Keith looked over at his sleeping wife yesterday, and not realizing I had put out a short and uninspired blog post before I nodded off he wrote one for me. I am a lucky woman that is for sure. I really enjoyed his version of events so thought I would post it with pictures (I hope).
High time for an update of Plan B. We are now in Innsbruck.
Kathleen was discharged from the hospital on Monday as she was clawing at the walls. She had great care there and if you break a limb or two the Klinikum hospital in Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a great place to be - they have lots if experience. I rode my bike to the hospital to pick up Kathleen and then we took the bus back to our hotel. This entailed another bus ride to the hospital to pick up the bike. Garmisch -Partenkirchen is a great town to get around on a bus or bike. We had nice dinner Monday evening - a welcome relief from hospital food for the patient.
On Tuesday we finally got rid of Kathleen's bike and gear. It was eventually shipped to the Sheraton airport hotel through DHL after much too-ing and fro-ing with the postal service. I was hoping to ship it home so we wouldn't have to deal with it again. I initially tried to stuff it in a customized box conforming to the dimensions provided by the postal service. Lacking the proper tools to break it down sufficiently ... it was just a bit too big, I eventually had it boxed up by a local bike shop in an oversized bike box which I thought I could ship to Victoria if I paid a premium. "Not possible", a common term I have come across in Germany, was the response of the postal service clerk. BUT - he now advised, it is possible to ship it within Germany? Argh!!!!! So that's what we did. It now lies peacefully at the Sheraton Airport Hotel awaiting our arrival. There is actually more to this story but I'll spare you. I am trying to put it out if my mind.
On Wednesday we went up the Zugspitze which is the highest mountain in Germany just under 3000 meters. We went up by tram and came down by train, would you believe through a tunnel to the base. There was a beautiful glacier fed lake at the base near the tram. We decided to go for a short walk but once we got going we circled the lake about 8 kms of "ploughed and sanded" trail. So the patient is coming along quite nicely. We had a great dinner that evening - getting primed for Italy.
My surly pony is now the surly mule as we make our way into Italy. If travel by train. one bike and a gimpy partner does not work out my bike may get the same treatment Kathleen's got. The hope is, for me at least, is to get out for some short exploratory rides as Kathleen has her feet up poolside somewhere down the road.
We are already finding traveling by bike alone has huge advantages as we could merrily jump on our bikes each day and quite easily find accommodation anywhere down the road. We are now limited to train stops and accommodation near train stops.
My duties have expanded somewhat and now include a bit if physiotherapy, hair dressing, those sorts of things. My reluctant pony tail making skills will undoubtedly improve with time, persistence and some patience. I have been warned by Adele J about the hazards of hair sharks. So I will be sure to look out for those nasty guys.
We will spend three nights here in Innsbruck and train to Bolzano and spend a couple days there. We plan to make our way to Venice for a couple days and possibly a cruise in and out of Venice.
We had a great evening last nite at a Italian deli with the owner, 3 Scots and a young Italian couple. Anyone in Innsbruck should not miss this little spot - Il Gusto. Excellent food, wine and very entertaining proprietor. Unless you have a sling or are possibly male you will likely be dancing with him after he serves you.
Photos to follow - hopefully (that's not my department!)
Fellow bike tourers Keith encountered outside his hotel. When I think of him finding accommodation I remember how well I was looked after in emergency...the doctor fixed him with a look and said "she has a bed, you need one". Roger that!
You could climb to the summit via that sketchy ladder on the left. That is me, clinging to the summit marker. Hahaha...that was a joke. The crane is there because they are installing a new cable car line due to open in 2017.
Soothing vistas, and a hip that astonishes me. How can you fracture your pelvis and walk this far with nothing more than dull aching?? Who cares! It works.
