Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. We started our vacation in the British Isles. Evan Smythe, Marie Windsor, and I were the first to arrive. The people were friendly, but the weather was dreary. Whenever you went out, whether it was made of rayon, leather, or nylon, donning a jacket was a necessity. Fortunately the weather cleared up after a few days and we had a blast.
2. Not everyone was able to arrive at the same time. I was anxious to get started on the British leg of my adventure, but I'd promised two friends I would wait for them before heading out. Roger MacDonald arrived the day after me, so we both holed up in a pub to await the arrival of a mutual friend. I was really hoping that we could meet up with Mabel faster, because I wanted to get going.
3. We were all soccer fans, although we knew it was called football in Europe. One of my dreams had always been to see a good old fashioned rivalry match in the English Premier League. Before flying to one of the former Yugoslav Republics, the three of us spent a wonderful afternoon in Liverpool's Kop, jeering their rivals, Everton. It was loud, and fun was had by all.
4. After a short stay in southeastern Europe, we decided to fly to a country that straddles Europe and Asia, so we headed to the airport. The experience at the airport was not pleasant, actually it stank. A random security screen picked out one of my friends and he was subjected to an in-depth interview and search. They uncovered some liquor he hadn't paid duties on, and after he paid a fine, we headed out.
5. After we arrived, we rented a car and headed west. We had taken a ferry across the Bosphorus, crossed the border, and were heading north when the car broke down. We were in a small village and there was only one rental place, so our choices were limited. The guy behind the counter had two models available. One was a type of car I'd never heard of, so Fiat was the only real choice we had. At least we had all heard of that type of car. We concluded the deal and got back on the road toward the capital.
6. Next we flew southwest and spent time on the beach in Corfu, catching some sun. We met lots of interesting people from all over Europe. Among the most interesting was Miss Robinson, a teacher from Portsmouth and her fiancee. He was an old-time subaltern from Bath, Ensign Peterson. They had vacationed in Corfu before, so were able to direct us to some interesting sights.
7. The group decided that beaches should be a focus of the early part of our trip, so we flew from Corfu to another Mediterranean island. As soon as we checked into the hotel one of the group discovered that her luggage hadn't managed to make the trip. It caused some problems, but Miss Val let Tania borrow a bathing suit, so she was able to join the others on the beach.
8. We next headed to the mainland to visit a history laden city. We split up into smaller groups to do different things. I found myself with a group that wasn't as interested in ruins as they were in tasting the local cuisine. I had some trouble with monetary conversions, but I found that once I understood the Euro, meals weren't that expensive and I was able to enjoy my food without worrying about the cost.
9. At this point the large group split up into several smaller groups to head to varying points. There were a number of choices as far as mode of transportation was concerned. My group was headed back to the British Isles. To get to the airport we decided to rent a car. Different groups made other choices, depending on their destinations. Some flew, some rode trains, and some went by boat.
10. After a short stay in Britain, watching football again, we headed for Central Europe. In my group were Phyllis, Rob, Ernest, and Julia. I had always heard about the famous local chocolate, so I made sure to pick up as much as I could carry while I was there.
11. We spent a lovely couple of days lounging on the veranda of our hotel, overlooking a lake, before we headed out for eastern Europe. We were supposed to meet another group there. Our first night in town we stayed at a place called the Ramstall Inn. Built by Germans, years earlier, it had once garrisoned Soviet troops before they left the country. A few days later, Rob and I rented a car and headed out. The others stayed behind, promising to catch up later.
12. We drove south and crossed the border. We had a flight scheduled for later that day. We were only a few miles over the border when the car broke down. We weren't near any town, so I was worried we might not get to the airport on time. Luckily, Rob was a passable mechanic and he was able to rig a repair that got us to the airport on time.
13. We flew into the country that reaches farther north than any other European country. By this time we had discovered that whatever country we went into, slow customs workers had lines backed up forever. We decided that civil servants were the same all over the world. We spent a couple of days there before we decided we wanted to do some gambling, and jumped back on a plane.
14. The next place we landed had a huge casino so we immediately started gambling. I didn't understand the games, and quickly lost my allotted money. We went to a restaurant to sample the local fare. I had a hankering for seafood, so I selected salmon, a costly dish since it wasn't local. It was wonderful, and we spent the afternoon lamenting our losses and making plans.
15. We flew to a country that borders the Black Sea. We ate caviar and sampled the local wines. I don't usually drink wine, and even though I got a little bit drunk, I eventually came to my senses and stopped. I wish I could say the same for my friends.
16. They kept on ordering more and more to drink. To make sure that we didn't run out of money to fast, I ran a tab with the Bartender. We were heading to a country on the Adriatic, and I had to ensure that we wouldn't run out of cash before we got on the plane. The ploy worked, and soon we were on our way.
17. Our next stop after the Adriatic was a former Soviet Republic. My friends immediately got into an argument with a bottle of vodka, and lost. By the time we left the bar it was dark and it was pretty obvious that we were in the section of town that could be referred to as the "red light" district. We were obviously tourists and that made us targets for the "ladies". It was really rather humorous watching my two friends, Roger and Amos, cowering in the background while I politely declined all offers.
18. After a few days, we flew to southwest Europe and met up with some of our fellow travelers. George, Arlis, Bonnie, and Freida flew in from Casablanca and joined up with us. We had some time to kill so they decided to see the sights of the town. I snuck off and watched a football match between Benfica and FC Porto. A few days later we rented a car and drove east.
19. After arriving at our next destination, the group wanted to go on a guided tour. I had another idea. I went to the concierge of the hotel and asked about renting motorbikes. My friends were lounging outside the hotel when I arrived. They thought I was mad, riding what they called a "scooter", but when I told them what I had in mind they agreed that it would be a better way to see the town. We even caught a bullfight.
20. When we arrived at our next destination, further northeast, I didn't really want to see any sights, I wanted to play golf. Some friends and I headed to a local course, rented clubs and had a great time playing 18 holes. My friend Pierre was the big winner. He shot even par, I shot a miserable 18 over par, and Yves was two strokes behind me.
21. As we were heading back to the hotel, we saw three of our traveling mates at a roadside kiosk haggling with the vender, a local Arab. Russ, Elsie, and Paul were experienced shoppers so we figured that they could hold their own with the vender. Besides, we had to head to the airport to catch a flight. We were headed for the capital of a country where the people speak French and Dutch.
22. From there we headed east. We had to make good time because we had a deadline to meet. On the 5th of October, Linda, a close friend of ours was turning thirty something and she was flying in so we could all celebrate together. She was lots of fun to hang out with, so we were all looking forward to it. Besides, I do like beer, and this country was well known for it.
23. During the party, I announced that I was going back to the British Isles yet again. I just couldn't get enough football. We all decided to make a tape of the festivities to send to friends back home. Everyone said a little piece, but when we got to the birthday girl she wasn't able to contribute. Jet lag had done her in. We had to dub Linda's voice to complete the tape. The poor girl had fallen asleep.
24. Now I was on my own. I stayed a few days and then headed off to eastern Europe. I had an interesting conversation with a man who said he was a veteran of what he called the "solidarity wars", a war I wasn't familiar with. He assured me that it had in fact happened, and I probably did know about it, just not by that name.
25. As it turned out, I was glad that I had gone off on my own. My friends had moved on to the Hashish capital of Europe and made a mess of it. They had gone to a local pet store to buy Linda a present for her birthday. As one of them was pushing the shopping cart down the aisle, he ran into the cage of a hamster, damaging it and releasing 20 or 30 hamsters in the process. They spent the morning rounding up hamsters. I missed that part of the vacation, I was already on my way home.
Source: Author
ashlybug
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crisw before going online.
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