A trip with a uncertain outcome
After our pleasant time in Utrecht we decided to meet each other again on the 17th of September in Vienna. Till that day Irmtraud would have an already planned vacation with her Austrian friend and her parents. During this time she would decide how to continue. I decided in this uncertain situation to make the best of it by going on a trip through Europe with as final destination Vienna to meet Irmtraud again.
My trip through Europe
With little money in my pocket I started hitchhiking to Paris where I had not been before and what was impressive. After that I continued to Dijon, a nice town but not for a long stay. So I continued with some Italians in their van to Turin. The first day we ended up in Lausanne where they slept in the car and I outside in a park. I took my most valuable belongings and money with me. This turned out a wise decision because the next day the Italians were gone without me. In Lausanne I took the train from the city to the harbor which is a rather steep descent. The view over the lake and the mountains at the other side was beautiful. I also met some English travelers at a terrace. I told them that I was on my way to Vienna and they reacted immediately: “Then you have to go to Grinzing, which is a lot of fun.” “What is that?” I asked. “That is a little village outside Vienna where one can eat and drink in the gardens of farm houses. The atmosphere is very nice and there are people from all over the world.” That suggestion I stored in my memory because I was not so sure that my serious girlfriend would bring me there.
From there the trip went to Milan and Venice. I had seen pictures of Venice before but beeing there, I was overwhelmed by the exceptional beauty of that town. Although Amsterdam is called “the Venice of the North”, the only similarity is the number of canals. The structure of the houses, the bridges, the squares and the churches, all this was so completely different and well preserved for such a long time. Walking through this town was so far my most impressive experience. In the evenings I stayed with an international group of hitchhikers on the public beach of the island Lido with music, songs and pleasant companionship. I stayed there several days till it became time to go to Vienna.
With little money in my pocket I started hitchhiking to Paris where I had not been before and what was impressive. After that I continued to Dijon, a nice town but not for a long stay. So I continued with some Italians in their van to Turin. The first day we ended up in Lausanne where they slept in the car and I outside in a park. I took my most valuable belongings and money with me. This turned out a wise decision because the next day the Italians were gone without me. In Lausanne I took the train from the city to the harbor which is a rather steep descent. The view over the lake and the mountains at the other side was beautiful. I also met some English travelers at a terrace. I told them that I was on my way to Vienna and they reacted immediately: “Then you have to go to Grinzing, which is a lot of fun.” “What is that?” I asked. “That is a little village outside Vienna where one can eat and drink in the gardens of farm houses. The atmosphere is very nice and there are people from all over the world.” That suggestion I stored in my memory because I was not so sure that my serious girlfriend would bring me there.
From there the trip went to Milan and Venice. I had seen pictures of Venice before but beeing there, I was overwhelmed by the exceptional beauty of that town. Although Amsterdam is called “the Venice of the North”, the only similarity is the number of canals. The structure of the houses, the bridges, the squares and the churches, all this was so completely different and well preserved for such a long time. Walking through this town was so far my most impressive experience. In the evenings I stayed with an international group of hitchhikers on the public beach of the island Lido with music, songs and pleasant companionship. I stayed there several days till it became time to go to Vienna.
A lucky hitchhiker
Standing along the road to the North outside Venice, a Porsche stopped next to me and a middle aged woman asked in English where I wanted to go. “To Austria.” I said. She said “that is nice we also want to go there. If you want you can come with us.” She travelled with her daughter of 13 years through Europe. They came from California. It seemed that she liked to have company. Probably she had already talked enough with her daughter. She was a nice person and seemed to like my companionship. We talked a lot with each other and the three of us enjoyed the beautiful surroundings of the Alps crossing the Grossglockner. I was offered to take over the steering wheel but, unfortunately, I did not had a driver´s license at that time. In return for all benefits I got from them, I organized for them and myself, using my Dutch German, a stay in the nice village called “Blood of the Saints” before we went on to Salzburg. There we stayed together in the same hotel and visited Salzburg because I still had time before I had to go to my uncertain appointment in Vienna. All in all the last part of my trip was very pleasant but I had to say goodbye in order to go to Vienna where Irmtraud possibly was waiting for me.
Standing along the road to the North outside Venice, a Porsche stopped next to me and a middle aged woman asked in English where I wanted to go. “To Austria.” I said. She said “that is nice we also want to go there. If you want you can come with us.” She travelled with her daughter of 13 years through Europe. They came from California. It seemed that she liked to have company. Probably she had already talked enough with her daughter. She was a nice person and seemed to like my companionship. We talked a lot with each other and the three of us enjoyed the beautiful surroundings of the Alps crossing the Grossglockner. I was offered to take over the steering wheel but, unfortunately, I did not had a driver´s license at that time. In return for all benefits I got from them, I organized for them and myself, using my Dutch German, a stay in the nice village called “Blood of the Saints” before we went on to Salzburg. There we stayed together in the same hotel and visited Salzburg because I still had time before I had to go to my uncertain appointment in Vienna. All in all the last part of my trip was very pleasant but I had to say goodbye in order to go to Vienna where Irmtraud possibly was waiting for me.
Up to my final destination
So I went to the best place for hitchhiking to Vienna. However at the place where I stood there was written “Hitchhiking is shit, I was standing here for 6 hours”. This also happened to me. In the end I decided to take the train to be on time in Vienna.
In Vienna I went to the address that Irmtraud had given me, where she lived with her grandmother. The first moment was tense, because I did not know what her reaction would be. She seemed very happy to see me. She said: " It is very nice that you are here. I was not sure that you would come." When I asked why she had doubt, she said: "You knew that I still had a boyfriend here and you could also meet another nice girl during your trip. I am very glad that you are here because I have broken off the relation with my boyfriend. Now we are free and we have time for each other." I was very happy because I liked Irmtraud a lot. Now we could have a pleasant time in Vienna, get to know each other better and consider what the future could bring us.
First of all Irmtraud introduced me in her cultural world. So we went, close to her house, to a palace called Belvedère. There was an Art Deco museum with beautiful paintings of Schiele and Klimt including the famous painting of the Kiss. This was a nice way to start but for Irmtraud this was only a cultural experience rather than a stimulans to follow the example on the painting.
So we went on to the university, the opera and the St. Stephan cathedral. We were eating in very cheap restaurants where she was normally eating because she had little money. She brought me in a typical old fashioned Viennese cafe house where women told each other the latest gossip. We went to the large and beautiful Art Museum and the Hofburg. We heard the music of Johan Strauss in the Stadspark. We went to Schönbrunn, the old palace of the emperor and we saw the crown jewels of the Habsburg. We also sat down in one of the nice cellars to have a drink and hear some typical Viennese music. We had a very nice time and enjoyed a lot being together again.
So I went to the best place for hitchhiking to Vienna. However at the place where I stood there was written “Hitchhiking is shit, I was standing here for 6 hours”. This also happened to me. In the end I decided to take the train to be on time in Vienna.
In Vienna I went to the address that Irmtraud had given me, where she lived with her grandmother. The first moment was tense, because I did not know what her reaction would be. She seemed very happy to see me. She said: " It is very nice that you are here. I was not sure that you would come." When I asked why she had doubt, she said: "You knew that I still had a boyfriend here and you could also meet another nice girl during your trip. I am very glad that you are here because I have broken off the relation with my boyfriend. Now we are free and we have time for each other." I was very happy because I liked Irmtraud a lot. Now we could have a pleasant time in Vienna, get to know each other better and consider what the future could bring us.
First of all Irmtraud introduced me in her cultural world. So we went, close to her house, to a palace called Belvedère. There was an Art Deco museum with beautiful paintings of Schiele and Klimt including the famous painting of the Kiss. This was a nice way to start but for Irmtraud this was only a cultural experience rather than a stimulans to follow the example on the painting.
So we went on to the university, the opera and the St. Stephan cathedral. We were eating in very cheap restaurants where she was normally eating because she had little money. She brought me in a typical old fashioned Viennese cafe house where women told each other the latest gossip. We went to the large and beautiful Art Museum and the Hofburg. We heard the music of Johan Strauss in the Stadspark. We went to Schönbrunn, the old palace of the emperor and we saw the crown jewels of the Habsburg. We also sat down in one of the nice cellars to have a drink and hear some typical Viennese music. We had a very nice time and enjoyed a lot being together again.
But then it was time for Grinzing
But, as I expected, we did not go to Grinzing what the Britisch people suggested to me as the best place of Vienna. So the second week in Vienna I told Irmtraud that it was about time to go to Grinzing. She was surprised that I knew that place but we went there. It is a very romantic place, little farm houses with large wine gardens where people can sit on big banks at large tables. Musicians go around and play typical Viennese music on a guitar, a violin and an accordion. They sing songs about life with a little twist woven in them. Normally people drink very young wine and eat a little bit. Often one gets in contact with other people at the table which is easier than usual because of the drinks. Irmtraud surprised me during our visits to Grinzing because her favorite dish was “Stelze”. That is a part of a leg of a pig. Being a small and slim girl, one does not expect her to like the very fat baked skin of the leg of a pig. Besides this specialty, we drunk a lot of wine and had a very nice time. The British people were right, this was indeed one of the best places to go to. That does not mean that I did not like Vienna as a whole.
But, as I expected, we did not go to Grinzing what the Britisch people suggested to me as the best place of Vienna. So the second week in Vienna I told Irmtraud that it was about time to go to Grinzing. She was surprised that I knew that place but we went there. It is a very romantic place, little farm houses with large wine gardens where people can sit on big banks at large tables. Musicians go around and play typical Viennese music on a guitar, a violin and an accordion. They sing songs about life with a little twist woven in them. Normally people drink very young wine and eat a little bit. Often one gets in contact with other people at the table which is easier than usual because of the drinks. Irmtraud surprised me during our visits to Grinzing because her favorite dish was “Stelze”. That is a part of a leg of a pig. Being a small and slim girl, one does not expect her to like the very fat baked skin of the leg of a pig. Besides this specialty, we drunk a lot of wine and had a very nice time. The British people were right, this was indeed one of the best places to go to. That does not mean that I did not like Vienna as a whole.
Promises but also doubt
We could talk about everything together. Every day we became to like each other more. There was, however, still doubt about our future. We were living far from each other. Fortunately Irmtraud had a grant for Brussels to collect data for her dissertation. It would be easier to meet each other when she was there but we had no idea how often we would meet and whether that would be enough. In January it would be so far. I told her ; “If you tell me when you will arrive I will come to pick you up from the train and we go together to the hotel and I will stay with you some days and we see how we can arrange our life together, is that ok?”. Irmtraud promised “I write to you when I come to Brussels. I really like to see you there again”. We kissed each other good bye and we both hoped that all would work out well.
We could talk about everything together. Every day we became to like each other more. There was, however, still doubt about our future. We were living far from each other. Fortunately Irmtraud had a grant for Brussels to collect data for her dissertation. It would be easier to meet each other when she was there but we had no idea how often we would meet and whether that would be enough. In January it would be so far. I told her ; “If you tell me when you will arrive I will come to pick you up from the train and we go together to the hotel and I will stay with you some days and we see how we can arrange our life together, is that ok?”. Irmtraud promised “I write to you when I come to Brussels. I really like to see you there again”. We kissed each other good bye and we both hoped that all would work out well.