part of their life it still is.
We went back to the house, where Hans was making us lunch. We ate pork in gravy sauce, spatezel, and salad. It was another meal to remember. It was Timo’s birthday, so we told him we wanted to get ice cream or something to celebrate (because we would be missing his big celebration that weekend). So he told us first he wanted to show us some castles in neighboring towns. We went to two different castles, which were both beautiful. We walked around a little and than headed back to rest before the big game.
The whole family came together for dinner and than we walked over to Jochen and Karen’s to watch the game. It was Germany vs. Italy. So I was a bit torn…but having given it much thought I came to two conclusions. #1 If Germany wins it would be an experience to be IN Germany for their win, and #2 If Italy wins I would see the final game in Italy. So it was a win-win situation.
I was quiet for most of the game, because I am not a talker during games. I normally don’t argue with the refs because in actuality you are arguing with a box that has a picture of referees on it…it does nothing for me, or the teams (But more power to the people that argue).
My quietness intrigued John I guess, so right before the overtime John announces to the family, “Michelle has been pretty quiet, I think she is rooting for Italy”. By that time it was getting late and I just wanted someone to win (preferably Italy, so I wouldn’t be up even later celebrating), so I was as little speechless and couldn’t say much to break the silence, so I just gave a weak smile and looked on to the television. Well, what do you know 30 minutes later, Italy effortlessly made two goals and the rest is history. I was leaving the nest morning so I said my goodbyes to Jochen, Karen, Anna, and Janny and went to sleep.
Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice…
The next morning Timo had to work, so Jochen and Karen had taken the day off to hang out with us. We woke up, got ready, and crossed the street to their little wooden picket fence. It was a beautiful morning; the sun was warming up my arms as the breeze was dancing past me.
Karen had prepared a wonderful breakfast; the table was full of fresh fruit, yogurt, bread, pretzels, homemade jam, juice, water, coffee, and tea. Jochen was planning on taking us on a bike ride, but after a few yawns he asked me, “So I don’t think the bike ride is a good idea today since you are so tired, no?” But John and I quickly told him we would love to go.
So, we finished breakfast and got on our bikes. In the beginning I was thinking, “man this is going to be easy!” We were headed to a forest where if we did a bit of mountain biking, we could climb some hills and see the whole village.
We began climbing and I was ok once I figured out how to change the gears. It wasn’t until we got to a part where Jochen advised we walk out bikes up. So, John (of course) tries to ride up it, and makes it for a bit, while I am in the dust trying hard to pull my bike over roots and rocks. Finally I couldn’t take it anymore and I sat down and told Jochen I would follow in a bit. Since John had sailed up this mountain, he ran down and grabbed my bike for me.
We got to the top and got on our bikes again…we had more to go. Apparently we hadn’t been “mountain biking” yet because ahead of me I saw brush and a narrow line of dirt on the ground, within seconds John and Jochen were on the itsy bitsy trail. I don’t think I would have minded so much had there not been thorns on every branch that flung back on me, puncturing my skin or shorts and holding on until it could not longer.
Now, I will let you in on a secret, John, Jochen and I are not wearing helmets…where are the safety laws when you needs them?
My hands were already aching from holding onto the brakes, and since I was going so slow I fell into a bush, not a nice soft bush, a bush with thorns and immediately I felt my brow furrow and with a huff I got back up. Jochen looked back at me and I plastered a big smile on my face, which he returned and continued on. I brushed myself off and heaved myself back onto my bike.
We finally arrived to our destination. The entire village was in our view. John could even zoom in with his camera and spot Jochen, and Hans’s houses. We took a few pictures and continued on the narrow trail.
John and Jochen were enjoying the view down. But me…I think there were trees and I am sure they were pretty, but the only scenery I saw was the ground right below my front tire.
We stopped again to see John's great grandfathers house. No one was living in it; apparently it was more a monument now. It was cute, and the land surrounding it was gorgeous.
We continued on to a piece of land the Jochen and Karen had bought. They grow fruit and vegetables there for their own personal use. There was a shed that Jochen built in a day; it housed his tractor and some supplies.
After a few more minutes of riding our trip had come to an end. I thanked Jochen for the tour and excused myself to shower and rest.
Family in Far Away LandsJohn and I were two train rides from his family. We hoped on the first one to Stuttgart…and quickly caught the next one to Schwabisch Hall. When we arrived, Timo was there to greet us, and drive us to the house. He spoke very good English and we had good conversation on the way. The village they lived in was nestled in between lush green hills and forests.
We arrived and were guided through the beautiful garden, passing red roses, cherry trees, and berry bushes. Hans greeted us…when he caught the first glimpse of us his eyes began to fill with tears. His cheeks got flushed and he hugged John and I. We than met his wife Helga (Hans is the brother of Johns Grandpa on his dads side). They asked us to sit and gave us plethora of drinks to choose from. John grabbed the pictures of family and showed them.
Hans kept looking up at me with he red eyes smiling. Timo was translating everything they were saying about the pictures. They kept laughing about how much Uncle Mike looked like their other son Jochen (who we would meet later). After looking through the pictures we took our luggage to our room and freshened up.
That evening Hans and Helga, Timo, Jochen and his family, Karen, and their kids, Janny (John), and Anna came over to the barbeque they were having for us. They all spoke very good English and were very excited to hear all about our travels and
see the pictures of the family.
After a very good meal, we followed Jochen and Karen across the street to their house. We sat in their backyard a chatted for a while. It was getting dark, and they sent the kids to bed and we went inside to chat some more. We found out they were also Christians and they were very active in their church. They were excited to hear the same about us, and good conversation followed.
They showed us their house and while we were walking back to sit down Karen stopped by a plaque that had a bible verse on it. She told us that Johns grandfather. Herman had made this and it was given to them.
We said goodnight and went back across the street to sleep.
…And we KNOW that in ALL things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose…
Romans 8:28
…For I am CONVINCED that neither death nor life, neither angles nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in ALL creation, will be able to separate us from the LOVE OF GOD that is JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD!
Romans 8:38-39
John,Bratwurst and Sauerkraut...These Are A Few of My Favorite ThingsMunich was a great change of pace. John and I could put a jacket on if we wanted or just feel the breeze across our bare arms. We took a taxi to our hotel. Since we had not showered since our sweaty day in Rome, we got clean and soon after very tired (overnight trains are not my travel of choice…I didn’t sleep well at all). So John let me sleep while he went downstairs and ran some errands.
Once I was awake, we left to get some good German food. I read in our Lonely Planet guide that there was this great Bavarian place right in the middle of the city center called Weisses Brauhaus.
We walked in and it could smell home (John’s mom often makes German cuisine for dinner, and at all the get togethers it is mostly German food). We found our seats and made our choices. I chose bratwurst and potato salad. John picked pork in beer gravy, potato pancakes and sauerkraut. It was the best meal I have had in Europe! (Uncle Mike’s potato salad is better though).
Since we only had one day we figured we would see some of the sites. I wanted to go to Dachau, which was the first Nazi concentration camp. I had my own reasons seeing as my Grandfather Lazenby was in the U.S Army and was a German translator, and my other Grandfather was in the Navy during World War 11. We only had 20 mins before it closed but figured we might be able to catch a glimpse of it. So off we went.
Again, so blessed, the gate was open when we arrived. John and I got to walk through the entire camp without crowds. It was quiet; all that could be heard was the wind blowing through the massive trees lining the camp. There were various boards with pictures and explanations about what the different setions were used for. John and I whispered small comments to each other but beside that we were mostly quiet. It was hard to take it all in.
We strolled back to the bus stop, waiting to go back to the city center. I was sad to leave the countryside it was gorgeous… John and I both decided we should move our families there!
The sun was setting and the city center was coming alive. England was playing Portugal, so bars were packed and people were out. John wanted to pay a visit to the famous Hofbrauhaus. We made our way to our destination…no map was necessary, singing (very bad singing) could be heard and music (which was playing a totally different song than the one being sung). We entered to see many Americans…who had had far too much to drink. We stayed for a bit, ate dinner (which was not close to being as good as our lunch), and left. We ended our night with some Haugen Daus that made us very happy campers.
