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Day Fifteen- LONDON

The maze of hallways here at our Brussels hotel all eventually lead to the gin-nNORmous breakfast room with a very ample buffet this morning.  Around 9:15, we are shuttled along with some Chinese tourists in what appears to be a getaway van, to the Bruxelles-Midi Station for our final ride back to London via the Eurostar Chunnel Train which crosses under the English Channel between France and England. 

 Justin and Suz at 221b Baker Street- residence of Sherlock Holmes
 

Back in London, we check into a hotel close to Paddington Station which is even more maze-like than the last.  There is no elevator and reaching our rooms entails climbing endless flights of stairs, going through countless doors and crossing a number of parlours.  Despite the creaky and decidedly sloped floors, the rooms are clean and have large old-fashioned windows that allow a bit of airflow this warm and humid day.

Happily, there is time today to visit (and play dress-up in) the Sherlock Holmes Museum which we had skipped  earlier due to time constraints, and then few of us risk our lives along with other camera toting tourists, by attempting to cross Abbey Road like the Beatles album cover (there are no traffic lights at the crossing).   There is shopping for last-minute gifts at Harrods and  dinner at Nando's where it's all chicken!  My insistence on doing all my laundry in the sink has caught up with me here on the final day when I realize I have no clean clean-smelling socks for the 17 hours of flying tomorrow, and I hastily wash a pair in the bathroom and hope they'll dry by morning so I won't have to wear wet socks on the plane.  (They don't and so I do.)

So there you have it. 

Budget travel entails a bit of sacrifice- limited packing, lots of walking, doing frequent laundry, staying in hotels with tiny beds and crooked floors and no AC, getting lost, sleeping on trains, eating cheap food (many times on the run) etc.  But it's also tons of fun. Limited packing means freedom.  Small hotels mean character. Cheap food can be quite good (in fact, it was excellent!) and getting lost is part of the excitement!

It's been a great 2 weeks. 

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Day Fourteen- RHINE RIVER

Ugh.  Today is the longest, most extensive travel day of the entire trip.  We are up at 5am to make our northbound 5:45 am train out of Austria, change trains 3 times in Germany, hop on a boat in Bingen, sail the Rhine for 2 hours, disembark in St Goar, walk to the train station where we catch a train to Cologne, then transfer to another train which deposits us in Brussels Belgium around 10 pm.

Long distances notwithstanding, the Rhine cruise actually provides a good opportunity to relax this afternoon, and with our railpass, the cruise is FREE.  Not only are the views of the castles and terraced vineyards perfect, so's the weather. Not a single gray cloud in sight.  And aboard the boat, there is a rushing, stiff breeze.  No flames of fire however and so by the end of the day,I am still unfortunately not as proficient in German as I'd like to be...

 the itty-bitty station in Sankt Goar

 

About two hours later, we find ourselves on land again in quaint little Sankt Goar where we haul our tired, shriveled up carcasses onto a train to Cologne.

Every takeout joint at the bustling Cologne Hauptbahnof seems to specialize in curried sausages so I grab a slice of curried sausage pizza and some sausage enveloped in batter to eat on the train.  Problem is, the train is delayed and I end up eating everything while standing on the platform.  Justin has already finished what looked like a whole chicken... curried, I'm sure.  Well, the comfortable Intercity Express train finally arrives and we ride north into Belgium where I am relieved to give up on my retarded sounding German and revert to French which is at least a tad bit better.

It's late and we're delivered to our strange hotel in the ghetto-ey part of Brussels by our Moroccan taxi driver and are given the keys to our rooms.  Cel and Neal have 3 beds in a large room with a sloped ceiling and skylight.  Suz and Gem have a huge cavernous space consisting of 2 bedrooms containing a total of 2 double beds and 2 single beds and a walk in closet area.  Justin and I have a little dinghy cave with two twin beds and nothing more.  All are the same price.  And all are on the same floor despite being numbered 45, 54 and 411.

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Day Thirteen- MAUTHAUSEN and SALZBURG

The six berth couchette is crowded but affords most of us a good sleep.  Neal and Cel take the bottom bunks, Suz and Gem the middles and Justin and I the uppers near the ceiling.  Thankfully for us, the uppers come with a slight rail which prevent us from inadvertently rolling over and plunging to our deaths below.  An exaggeration, but not much:

 Not really our train obviously, since this is taken during the day, but you get the idea

The toilets in our carriage aren't working either-which means me going to the bathroom in the middle of the night entails a bleary eyed shlep through two cars.  I manage not to fall over en route and make it safely back up the ladder to the top bunk and drift back to sleep with the rocking of the train.

As promised, the attendant wakes us up at 5:30am, serves us breakfast and reminds us that our stop in Linz is coming up within the hour.  At 6:30am, we step off the train into the cold morning air and make our way down into the station as our train continues it's journey east to Vienna.  The station is already buzzing with activity and we meet an elderly sister doing street work.

 

Boarding a local train, we journey to the nearby village of Mauthausen where we get off and cross the tracks to the little station where the friendly station manager calls us a taxi.  In under 5 minutes, we are sitting in said taxi and are being driven at breakneck speeds over one-lane roads through the forest to the eerily desolate Mauthausen Concentration Camp which is enshrouded by mist.  What we see during our visit cannot adequetely be described  in words.  The experience was intense to say the least and I almost broke down and cry a few times realizing that my brothers once stood here and proved faithful in this prison of atrocities.  I imagine Jehovah must be very proud of them.  I know I am. ¹

A somber return journey to Linz, then on to Salzburg where Suz, Justin and I opt to rest up at the hotel while Neal, Cel and Gem visit Untersburg and catch a Sound of Music show.  Later,the three of us walk along the Salzach river to the Aldstadt and enjoy a dinner of  Wiener schnitzel, barbecued sausages, sauerkraut and potatoes, topped off by some succulent Austrian desserts.  Es gefällt mir!

1 more information on our brothers' experiences in Mauthausen can be found in the following: yb00 166-167; g99 10/22 16; jv 660-661, 665; w89 6/15 27; yb89 116-118, 131-132; w86 6/15 27.  Secular information may be seen HERE.

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Day Twelve- VENICE

An extremely comfortable mattress on an extremely small bed averages out as satisfactory in the end I suppose.  Either way, we get a good night's sleep and are greeted by a nice buffet breakfast and a few more hours to hit the stalls  along the Via del'Ariento before heading north toward the Adriatic Sea to Venice.

 gondole in Venice 

Venice is a bit difficult to describe acurately in words.  Confusing narrow alleyways leading off in every which direction and no cars.  Then, there's the water- lots of it!  We leave our backpacks at the Santa Lucia train station and set out like little rats mice in a maze.  We decide to skip a visit to Murano Island after an irritating encounter with The Grouch selling tickets on the north side of Cannaregio and head instead to San Polo where we find a good deal on a gondola ride through the quiet and picturesque back canals.  Then, we happily get lost on the way to the Rialto Bridge.

And have more gelato. 

Oh, and I make the bad decision of standing right beneath a very large pigeon.

Back at the station, we board an overnight train to Austria...

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Day Eleven- Florence

We arrive in Florence (Firenze) around noon and walk from the Santa Maria Novela train station to our hotel.  Florence is perhaps known for two things:

Art and Shopping. 

I am not too keen on art and therefore am honestly not too excited about what seems like the hundreds of statues on display throughout the city.  I am not really a shopaholic either but the outdoor markets selling silk and leather goods is where I make a beeline since I am on a mission. 

For silk ties. 

Which I don't really need, but with flashy patterns and at 4 ties for only 10EURO, what's there not to love?

This evening, we walk about 40 minutes to the Kingdom Hall. Thanks to my faulty memory on when the meeting actually starts, we arrive late and are seated... smack dab in the front row during paragraph 4 of the Watchtower Study.  Nice.  But I do get to see Gionatan and some other old friends who have moved to this new congregation from Firenze Nova and as is the case back home, we are among the last to leave the Hall once the meeting is over.  But not before some loud, happy, animated conversation! 

To round out our day, we head to the Via Nazionale and have a late dinner. 

Okay, and gelato.

REST OF TODAY'S PHOTOS ARE HERE

Day Ten- CINQUE TERRE

It's hard to describe the feeling of waking up, throwing open old, painted green shutters, and suddenly realizing that you're in a small Italian village.  We check the laundry hanging outside our balcony which is blowing in the seabreeze, look up and wave to Gem who is looking out the window in the building up on the hill, listen to the happy chatter of shopkeepers on the street far below,  and then I head down through the steep maze of alleyways to the grocers to buy a bottle of milk and some fruit juice.  The plan is to get some laundry done this morning, review the Watchtower, then head out along the coast to the neighboring village of Manarola. The skies are blue and cloudless and the Mediterranean is as clear as glass.

 
The walk to Manarola is breathtaking although the village itself is crowded with too many tourists.  That doesn't prevent the views from being any less impressive however, and we find refuge in a park at the far end of the village.  Back in Riomaggiore, we enjoy a great dinner at La Lampara and then hang out in our apartment to enjoy some wine and sweets.  Tomorrow, it's back to the city...

REST OF TODAY'S PHOTOS ARE HERE

Day Nine- ROME and the CINQUE TERRE

We arrive at Milano Centrale a late in the evening and transfer to a sleeper train which takes us south during the night.  We have railpasses which cover overnight accomodation in sleepers, but they are sold out and there is no other option except to squeeze ourselves into the decidedly smaller couchettes. {Whimper.} These are basic bunk-style accomodations and while Neal, Cel, Suz and Gem share a compartment, Justin and I are put into a neighboring compartment with an older couple.  It's really not a problem, except for the fact that the couple are traveling with 2 large suitcases, a large bag, and a wheelchair.  Smoosh all of that gear into a tiny compartment and add a ladder to get to the top bunks with no rails, and... well, you get the picture.

Thankfully, we arrive in Rome in one piece the next morning.  We are uncermoniously herded off the train one station before our listed stop and are therefore forced to cram ourselves and our backpacks into the crowded Rome Metro during the morning rush hour to reach the center.  Dropping our backpacks off at the lockers, we hightail it to the Coloseum, run through the Imperial Forums, sprint past theTrevi Fountain, and then powerwalk it to the Metro which whisks us to the Vatican Museums. 

 Il Colosseo in the early morning sun- yes, still clear skies!
 

Neal, Cel, Justin and Gem battle the crowds while Suz and I decide to walk around the perimeter of Vatican City, stopping for a drink before meeting up with the 4 out of breath members of our group in front of St Peter's Basilica on the other side. 

If you ever plan to see Rome in 4 hours- don't.

But there is a reason for all of this mad dashing: we are headed to the coast this afternoon, and the sooner, the better.  Sure enough, the hustle and bustle of Rome are quicky forgotten once we  arrive in the laid back northern villages of the Cinque Terre, where Justin and I walk to Claudio's house to retrieve the keys to our appartments. 

The Cinque Terre ("Five Lands") are five little Mediterranean villages perched along the northern Italian coast.  The villages are a tangle of steep alleyways and corridors lined with colorful green-shuttered houses.  We are staying in the southernmost village of Riomaggiore and renting two apartments from Claudio and Roberta who have always been gracious landlords.  After a steep climb up to our apartments near the village church, there is time for a well deserved leisurely swim in the Mediterranean. Later, dinner out on the balcony of our apartment while seagulls squawk in the distance and the village church bells peal up on the hillside. 

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Day Eight- ZERMATT

Hoisting ourselves out from beneath the cloudlike coverlets and seeing the wooden houses at our window, smoke rising from chimneys and snow covered peaks in the near distance is almost too  storybookish to believe.  Yet, here we are nestled cozily in the Swiss Alps.  Neal has already left before sunrise to photograph the Matterhorn from the little bridge down the street.  Justin and I, opting for an extra hour of sleep under feather duvets instead of risking the transformation into frozen human popsicles, arrive at breakfast a bit later where everyone is already enjoying cold cuts and cheeses, fresh fruit juices, muesli and a variety of breads.

 
 atop the Gornergrat peak under clear sunny skies
 

Today is our much anticipated ride up the mountain to the 10,000 foot Gornergrat peak and to our relief, the skies are cloudless over the Matterhorn where we spend the major part of the day.  We pose with a St Bernard, play with snow and take zillions of pictures (okay, not ZILLIONS, just millions.)   Back down in Zermatt, I have some Turkish food, relax in a park, stare at chocolate displays in a window and purchase a cowbell.  And toothpaste. Three tubes.  Yes, really.

Late this afternoon, we head south into Italy and then board an overnight train to Rome.  Justin and I share a compartment with an older couple from Panama.  Outside the sleeping compartment, a group of very loud teenagers have boarded the train and are making us just more than a little irritated...

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Day Seven- PARIS to ZERMATT

We are skipping the touristy Montmartre area this morning in favor of wandering the Ile de la Cite at Paris' center.  Any excuse of course to spend a few minutes walking through the plant stalls near the Cite metro station and to relax a bit along the banks of the River Seine.

The crowds around Notre Dame Cathedral are already building but we manage to bypass the long lines under the watchful stare of gargoyles, and sucessfully find the spot marking the center of Paris. 

en route to Switzerland 

At noon, we head to the Gare de Lyon and board a TGV high speed train south to Zermatt.  Mid afternoon, the rolling hills of France suddenly give way to the mountains of Switzerland and by sunset, we are chugging our way up a narrow gorge past icy cold waterfalls and mountain chalets to our final destination for the evening.

Zermatt is cold and clear when we arrive around 8pm.  We make our way through the quiet streets, cross a river and are welcomed into our hotel by a friendly, helpful young woman who has been awaiting our arrival.  Grilled lamb chops and fondue in a candle lit restaurant around the corner, plush bath robes and spa slippers in our rooms and feather duvets on the beds make us feel pampered and luxurious... at least for one night... tomorrow night's going to be waaay diferent.

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Day Six- PARIS

I drop Neal, Cel and Justin off at the Louvre Museum this morning while Suz and Gem rest in.  We are meeting later around lunchtime to transfer to the Hotel des Grandes Ecoles and the sing-song voiced Marie is waiting for us with a smile when we arrive. Aside from a small sprinkle last night, the skies are still clear and sunny and bright.

Gem relaxing in the Tuileries Garden on those oh-so-comfortable chairs

The Hotel des Grandes Ecoles is a little slice of the French countryside right in the middle of Paris. With it's enclosed courtyard, toile print wall papered rooms and hand crocheted bed spreads, it's hard to leave your room in the morning.  But leave we must and we head around the block to Rue Mouffetard where Justin chooses a nice Indian restaurant on the Rue du Pot de Fer for lunch.   We try the Fish Curry and the Lamb Stew, accompanied by cheesy flat breads with spicy pickled chutney and cool mint yogurt, then head off to visit Sebastien who runs a little gift shop where we stock up on souvenirs. Sebastien is his usual friendly self of course and then... it's gelato time. 

 Again.

 Views from the top of the Eiffel tower

The uphill walk from the Louvre to the top of the Champs Elysees is just the ticket to work off our mid-day indulgence although no one seems to mind a short lounge on one of the comfy green garden chairs in the Tuileries around the pond.  The sun sets late and it is well past 8pm by the time we get done visiting the Eiffel Tower and return to the Latin Quarter. 

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