Where are Julie Andrews and the Von Trapps when you need them?
Vienna is beautiful! We have been to a Viennese concert, a couple of different tours, and the Schonnbrunn Palace. WOW! We were even able to convince the older gal (83) in the group to let us push her in a wheelchair so she could see it. She walks slowly and with a walker, and didn't want to be a burden, so it took some convincing. Two hours outside in the heat, alone, feeling sorry for yourself while we look at a beautiful palace? I think not. We think her husband of 60+ years recently died. :(
Left Austria today, and saw the eastern edge of the Alps!! We have arrived in Venice, Italy, for some Italian adventures.
We had to wake up earlier than usual today for a long day on the road. 6 a.m. wake-up call was NOT a highlight. I (Meredith) was cranky until after breakfast and a shower... then much better. :)
Then there was the bus drama! The first day we signed our names on a rotating seating chart. Each day everyone moves clockwise two seats, up or back depending on which side of the bus you're on. This is fine except 1.) the chart didn't have the correct # of seats, the paper was just divided into two columns and X # of rows (too many), 2.) at least one person was missing completely, 3.) the seats themselves weren't numbered on the sheet but are on the actual cloth on the seat (so instead of saying "OK, we started on seat #35, I need to go two seats up," people just went from memory = not so accurate), and 4.) it doesn't take into account human error because we the passengers filled it out (for example, the guy behind us wrote himself in as in front of us therefore throwing everything off from the start). So, maybe it's the teacher in me but all of that needed to be taken into account. Make the paper reflect the actual bus seats (numbered and such) and only enough boxes for seats, duh. And the tour director needs to fill it out with names, not the tourists, to then be checked and the process reiterated the next day. Hello. It seemed people didn't realize, too, that since we were going clockwise the people to your side will change, but those in front and behind won't. So that same guy kept moving around but stayed near us, not realizing that once he was behind us he'd always be behind us. Also, some didn't count a day since we weren't on the bus much, so some people were where they should have been on Day 5 of the rotation (x 2 = 10 seats up) and others on Day 4 (x 2 = 8 seats up). It came to a head this morning when apparently more than just a couple of people were out of order and there was confusion. Yikes!
Anyway, nothing ever came of it even though Marja said we'd figure it out at the rest stop; we never did. We stopped in Velden, Austria. It's a posh resort town and REALLY pretty. Enjoyed the scenery, and people-watching: there was a big-bellied man showing entirely too much butt crack while walking around with his wine glass full of Jagermeister. Ick! He seemed super drunk, and kept chatting up the girl swimming off the dock topless (those crazy Europeans). :)
Back to the bus and then through the eastern part of the Alps... Italy!!
Venetian dinner and tour tonight, then back to the hotel. Tomorrow we have a gondola ride, glass blowing, and dinner.
... Viva Italia!!
(Pictures are Schonbrunn Palace, by the water in Velden, and the Alps en route to Italy)
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