Mailing a Package in Italy

How many Corbridges does it take to mail a package back to the states? For the second time on this trip our collection of souvenirs has grown to exceed the available space in our backpacks. It was time to send some of it back home before we left the next morning. This is the story of what I learned while trying to mail a package home from Italy.

Early this morning Elaine collected all of the things that we needed to send home.  She had it all in a bag ready to go to the post office.  She and Joe set off for the post office knowing that it closed at 13:25 for the day.  They returned a short while later still carrying our stuff.  They explained that the post office didn't have boxes for sell.  One step backward.

Where do you get boxes in a little village in Italy when it is approaching "siesta" and everything is closing down for the afternoon? The clock was running and the post office would soon close. Luckily, they found a box in someone's garbage on the street.  Except for having a few cigarette butts in it the box was suitable.  One step forward.

After dumping out the cigarettes, we hastily crammed our stuff into the box and sealed it with a few precious pieces of duct tape from our only roll.  From here, Joe and I took over.  We hustled over to the post office and waited in line for our turn.  Just when we thought we were close to having the package sent the lady told us through another customer who spoke English that the box had to be plain (without printing or logos on it) OR it had to be wrapped in white paper. I asked if they had paper I could buy.  They didn't.  I saw a pile of boxes and asked if she had any I could buy.  Again, no.  Thinking that they might sell me the display model I asked if I could buy a particular box that was on display.  Again, no.  I didn't understand the reason but I couldn't buy paper or a box at the post office.  One step backward.

At this point I'm speaking mostly with the other customer who was sympathetic and kind.  I'm grateful for her help because I felt really dumb.  As we left she said, "Sorry.  You are in Italy," as if to apologize on behalf of the post office for its silly requirements.  No one knew where to buy white packing paper.  It was up to us to use our resources and initiative to find what we needed.  We were on our own.  We didn't give up.  After all, we had found a box when we didn't know where to get one.  I was thinking a butcher shop might have something.  Joe had another idea.

Joe and I came back to the apartment to share our findings with the family.  Joe suggested that we try the little "office supply" shop on our street.  We bought some pens there one day.  Imagine a shop the size of a nice walk-in closet crammed floor to ceiling with papers, pens, books, etc and you would have a good visual idea of what the store looked like.  We thought maybe they would have either a box or a big piece of paper.  The lady there was soooo kind.  When I asked for a big piece of white paper she immediately asked if it was for posting a package.  This was a good sign.  Though it took her a few moments to find it, she had exactly what we needed and for just 1 Euro.  We were getting somewhere.  One step forward.

Next, we thought that maybe our gray duct tape would clash with some obscure rule in the Italian postal system and so we wondered where we could get clear packing tape.  Elaine remembered seeing 1 roll of packing tape in an obscure location in one of the grocery stores we've used since we've been here.  She described to me where it was and Joe and I took off to retrieve it.  The tape was right where she said it would be and wasn't too expensive.  At this point it felt like all of the pieces were coming together.  One step forward.

To shorten this already long post, we wrapped the package in the white paper from the shop, taping it with the clear packing tape from the grocery store, and made our way to the post office.  We waited in line, filled out the forms, provided the identification, and mailed the package.  Mission accomplished.

This little experience is an analogy to life.  To accomplish the bigger objective we sometimes have to use our resources and initiative to solve smaller problems, one at a time.  We go as far as we can until we are blocked.  Then we gather information and try to use it to get past the obstacle.  Sometimes we get a lot of information.  Sometimes only a little.  Step by step, we make progress.  Thanks for reading.

The Gulf of the Poets

We are currently staying in a small sea side village in Italy called San Terenzo.  From our apartment it takes us about 2 minutes to walk to the beach.  The first few days we were here the weather was beautiful so we went to the beach three days in a row where the kids had fun playing in the sand.  The beach is small without lots of waves, in a area called the Gulf of the Poets.  Apparently, this is where several famous poets, and writers either lived or vacationed.  I can see how it could inspire writers because it is very beautiful here.  Unfortunately, just being here has not turned me into a great writer or poet!

The beach experience is different here than the ones we are used to in California.  Maybe it's that we are here in October, the off season.  Mostly there were older people who look like they have been sunning on the beach for years. There were a few parents with small children, and a few other tourists.  Later, when school was out, a bunch of middle school age kids were near the beach playing with firecrackers and playing hide and seek games around the boats.

It was interesting to me that most people show up at the beach fully clothed in jeans, jackets, shoes, and change at the beach into Speedo type suits for men, and bikinis for women.  When they are done at the beach, they get redressed and leave the beach looking like when they arrived.  None of the younger children (like about 8 and under) had swimming suits on, rather they were just in their underwear.   The other children and adults did all have swimming suits, but my kids were the only boys with board shorts.  Tight Speedo type suits seem to be preferred here.

Joe starting his creation

Joe with his finished work

Jenna, Seth and Joe

A few days later, we got some stormy weather and the beach looks completely different.  There are huge waves and the beach is full of drift wood.  Doesn't look at all inviting to swim or sit on the sand anymore, but I enjoyed watching the waves crash against the rocks and walls.  I am so glad we took advantage of the good weather and enjoyed the beach for a few days.

Same beach on a stormy day

Sam at the beach on a stormy day

Validation Machine

This is a picture of a validation machine in a train station in Italy.  You must use it BEFORE you get on the train or you face having to pay a heavy fine.

It validated my ticket AND told me that I was kind, smart, handsome, and wise.  I felt so validated.  What a great machine!

Just kidding about the kind, smart, handsome, and wise bits but the rest is true.

We Went Through Hail to get to Church

We have always had troubles getting to church on time and this week was no different.  We woke up at 7 so we could get a bus to church.  When we left it was drizzling and so we packed umbrellas and rain jackets.  The bus ride was 15 minutes long and we only knew our stop by street names and a Google Earth screen shot on an ipad.  We asked someone on the bus so we knew we were at the right stop.  When we got off it was raining hard so we walked to church quickly.  We got there at 8:30 and it started at 9.  The doors were locked and no one was there so we waited.  We figured that it must be stake conference so everyone was at the stake center.  While we were waiting it started hailing.  We had a little area where we could stand so that we didn't get pelted with hail.  After a couple of minutes the hail stopped.  Then, something unexpected happened.  10 minutes until it started people started showing up.  They unlocked the doors and we went in.  The people there were very nice and the missionaries translated for us.  When it was done we left for the bus station and got there 10 minutes before the next bus so we strategically organized our 3 umbrellas to cover all of us and we stood in the pouring rain.  When we got home, we were soaking wet and appreciated a nice nap in our warm beds.

Beach Fun in Italy [BY JENNA]

Today I went to a beach. It was a small beach, but it was sure really fun!  Joe and my mom  and me built a word that said ITALY. We built it because we are in Italy.  We had all the letters made except for the I.  We started making the I and at the top and it looked like another T.  An old Italian lady came over and said “uno T, uno T”. That means only 1 T.  We finished making the  I  and we only had one T.   Tomorrow we are going to build a sand castle. Sam and Dad played soccer at the beach.  Later that day we went on a walk and saw a sign saying not to play soccer on the beach. The fine for playing soccer on the beach was between 50 and 500  euros!  Good thing they didn't get caught.

I made the Great Wall of China

Our Sandcastle

We are in Italy!

Cinque Terre, Italy

I think I spelled it right but I'm sure I pronounce it wrong when I say it.  Any way you spell it or say it, Cinque Terre is a series of 5 (Cinque) beautiful seaside villages built on the hills rising up from the sea. I would recommend a visit if you are in the area.

We visited 4 of the 5 villages.  I'd recommend picking any 2 of the 5 as by the end of the day #4 looked like #1 and there wasn't much to distinguish them in my mind.  Maybe I need more time here.

We had heard that there were was a walking path along the coast between the villages.  We had also heard that a giant mudslide last year had wiped out the walking paths.  It was true.  The trails should be open again some time in 2013.  Elaine and I would like to come back and walk on the trails between the villages and maybe even stay in one of the villages for a few days.

The streets in the villages rise straight up out of the sea.  In a couple of cases main street goes right down into a harbor.  The buildings are all jammed close together and painted in pastels.  At one of the villages we identified a lookout point and set off without a map to find it.  We wound through the village and climbed flights of stairs between tall buildings on both sides to find the lookout point and were rewarded with wonderful views of the village(s) and sea.  We decided to descend using a path unfamiliar to us.  I'm glad we did.  It was seriously like a 3-dimensional maze, following skinny staircases between buildings and houses all while heading in generally the right direction until we reached main street.  It was really a lot more fun than I've described.

Pesto sauce originated in this very part of the world and so we had some with dinner last night.  It was terrific.  It wasn't a flashy or powerful flavor but I really enjoyed it and hope to have it again before we have to leave.

Running in San Terenzo, Italy

I didn't take this photo but it shows where I ran this morning.  There is a nice stone boardwalk that starts near our apartment and goes around the bay to another city and ends just below a castle.  Round trip was about 3 miles.  Throw in a climb up the stairs to the castle and it makes for a nice workout.  Afterwards, I waded into the Mediterranean Sea up to my knees to cool down.  Very beautiful place to run.

Traveling to Italy

After we left Fussen, Germany we traveled to Munich by train. On the train ride I played my kindle. Once in Munich we put our bags in lockers then walked around in the town square. In the corner of the town square was a really good band playing exciting classical music. In the four person band there was a: bass cello, a cello, a violin, and an accordion. They were really good so we tossed some coins in their case. After a while of listening we went to a big market place were we got some fruit from the fruit stand.

Once we ate our fruit we headed back to the train station to catch our night train to Florence Italy. We got some hamburgers from Burger king. After we ate we went in the waiting room were a drunk guy came and talked to us. These are the things he said: “Where are your other wives? In the freezer” another thing he said was: “I love English I don't hear it I sense it” The last thing he said was: “See you later alligator! What's the correct response?” After we left the waiting we started laughing at what he had said.

Once it was time to get on the train we got our bags from the lockers and then had a snack. The train was a sleeping car and we did not have all 6 beds in the compartment so my dad had to sit on a different train. I woke up a lot in the night and looked out the window. After we got to Florence we walked around for a while then found a church to go to. After church we saw the statue of David and had some really good Italian pasta. Once we were done eating we went back to the train station and got on another train to Cinque Terre. On the train ride there I saw The Leaning Tower of Pisa. It was really cool!

After arriving in Cinque Terre we took a bus to a near by town. In the end of those two days of traveling it ended up being about 18 hours of travel.

The band that we saw on the street

The Grand Summary

This is the grand summary of everything we have done so far.  For the countries I didn't count flying over it or having a train ride through it.  We stopped and walked around at each of the countries

Countries: 7

United States, The Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Germany, Hungary, and Italy

Planes traveled in: 4

From California to the east coast, New York City to London, London to Prague, and Budapest to Fussen

Blogposts: 99 (including this one)

Pictures and videos: over 5,000

bus and train rides: too many

Rivers

Florence's river

Fussens river

 Almost all of the places that we have been are right next to a river.  The cities are old so they used the river for water and transportation.

  A couple of days ago we were in Florence. We walked around the town and found a river, but this river was not like the one in Fusson, this river's water was even more gross looking than Utah Lake! It was a pale brown color with chunks of debris floating down it. The one in Fusson was a sparkling blue that was basically see through. It made me want to jump in.

Pragues river

Neuschwanstein and Fussen

Neuschwanstein Castle

Hohenschwangau Castle

A few days ago we got to go to the Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau Castles. I've seen and heard a lot about Neuschwanstein in particular, but I never really knew what it was called. You'll probably recognize some of the pictures. The castles were built in the 1800s sometime, a lot more recent than I had expected. We toured the castles, along with a ton of other people. And we were there in the off-season. Our tour guide's first languages obviously weren't English, and so sometimes it was a little difficult to understand them. The first castle was found by the king when he was out hunting. He just found the ruins and built a castle on it. The family lived in that castle, Hohenschwangau while the other one, Neushwanstein, was being built. When it was finished, the king's son, now the Mad King Ludwig, moved into it. He died 170(ish) days later under strange circumstances. He was found unfit to rule, taken to Munich, and the next day they found his body in the river. Nobody really knows what happened. The tour of Neuschwanstein was a little short because only the bottom floor of the castle was finished before Ludwig died. The castles were huge, and really awesome. If you go to one place in Germany, this is where you should go.

We stayed in a little town called Fussen, a few kilometers from the Castles, and about a 10 minute bus ride away. It was just a little town, with a ton of trees and everything. It felt like a city had just grown in the middle of a forest, which is probably what happened. It was really pretty and green. That would be a really cool place to live except for two things: there wasn't an LDS church there, and very few people spoke English. I think there was even a ski/snowboard resort nearby, we saw the car lift things on cables going up to the top of a mountain.

There is a river going down one side of Fussen, and the water is like this cool bluish-greenish color. It looks really cool. There was also a mini, manmade waterfall. My mom read somewhere that every city has a waterfall, and that seems to be mostly true so far.

 We had to take a hike up to the castle, and this is the first view we got of it: You could imagine, we were pretty disappointed, but most of the castle wasn't under construction, so it ended up ok.

 Another few views of Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau.

We ate lunch in this clearing, and then we played soccer and frisbee while our mom slept on a bench. Just like a true hobo.

The view from up by the castles of Fussen.

This is what some of the buildings looked like in Fussen, as you can see, it's just a little city built in the hills. It was very cool.

There was a lake up by the castles, and so our mom had us all pose by it. The pictures actually turned out pretty well.

The view from Neuschwanstein back to Hohenschwangau.










Overall, this was a very neat stop on our trip, and I think it is my favorite place so far.

Germany, the second time

We decided to return to Germany, this time to Bavaria near the border of Germany and Austria.  Since coming to Europe a month and a half ago most of our time has been spent in large cities.  There is lots to see and do in large cities, but sometimes we miss the green space and clean air.  Fussen, Germany is just what we needed for a few days.

Hike to see Neuschwanstein [BY JENNA]

I went on a hike this week in Germany.  From the top of the hill we could see the Neuschwanstein Castle.  That is the Disney Castle.  From where we were the castle looked small, but the next day we went to see it up close.

Neuschwanstein Castle from far away

The path we hiked on was covered in leaves. It was up hill. We had a picnic and took pictures in a meadow. We acted like we were flying buttresses. We took lots of pictures. We saw where the a play about Jesus called the Passion play is performed every 10 years.

Flying buttresses

Being Silly

This is the path with leaves that we hiked on

Hiking in Germany

We were able to do some real hiking (not "Tram to the top" hiking) in and near Füssen, Germany.  We hiked up to where there was a view of Füssen and the river.  The air was fresh, the leaves were changing, and the temperature was cool.  It really was very enjoyable.  We carried a picnic lunch and stopped along the way to eat on some benches in a clearing.  Lunch turned in to a family photo shoot and we had a lot of fun.  I think someone else will post those photos.  I will try and link it up here.

We also got to see two castles.  To get to the 2nd one we walked up the road to get to the castle but coming down we went on a hike around behind the castle and followed a river down.  It was a fun little hike.

We really enjoyed our short stay in this part of Germany.  The hikes were fun and the area is beautiful.    There were biking and hiking trails enough to last for a long time.  Elaine thought that in another time and circumstance she could be happy living there.  I think I would agree.

A Little Help From My Friends #2

The graphic above is of our family "business" card that we had printed for this trip.  Some times when people find out that we are traveling around the world with our family of 6 they ask, "Do you have a blog?"  Rather than have to write it down every time we had these printed.  If you have one of these cards and are reading this now I just want to say, "Thank you very much for being a part of our adventure!  Somehow, somewhere along the way we have met and I am grateful that we did."

I have been soooo thankful lately for the many people who have helped us and supported us along our way.  We meet people everywhere who can tell that we are American just by looking.  And we often attract attention to ourselves because we are obviously clueless or doing something un-European or inappropriate.  This often leads to fun conversations with kind people.  Here are some examples.

There were the newlyweds from church who invited us over for Family Home Evening.  We had treats and went geocaching with them in the city.

The other night before the train pulled out of the station the conductor made an announcement and I had NO clue what he had said.  I recognized the name of one of the cities that he had said and knew that wasn't supposed to be on our route.  My face must have given me away because the lady next to me said in perfect but accented English, "Did you understand what he said?"  I readily admitted that I didn't and she explained that our train was going to be delayed because there was a delay on the train from that other city and there were passengers on that train that needed to be on our train.  That little kindness did much to resolve my fear of being on the wrong train.

There was the shop owner who was able to get us back on the map on our way to church when we got lost.

There was the little old lady who sat behind us on the bus and noticed us checking out the signs at every stop trying to figure out where we were.  It turned out that she was going to the same stop as us and she made sure we got off at the right place.  Once we were off the bus she even walked us to the street we were looking for.

There was the lady from church who drove us to the bus stop, sold us her family's bus tickets, made a recommendation for lunch and ice cream, and then pulled away likely never to see us again.

Other people that we meet don't fill an immediate need for information or transportation or anything else but are so kind, genuinely supportive, and positive that it makes us feel connected.  We really enjoy those conversations and appreciate those kind people. 

I'm thankful for each person who has helped us along the way, big or small.  I vow to be more sensitive and helpful to others, especially travelers!

Chapel of the Holy Right Hand

On this trip I have enjoyed visiting various churches and cathedrals.  However, my children have not shared that same enthusiasm.  So here in Budapest when I suggested we visit St. Istvan's (Stephen) Basilica I got blank stares, or eye rolling from children who would rather not go inside one more church.  But according to our guidebook, this church had something a little unusual on display, St. Stephan's 1000 year old right hand.  That proved enticing enough  to get three of the kids to visit the church with me.  

We learned a little about the history of Hungary and why St. Stephen is so important. He was the king that realized the need to form alliances with Christian countries and converted to Christianity in the year 1000.  Before that time the Hungarians spent their summers on raids terrorizing other parts of Europe and then staying in Hungary for the winters. 

The inside of the church was beautiful, but the kids were really looking for the right hand.  We found a sign that led to the chapel of the Holy Right Hand.  Inside the chapel we found a beautiful display with a case containing the hand.  It cost 200Ft (a little less than a $1) to light up the hand for two minutes.  So of course we had to see the hand in the light.  I really don't know what happened to the rest of St. Stephen, but a sign said his right hand was found intact.    

After viewing the Holy Right Hand, we climbed part way up the tower and then found an elevator to take to the top.  An elevator sure makes climbing church towers easy!

The Holy Right Hand

St Stephen's Basilica

Sam at the top

Display of the Holy Right Hand

Sam and Jenna inside the church

I l

Budapest Zoo Adventure [BY JENNA]

I went to the zoo in Budapest, Hungary.  The zoo was big.  We saw lots and lots of animals.

There was a hippo and it was big.  While we were by the hippo it was yawning and we got see the inside of a hippos mouth.  We were really close to it so if we wanted we could have touched it.  But we didn't want to because he had big teeth!

There were several giraffes and two of them were babies.  The babies were still really tall, but not as tall as the mom giraffes.  Some people fed the giraffes apples.

There were zebras.  They had a lot of stripes.  It was hard to get a picture of their heads because they were turned around backwards.

There were two elephants.  One of them went to the bathroom when we were there.  It was gross.

The monkeys were really loud and jumping from tree to tree on ropes.

My favorite part was a seal show.  The seals jumped through hoops,  balanced balls on their noses,   clapped and did flips.

My other favorite part was getting an ice-cream.

Me by the Lemurs

Ice Cream!

In the Hippo's mouth

The Seal Show

Zebra

Seth, Joe and me by the camel.  I got to pet the camel's nose.  

I like showers

Consider where we are and where we've been...

I like showers.

I do not like:

• baths
• sit down showers with hand-held sprayers
• sit down showers with hand-held sprayers that are so skinny I cause a "butt dam"
• sit down showers with hand-held sprayers in tubs that don't drain

I'm grateful for these options when a better one doesn't exist but that doesn't mean I like them.

I like showers.

That is all.

Waltzing along the Danube River

Well, not really waltzing.  Last night we walked and this morning I ran along the Danube in Budapest.

Last night was a beautiful, crisp night in Budapest.  After dark we took a tram to the river's edge.  If we were going to get cold we wanted to get cold walking along the river and not walking TO the river.  It was absolutely gorgeous, even spectacular.  Within view were three bridges all brightly lit.  Across the river there many stately buildings brightly lit up on the banks and hills.  My eyes couldn't stop going from building to building and taking them all in again and again.  It really was a visual feast.  If you are imagining palaces, sculptures, castles, and cathedrals you probably have it about right.

Me with some of my favorite people by the Danube river.

This morning I got up a little early and went for a run along the river.  They have a walking/running/bike path along the river on both sides, and mostly separated from the traffic.  It was enjoyable to run in the chilly morning air and take in the same bridges, palaces, castles, and cathedrals as we had seen last night.  Part of the path was cobblestone but not too bad.

Part of the path both last night and this morning included a Holocaust Memorial.  In 1944 Germany took over the government of Hungary.  This new government lined up Jews on this particular section of the river bank and shot them, pushing their bodies into the river.  The memorial consists of 50 pairs of bronze shoes near the edge of the river wall.

The Holocaust Memorial.

I highly recommend walking and running along the river in Budapest if you are ever in the neighborhood.

Hungarian Bath

We had the adventure of going to a Hungarian Bath.  It was a good experience.  If you are like me the thing that might put you off immediately is the word "bath".  For me bathing is a personal experience, not something I want to pay to do in public.  As it turns out "bath" just means overheated swimming pool.  I saw no shampoo, singing, or rubber duckies.  But, as the guide book promised, I did see "portly Hungarian men wearing speedos."

The water was heated naturally and cooled to a comfortable temperature by mixing in cold water.  The bottom of the pool was tile and as such was slippery.  The minerals in the warm water supposedly provided some health benefit but I think the warm water by itself was relaxing and all the benefit I needed.

We had heard of the possibility of playing chess in the bath.  When we arrived we saw two chess games in progress and thought we would keep an eye out for a chance to play.  We went back later and the chess boards and pieces were gone.  It must have been a BYOP (Bring Your Own Pieces) arrangement.

There were many couples enjoying each other in the bath and that made us all feel a little odd.  It might have been better if Elaine and I could have gone there on a date.

Self-portrait at the bath

On An Adventure...

Whenever we go somewhere new or try something for the first time this has become our theme song.  I hope you like it!

Orczy Kaland Park (better than Sam's)

Yesterday we went to Orczy Kalandpark. We bought a 2 hour pass for everyone, but my mom and dad (my dad was working and my mom took pictures). Two hours is longer than it seems, at about 1 hour we were tired, but kept going. The park had various challenges using cables and wood. You are up in the trees and go from tree to tree until you reach the end. Some of the challenges had a metal cord you walk across or wooden planks you try to balance on. We all thought that Jenna would be scared to go up high in the trees, but she proved us wrong. She might have had the most fun out of everyone. We decided that the first one to fall would bring shame to our family and it just so happened that I fell of first. Jenna fell of second (on the same one as me only smaller and closer to the ground), Joe and Sam didn't fall of at all. They had zip lines as well. You strap on a caribiner with wheels so that only the wheels are touching the cord. Then you fall of the platform and zip through the forest. It was a ton of fun, the only bad thing is that at the end of the zip line you ran into a tree (with pads). If you didn't make it all the way on the zip line you had to pull yourself towards the end and it was hard to do that since you were basically pulling your whole weight, and it didn't help that your hands are all red from past challenges. By the end we were all exhausted and had a ton of fun

Watch out for that tree!!!

Joe in the trees

Orczy Kalandpark

Yesterday we got to go to this park called "Orczy Kalandpark." It was pretty cool. If you have ever been to Clear Creek and done the ropes course you know a little what this was like, they had kind of obstacle courses that you had to do - 20 feet in the air. It was really fun, but a little scary sometimes. We were always attached to a steel cable, so there was never any real chance of injury. There were some that were climbing, and some were zip-lines. Some of the zip-lines went up to around 50 yards I think. Some of the climbing parts, the obstacles, were really tough, and we all agreed that the hardest one was this one:

It was wooden poles, around 7 feet long, with little places to stand on the bottom of them. They were only attached at the top, and were around 3 feet away from each other. 

Jenna doing one of the obstacles.

Seth

Me.

All of us at the end.

Joe doing the spider web one.

Seth doing the zip-line

It was a super cool place to visit. Nothing like this would ever be allowed in the US, so we need to do this kind of stuff while we can. :)