One year later ~ daddy-daughter adventures abroad! (cont.) ~ Day 7 ~ WALK INTO THE POSTCARD... :)

DAY 7

Tuesday 18 July 2017

~

It was a rather early morning in Venice. By necessity. In order to make the most of our day and have time later in the day, we chose to cash in the very precious sleep and breakfast hours...

Double checking everything we headed down to the lobby to finish check out. dad asked the grumpy sleepy receptionist setting out breakfast if we could maybe take something to go since we'd miss the breakfast he was so nicely setting out. And he was so nice enough to give us reign to each choose a fresh warm croissant and jelly packet. Mmm. Those were a nice addition to our morning train ride...

Then it was a long and quick walk through the surprisingly less than quiet streets all the way around to the other side of the river and the farroza. aka Train station. We somehow managed to beat our time sans backpacks when we’d tested it out the previous night. But it wasn’t a walk we wanted to repeat. Though little did we know it was only the tip of the walking iceberg we’d encounter that day. If we knew what was coming perhaps we would have chosen to wander those Venetian streets with our packs for hours. 

Just kidding. (But only kind of…) 

Anyway. On the train, anxiety started to hit again. I don't remember how I stopped it.  

Only 2 hours in business class today. 

My stomach hurt. A couple trips to the bathroom with the push button door. The second time I pushed it the door opened to reveal a shock for both myself and the old man sitting on the throne... ups... I wish I could say that was the only shock of the day but then another woman came after me and did the same thing. Poor man, why didn't he lock the door??

Was that a Monday event? I can't remember if it happened before or after the poor little girl's public urination over the canal... bottoms up...

~

So, business class. To Florence. Then switch trains to a small crowded loud warm second class coach to La Spezia. 

Would have loved to sleep except for the group of loud French students across from us. Well, mostly only one was talking...

~

Then we were in La Spezia. But our misadventures were far from over. 

Long line to reserve our way out of there tomorrow. Talk to mom. Look at google maps and see an alternate route to our best laid plans... buy bus tix and a Coke. Walk ten minutes to a random bus stop and then wait 20 for a bus that never comes. And eventually back to the train station to do our original plan an hour later. An hour wasted. My frustration and self disappointment and the should haves was rising quickly now. Augmented I'm sure by the heat...

~

But we were on the train. And the view of the water after the tunnel was very oraia. 

The trains ran behind so we ended up in riomaggiore with hardly enough time to catch the bus to the hotel.

We clambered up a huge hill swearing and huffing and puffing to no end. Somehow we made it and talked to these two women who said the bus should be coming. It did but we had the wrong tickets. The driver took us anyway though I imagine he thought us silly and frustrating. I stood on the bus that carried us up a small winding mountain road bordering the cliff that led to the water. 

Ufda. 

I was not in a good mood. 

We finally made it to the hotel and then needed to wait 10 minutes to check in. Which we eventually did. 

Then a 10 minute walk down 200 stairs with a beautiful view and the pinkest flowers to our room. 

I was beat. 

How could we salvage this day? We had to try...

~

Very quick changover. rest a minute. Go to the bathroom. Repack backpack. Fill up water. Then let's go...

~ 

15 euros taxi back down those winding narrow steep roads. With an expert driver driving a path I wouldn't want to. Train to Corniglia. Buy trail passes. Wait for a shuttle that wouldn't come so walk the 100 flights of stairs instead (at least so it seemed). 

We hadn't even started the hike yet and already we were exhausted. Especially dad. 

Got lost in the town of Corniglia but found bananas and an apple which ended up being a good idea especially considering we hadn't eaten so much today and expected to hike in the high afternoon heat. 

Eventually ask and find we are just 10 meters from the sign that would tell us we are already headed now in the right direction.  

Loipon. 

It's a long but beautiful trek this path. Lots of ups and downs that dad wouldn't believe me till later the downs can be worse because of the footing. He also wasn't so willing until the end to admit the views made the exhaustion worth it. Ya know, I'm not sure he would admit it still...

Lots of breaks to take pictures (aka catch out breath...). But if you are tired and can't breathe what better place to be than the cinque terre?

Take the extra steps to enter the postcard yourself...

Seas and skies early blended and almost as blue as Greece... cactus the size of baby elephants... beautiful flowers peaking out here and there... stones and limbs placed expertly to mark the path. And railings too. Who could have done this??? Quiet but for the occasional passing hikers. One time the husband sang and whistled and the wife followed, not liking the downward climb... the halfway point was an oasis (or what I imagine a desert one must feel like.  And the 3 euros we spent there for 2 waters is among the best spent money of the whole trip... 

Eventually the hills began to slope more often down. We knew we must be close even if we couldn't feel it. The view opened up and switched from seeing the retreating town to hoping for the approaching one.

And then. We were there. Or almost at least. We still needed to pick our way officially to the train station. 

Dad was bushed. Exhausted. Done for the day. No more exploring necessary.

This must have been our highest step day. 

Back to Riomaggiore on the first train out of Vernazza. Then wait exactly by the bus station in town. A lot closer and a lot less steep then the first one we'd found...

I sought out gelato and dad made friends with a nice traveling couple from New Jersey. Don't know there names. 

We shared the bus back up. Different vehicle but same driver go figure. We were prepared with correct passes this time. Ups. 

~

Back in time for a much needed shower and a pleasant quiet oraia sunset. 

Then dinner at the hotel restaurant. A long climb up. On our way we passed families eating home cooked pasta and wished to join them or at least thought sooner the same idea. 

Eggplant Parmesan and tiramisu tasted good but then did not set well with me. Tummy ache. Ouf. 

~

Make ready a few things for Rome and then... sleep..:

~ 

In the end, managed to salvage and make great the day... :)

One year later ~ daddy-daughter adventures abroad! (cont.) ~ Day 6 ~ ONCE UPON A TIME IN VENICE... :)

DAY 6

Monday 17^th July 2017

Venice

Woke up early—after a very short night. Probably didn’t sleep until after 2 and then maybe you could call that fitful state of tossing and turning sleep…

Eyes still hurt from the tired and tears…

Dad said we could go to the train station and try to change our reservation till a later time so that we could check out the lost and found address at 830.

So we showered and got ready and set across the street to do so. Not a problem to switch. 945 now. So we had some time.

Back across the street to the hotel (good thing we were so close…and hadn’t picked the hotel that was like a mile away…)

Continental breakfast there. Would have been good but I had worked myself into a royal stomach ache. Nausea. No appetite. And the tears still pressed…

Conversations again to try to work through and get over it and dad trying to help me…

At 830 we went to the front desk and asked the lady to call for us. She did, but no answer. Said maybe we could try again at 9 before we leave. She didn’t seem too optimistic about the chance, but was nice enough to help.

We went back to the room and dawdled…scrolled facebook mindlessly…maybe we talked…

Then finalized all of our stuff and headed down to check out and try again. She got through this time, but they said they only get lost items once a week and to try again later this week or next. So… no miracle… still trying to trust ola tha pane kala… all will go well…

Left the hotel and crossed the street one last time.

Who took a bite out of the big silver apple??? Whoever it was tried to sew it back on… that’s what it looks like.

Aribiderci, Milan—it’s been… Well, I’m sorry it wasn’t better…

~

Talked to Spyros before we left on the train and then we had to hustle to the train… last minute indecision/panic when I saw a train heading to Ventimiglia… but it wasn’t the same, and even if it had been, we didn’t have the time to check…

Still too close to the loss to see clearly, to see past the pain. I think what makes it worse is that I know exactly where it would be. It’s not like I can’t remember the last place I had it and don’t know where even to look. I know! I can retrace every step to where and when I lost it and I can see it so clearly. But I have no way to retrace those steps or wind back the clock and get it back. I can scream at my past self all I want to double check and not forget it, but…

But, alas…

There’s pain in the loss, there’s pain in the mistake, there’s pain in knowing where it is, but having no way to get there. Like I can see it across this wide divide, maybe there’s a river gushing between us and we’re standing on the cliff. But I can’t go get it. And now it’s time to head in the other direction, too…

~

loipon.

I still feel bad about the loss time. And the lost chance to see Milan. Dad’s still trying to figure out how to help me. Wants me to decide to salvage what we have left of the day and the week and not keep beating myself, not let this ruin my joy…

I don’t remember what or how but somehow I must have decided to turn it around.

Oh, that’s right. Now I remember. I wrote. I wrote through it. I tried to intentionally lay it out and put it down and in so doing let it go.

That’s in a separate document…

I think it helped.

Because we were able to have a good day in Venice…

~

It was about a 2 hour ride to Venice and we were in business class which is quite the luxury compared to what we are used to (and we would remember exactly how much when we switched to the crowded, second class, warm, cramped other trains…

Loipon.

We crossed the water and then were in Venice…

Disembarking the train, we found the Trenitalia office and made our reservations to leave early the next day. On the train we had officially decided to skip Florence to make for more time in Cinque Terre and then I worked out the details of how to get there and how we would pass the next days.

Then, time to board the water taxi. As we were standing outside the vaporetto station nearest the train station amidst a crazy swarm of people, trying to decipher which ticket to buy… a man with a family of four asked us if we needed tickets and then gave us two saying they were good till 7 that night.

We accepted with some hesitation or maybe just shock/confusion. But it’s exactly what we would have done and I think have done in similar circumstances in the past. Tried to help out someone else, especially if we no longer needed. Like an extra coupon passed along in line…

We used the tickets, and then stood the next half hour or so in a crowd of people waiting to board the next one. Maybe we should have walked we thought.

But then as soon as we were on, we realized this was a good option.

We got to see our first glimpses of the magic that is Venice—built on water, gandolas, old colorful houses with porches. A bit dirty, a bit falling apart in places. But still. It’s just… neat.

We got off at our stop near the famed and beautiful (and crowded) Rialto bridge.

Then using our instinct and directions and google maps, we found our hotel on the other side of the river and checked in.

~

Guerarto Pensione.

A neat place. Lots of character. But then, that’s got to happen when you put a hotel in a building that is 800+ years old! The people were nice. Only downfall: No wifi. Loipon.

We rested a bit, then set out to find the recommended restaurant from the receptionist. Which was nearby. I was a little hesitant. Afraid I think because I didn’t want to even make a mistake of not eating at the best possible place while we were there. But dad was convinced and even offered to pay for all of it. And I pulled out my rick steves’ book just to double check if maybe we shouldn’t go somewhere else and when I did the waiter said he could give us free prosecco because of it. So we sat. And there was no going back.

But it was okay. We looked and found it was in the book after all. Dad had spaghetti and sauce and I had lasagna at the waiter’s rec and it was all good.

Nice to sit outside. People watch (there appear to be so many spoiled children out on vacation… Maybe I’m misjudging the situation… I mean, if I had the chance wouldn’t I want to take my kids on trips like this??)

After lunch we were full and just wandered around the narrow streets. No real direction or plan…

Stumbled across a nice, beautiful handmade art store.. Postcards there… the artist was very nice… But I forgot to take the bag she offered and so walked around the rest of the day holding the cards so they wouldn’t bend. Loipon.

Eventually we made it to a park and sat for a while. We were tired. Then decided to just get on a vaporetto and see the island before our passes expired.

And so that’s what we did although it took us a while to be able to get on one. They kept emptying off at our stop. Eventually we did though and it was worth the wait because we got front seat views and a nice long ride around. Saw some big cruise ships…

We got off around St. Mark’s… I laid on the dock because I was feeling nauseous.

Again, there’s something about laying down. When you’re tired enough, even the hard dirty concrete amidst hundreds of tourists next to dirty water and pigeons is preferable J

*** 

"Well, I think still parts of our Venetian Monday remain to be written (on my computer)"

...

Except, oops! I never did go back and write about the rest of our day in Venice... 

If I remember correctly (and it's hard to remember one year later!), I think we walked around. Then walked some more. And finished the day with some more walking before walking back to our hotel for the night... 

But really, that's about it. We stopped somewhere and ordered sodas to quench our thirst (even though we know that's not how it works) ~ but primarily so we could mooch off the cafe's wifi and contact loved ones. The wifi was out at the hotel, so we knew we wouldn't be able to reach them later. 

We set out then in search of bandaids (My dad had a wicked blister on his foot from all this walking...). We found the bright green plus sign that let us know a pharmacy was within, then scoured the shelves looking for a bandaid. We found one. And then we found a spot half under a bridge so he could put the bandaid on...

Then we made a long walk, to try to scout out what the walk would be to get around and across the canal back to our train station early the next morning. To try and avoid paying 15 bucks for a 7 minute ride...

It was a long walk without backpacks... oy vey.

But it gave us a lovely view of the setting sun over the canal (the last photo above^).

We weren't hungry. So we just had gelato to round out the night (although I remember walking by the place we were looking for while walking around and around in circles with our Rick Steve's book, trying to find the recommended spot, and not realizing it was actually on that corner. 

And then we made it back to the hotel room. Organized and settled in for the night.

And realized that I didn't have any space left on my computer to store the 16 gigs of videos and pics taken over these last days! Ahhhhh! Commence a just-shy-of-panic scramble to figure out how to save the memories and make room for more, while not losing too much data on my computer. 

Note to self, pack a flash drive next time...

***

(OK. So a lot more came back a year later than I thought. But imagine if I hadn't written these blog posts a year ago, as they were happening. My dad said tonight, he hardly remembers where we went! 

Grateful to have taken the time and words to write these lines that will grasp onto the memories made on our adventure, and ground them here, to help us keep connected... :)

Winged words, right? :)