I want to write to those of you who faithfully read, wrote and cheered us on while we were traveling… but there is simply not enough hours in the day. Here are a handful of responses to some of the questions you have asked me over the last three weeks:
1) Julie asked: "When
you got home…that 2 minutes after your daughter arrived…after 12
hours on Willow…could you actually walk upright?"
I surprised myself that is true. I thought I would be dead to the world, but I wasn't. Instead we talked until one in the morning (Chelsea was jet-lagged) and the next day we had two over night guests and friends over for dinner… 12 of us to be exact.
I am now officially plum tuckered out and the 100° heat is not adding to my recovery.
2) Irina said, "Cannot wait to see more of you pictures from the trip."
Thank you! I took a few photos… I will share more of them over time. The above photo is of Tirano in Italy and it is a MUST SEE PLACE.
3) French Blue has the Antique bug as bad as I do she asked: "I know you didn't carry home any vintage treasures for sure….but did you happen to find any that you shipped home?"
No, I did not. I did not even look in any stores. But this much I do know there are tons of shops and markets in Czech Republic, Prague and the antique shops, in Budapest the Ecseri Antique Market, In Ljubljana, Slovenia there is a antique market every Sunday.… more antiques in Slovenia then I could ever dream about…
(I must have been drugged on a different kind of love not to stop inside at least one shop!)
Though you know the reason I did not go into any shops, was because I promised French Husband if we stayed in a hotel or room verses camping I was at his command. He HATES to shop. During our travels he often asked if I wanted to peek inside of a shop, but I did not. A relationship is all about give and take, and since I took the hotel/room option, I gave up shopping for antiques…well at least during our trip.
photo source Twisted Throttle.com
4) Patty asked: "How were able to navigate your route while on the bike, as it seems you didn't stop all that much?"
In some countries our GPS worked, in others it did not. In the countries were the GPS did not work we used maps. The magnetic backpack that attaches to the gas tank has on top a clear plastic pocket were you can insert a map where you can read it easily without stopping.
Sign language helps too.
5) Kathleen of Oregon asked: "I was wondering how FH feels about your personal stories?"
He loves that I write because it takes me out of his hair! No not really. But he doesn't mind that I write our stories on the blog. If he did I would not write them. He likes reading my blog, gets a kick out of the comments too because he feels he too knows who you are.
For instance Marie Noelle and her family came for dinner the other night, he thought he knew them (though he never met Marie Noelle nor her family before!) and he saw that meeting blog friends is having real friends. Amy is spending a week with us, he knows her now! And when Jeanne sent Anny a care package in the mail (while we were gone) Anny and French Husband both beamed… Anny exclaimed, "I am famous!"
French Husbands gets that blogging is my therapy and in the end his happiness too.
Many of you asked throughout our trip, "Did you manage to wash and have your clothes dry in the morning?"
Yes. Our under things and tee shirts were made of lightweight synthetic fabric. I missed cotton, but that was a luxury that stayed in the closet back home. Let me tell you that synthetic stuff drives just by batting your eyes.
6) Mimi G. asked, "Did you ever get stopped for speeding, or just because??
Plus one more – would you take the same trip again, and if so, what would you change?"
We were not stopped by police for speeding (French Husband rides like an escargot and when he dared to go fast I would punch him.) We were stopped at the border where they checked over my passport and stared at me fake blond hair.
Yes I would re do the exact same trip.The only thing I would changed would be to stay longer in each place and travel more…. and I would take my sunglasses that I forgot to pack.
7) Marilyn in Dallas asked, "I was curious if you had any problems passing through customs as you traveled from country to country? -And- Of all the wonderful pictures you took, which is your favorite, and why?"
We did not have any problems with customs. You do need a passport at the border of Croatia.
Out of our travel photos the two I love the best were taken with my eyes. One was in Austria at twilight around nine in the evening there was a double headed, white stone mountain, as the sunset the mountain's surface was illuminated in pink. It changed shades of rose as the evening rolled in. It was incredibly beautiful, we stopped as I thought to take a photo of it…but through my lens I saw I could not capture it. I hold the memory instead.
The second photo was of a woman in her mid seventies at a gas station in the Austrian Alps, she was in leathers and riding a bigger bike than ours. I admired her rough worn skin, her used leathers, her new bike, her helmet hair and wished I dared to ask her for a photo.
8) Were your channeling your dad? Amylia asked.
All the time.
9) Sue asked, "Did you loose, gain or stay the same weight?"
All of the above throughout the trip. I gained 100 pounds at Lieselotte's house and lost 100 pounds riding home.
10) "Did Willow live up to her carefree name?" asked Jennifer
Oh God yes! Not one problem. Smooth ride. Comfortable. I felt no pain. We added some motor oil in Budapest, but other than that Willow was a dream boat, I mean a dream machine.
11) Diogenes asked: "Will your new friends from Croatia come visit you?
And, if you had to pick one place, which was the most "magical" of the trip?"
Our friends from Croatia and Austria, promised they would come visit us, and if they do not come visit, well then I guess I will have to go get them!
The most magical place…. more about that over the next hundred years.
To be continued…. I have to feed my guests!
Where should we go next???
Leave a Reply