Friday, July 3

OK - we're back on-line in Soest, so we'll get started with our entries.

That Ibis hotel worked out just right. Besides being cool, it was comfortable. The bed was hard and apparently our bodies like hard beds. Woke refreshed and ready to go.

We skipped the hotel breakfast mainly because I was pretty sure it consisted of stuff we couldn’t eat: rolls, cereal, and yogurt. There was the expectation of an Auto Grill or something like that down the road. About 15 minutes down the road there was one but we weren’t ready. Later, about 1 ½ hours, we were ready but couldn’t find anything. At one point I saw a fork and knife sign and turned off only to spend about 15 minutes wandering around the countryside and finding nothing.

About ½ hour later, we got off again and after circling the block, stopped at a pasterria and a Tabac. But, all we could find was an espresso, so we sat outside the Tabac on high stools and drank our coffee. 

We were served by a very nice French woman who we were able to communicate with using our very limited French. 

A little further down the road we stopped for gas and inside the station - surprise, surprise, there was food. Not a lot, but nice: a prepared and wrapped plate of sliced tomatoes with what looked like a ball of mozzarella and two plates of thinly sliced salami with pickles. We rejected the bread. When we sat down and unwrapped our dishes, the mozzarella turned out to be an egg - good for us. Our plates also came with a small bottle of oil and vinegar that enhanced our "salad". Butter was also there for the bread that we didn't have. That was enough to hold off the hunger pains.

After an hour or so and several traffic jams, we found a pull-off that was something like an Auto Grill and ate sausages and veggies and it was air conditioned. So all of that was good. The heat was starting to get to us even though the car’s air conditioning was working just fine.

We entered Switzerland at Basel but not before driving through a checkpoint and being routed over to a special area to pay the country’s road tax. For 43 euros we were awarded a little sticker for the front windshield that we later learned was good for a year. So, Kees, if you want to drive to Switzerland during the next 12 months, you will be able to breeze right through the border control. Your Welcome.

As soon as we entered Switzerland, the grape vineyards appeared.

Up the steep hillsides and in every available corner.

Instead of yards, vineyards.

The Garmin brought us right to Claude’s – we just didn’t know where to put the car. Linda called her and she came down. She opened her garage and we parked right behind her car and left the garage open.

Claude’s first floor condo was larger than I remembered but we had only been there twice in 2007 for drinks one time and for dinner the next. We were glad to see she had a second bedroom because she gave us her master bedroom and we thought she might have to sleep on the couch. 

Claude has interesting artwork around the apartment.

I must have looked bad because Claude asked if I wanted to take a nap. I said no, but after a glass of wine and some olives, onions, and crackers, I accepted.

I left the girls to talk and took an hour nap. I was tired even after I woke up. Linda had spent the time working on Claude’s feet. What a surprise!!

Claude served us a delicious salad with lots of stuff in it including small pieces of fish and shrimp and olives, seeds, tomatoes, cucumbers, and lettuce. Perfect for a hot evening and it was 8:00. More wine and by 9:30 I was done. I left the girls to chat and hit the bed and slept like a rock. I was afraid I would have trouble sleeping in the heat but I went right to sleep and didn’t wake up until about 8:00. When Linda finally came to bed, she slept good too.