July 19, 2010
Last year after receiving one of my lengthy emails from Argentina, a friend asked why I didn't set up a blog instead of going through the process of emailing friends with my posts. Lazy or intimidated or both, I guess. But now I've done it, and we'll see how it works. Maybe I'll go back to the old method if this doesn't feel okay. So I'll send my travel group an email announcing the existence of the blog, and then I guess I'll send emails whenever I write a new one. However, if you have a google or yahoo email account, you can ask to be notified any time I post a new entry. Wow.
In some ways it is good that we are leaving home so soon. We've been plagued with bear visitations. It's my fault: I can't do what I'm supposed to do, which is stop putting out bird seed and suet at the first sign of a visiting hungry bear--one that came in the night, ripped open a wire suet cage, and ate. (My excuses are that feeding birds is what I DO--it's part of who I am, dang it, and I don't want to be forced into changing. Also, all the summer birds are bringing their new fledglings to the feeders. They are hungry too!) I keep trying to outsmart the bears, which is not actually as easy as you might think. First we tried bringing in the food at night. Mr. Bear came at 9:00 in the morning--visible from our breakfast table, smashing a seed feeder before our eyes. We chased him off--a shot from a 22 rifle over his head. Next we thought we'd bring in the food at night and any time we weren't home to run off the bear. 'Course we forgot one morning when we went hiking in the Malpais. The bear had a second suet cake AND wrecked a seed feeder. We hung the suet on a high wire, but a bear wrecked another seed feeder when he couldn't get the suet. We hung a misshapen seed feeder next to the suet, on the wire 9 feet off the ground. Then yet another bear leaped and swatted down (I saw him standing on his back legs to do this, jumping like a child after a pinata) both the suet and the seed feeder. I shot him on his retreating backside with the 22 with bird shot, as George had shot another one a week or so earlier. Still they returned when I put a stronger fastener on the hanger. Bear must have hung from the suet feeder until the screw eye pulled out. Impressively determined (hungry) bears. So now the wire is 12 feet off the ground, and a birdfeeding man in Connecticut reassures me by website that if the bears cannot get the food, they will stop coming around. But by August first, there will be no more food for several months, so for sure that will end the circus for this year.
We've talked to state game guys, and they will help us if we need bear removal. But it is likely a death sentence for the bear, and we don't want to have that on our heads--particularly since it is not the bears' fault they are pestering us. So we'll hope the latest ploy works. Too bad I had to drain my little fountain/pond also. No bear attractions allowed. We've lived here for 13 years and have never even seen a bear on the place, and only had one previous night-visiting suet-snatching bear who was easily discouraged when we brought the suet in at night. What's with this year? Geo thinks maybe there is an unusally high number of bears in the forest this year, since we've had two moist winters with good crops of acorns and probably other foods.
But we must turn our attention from the bears to packing. A trip of almost four months, including a mountain trek in Switzerland, boating and biking in Denmark, city life in Berlin, Prague and Istanbul, modest attire for me in Turkey and possibly Iran, and a 14 day cruise at the end from Barcelona to Galveston. All to be covered with one ulta-light backpack. I'm not sure I've ever faced a more daunting packing task. A friend, Carol W., gave me a slinky pair of black pants. That and a couple of tops will be my entire dress up wardrobe. Long zip-off pants (khaki/nylon/cotton quick dry) provide shorts and long pants. One pair khaki colored capri pants. Assorted shirts/tops. A rain jacket. Trail shoes and wool socks. Maryjane comfy black shoes. A warm layer: a pile jacket. Swim suit and, Rebecca A. reminded me, a sarong. Warm black tights. Wool hat. Sun hat. If there's room, a skirt. Yikes. I still have to select, buy and load books for my Kindle. I used it in Argentina on a three month trip, and it was fabulous. The charge lasts for days, and I did not run out of books. It weighs only 12 ounces with a homemade cover, measures 6 by 8 inches, and is less than 1/2 inch thick.
Next post perhaps from Denmark, or on the train from Hamburg to Esbjerg. We fly Dallas to London, then a flight to Hamburg, then the train to the west coast of Denmark where Servas friends will host us for a couple of weeks. Then a visit to Copenhagen, and the train south to Zurich where we'll connect with ranch friends who live in Switzerland. They have helped us plan an excursion to hike near some peaks and glaciers, but stay in "huts" which we expect will be more like hotels.
July 27 After visits from grandchildren, children and a brother, we have four or five days to fit in packing and seeing lots of friends and tidying up all those odds and ends. Like, we were told we could vote electronically. So we are trying to track down that notion. So far no luck. And do we have all the phone numbers we'll need in Europe, and the country access codes so we can use our Verizon international calling card? Next time maybe an iphone. Call in vacation pauses for magazines. The list of tasks seems endless. Last time we left I mailed in a hold mail request to our PO. In the past, they've held our mail for months. A new postmaster did not like this casual approach. I was supposed to physically show up (21 miles away) and fill out the form on site. As punishment for my failure, they sent back all our mail until we got an email alert from a friend. We enlisted help from other friends who did their best to reverse the situation. We had to fax our signatures authorizing someone else to pick up our mail--from Argentina. We're still suffering from the consequences of that. This time neighbors will get our mail from the mailbox. Such are the chores when you plan to be gone for three or four months.
When we tried to use our newly purchased Eurail passes to make a reservation for our first train ride, we learned that the system in the US is set up so that before you leave home you make ALL your train reservations, and a packet is sent to you Fed Ex. We of course have no definite idea when we'll take the train the second through the 10th time. (We bought ten days of travel in two months, three countries.) The woman Geo talked to seemed incredulous. No planned itinerary? So, we must make our reservations at train stations wherever we can in Europe. There are no e-ticket reservations for Eurail pass holders. Surprising and annoying. Another challenge for the independent traveler.
