I transferred from Anderson College to Presbyterian College in 1973. My choices were Lander College in Greenwood or PC in Clinton. I didn't want to go to school where my Grandmother lived, so I decided on PC. They had a very good reputation for having a good Drama program, and they did.
My roommate was chosen for me. He was a black basketball player. He liked to party at night and sleep for a couple of hours before getting up to go to class. He had an 8:00am class. Most of my classes didn't start until at least 10am. So, he would get up and put on James Brown's song "I've got ants in my pants, and I need to dance". He used that song to wake up. Unfortunately, it woke me up too. I liked James Brown but not that early.
I lived with this roommate for about a week. I couldn't stand his parties and his schedule. We mutually agreed to seek out other roommates. The dorm counselor found someone for me. His name was Gary, and he was in the same boat as me, because he didn't get along with his assigned roommate. So, Gary and I joined forces. He was a good guy, although somewhat bigoted. We had long talks at night, and by the end of the year, I had helped him work through some of his wrong thoughts. More about that situation later.
Sunday, February 28, 2016
Saturday, February 13, 2016
Going Home
Leaving Barcelona meant it was the last day of our Europe trip. We had been through a lot. From an international incident in Israel to almost being mugged in Paris to taking down a Swiss soldier to having a gun pointed at me in Barcelona, it had been a trip that I would remember the rest of my life. One requirement on our trip was never to take a picture of Sandra and Talula without makeup. So, as we were leaving the hotel to get on the bus for the airport, I took a picture of them without makeup. They were not happy about that.
We boarded our plane for home. It was to be an eight-hour flight. We stopped briefly to refuel in Lisbon before heading out for the Atlantic. The stewardess allowed us to stand on the tarmac to say we had been to Portugal. Nine countries in 21 days.
The flight home was long. Some people spent the time sleeping. I listened to music and watched a movie. They showed "Ten from Your Show of Shows" in our cabin. It was very funny. We could see the first class cabin from our seats. They were showing "1776" in there, but our movie was better. I also composed the music to a song that I had written in Israel called "Save the World for the Children". I used my arm to work out the chords for a guitar. Other passengers looked at me funny, but it passed the time. Later on in life, Pope John Paul II blessed my song.
Exhaustion was creeping in. Despite being excited that we were going home, jet lag was also kicking in. On the flight from New York to Greenville, Talula, Sandra and I were sitting on the same row. Talula's head rested on the window. Sandra's head rested on Talula's shoulder. My head rested on Sandra's shoulder. The three musketeers were together for the last time. And, we were asleep.
When the plane landed in Greenville, each family greeted the weary time travelers. My parents took me to a motel for the night and then home the next morning. It took me ten days to get over the jet lag. I had a whole bunch of pictures to develop. About a month later, I went to Sandra's home in Sandy Springs to get some pictures she had that I didn't and vice versa. She went on to the University of Georgia. I went to Presbyterian College. Talula had one more year at Anderson College. We have stayed in touch over the years, but there are a few subjects from the trip which we all promised we would never talk about. I can't write about them here. Hopefully, they will never be shared outside of what we promised. It is just something we have to respect of each other. Maybe one day...
We boarded our plane for home. It was to be an eight-hour flight. We stopped briefly to refuel in Lisbon before heading out for the Atlantic. The stewardess allowed us to stand on the tarmac to say we had been to Portugal. Nine countries in 21 days.
The flight home was long. Some people spent the time sleeping. I listened to music and watched a movie. They showed "Ten from Your Show of Shows" in our cabin. It was very funny. We could see the first class cabin from our seats. They were showing "1776" in there, but our movie was better. I also composed the music to a song that I had written in Israel called "Save the World for the Children". I used my arm to work out the chords for a guitar. Other passengers looked at me funny, but it passed the time. Later on in life, Pope John Paul II blessed my song.
Exhaustion was creeping in. Despite being excited that we were going home, jet lag was also kicking in. On the flight from New York to Greenville, Talula, Sandra and I were sitting on the same row. Talula's head rested on the window. Sandra's head rested on Talula's shoulder. My head rested on Sandra's shoulder. The three musketeers were together for the last time. And, we were asleep.
When the plane landed in Greenville, each family greeted the weary time travelers. My parents took me to a motel for the night and then home the next morning. It took me ten days to get over the jet lag. I had a whole bunch of pictures to develop. About a month later, I went to Sandra's home in Sandy Springs to get some pictures she had that I didn't and vice versa. She went on to the University of Georgia. I went to Presbyterian College. Talula had one more year at Anderson College. We have stayed in touch over the years, but there are a few subjects from the trip which we all promised we would never talk about. I can't write about them here. Hopefully, they will never be shared outside of what we promised. It is just something we have to respect of each other. Maybe one day...
Sunday, January 31, 2016
Barcelona
Our last morning in Paris was cold and rainy. The day before, the girls and I had visited a perfume store near our hotel. They had decided that there was a men's cologne that "turned them on". It was Paco Rabanne pour Homme. I went back to that store the next day and bought a bottle. A year later, my brother got married and honeymooned in Paris. I asked him to pick up another bottle of that cologne at the same shop as before. He did. I still have both bottles some 40+ years later. I don't suppose it would smell quite the same. I dare not try.
We flew to Barcelona, which was the last real stop on our 21-day tour. Barcelona was sunny and hot. When we would land at an airport, the officials would breeze us through, because we were in a tour group. I thought Barcelona would be the same, so I got my luggage and headed to the front door to catch our bus. I heard a man yell behind me, "Alto! Alto!". I just kept walking and thinking that I was more of a baritone. Then, a Spanish soldier stuck a machine gun in my face and yelled "Alto!". I learned that he was telling me to stop. I also learned that it is important to know a little of the language. He ushered me back to Customs. I tried to tell him that I was not bringing in anything, but he pushed me with his gun to stand in a line that I really didn't need to be in.
Spain was still controlled by Franco in 1973. His picture was everywhere, and we found Barcelona to be rather boring, compared to some of the other cities we had been to like Paris, London, Berlin, Lucerne, and others. After we got to our hotel and checked in, the girls and I went walking. They found a dress shop that I had to go with them, as I was their protector. Boring. We found an open-air market, where people sold fruits and vegetables. Boring. We then found a nine-store department store. That was more interesting. I used to say that when a store said that they sold everything, my question would always be--"Do they sell trees?" If the answer was no, then they didn't sell everything. This store sold everything. One regret was that I didn't buy the Spanish Beatles albums, but I wasn't into collecting records at that time. As I was looking through the records, I noticed that the girls were gone. I couldn't have Mr. Vivian yelling at me again for losing them, so I went running through the store (all nine floors). They were nowhere to be found. After much searching, I went downstairs to the first floor and waited for them. They showed up, and it turned out that they were looking for me, as I was looking for them. We were going around in circles.
The next day, we toured Barcelona. We went to a big cathedral; the Picasso museum; a Columbus statue; and a glass-blowing place. One of our tour members bought a sword-shaped letter opener. She tried to take it on the plane, but they wouldn't let her have it. They never asked me about the knife I carried with me for protection. Go figure.
One of the people on our tour was a Spanish teacher. It turned out that she couldn't read the menu, because her Spanish was different. When we flew into the airport the day before, we saw a beach. The girls and I wanted to go to the beach, but the hotel guy said that it was 40 miles away. So, we didn't go. The girls wanted to call home, because we were flying out the next day back to the States. The hotel desk clerk said that the telephone lines were down due to a recent forest fire. We found out later that he just didn't want to be bothered. He directed us to the local post office, and they had phones that worked. So, those were the phones we used. I hear that Barcelona is better now, since they hosted the Olympics. I hope so.
We flew to Barcelona, which was the last real stop on our 21-day tour. Barcelona was sunny and hot. When we would land at an airport, the officials would breeze us through, because we were in a tour group. I thought Barcelona would be the same, so I got my luggage and headed to the front door to catch our bus. I heard a man yell behind me, "Alto! Alto!". I just kept walking and thinking that I was more of a baritone. Then, a Spanish soldier stuck a machine gun in my face and yelled "Alto!". I learned that he was telling me to stop. I also learned that it is important to know a little of the language. He ushered me back to Customs. I tried to tell him that I was not bringing in anything, but he pushed me with his gun to stand in a line that I really didn't need to be in.
Spain was still controlled by Franco in 1973. His picture was everywhere, and we found Barcelona to be rather boring, compared to some of the other cities we had been to like Paris, London, Berlin, Lucerne, and others. After we got to our hotel and checked in, the girls and I went walking. They found a dress shop that I had to go with them, as I was their protector. Boring. We found an open-air market, where people sold fruits and vegetables. Boring. We then found a nine-store department store. That was more interesting. I used to say that when a store said that they sold everything, my question would always be--"Do they sell trees?" If the answer was no, then they didn't sell everything. This store sold everything. One regret was that I didn't buy the Spanish Beatles albums, but I wasn't into collecting records at that time. As I was looking through the records, I noticed that the girls were gone. I couldn't have Mr. Vivian yelling at me again for losing them, so I went running through the store (all nine floors). They were nowhere to be found. After much searching, I went downstairs to the first floor and waited for them. They showed up, and it turned out that they were looking for me, as I was looking for them. We were going around in circles.
The next day, we toured Barcelona. We went to a big cathedral; the Picasso museum; a Columbus statue; and a glass-blowing place. One of our tour members bought a sword-shaped letter opener. She tried to take it on the plane, but they wouldn't let her have it. They never asked me about the knife I carried with me for protection. Go figure.
One of the people on our tour was a Spanish teacher. It turned out that she couldn't read the menu, because her Spanish was different. When we flew into the airport the day before, we saw a beach. The girls and I wanted to go to the beach, but the hotel guy said that it was 40 miles away. So, we didn't go. The girls wanted to call home, because we were flying out the next day back to the States. The hotel desk clerk said that the telephone lines were down due to a recent forest fire. We found out later that he just didn't want to be bothered. He directed us to the local post office, and they had phones that worked. So, those were the phones we used. I hear that Barcelona is better now, since they hosted the Olympics. I hope so.
Thursday, January 14, 2016
Paris
We toured Paris on a Sunday. I was so looking forward to using my 5 years of French. While waiting for our bus, a French man approached me. He started speaking very fast in French. I couldn't understand a word he said. I knew he was asking for directions, but that was about it. I had to tell him that I didn't know, because I was an American. My ego was deflated. I found out later that they teach French spoken on the Riviera in American schools. Parisian French is different. Oh well.
Our first stop was the Louvre. Beautiful artwork. We also went to the Modern Art museum. The group thought that I could interpret the paintings, especially of Picasso. I just made up meanings, and everybody said they could see the meanings I was saying. Weird.
While we were at the modern art museum, there was a guy on roller skates and an umbrella doing his art. People were giving him money for opening and closing the umbrella. I guess art is in the eye of the beholder.
We didn't get to go to the Eiffel Tower, but we did see it from an overlook. The girls had their pictures taken on the ledge. It was the same spot that Hitler had viewed the tower some 30 years before. We did go to the Arc de Triumphe. The cars were whizzing by and there were no traffic lights. I almost got killed twice to get the pictures I wanted. But, I got them.
That night, the girls went to bed, so I walked over to the park that I had been to the night before. It was cold and misty. As I was sitting by the fountain, I saw a man approach me. I got up and started to walk away. He continued to follow me. I figured that he was probably out to rob me, so I proceeded to walk a little faster. He did too. By this time, I was getting toward a street. There were a few cars going by, so I ran in between two cars to try and shake him. He followed me through the traffic. I found a street more heavily traveled. I ran between more cars, and he stopped chasing me. I doubled back to the hotel to make sure I had lost him. Maybe he was friends with Sam, Omar and Sam from Jerusalem. I don't know. But, I thought that folks only got mugged in New York, not Paris. I am glad I didn't become a statistic. I am also glad I didn't have to explain it to a policeman, as he wouldn't be able to understand my French, and I wouldn't be able to understand him.
After I got back to the hotel, the girls wanted to go for ice cream at a restaurant nearby. The waitress was rude to us. After all, we were Americans.
Our first stop was the Louvre. Beautiful artwork. We also went to the Modern Art museum. The group thought that I could interpret the paintings, especially of Picasso. I just made up meanings, and everybody said they could see the meanings I was saying. Weird.
While we were at the modern art museum, there was a guy on roller skates and an umbrella doing his art. People were giving him money for opening and closing the umbrella. I guess art is in the eye of the beholder.
We didn't get to go to the Eiffel Tower, but we did see it from an overlook. The girls had their pictures taken on the ledge. It was the same spot that Hitler had viewed the tower some 30 years before. We did go to the Arc de Triumphe. The cars were whizzing by and there were no traffic lights. I almost got killed twice to get the pictures I wanted. But, I got them.
That night, the girls went to bed, so I walked over to the park that I had been to the night before. It was cold and misty. As I was sitting by the fountain, I saw a man approach me. I got up and started to walk away. He continued to follow me. I figured that he was probably out to rob me, so I proceeded to walk a little faster. He did too. By this time, I was getting toward a street. There were a few cars going by, so I ran in between two cars to try and shake him. He followed me through the traffic. I found a street more heavily traveled. I ran between more cars, and he stopped chasing me. I doubled back to the hotel to make sure I had lost him. Maybe he was friends with Sam, Omar and Sam from Jerusalem. I don't know. But, I thought that folks only got mugged in New York, not Paris. I am glad I didn't become a statistic. I am also glad I didn't have to explain it to a policeman, as he wouldn't be able to understand my French, and I wouldn't be able to understand him.
After I got back to the hotel, the girls wanted to go for ice cream at a restaurant nearby. The waitress was rude to us. After all, we were Americans.
Friday, January 1, 2016
The Train
We left Lucerne the next morning on the train bound for Paris. The girls and I got a private compartment. Mr. Vivian didn't want us to close the blinds to the corridor. I guess he didn't want any hanky panky going on in there. We used the seats as two beds and took turns lying down using a leg of someone else as a pillow.
The train took us through the Alps on the way to Paris. It was an all-day trip. Somewhere along the way, the train picked up a group of Portuguese soldiers. They were supposed to be in second class, but they spilled out onto the corridor outside our compartment. They went a little crazy, when they saw the girls. I tried to keep them from opening the door to our first class place. They were banging on the glass. The conductor showed up and cleared the aisle. He made them go back to second class, but they soon came back. I was wearing the wedding ring from the play to help in protection of the girls. One of the soldiers was drooling over seeing Sandra, so I pointed at my ring and pointed at her. He pointed at his finger with no ring and pointed at her. He laughed. We didn't. What was it about us and run-ins with soldiers? The conductor came back and this time he barred them from our area.
We went to the dining car to get something to eat, and Sandra broke a tooth. When we got to Paris, she couldn't eat. I checked with the concierge about a dentist. It was Saturday night. I phoned a dentist, who spoke little English, but he worked at the American Hospital. (Go figure) I told him in French that it was an emergency. Sandra was in pain. The dentist didn't want to leave his house, so he told me that it wasn't an emergency, and for her to take some aspirin and find some candle wax to put on the spot. She could wait until getting back home in 4 days. It was not the news we wanted to hear, but we got some wax from the concierge, and Sandra went to bed. The other girls wanted to relax, so I went out walking in the neighborhood that night. I found a nice park with a fountain. I sat for an hour and reflected on the trip so far. I had wanted to go out to Maxim's for dinner, but that didn't work out. At least, my five years of French helped a bit.
The train took us through the Alps on the way to Paris. It was an all-day trip. Somewhere along the way, the train picked up a group of Portuguese soldiers. They were supposed to be in second class, but they spilled out onto the corridor outside our compartment. They went a little crazy, when they saw the girls. I tried to keep them from opening the door to our first class place. They were banging on the glass. The conductor showed up and cleared the aisle. He made them go back to second class, but they soon came back. I was wearing the wedding ring from the play to help in protection of the girls. One of the soldiers was drooling over seeing Sandra, so I pointed at my ring and pointed at her. He pointed at his finger with no ring and pointed at her. He laughed. We didn't. What was it about us and run-ins with soldiers? The conductor came back and this time he barred them from our area.
We went to the dining car to get something to eat, and Sandra broke a tooth. When we got to Paris, she couldn't eat. I checked with the concierge about a dentist. It was Saturday night. I phoned a dentist, who spoke little English, but he worked at the American Hospital. (Go figure) I told him in French that it was an emergency. Sandra was in pain. The dentist didn't want to leave his house, so he told me that it wasn't an emergency, and for her to take some aspirin and find some candle wax to put on the spot. She could wait until getting back home in 4 days. It was not the news we wanted to hear, but we got some wax from the concierge, and Sandra went to bed. The other girls wanted to relax, so I went out walking in the neighborhood that night. I found a nice park with a fountain. I sat for an hour and reflected on the trip so far. I had wanted to go out to Maxim's for dinner, but that didn't work out. At least, my five years of French helped a bit.
Friday, December 18, 2015
Lucerne
Our full day in Lucerne, Switzerland could be told in three parts. Each part was different than the others. Three different moods. Three different situations.
The first part was the trip to Mount Pilatus. We took a railcar up the mountain to the top. There were ravens flying around, and it was cold. I had a jacket. We had come from 130 degrees in Israel to around 50 degrees in the Alps. Our main group of the four girls wanted me to take a picture of them sitting on a wall with the mountains in the background. As I was about to take the picture, Mr. Vivian wanted two other girls, who we didn't associate with, to get in the picture. It was a bit uncomfortable. The picture illustrates that some were smiling, while others were not. We left the mountain on a ski lift.
After lunch, the second part of the day occurred. I got to watch swans eat whole apples and see them slide down their necks. They seemed to like it. The girls and I went shopping. The stores were very modern. Crystal, watches, and giftware. In each shop we entered, they had long stemmed roses to give to the customers. I kept mine all the way back to the States, but the customs folks took the flower off of the stem and kept it in case I was trying to smuggle in any weird bugs. I still have the stem.
The third part of the day started around 5pm. Sandra and I were tired of having to hang around the others all the time. It was getting kind of old. There was a movie theatre next door to the hotel, and they were playing a French film. As I knew French pretty well, I asked Sandra if she wanted to go to the movies that night. She said yes. There was just a little too much drama between her and another girl on the trip. The other three girls were going to spend that night writing postcards, so it was a perfect time for the two of us to get away from the others. At dinner, one of the girls said she wanted to go to a toy shop across the street from the hotel. Sandra looked at me, and I said we were going to do something else, but Mr. Vivian reminded me that I had to go where the majority wanted to go, because I had to be their protector. So, no movies.
After we left the toy store, we started to walk toward the old bridge and shops that we had seen that afternoon. What was Lucerne like at night? After our rough time in Jerusalem at night, you would think we had learned our lesson about strange cities at night, but no. Three of the girls were walking ahead of me, and Sandra was slightly behind me. All of a sudden, I heard her scream. I looked behind, and there were five drunk Swiss soldiers in a circle, and Sandra was in the middle of the circle. She was being passed around from soldier to soldier. They were laughing. She wasn't. As I knew some elements of karate, I put my hand on the shoulder of one of the soldiers and pulled back hard, putting him to the ground. I said "Cool it!". I grabbed Sandra, and we ran toward the other girls and away from the soldiers. Thankfully, they didn't chase us. I could hear one of them say to me, "Oh, big man". The one problem from that was than Sandra's hair was on the shoulder of the soldier, so when I pulled him down, I pulled Sandra's hair, too. She said it hurt, but she was glad we got out of there. We ran several blocks, so that the soldiers wouldn't know what hotel we were staying in. When we got back to the hotel, we were all out of breath. Once again, we had to lie to Mr. Vivian about where we had been.
I really liked Lucerne, but we should have gone to the movies.
The first part was the trip to Mount Pilatus. We took a railcar up the mountain to the top. There were ravens flying around, and it was cold. I had a jacket. We had come from 130 degrees in Israel to around 50 degrees in the Alps. Our main group of the four girls wanted me to take a picture of them sitting on a wall with the mountains in the background. As I was about to take the picture, Mr. Vivian wanted two other girls, who we didn't associate with, to get in the picture. It was a bit uncomfortable. The picture illustrates that some were smiling, while others were not. We left the mountain on a ski lift.
After lunch, the second part of the day occurred. I got to watch swans eat whole apples and see them slide down their necks. They seemed to like it. The girls and I went shopping. The stores were very modern. Crystal, watches, and giftware. In each shop we entered, they had long stemmed roses to give to the customers. I kept mine all the way back to the States, but the customs folks took the flower off of the stem and kept it in case I was trying to smuggle in any weird bugs. I still have the stem.
The third part of the day started around 5pm. Sandra and I were tired of having to hang around the others all the time. It was getting kind of old. There was a movie theatre next door to the hotel, and they were playing a French film. As I knew French pretty well, I asked Sandra if she wanted to go to the movies that night. She said yes. There was just a little too much drama between her and another girl on the trip. The other three girls were going to spend that night writing postcards, so it was a perfect time for the two of us to get away from the others. At dinner, one of the girls said she wanted to go to a toy shop across the street from the hotel. Sandra looked at me, and I said we were going to do something else, but Mr. Vivian reminded me that I had to go where the majority wanted to go, because I had to be their protector. So, no movies.
After we left the toy store, we started to walk toward the old bridge and shops that we had seen that afternoon. What was Lucerne like at night? After our rough time in Jerusalem at night, you would think we had learned our lesson about strange cities at night, but no. Three of the girls were walking ahead of me, and Sandra was slightly behind me. All of a sudden, I heard her scream. I looked behind, and there were five drunk Swiss soldiers in a circle, and Sandra was in the middle of the circle. She was being passed around from soldier to soldier. They were laughing. She wasn't. As I knew some elements of karate, I put my hand on the shoulder of one of the soldiers and pulled back hard, putting him to the ground. I said "Cool it!". I grabbed Sandra, and we ran toward the other girls and away from the soldiers. Thankfully, they didn't chase us. I could hear one of them say to me, "Oh, big man". The one problem from that was than Sandra's hair was on the shoulder of the soldier, so when I pulled him down, I pulled Sandra's hair, too. She said it hurt, but she was glad we got out of there. We ran several blocks, so that the soldiers wouldn't know what hotel we were staying in. When we got back to the hotel, we were all out of breath. Once again, we had to lie to Mr. Vivian about where we had been.
I really liked Lucerne, but we should have gone to the movies.
Friday, November 27, 2015
The Rhine
We left Berlin and flew back to Frankfurt, so that we could board a bus to take us on a tour of the German countryside. The plan was to gather our bags and put them on the bus. Easy huh? Well, as I was waiting on my bag on the carousel, I started to see clothes come out first, and I realized that they were mine. The locks on my bag had broken, and everyone was seeing my underwear, socks, shirts, and pants come down the conveyor belt. I was mortified. I gathered up my clothes to the cheers of the other passengers and then got a belt to secure my bag. I used that story to sell luggage successfully years later in several retail stores. It always worked, because the customers were afraid it could happen to them too.
We boarded the bus and headed out on our tour of Germany. The bus had a radio tuned to the Armed Forces Network, and we finally heard some western music, after so long without it. Gilbert O'Sullivan's "Get Down" put a smile on our faces. Dawn's "Tie a Yellow Ribbon" was great, too. We changed the lyrics to "It's been three long weeks" from "three long years". It seemed fitting, and that became our theme song for the rest of the trip.
Our bus got to Koblenz, which was special to Sandra, because her father had been there during World War II. After visiting a few other towns, it was time for lunch. We stopped at a quaint German restaurant in a quaint German town. The food was good. I ordered bottled water with my meal, and the label had the word "Durst" on it. I kept the bottle and still have it as a souvenir. I went to a rest room, which was in a building in the center of a road. One had to walk down some steps to get to the rest room, and there were windows at the top that one could easily look in from the road. It was also pretty smelly.
We got back on the bus and headed to a pickup point for a tour boat to take us on a two-hour tour on the Rhine. The boat went past castles and farmland on mountainsides. We saw cows grazing on the steep sides, and Talula wondered why the cows weren't tumbling down the hills. I told her that maybe two legs were longer than the others. I thought it was funny. She didn't. Don't joke about cows to Talula. Two hours passed, and we were still on the boat. Three...Four...and more. We thought it was a two-hour tour, but it ended up being closer to six. Six Hours on a boat. Some folks got naps. Some ate. A few of the girls chatted up the crew. It turned out that the boat was sailing upstream, which caused it to move slower, so we got more for our money than we should have had. Night was falling, and we moved on to our next hotel stop in Weisbaden. It was kind of misty raining there. The hotel was downtown near a big park. I dropped off my bags and went to the park to sit on a bench. I watched the people go by, not knowing that there was a casino across the park from where I was. I found out about it the next day. The girls went to a club near the hotel. I didn't go with them, even though I was supposed to. I got back to the hotel before they did. Mr. Vivian got mad again, and that was the last time we were ever apart during the trip.
The next day, we boarded the bus to tour the Black Forest region of Germany. A lot of quaint homes. Everything in this part of the tour was quaint. The highlight of the day was Reinfall. It was where the Rhine River went over some rocks to form a wide waterfall. I have to say that it is the prettiest place I have ever seen in all of the world. It is on the border between Germany and Switzerland. We took in the natural beauty and then boarded the bus again.
We arrived in Lucerne, Switzerland for the night. The hotel was swanky. The restaurant was on the top floor. It was right in the middle of town. This was going to be a great stop for us, or so we thought.
We boarded the bus and headed out on our tour of Germany. The bus had a radio tuned to the Armed Forces Network, and we finally heard some western music, after so long without it. Gilbert O'Sullivan's "Get Down" put a smile on our faces. Dawn's "Tie a Yellow Ribbon" was great, too. We changed the lyrics to "It's been three long weeks" from "three long years". It seemed fitting, and that became our theme song for the rest of the trip.
Our bus got to Koblenz, which was special to Sandra, because her father had been there during World War II. After visiting a few other towns, it was time for lunch. We stopped at a quaint German restaurant in a quaint German town. The food was good. I ordered bottled water with my meal, and the label had the word "Durst" on it. I kept the bottle and still have it as a souvenir. I went to a rest room, which was in a building in the center of a road. One had to walk down some steps to get to the rest room, and there were windows at the top that one could easily look in from the road. It was also pretty smelly.
We got back on the bus and headed to a pickup point for a tour boat to take us on a two-hour tour on the Rhine. The boat went past castles and farmland on mountainsides. We saw cows grazing on the steep sides, and Talula wondered why the cows weren't tumbling down the hills. I told her that maybe two legs were longer than the others. I thought it was funny. She didn't. Don't joke about cows to Talula. Two hours passed, and we were still on the boat. Three...Four...and more. We thought it was a two-hour tour, but it ended up being closer to six. Six Hours on a boat. Some folks got naps. Some ate. A few of the girls chatted up the crew. It turned out that the boat was sailing upstream, which caused it to move slower, so we got more for our money than we should have had. Night was falling, and we moved on to our next hotel stop in Weisbaden. It was kind of misty raining there. The hotel was downtown near a big park. I dropped off my bags and went to the park to sit on a bench. I watched the people go by, not knowing that there was a casino across the park from where I was. I found out about it the next day. The girls went to a club near the hotel. I didn't go with them, even though I was supposed to. I got back to the hotel before they did. Mr. Vivian got mad again, and that was the last time we were ever apart during the trip.
The next day, we boarded the bus to tour the Black Forest region of Germany. A lot of quaint homes. Everything in this part of the tour was quaint. The highlight of the day was Reinfall. It was where the Rhine River went over some rocks to form a wide waterfall. I have to say that it is the prettiest place I have ever seen in all of the world. It is on the border between Germany and Switzerland. We took in the natural beauty and then boarded the bus again.
We arrived in Lucerne, Switzerland for the night. The hotel was swanky. The restaurant was on the top floor. It was right in the middle of town. This was going to be a great stop for us, or so we thought.
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