Rapallo, Italy

Determined to get out of the cool weather and not tempt our fate with Italian roads and terraced camping, we decided to take the short-cut to Barcelona. This in mind, we embarked a quick Southern route to Genova in pursuit of a ferry to Barcelona.

Only one campground in Genova was open this time of year and it was flagged as "caution" for large vehicles. We headed a little further out to Rapallo, where there were supposed to be two campgrounds open year-round. Signs were well marked at the exit, but confusion set in as we headed to the first choice - in front, marked "camping" was for all intensive purposes, a truck stop. We wandered around a bit and up the road to the "real" campground, but the space was too small for us to readily navigate. Feeling a little baffled, Dan hopped on a bike and went off to scope the other campground. It was close by, but was chained shut with a padlock!

Not feeling comfortable at the idea of being enclosed behind a padlocked fence, we opted to stay at the "truck stop" (where there were several other motorhomes and a few that were quite obviously permanent). Power was available, but was quite obviously "gray" power - illegally tapped in to from the lines overhead. We opted to skimp by on batteries for the night.

Once the tour busses moved out, we pulled in to an end-spot. Fence on one side and Avis Rent-A-Cars on the other. Feeling pretty safe, we settled in for the night after a brief stroll around town. We awoke and found ourselves completely blocked in by some guy who parked his truck DIRECTLY in front of the motorhome. I should have taken a picture... but just imagine it - there's room enough to (barely) open our door next to the Avis cars. The truck is in front of us, blocking our exit.

We tried to call the number listed on the truck - but the poor woman didn't speak English. A truck driver who was unloading new cars took a look at our predicament and offered to call the police. Police were there immediately, but seemed unable to take action, other than to ticket the guy 35Euro for parking illegally. Fortunately, some gentelman on site to take delivery of the new cars were also the folks in charge of the 4 Avis vehicles ... they offered to retrieve the keys and move the 4 vehicles so we could manuever out of the position.

This done, we hesitantly decided to move to the other end-spot, which was now available and was located directly in front of the entrance. While we normally try to be an unobtrusive as possible, we backed in to the spot and pulled all the way forward in the space. Anyone attempting to block us would be in the middle of the entrance/exit and would likely not be tolerated by the other truck drivers.

The day was beautiful and we wandered around Rapallo, in search of Portofino. We would have been on bikes, except for the little incident with Dan's bike. In the frustration of the morning's events, he forgot that he had leaned the bike against the front of the RV... and he ran over it! Looks like we just need a new front wheel... that's 2 bikes, Dan.

We had a really pleasant afternoon looking out on the Gulf of Genoa (Mediterranean Sea). It was warm out, but the boardwalks were closed for the season. We were left with the promenade, beautiful views, and pictures on the placcards of what the place looks like in full swing (sun chaises cover the boardwalks which extend out over the water... looks like a great place to spend an afternoon sipping your favorite beverage).

Milan, Italy

We spent a week in Milan, most of it revolving around chores – from Megan’s schoolwork to taking care of errands. Our first impression of Milan was not the best. It’s not an overly beautiful city and for the most part, doesn’t seem that welcoming. Read Rick Steve’s recap of the city – he seems to agree. But, our camping neighbors were from the UK and Megan enjoyed having a few English-speaking playmates.

The first day, we successfully took a combination of busses and subways to Central Station. It was a Sunday and we mistakenly thought we would be able to a) be near the town center and b) enjoy a nice lunch. We were wrong on both accounts. Milan’s Central Station is not near the tourist attractions and nothing is open on a Sunday afternoon around 2pm. While we were hugely impressed with Central Station (it’s a beautiful building, huge Roman columns….) and Megan had a head-first run in with one of the statues out front, we were limited to eating either at one of two McDonald’s in the area or at a rather uninspired looking Italian Cafeteria. We chose McDonald’s – and called it a day.

We spent one afternoon at the Dom church and Piazzo Square (sorry if I mis-typed - am rapidly updating the blog from a very expensive Internet connection). Will try to add pictures later - but basically, you're able to climb the church spires and walk among the buttresses. Very cool views of the city below and of the architectural detail for the church. The "arcade" nearby was awesome - great detail inside and the designer names to make those who are in Milan for fashion drool. We had to make a pit-stop at the McDonalds inside and it's truly one of the only "hip" McDonald's I've seen. The only irritating thing was the huge "Road to America" poster in the stairwell. Sheesh. No wonder Europeans hate us if they associate American culture only with McDonalds....

We spent our final day in the city with three goals in mind:
1) find 4amp fuses so we can have drip coffee again
2) visit the National Museum of Science and Technology (famous for the DaVinci wing) and
3) pick up a couple of gifts for friends back in the States.

Happily, we found the 4amp fuses; but instead of finding the National Museum of Science and Technology, we found the ruins of the Castle and a huge park. The area we visited helped to prove that there is beauty in every city. With buildings that didn’t appear to be the concrete, post-war reconstruction and which had fantastic detail work on the exterior. Some even had roof-top gardens that looked lush and inviting.

We never made it back to shopping. Instead, explored the Castle ruins and the adjacent park. As we we arrived at the ruins, a procession of bagpipes and individuals in medieval costumes paraded out of the ruins. Kind of interesting to watch, but we didn’t have any context, other than an article that I’d read which indicates this type of thing frequently occurs at the Castle ruins. Later, when we found the park, there was a full-on medieval fair with Celtic overtones! We wandered through their exhibits a bit (full on tents, weaponery, beverages from the period… with French fries and beer for sale at the concession stands… didn’t know they deep-fried potatoes back in the medieval period). Wandering through the park, we found a huge playground. Never have I seen such a site – the few women in the park were largely decked out in cashmere and stilettos. Forever etched in my mind is this woman walking through the play area, in cashmere and heels with children running wildly all around her.

We’ve developed some new food favorites while here. Among the new family favorites:

• Fresh tomatoes with mozzarella – four weeks ago, the girls wouldn’t try this. Now, they gobble it up like it’s candy.
• Milano salami … mmmm
• Italian cheese

Ciao!

Italy - and the pace slowed down

We've been in Italy for a few days and I must say, the pace slowed down. Language is more of a barrier than anticipated. Most folks don't speak English. Or German. Guess who doesn't speak Italian? Funny thing is, the people around us don't seem to care that we don't speak Italian. In spite of sputtering out "I don't speak Italian. English?" they keep chattering away in Italian, as if we will suddenly start understanding. I've walked away from at least two people who persisted in an Italian dialogue after several attempts to communicate that "I don't understand" have gone unheeded.

We stayed one night in an agricamping spot after an unsuccessful attempt to reach Torboule sul Garda (link to campground is here). The roads were fine all the way to the last turn. Suddenly there was a 5 ton weight restriction and a narrow road at a hairpin angle, that was labeled as the "4th exit" off the roundabout. It was at the same intersection as the 5th exit, but required a sharp right turn. We veered left, not confident we could make it and were instantly in a bad situation. I don't know what it is, but whenever I get Dan into small spaces with the RV, traffic seems to instanly appear out of nowhere.

The agricamping site didn't charge additional for showers (many campgrounds in Germany and Netherlands do). I forgot how good it feels to luxuriate in a hot shower, not having to worry about filling the tanks. We were parked in an alcove for RVs that is basically a swath cut out of their apple orchard - the apple trees were strung on vines, much like grapes and looked more like bushes with huge apples.

Not being able to access the lake, we drove on the next day. Milan was the next destination in our travels. It's starting to get cold at night (mid- to low- 30's overnight) and we're starting to think hard about our winter destination. Our electric blanket is a nice luxury. So is the little oil heater we left on the RV. By closing off the sleeping area, we are able to keep the bunks and our room warm overnight.

Please forgive the fuzzy pictures - these are two examples of the scenery we saw as we drove through Northern Italy enroute to Milan - taken out the RV window and sharpened with Picasa. Simply gorgeous!

We found the campground in Milan with no problem. Though we did re-route the directions provided by Autoroute so we would NOT drive through one of the city rings. Lesson learned from Munich. Look at the entire route carefully - there's frequently an easier approach for a vehicle of our size.

The campground is busier than most we've visited lately. Though the pitches are narrow, there's plenty of room for us and we happened to be parked next to a group of folks from the UK who have kids and who are 3-months in to a 1-year tour. Megan is in kid-heaven. She has new friends to play with and a bit of newfound freedom (she's allowed to go to the on-site playground by herself!).

Obtaining the washing machine tokens was not a problem (at 4,50 per load!). When I inquired for dryer tokens (another 4,50 each), I was told they are all out and didn't know when they would have them back. Maybe Monday but could be Tuesday or later. Fortuantely, the climate is drier and the clothesline worked beautifully even though it was a cool day.

Sunday we ventured in to Milan, expecting to find museums and somewhere to stop for lunch. By virtue of us not knowing where we were going, we followed the route to "central station" and surfaced from the subway station in front of a fantastic transportation center (see building in the picture). A huge art exibit greeted us in the plaza and Megan met one up close and personal (she ran into the briefcase of one of hte statues, getting a nice scrape on her nose and goose-bump on her forehead. We felt fortunate that she didn't break her nose.) The streets were lined with hotels and businesses. Everything was closed. The only open restuarants in a 4-block radius were 2 McDonalds and an Italian "Cafeteria" which didn't look at all inspiring!

The good news: we figured out the subway system and the kids were happy to have new toys. =)

The bad news: we ate at McDonalds in Milan. Even in the US, we avoid MD's as much as humanly possible. They are EVERYWHERE here. (Side note: Our camping neighbors mentioned that a lot of restuarants don't open until much later in the evening - so wasn't surprised at our limited success at 2pm on a Sunday).

More on Milan later. Just wanted to quickly update folks on our location.

Innsbruck, Austria - 47.26828N 11.39181E

Two days ago I found myself wishing for a grand adventure. Something extraordinary and fascinating to "write home about." We had visited Innsbruck that day and were astounded at the beauty - but really only accomplished lunch and hair cuts for me and the girls (for a whopping 20Euro). Feeling a little bummed out on the walk home (with the Alps as my background, boo-hoo...), I realized that adventure is ours for the making and is really more about how we choose to see the experience, than the experience itself.

With renewed energy, I spent the evening on the web, reading up on the tourist hits around town (trust me, they are plentiful). Amazingly, we had seen several on the way to and from lunch - just needed the context.

Dan and I decided to purchase the Innsbruck Card to navigate the city and knock off a few tourist attractions. The card was 24 Euro per adult (kids under 6 are free) and includes use of the city's transportation network in addition to admission to a huge host of tourist attractions. It was a calculated risk - with kids in tow, we really don't normally have the ability to knock off more than 1 or 2 major attractions a day.

Lunch and snacks packed, we headed out. Only, the "Sightseer" bus was a little hard to find from the Hauptbahnhof and each city's transportation is a little different. In this case, there are plenty of street trams and busses going to our destination, but unlike Munich, the routes were not well documented. We got on a tram, but due to road construction, it dropped us off downhill of our destination, Bergisel.

We finally made it up hill to the world class ski jump, Bergisel. Visit the "Galerie" link on their site for some truly phenomonal photographs. We saved our legs the 770 steps and took the tram to the top. Dan and I attempted to explain how ski jumping works to Megan. Somehow the viewpoint of the platform doesn't look as intimidating when you're standing above it, behind a plate of glass and without the snow and crowd below cheering you on. I can only imaging the adrenaline rush the jumpers must experience. Surprisingly, the jump is home to two annual exhibitions - the Four Hills tour in January and the summer ski jumping Grand Prix (the surprise being the dry jumping in summer).

1: Looking down the ski jump, to the area below.

2: The view from the terrace.

3: Sunlight glowing through a flower in the restuarant at Bergsiel.

4: Dan and Megan returning from visiting the Olympic torches.

Next destination was set as NordPark, in search of fantasitc views and possibly the rope bridge. We jumped on the Sightseer bus, and the driver recommended we get off in the middle of the city and catch the "J" bus to NordPark. However, our tourist map showed the Alpenzoo as being in the same area as NordPark. Disregarding the bus driver's advice, and not understanding the route (after Schloss Ambras, the route loop included AlpenZoo), we disembarked at Schloss Ambras to wait the 15 minutes for the Sightseer bus to Alpenzoo. We decided to spend those 15 minutes in the castle and wound up staying more than an hour.

Visiting was well worth our time. We were awestruck at the fantastic collection of armor, swords and early rifles. Equally impressive were the wood ceilings and the detailed wall paintings. This stop alone could have easily taken two or more hours. Tying in to Megan's social studies work, we explored the exotic treasures that early explorers brought back to the castle from their travels (ivory, coral, sharks, samurai suits, even a puffer fish!). In the inner courtyard of the castle remains what they report as one of the best preserved examples of fresco painting. And, don't miss the chaple - it's behind an unobtrusive door but also has a viewing gallery upstairs.

1: Schloss Amras

2: The very first exhibit you see when walking in.

3: Armor, even for the little tykes - cool!

4: The gazebo between the stables, garden and castle.

5: Glimpse through the doorway, into the courtyard, filled with freso painting.

Tired, we jumped on the next Sightseer bus with an end destination of Alpen Zoo. Hey, it was the same driver as who had recommended we disembark in the city center and take the "J" bus to NordPark. Somehow, it still seemed like a good idea to ignore his advice and continue to the zoo. Which we did.

The bus dropped us off "downhill" of the zoo. After conferring with a local, we learn that our route is "doable" but there is no bus to take us from the zoo to NordPark. The zoo, about a 20 minute walk uphill, was supposedly the "halfway" mark. We made it to the zoo ... the woman at the zoo insisted there was no train or cable car to take us up the mountain. Huh. I knew I had read that there is a cable car or gondola to the top. Tired, hungry, thirsty, we decide to push on. Checking in with a cyclist, we learned we were on the right path, but he doubted our shoes (Megan and I were in tennis shoes). Upward for about another 40+ minutes with Sophia being carried on our shoulders, and we reached a residential area. We finally surfaced on the street and saw it - the gondola.

Given the lateness of the day, we would have about 15 minutes at the top. However, since we'd already invested in the Innsbruck Card and a very long walk uphill, we went for it (plus, the weather is supposed to change tomorrow). The gondola from the bottom left at 4:30; we were at the middle station approximately 2 or 3 minutes later. We went straight to the next gondola and to the summit - I think it was about 3 minutes total.

With the weather largely on our side (there was some haze in the valley), we walked to the area behind the station and were met with simply an astounding view. Stunning does not even begin to capture the sentiment of the experience. Here we were, standing at the top of the Alps (TNABers, I know, we didn't "earn" it ... but we did at least get 2 mini hikes in during our experiences today).

1: Us at the top.

2: The gondola shadow on the mountain below.

3 & 4: Picture of the ski routes + the perils of skiing in this region.

Needless to say, we found the bus back to the city (even though it was 20-minutes late) and happily climbed aboard. A quick dinner near the Hauptbahnhof and then a 30-minute wait for the train to Hall. We encountered a mother and two children enroute from school and the boy (not much older than Megan) was prepping for his first English test the next day. He and his sister were so excited to meet people who spoke English! This was probably the most gregarious family we've encountered so far and we had fun bantering back and forth to our stop.

The crescent moon was out with a glow around it. I got my adventure today - a beautiful day of sights and some exercise. Life is truly good.

Our path:

Hall in Tirol, Austria

Continuing our southern descent, we are currently visiting Hall in Tirol, Austria. Magnificent scenery - fantastic small town. Most shops in the old town close from 12 or 12:30-3:00! Nice!

The weather has been fantastic - gorgeous clear, blue sky and warm.

Greetings from the road

Updating 15.October with images and links... =)

After Heidelberg, we made our way to Munich. It was an "exciting" drive which included rolling slow downs by the semi's on the autobahn in both directions, making a 4-hour trip into a 6-hour trip. Here's a picture, taken from the RV window to show you the scale of what was going on. Basically, the semis would speed up a bit, then slow to a stop about every 10-minutes. We have never been so glad to veer off the freeway and go in a direction opposite of other vehicles our size. (Normally, driving behind a semi signifies an ability to get through the path without significant restrictions.)

On the bright side, we spent a fair amount of time behind this truck...whetting Dan's appetite for Oktoberfest.

Upon arrival in Munich, we found small streets and cars parked where we needed to drive. No worry, we mostly made it through without incident. The real kicker came when Dan spotted the bridge height of 3.6m (we need at least 3.7m) and we suddenly had to figure out how to force AutoRoute how to reroute. What we wouldn't give to be able to import height restrictions in to our software. (post note - Dan found the files to import for the US and UK... still searching for other countries.)

Upon arrival at the campground (Camping München Thalkirchen), we were met with disbelief and initially, denial of a camping place. Yes, we had called in advance ... they didn't take reservations... and had been assured that our size was not a problem so long as we arrived after the weekend. A little whining (Dan says he released the "Microsoft Sherry" on the campground) and we secured a parking place for a premium (30Euro/night). The campground was filled with tour bus loads of Oktoberfest tourists ... the pictures below doesn't do it justice. I've never seen tents so tightly packed together! It rained the first several days we were in town and we have never been so glad to have our RV... warm coffee in the mornings and a dry place to sleep at night (we'd walk by and see the bottom of many tents filled with water.)

Our friends Aaron and Kerstin (and Ella) were so accomodating. Aaron arrived first thing the next morning, map and tourist books in hand. He patiently taught us the basics of using the U-bahn and most importantly, how to find their house. We spend a bunch of time together over the course of the next 12 days and can say nothing but a huge "thank you." Aaron and Kerstin arranged for us to go on a hike one day (I forget the name) - at the top of the hike is a playground and beer garden. Then you take a "sled" and use the "slide" to luge down the hill. No snow - beautiful day - lots of fun (well, except for Dan and Megan, who tipped out of the slide on the first hill after issuing a speed challenge to Kerstin... no worries, everyone is fine).

We spent another day at Schloß Neuschwanstein - one of King Ludwig's castles. Think Cinderella's Castle at Disneyland, but this one is real. Very beautiful scenery inside and out. The interior is painted with very vivid and detailed scenes from Wagener's operas (no photos allowed due to copyright issues - but you can see interior pictures on the castle's web page).

Aaron, Kerstin and Ella visited the original castle, which is in the same area. The two castles had one of the first telephones connecting them. Mysteriously, our tour guide completely skipped this fact during our tour. Aaron had informed us of the fact so we were on the lookout during the tour. Visiting Neuschwanstein was very controlled - visitors aren't allowed to freely wander the castle. We felt a little rushed through as the interior is fantastically painted with intricate artwork. The tour does walk visitors through a "secret" door in the King's bedroom, which leads to his dressing room. Other fun facts include the castle having 'running' water (so long as a servant was pulling the cord next to the wash basin) and a flushing toilet.

Later that afternoon we visited a small town called "Garmisch-Partenkirschen" and enjoyed some local "bauernbrot" (barn bread) with "almbutter" (butter from high in the mountains), baumkuchen (yum!), and of course, ice cream for the kids. We had planned to spend the night and take the zeug to the top of the mountain, but as evening set in, so did dark cloud cover. With bad weather pending, we decided to call it a day and enjoy a really nice, traditional Bavarian meal together on the way home.

Upon hearing that we had a series of chores to do, we split forces Saturday, with Kerstin taking me and the kids clothes shopping downtown Munich and Aaron taking Dan out to the outer lying areas (we finally have a coffee pot!!!). I can only say that downtown Munich was a total zoo! Think an American shopping mall in the height of the holiday season and double the amount of people! What a contrast from just a few days prior, when we were there in the middle of the week, on a rainy day.

We missed a bunch of excellent attractions in Munich - just means we need to come back and spend more time in this beautiful city and surrounding area.

Yes, Dan did experience Oktoberfest ... it's a little crazy to say the least. Maybe some pictures will follow in a few weeks - but the experience probably warrants its own blog post.

For the past few days we have been in Uttenreuth, near Nurenburg, visiting a friend of mine from when I was an exchange student in Germany. Lars and Anke have been very gracious hosts, spending evenings with us, reuniting and sharing stories (and beer). Huge thanks to Lars for staring the introduction of Italien food and culture in advance of our visit to Italy! It's much appreciated. Maybe we'll meet again on holiday this winter.

We miss our friends and family - and are enjoying life on the road.

Ciao!
Sherry, Dan & kids

Oktoberfest

During our visit to Munich, we visited Oktoberfest a few times during the middle of the week and the middle of the day. On one occassion, I split forces with Dan and took Megan for just a few hours of going on rides. The expansiveness of the fairgrounds is one thing, but the size of the beer halls is just unbelievable.

Some pictures from our experiences follow.

Huge ferris wheel and view from the top:

(Note: I realize in these first pictures, it looks like no one is at the festival. These were taken on a Tuesday morning around 11am. It was crowded just a few hours later that day. When we visited again later in the week around 6pm, the lanes were crowded and lines had already formed to get inside the beer halls. When Dan and Aaron went back the last Saturday evening of Oktoberfest, it took them about 1-hour to make it in to a beer hall.)

Glimpse of the beer halls: (note: These are not the same beer hall. Each hall has a different theme and speciality.)

Beer - Oktoberfest Sized (note: groups reserve the tables up to 1-year in advance. On this day, all tables were reserved, but we were there a bit before the reservation block and were able to enjoy as long as we left in time. The kids grooved on the largest pretzel ever and gummy bears):

Family Day: Mom and Megan cut loose one day and enjoyed the rides. At some point, Megan decided she doesn't like roller coasters. I finally coaxed her into going on the "log ride." Afterwards, she kept asking why I had "tricked her" into going on it. To Dan, she couldn't stop talking about how much fun the ride was. Funny kid.

Oh, and for the experts in German pastries out there: Yes, I realized post-purchase that the item she's eating had a rum-flavored custard filling. And, yes, the custart was removed prior to consumption. =)