August 23, 2013
Planning vacations is almost as much fun as taking them. I've been hard at this one for over a year. We like to travel on our own so that we see and do those things that are important to us. Our kids are a little nervous but this is not our first rodeo. We planned and traveled on our own to Costa Rica in 1997, Ireland in 2004 (or was it 2005?), and around the entire continental US in a small motor home in 2010. 90% of the time, it was great. Those occasions when things didn't turn out were some of the most fun we had. The Venice Beach fiasco comes to mind.
I start with a general idea of where we want to go then I read the travel forums and other blogs like this one to fine tune. Real opinions of real people are invaluable. Places I thought I wanted to go (Pisa) have been replaced by those that I was going to skip (Venice).
The former Mrs. Larsen went to Europe three times during the marriage and left Larsen home. I'm beginning to understand.
During the planning process my cranky hubby grumbles, makes snide remarks, and actually whines; making sure I know just how much he doesn't want any part of the trip. Once we get on the plane, he's fine. I just have to remember two rules: 1) No standing in lines. 2) We must be off the road with a cocktail in hand by 5:00 PM. Easy.
So we leave in 10 Days. Starting in Amsterdam and ending in Rome. A total of 26 days on the ground. I can't wait.
In a last ditch attempt to scuttle the trip, Larsen woke up this morning with a very sore knee. I sent him for an ace bandage and some Aleve. Suck it up, Cupcake.
The "kids", Bogey and Sweet Pea, are staying with Auntie Rose next door. I expect to find her knee deep in cat hair when we return. Rose used to have cats but has apparently forgotten about the shedding or she never would have agreed to this.
We want to see all the really important sites but we mostly travel to experience other cultures. You can't do that inside a museum. Our interest in churches is purely architectural and after the first 90 - 100 paintings of the Madonna, I'm good.
This trip will be light on art museums and churches, and heavy on eating, drinking, and hanging with the locals whenever possible.
The Euro is pissing me off. When I started planning this trip it was at $1.22. It is now at $1.34. How can this be with all the talk of defaults and recessions? With all their troubles, are they still in better shape than the USA?
We haven't spent as much time learning the languages as we did prior to Costa Rica. Some of the places we went in Costa Rica were out in the pickers. Do they even have pickers in Europe?. We've learned the basic polite words and phrases in three languages; Dutch, German, Italian. We can say: Yes, No, Hello, Goodbye, Please, Thank You, Your Welcome, Excuse me, I'm sorry, What does this cost?, Is the tip included?, Where is the bathroom? I would like a vodka with a splash of water and lots of ice, Make that a double!
That should do it. Technology has advanced since Costa Rica. There's an app on my phone that translates what I want to say and then translates the response back to me. I can scan the text of a menu and translate it. So really, how much trouble can we get into?
So I've written a novel and we aren't even on the plane.
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