Oberammergau, Liechtenstein, and Switerland ...

July 8, 1963

We got up comfortably late and had continental breakfast, little pots of tea or coffee on the tray with hard buns and delicious butter and jam. Daddy took the car to be tuned while we wash close, wrote letters and rested. Then we sallied forth shopping. We got a nice tent, for folding chairs and the stool and folding table for about hundred and $150. I got my purple stretch pants and Patty a blue wool drindle skirt and blouse. We climbed the Stadtturm, the town tower and saw the Goldane Dachl, the king’s palace with its gilded copper plated balcony and the Lauben or vaulted arcades which had all kinds of shops inside. We saw the Hofkirks over the roofs where the Archduke Maximilian is buried. We got supplies for lunch and took off again.

We ate overlooking the city on the beginning of the road to Partenkirchen and Gromish which are in Germany. As we were eating a Canadian family also stopped and they told us the past was very steep but it was nothing compared to the little label! It was rainy and cold all afternoon. We had all our things in the backseat instead of on top. We got to Oberammergau about 3:30 after driving through very picturesque little towns with painted walls, lovely gardens of flowers and window boxes. We stopped at a lovely little place with paneled walls, leaded windows, gleaming bar and soft smoky atmosphere for cokes and arrest.

Oberammergau was lovely. Mother thought it had gotten very commercialized she was here as a child. The streets are lined with houses with beautiful paintings of Bible scenes on them and all have wooden beams and whitewashed walls. We went on a tour of the theater and saw all the costumes, the spears, crosses and the huge stage with its open air setting. We bought some postcards and a script of the play and wandered around the wood carving shops a while trying to find something cheap enough to buy, but did not get anything.

Our camp was on a little island and we used our tent the first time. We cooked on the little

gas stoves inside the gym building. Met an army man and his daughter, Patty’s age. They had a VW two and a big Alsatian dog. He was a trainer working with Army boys? It was a track and we saw the athletes practicing. As they came in to put their things away they spoke to us nicely “Gruss Gott,” God bless you. It was drizzling a little and cold. Mother was sitting there sowing and she gave Bobby his PJs to put on. He kept yelling they were too baggy and she would not listen. Finally when she look she discovered they were John’s. Bobby thought that was so funny. So with the tensions of living cooped up together we have some fun to.

July 9, 1963

We were up and off early for a long drive. We got back into Austria pretty quick through the Fern Pass which also was nothing. At noon we were going over the Arlerg and it reminded us a bit of Turkey, big barren hills and we really knew we were climbing. We stopped for lunch by a little stream just over the pass, very cold.

Around 3:00 we passed Feld Kirk and into Liechtenstein. Stopped in Vadus and peaked in the church, bought some stamps and looked into a real nice art museum while daddy and the kids got ice cream. I got four prints of things we had seen.

All afternoon we drove past lovely lakes, first Lake Walen and then Lake Zürich. We stopped just sort short of Zürich for the first night after looking at one camp and deciding against it we went to another nicer one. There was nice lawn and a swimming place next door were Pat and Bobby went in but it was too cold for the rest of us. There were swans at the edge to. The people next to us were French. They drove up and spread out a lumpy looking thing and then began pumping it up the ridges were rubber tubes that inflated to hold up a tent, most amazing! It rained hard but we were cozy and our tent.

July 10, 1963

This was the day we really made tracks and site saw! We have seen three big towns in one day. Within a few minutes after we started off we were in downtown Zürich. We found a big department store and got mother and the boys some shoes. Bobby was given a helium balloon. We went to the museum then saw a lot of very interesting rooms furnished as in the middle ages. There were water containers shaped like fish, wooden flowers, carved cribs, chandeliers, leaded windows, kitchens with all the old kettles, etc. libraries, harpsichord’s, and all this in the huge old building with lots of corridors, stairs, ivy clinging to the walls outside. This was the Swiss national Museum we look for the costume section but it was closed, worse luck

On to Lucerne. We had read what to do in Europe on $5 a Day so we went to the railway station for lunch. This was the gastronomic high point of our trip. We hunted around till we found a cozy little alcove in the back of the restaurant with the double row of tables. We ordered what the book said, rosti and sausage.  It was pouring outside the mullion window by us, very cozy and nice in our little room. Our meal came, on a little candle warmer and rosti was potatoes boiled, sliced, fried and baked, tender crisp and hot, sausages big is large bananas in a delicious gravy, butter lettuce with a light dressing and our first Coke since Iran with lemon squeezed into them. It was wonderful. We ate and ate and ate. Then for dessert the waitress brought a cart loaded with everything good and we chose strawberry torte, puff pastry crust with strawberries and three big puffs of cream. All and all the meal was a huge success.

After lunch we walked across the Kapelbrucke, wooden bridge with quaint pictures on each cross support of the roof, the Reuss River slipping clear and full of green blue bubbles underneath and the sides festooned with bright flowers. We hunted for Birbohms which is also mentioned in Europe on $5 and bought John a watch for about $11. The clerks were charming and helped a lot in choosing. They wouldn’t let us get the most expensive one. Some American girls were choosing watches fixed as pendants. We had a hard time meeting up with daddy. He was going around a different block than the one we were walking down. Bobby’s balloon flew away. We finally got together and off to our third major city in the day. It was clearing a bit and we saw a glimpse of the high Alps in the distance, the Trois Cole and Bernese Overland, all we ever saw of the Alps.

 

The drive to Basel was uneventful, it was dark and rainy and we were all tired. We were going to go to Aunt Gerda Laun’s sister but it got quite late and we had not written to her so we decided to not look her up. We stopped at the railway station and got spoons and souvenir dolls for Patty and stamps for John and then went and climbed the tower of the Cathedral. The tower was quite high and we had a nice view of the town and the Rhine River. The church was very lovely, rather empty, quiet and shadowy at that time of night we set. We set off again across the border into Germany and camped at a rather forlorn little place. Not many there, it was like a meadow. We fixed supper on the gas. Mother and daddy wash some clothes which was not so hot an idea as the clothes didn’t dry. We talked a little with two Australian boys who came and made friends.

Into Austria, Italy, Austria

July 6, 1963

The border out of this horrible country was really quite nice. We began to climb up into the Tyrolean Alps and as we got near the border we followed a stream up a Valley. We got through the customs quite effortlessly and then had to climb about 1000 feet up the hill to go to the Austrian border. We climbed something like the road from Buena Vista to the school but paved and finally the car couldn’t make it so we girls hopped out. John had hives and had thrown up so he and Bobby rode with daddy. It was about a mile up and the most beautiful view down into Yugoslavia behind us, lots of lovely wildflowers all around and thin mountain air. At the top we discovered it had been a 35% grade so our little car was justified in having trouble. This was the Little Loible pass.

Little Loibel Pass

We started down the Austria side which was just as steep, through lovely woods, hairpin turns. We stopped in a little meadow by an ice cold rushing stream for lunch. John still felt very sick and I was not feeling well either. It was gorgeous there with the Alps rearing their craigy heads all around us. The air so cool and the sun bright. We drove on through darling, quaint little villages with adorable gabled houses on real good roads. We were getting the impression that Austria is just a huge lawn with fairy houses and breathtaking mountains ringing it. We stopped in Klagenfurt to ask about a VW garage but it was Saturday and things were closed for the afternoon. We followed the Drave River up its valley to Lientz where we asked about the Grossglockner Pass at a gas station. A nice attendant listened to the car engine and said “Grosseglockner  nicht. Brenner goot.”   We turned into the camping marked at Lienz and called it a day.

The road from Yugoslavia to Innsbruk via Brenner Pass.

The camp was behind a restaurant and hotel. There was a swimming pool but it was a freezing day. We parked under a cherry tree, there were other fruit trees all over the yard. Pear and apples espallied  to the wall, trained flat like vines with fruit hanging on in abundance. Very clean lovely bathrooms but icy water only. We cleaned up and ate in the restaurant, delicious food, pretty waitress. I made friends with two boys who were drunk and got very unpleasant after a while. John was finally feeling better.

July 7, 1963

We woke to the lovely tolling of all the church bells as it was Sunday also, also cannon or firecrackers. We had a hard time getting out of the camp as we were parked in the far corner next to a hedge and no one else was ready to leave when we were. So the cute little old man who owned the site cut down the hedge so we could drive out! Daddy went up on the roof and took a picture of the Alps.

Northern Italy

We were headed for the Brenner Pass which meant a little foray into Italy it was a very easy pass and we were in Italy part of the morning. We passed a fascinating shoe store by the side of the road, everything spread out on tables and were tempted but they looked pretty shoddy so we pass them up. I got a lovely white straw flowerpot hat and we bought John some stamps.  trappings. We saw part of the procession coming across the fields from a Saint’s statute. The flowers, the quaint houses, blue sky, green pastures and feels, cool crisp air and the beautiful friendly people made a lovely picture. Everyone was going to church. We passed dear old ladies in black or purple with aprons to match, hats set square accompanied by long-stockinged, braided hair, little granddaughters.

At one village we passed a procession going into church, everyone dressed up in old-fashioned costumes. There were about 20 little girls in white making their first communion. All the married women had black aprons over a flowered dress, pink rose patterned material. They also had little black laced bodices and looked very fresh, pink cheeked and pretty. The priests and attendance were a riot of color too with red, purple, blue, gold, etc. stoles and scarves. There were banners and all sorts of

There was a huge tie up of trucks and cars at the Pass which is the border. We had no trouble and were waved on without a stop but we counted 385 cars waiting to cross into Italy and more were coming, we did not bother to count. We stopped in a valley on the little wooden platform covering a foaming stream for lunch that had to retreat our car as it began to rain. We came down the mountains quite quickly, passed a huge railway bridge at one place with lots of excursion buses coming out bringing people to see it. We drove into the heart of Innsbruck

looking for a VW garage but everything was closed on Sunday we drove a little way out of town to a camp and left our luggage and went swimming. The pool and dressing room were lovely and there were lots of people there. It began to sprinkle by the time we started back to the camp. Heavy clouds and looked dreadful.

We decided to try to find a “Zimmer” or rooms and a home. At one place, some nice little ladies came out to talk but each had only room for two so we went on into town and found a lovely little pension, the Bambi. It was practically brand-new, fiberglass steps, delightful clean little rooms beautifully furnished and with lovely feather comforters and everything nice your heart could desire. We went for dinner to a dark paneled interesting place and had scrambled eggs and bread. We drove around the wet streets a bit looking at the shop windows and then went to bed and are snug little pension.

Into Europe starting with Yugoslavia

July 4, 1963

We got up early, rested and sad to leave this city we had grown to love but very soon we were off, leaving Greece for the second time in our lives.

Our engine sounded and acted a whole lot better and we took all the slopes manfully. Northern Greece is not as lush as along the coast but it is still attractive country. We began to climb up into hills again. We arrived at customs about 10:00. The customs house is beautiful with a lovely garden and all kinds of flowers we plant at home too. The officials were very cordial and nice. There was an handcrafts shop selling souvenirs for charity benefits so we bought six shish kebab knives. The cute little Greek soldier in the sentry box was dressed in the wide pleated white skirt, pom-poms on his shoes and all, he waved back as we passed him waving.

Yugoslavia was pretty grim. Right away the roads got worse and we went careening along down a densely wooded Valley, right on the very edge of a cliff with barely enough room to pass anything. The cities all look very dead, everything closed up and deserted looking. At one point the markings were not clear and we got off on the wrong road. It really was terrible. We saw a mine with overhead conveyors carrying the ore some place while we were wandering around. Later on we went on what was obviously a detour. We could see the new superhighway being built across the valley, tunnels and nice wide road. We found a tiny little tree to provide some shade and had lunch on what we had brought from Greece as we had found no place to buy anything more in Yugoslavia. (We only had permission to drive on the friendship highway as that was the only visa they would issue.)

One little town we passed must have been having elections as we saw crowds of people and some were coming and going in carts. We got a picture of one cheerful cart full. In places the fields were very attractive, little strips tended like gardens with wheat, hay, corn, tobacco and other things alternating. Families were working, grandma, grandpa, mother, father, children and the baby sitting on a blanket in the shade on the edge. They use horses and bullocks and tools like in India, nothing modern.

Then we got on the “Autopat” and really whizzed along. We passed Skopje which the highway bypasses, never knowing it would be so terribly destroyed in a couple weeks by a big earthquake. This is the “Highway of International Peace and Brotherhood” and every now and then there would be a surrealistic monument to celebrate. It was only two lanes but it looked like a superhighway to us after what we had been on!

By evening we got to Nis and follow the signs to the “Camping” which we had found in our Europa Camping book. You have to stay where the campsite is and wandering around the city is frowned upon. It was dead, shabby, boarded up, deserted like all the other towns. The camp was in a grove a very tall trees, nice green grass. The baths and toilets were fair and here we were initiated to the usual wash-up and cooking facilities. Hand basins around the edge of an open shed and everyone washing, shaving, washing dishes most unconcernedly. There was gas and nice tables for eating meals. The camp was quite full, 20 to 30 cars and more kept coming. They had classy tents, air mattresses and sleeping bags and all kinds of stoves and gadgets.

We went out to find some supper. Found a fairly nice restaurant and sat outside under the umbrellas. We had shish kebabs, fried potatoes, some kind of soup, salad. It was too early for anyone else to be eating but people strolled by and eyed us. You can tell with their loud, open behavior with all the girls in short skirts that they think of everyone as equal. We hunted around for shops to get supplies and found a little bakery where they had ice cream. We got cones. We tried to explain to the little old proprietor and his wife we were American and when they understood they came around the counter and shook hands, read and smiles. People seeing the D on our car would spit on the ground, they hate the Germans.

July 5, 1979

We made breakfast at the gas stoves and made friends with two middle-age ladies in zoot suits going to Pakistan with a VW bug. They were old hands and had real nice equipment. Oh for more time to visit.

We really traveled to get across Yugoslavia as soon as possible. The highway was very good mostly but some places are cobbled and that was rather wearing. We saw big commune farms as we went north, weedy and neglected looking compared to down south. There were rest stops and overpasses like in the States. Often no road on either side of the overpass but anyway they had them! About noon we went through Belgrad which is a big modern handsome city with skyscrapers, big public buildings, parks, fountains, etc. we got groceries and a very nice little shop, tried to ask for stamps for John at a kiosk but no one could understand us. There was a lot of building going on. We found a grove of saplings outside town for our lunch. It was right next to a huge combine factory. We did see some modern farm machinery in the afternoon.

The road was very good all afternoon. Daddy got sleepy so mother drove a little while and that woke him up in a hurry. We passed an American family in the afternoon stopped as we had stopped, thinking we might be in trouble. They were in a red Microbus too and were going to Teheran. Fun. We sure saw a lot of Microbuses. Got to Zagreb about 5:30 and followed the camping signs to a place down by the river, where there is a recreation center and the camp.

It was fairly small as camps go but the young people’s center was very organized and there was plenty to do. A lovely swimming pool, a huge training field, a tennis section with 15 courts, and the canteen with an auditorium and stayed behind. There was a small section for us Capitalist tourists and it was quite crowded, got more so in the night. We went over to the canteen for supper and sat around a table waiting for it to come. It was good but sparse and expensive. We got showers over in another building and fell into bed.

Leaving Asia for Europe

Leaving Asia for Europe

July 1, 1963

At last we are well and truly out of Asia. When we packed up and pushed off we found right over the hill was Greece. We went across the causeway over a marsh and to the border. At the Greek border offices we were given a little folder with a map and for Wash and Dry coupons. Daddy commandeered the folder for his passports.

The countryside looked so pretty and so different. The roads were very good and very picturesque

with little icons here and there and tall trees making shady avenues. The towns were so different with lots of nice things in the shops and the women going unveiled. We were glad to see churches at last with crosses. Here is where we stopped for lunch at a bathing beach with a real clubhouse with a jukebox and Coke machines (out of order I believe). We ate and a grove of young pines right by the club and then went swimming to get away from the huge voracious mosquitoes.

Amphipolis

Most of the afternoon we drove beside of the Mediterranean sea along the coast. It was very hot and we decided against taking the detour to see Philippi from Kabbalah but did stop above the city in a pretty pine grove to take pictures of the harbor, ancient Neapolis where Paul first came to Europe. We bought some ice cream from a vendor going along the road. Had a long long wait one place where there was a narrow bridge and a convoy of Greek soldiers was crossing. It was fun watching them.

We stopped at our first real camp out of the Europa camping near Amphipolis. It will go down in history as Mosquito Camp. The facilities were not too hot but it had bathrooms and we went down to a fabulous beach and swam for a long time. We found all kinds of shells, jellyfish and starfish, and watched a fishing family put out a net and bring it in.

We had supper at a little greasy Greek restaurant that was sort of a cafeteria, nothing looked very good. We all had a bad night. It was hot and humid and the mosquitoes were terrible.

July 2, 1963

Bobby woke up covered with bites from head to toe. Patty’s face was all swollen with bites too. We kids went swimming again with an army man and his family in a very beat up VW Microbus red like ours. He was from Germany and had been here every year for two or three years.  They had a swanky European tent that made us want one too.

We limped along all morning with the oil light flashing a warning and we were burning as much oil as gas. One place we had to stop by the road while Daddy hiked back to get us some oil. We just barely made it into Thessaloniki and headed straight for the VW garage. Our friend from mosquito Camp, McKenzie, had listened to the engine and thought it was something that needed fixing. We stood around while the Greek man in charge of the garage diagnosed our troubles, then he sent us to a very nice hotel. We stocked up on groceries and had six eggs someone broke so we left them behind a pillar in the garage.

We got two nice big double rooms in the hotel. Had our picnic lunch there and then asked where we could go swimming. They sent us by bus, quite a long hot ride of about an hour but it was nice to get wet. There was a peer and places to change and we decided to go back on a ferry service that kept coming and going. The water was not as clean and nice as at Mosquito Camp but refreshing anyway. We enjoyed the ferry ride back into town.

We had dinner right on the quai and a very nice restaurant with English-speaking waiters and menus. I had shrimp which came all complete with legs. We wandered around the city while looking at the nice stores and the beautiful people. They all looks like Greek gods. All the girls were stacked and we decided anyone who sold falsies in Greece would go bankrupt. We got some ice cream from a little corner store and went back to bed, hot but no mosquitoes!

July 3, 1963

The city noises and habit woke us early mother and daddy sallied forth and bought us buns, cold milk, and strawberries and we feasted in our room. We got dressed and went out to shop. We already knew our block very well and loved the big roaring city. We bought two nice plaid suitcases as the VW man said our load was too heavy. Oh, we left our surahi he back in Talas with the Forsythes. They thought it was so quaint and we were sick of nursing it along. We looked longingly at hats but they were pretty expensive. I bought my wicker purse and Patty got a pretty blue hat with a chartreuse ribbon. We bought a pail and shovel for Bob.

Beach at Thessaloniki

We left mother home to rest and spent the afternoon at the beach again. The crowd was very rude getting on the ferry. The beach was dirty but the water cleared and we had a marvelous time. We hired a little sort of flat boat you row with an oar at the end.  It was tons of fun. We left reluctantly, satisfied and sunburned. Mother had enjoyed washing, writing letters and resting

We went back to the Olympus restaurant and had another good meal. I tried a pork chop in wine sauce. We had gotten our car. It was $80 worth of repairs, nearly a whole new engine with new rings, pistons and cylinders. The mechanic said “oh those German technicians! I’ll fix it good.” And he did. That was the end of our car trouble

We drove a bit after supper looking at the city that was so pretty and had been so friendly to us. We had thought of starting off that night but it was threatening so we stayed and it rained a bit and Thessaloniki too.