Postcard from Ellen’s Edge – Dancing Through the Crowds

I thought it might be time to update you all from Europe. Followers know we have traveled Spain and Portugal. A bit of France and now Berlin. We thought Spain was expensive compared to Ecuador, Peru and Columbia, but France is more so. Yet I am loving France. The cheese is so so good! The biggest expense I notice is in accommodations. Also there are fewer and fewer options for hotels for last minute travelers like us. We are definitely coming into high season as we go north. Therefore, very unlike us we have now booked every hotel for the rest of the trip. Fortunately, many friends are taking us in which allows us to eat out more! Picnics are great but so are outdoor cafes!

The dancing comes in because tourists are everywhere!  Here are some of my daily observations.

They all seem to take selfies right in the middle of the path!!! It is amazing. They just stop, pose, fake smile and have no regard for blocking the crowds behind them.

The cigarette smoking is appalling! Haven’t the young people been listening? I am having trouble not telling young people I sit near on buses and boats in cafes, that it is so bad for them and all of us that have to inhale it second hand. The worst are the people who walk and smoke at the same time. I sound like an old fart in these complaints. Especially since the tobacco industry was a big part of my family’s  life at one time.  The one thing that helps the ducking and dodging is there are street musicians everywhere that keep the beat moving on.  I am glad I am not wearing high heels on the cobblestone streets.  In the nice weather we both learned the hard way not to wear sandals either.

Bicycles are everywhere and the bike lanes are bigger than the walking lanes, it is great but can be treacherous, Look Out! All in all everyone drives better here and obeys stop lights and traffic laws.

The shopping is fabulous, but I have no room in my backpack.  The table linens, pottery, and just cool stuff at flea markets are killing me!  I sent one bag home from Ecuador with a friend and one bag with Nancy when she left. My restraint is going away now. I think I might have to buy another!

We have a lot of ground to cover in the next month. We are very excited to reconnect with former AFS exchange students.  Johan, who was with us while I was growing up, will be showing us around Stockholm.  Casper, from Denmark will show us Copenhagen, his new wife, and mother in law! and Derek in Amsterdam will take us to meet his parents as well.

We made many great travel friends, three of which we will visit this trip. One in Cambridge, England. And a delightful couple from Norway, will show us around the southern tip.  They plan to visit us in November.  We hope to see our Swedish and Finnish friends from Ecuador for a day in Stockholm as well.

We are clearly on a different journey now. Europe is way more familiar. It is much more developed and very comfortable. It is very beautiful. I’ve been reading Ken Follett’s century trilogy about WWI, WWII, and Vietnam etc. and how several different families coped with it all over Europe, Russia, England and the US.  As I ride the train I keep imagining battles and hiding places for refugees. It makes me sick how much damage wars do but you really don’t see much now days. Berlin should be interesting. They were great books if you like historical fiction.

The East coast travel plan is still in the making but we know we will be greeted by some of our oldest and dearest friends on the 7th of July in Rhode Island.

I am so excited to see all these people again!

In exactly one month we will be landing back in the USA! We won’t be back to St Paul until July 30th though. I hope to see my siblings Cathie and Doug in NYC, Susan in Door County where we will be for 3 weeks to celebrate Steve’s mother’s 90th birthday.  I get to see Tim again probably in the fall.  I can’t seem to get everyone in the same place at the same time.  Blakey and Peter will be with us in Door County for some of the time. Everyone including me has family all over the US including Hawaii and soon Vancouver, so for us all to be in one place is highly unlikely.

The Peace Corp will be notifying us one way or the other by September 1st. We are both doubtful as it seems to be highly competitive and Congress is delaying the funding bill. So what we will do next is an open question! We have a place to live in Minneapolis from August through December. We will focus on next steps then. It will be 9 months by the time we are back in Mpls. Interesting number! Come visit there is plenty of room!

I have loved traveling most of the time, but am looking forward to new clothes, not packing and unpacking and I may need another haircut!

See you soon!

Ellen’s Stelfie Gallery (Selfies by Steve)