Mae & Tim's Excellent European Adventure

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Mae & Tim's Excellent European Adventure

We are headed on the vacation of a lifetime visiting France, Belgium, Netherlands and northern Italy

11/10/2023

Random things I Learned:
Italian Hotel Rooms:
1. They have door k***s but they don’t turn. They appear to be decorative as you just put in your card and push.
2. They have a interesting system where when you come in the room you have to put your key in a slot to activate the electricity for the room.
In theory this is great - no unnecessary use of electricity. Except in this day and age. I can’t charge my computer when I go to dinner - cuz I need my key to get back in and if it’s not in the slot it won’t activate the plugs.
3. My hair is grateful to be home as conditioner is not a thing. Shampoo - shampoo/body wash - yes. No conditioner.

Masks - in all the countries we visited we would see a rare sighting of a mask. Until we got to our flight to Canada. Then we saw numerous people wearing masks. Is it a Canadian thing?

Missing English - After a month of rarely being anywhere that English wasn’t the first or even the second language I didn’t realize how much I missed understanding what people around me were saying.
@

08/10/2023

Today we had our final breakfast together and prepared to leave the resort. Tim and I walked the very steep path to the beautiful remains of a castle. True to fashion Steve lead everyone in a sing along as we waited for our shuttles to the train station. We arrive to mainland Venice and headed to a hotel near the airport. Tomorrow home. Missing everyone on thanksgiving.

08/10/2023

I didn’t post yesterday as it was pretty well a repeat of the day before - Tim courses, me work, evening of amazing music. Tonight was kind of the final night. Absolutely stunning performances. Lots of hugs, laughs. It was truly a bonding experience for everyone. The weather has been stunning. Tomorrow we say goodbye.

05/10/2023

A busy quiet day here today. Tim is absorbing so much great information and everyone here is warm and friendly. I have found a nook to work in the conference area where the internet is good. Another round of performers tonight. Our lovely Italian friend “Billy” (he has a much more romantic sounding name in Italian) performed tonight. It was a large sound circle tonight so we only stayed for a bit. Starting to confirm travel home arrangements. 4 days out.

04/10/2023

Well the laundry had to be done. The closest town is 3 klm away and apparently taxi isn’t an option. So I strapped on Tim’s backpack and made the walk. It was ok cuz it was all down hill. Already thinking about the trek back up. Started the laundry and went to the grocery to pick up some essentials (like wine and cheese). Luckily I ran into one of the organizers who ended up giving me a ride back. A win for Mae today! Fought with the internet this afternoon while Tim participated in his sessions to get some work done. This evening it was dinner then open mic. I have to say it was one of the best nights of music I’ve had for a long time. Folk musicians are storytellers and I heard some of the most amazing stories and songs from around the world. They touched my heart, they made me laugh, they made me cry. The crowning moment when Tim took the stage. It was probably the first time I hadn’t ask him what he was playing. And he told the story of writing a love song. He sang “Fly to Me”. The video probably won’t be great as things were a little blurry for awhile.

04/10/2023

So another travel day. Left our little apartment at 11 and made our way to a cafe. Now besides our bags we are carrying a hard guitar case guitar with a a guitar in it and a soft case with dirty laundry 😂😂so now three bags each. Just found out that we can’t get the shuttle until 3 - so what to do for 3 hours. Decided to head to the train station where the pickup was. Found a nice shady tree and just settled. Now that Tim has a guitar he is much happier to put time in. Got to our resort and it’s halfway up a very large hill. Quite beautiful. There was a welcome dinner. We’ve already met a lovely Italian guy, a woman from Switzerland, an Irish guy and a woman from the UK as well a number of people from all over the US. It’s going to be an interesting week!

02/10/2023

Day two in Verona. The huge lines to see Juliet’s balcony were better today so we got a peek. You can thank us later. We then went to a huge garden that was created in the 14th century and has been maintained. This family were in the wool dyeing trade. For Tim and I who love history and plants it was pretty awesome. We also toured a portion of the apartments. No pics here as we just enjoyed looking at centuries of history that has been maintained and lived in until the 1950s. It was time for tim to get the guitar he needed for the upcoming song camp. While he did that I caught up on some work. Dinner was around the corner from Bar Madonna Verona where there was an open mic. What an amazing night of music to introduce many of the people involved in this camp from all over the world. Tomorrow we head to the resort which will be our home for the next 6 days. Looking forward to settling for a bit.

02/10/2023

Italian food rules
- remembering now how table water is not served. If you want water - you pay for water and it comes in a bottle. Make sure you say still.
- You may not tip but you pay for sitting in your seat. Almost every restaurant charges to sit at their table.
- You might need patience to get your bill. You will be ignored and it’s 50/50 whether you have to go in the bar to pay or at the table. But they won’t tell you.
- the Italians are not rude but not nice. They are the Switzerland of manners.
….. but the wine is good.

01/10/2023

On to Verona today. We landed right in the heart of the old city. Steps from us is the balcony that Juliet stood on. We wandered the streets and saw a number of iconic sites. But it is truly to be enjoyed at night with the lights of the city on the piazzas. Our host suggested a restaurant that only served fresh made pasta. You go to the counter and order your pasta and get it in a little round box of deliciousness. It was a good day.

01/10/2023

We made the decision to walk to the train station this morning since getting to the water taxi seemed as much work. It was a 25 minute walk which would be a lot with each of us carrying two pieces of luggage. But you then have to add in the more than 1/2 dozen bridges over the canals. Any way we did it taking breaks and enjoying the beautiful day. We landed in Padua half way between Venice and Verona to spend the day. Imagine how surprised I was to learn that the original St Anthony of Padua basilica resides there. Having 4 generations of my family attend St Anthony of Padua in Centreville it was a nice happenstance. I visited hoping to light a candle for my mom and dad but there was not an option. It’s a beautiful old city and we enjoyed our day and evening there. We ate at a very eclectic little place where they’re pizzas are square and are cut in bite size squares.

30/09/2023

Venice. A day of wandering the city. A million tiny streets, a canal at every turn. And it’s hot! 28 degrees! We visited a few sites not to be missed and had lunch at the main waterway. Back for nap. We decided to try and walk to the train station tomorrow so made the stroll tonight to make sure it was doable. On the way back had dinner at a restaurant and the old owner said it had been running for 74 years! As we were walking back heard live music so it was nice to hear it again. Out of the blue this couple from Germany came in and danced. It was crazy. I’d never seen two people dance like that in my life. On to the Irish pub to watch rugby. Ending up sitting with two lovely New Zealand girls and got a kiss from an Irish woman. It was so much fun. There is literally not a street that is not photographical.

30/09/2023

Thursday was a travel day. We realized that it was going to cost double to fly to Venice on Friday than Thursday so opted for an evening flight. Our boat accommodations allowed us to stay until noon and then we went and ate lunch at a sweet little spot. Well apparently Ubers don’t exist in Zwolle. Back to the boat to see if Margret might call us a cab. She did but it was over 30 minutes before they could pick us up. We would miss our train! Margret to the rescue who drove us to the station! We had a long wait there but decided to hunker down. We found a massage booth and were excited! After hauling luggage for weeks our bodies were feeling it. The flight was uneventful but we were late landing and it was after 10:00. We were suppose to grab a water taxi but it wasn’t leaving until 11:30. It was an interesting experience! For the first time ever we are staying in someone’s home. Melo met us at the door and we just quietly, tiredly went to our room. We are in Venice.

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