10 Aug 1985, Posted by Scott An Chora in Travelogue, No Comments.
08/10 Zurich, Switzerland
Our rail passes provided free passage on numerous lake cruises, so we decided to take advantage. We gathered up the ingredients for a day out on Lake Zurich. Opened up a cold beer, claimed a table with a view and broke out the cards to continue the cribbage marathon from the night before. What a perfect day it was to be out on a lake. There was just the right mixture between the warmth of the sun, the coolness of the breeze and the temperature of the beer. Man some of these homes that line the lake with their manicured yards and adornments screams money. No wonder their all smiling. We took advantage of couple of the stops and wandered about the neighborhoods. I grew up in Los Angeles and never had a lake or river near my home, so envious of those who had. We continued through Zurich and headed towards Innsbruck, aligned train schedules and earmarked connections. The scenery the way Innsbruck was more picturesque with all the new waterfalls created by the last rainfall and the melting snow, but it was still one hell of a long boring ride. I just felt like sleeping but wasn’t having much luck keeping my eyes closed, so I decided to wash my clothes in the train’s sink and air dry them out the window of the train.
We arrived late into Innsbruck and discovered that the hostel was out of beds. Only a large attic with sleeping mats were available. Can’t say I’m ever use to sleeping on the floor, but having no other choice we made the best with what we were given. Wedged a window open just in case we became curfew violators and then went searching the city for some food. Well as least you could say that Jim is consistent, I’m beginning to think he’ll only eat Chinese food. If I wanted variety it on my own. After we ate we checked out a few of the local hang outs for an extra drink or two. We got ourselves sidetracked by a few local girls and were glad that the window to the down stairs shower was ajar. Once back inside the Hostel we discovered we didn’t have sleeping mats. When we found somebody in charge, we had to address all his questions. Where had we been and why didn’t we already have mats? Our explanation involved a girl’s rooms and this excuse was accepted with a smile. That night was no different than most, the larger the group sharing a space the harder it is to get a good night’s sleep
