We're home. Barely. Joe and Leonor once told us TAP Airlines (the Portuguese company) is short for "take another plane." And we did just that. But TAP also gave us a Marriott to stay in while waiting and a bunch of meal vouchers. But we got in very late Sunday night, and decided to drive home from Newark. Seemed like a good idea at 11pm. We were both awake. Not such a good idea once on the Taconic Parkway with no motels anywhere near.
Unfortunately, the delay meant we were going to miss Luisa's baptism, since our plan was to arrive and head to DC for the ceremony the following day. Joe, and the minister at the church, were nice to postpone the baptism until we could be there. That didn't stop the party though as Margaret and Andrew and Simon headed over to join the cousins at the party. Leonor's brother was also there. Looked like fun. FOMO.
Seems like everyone in the family was hiking these past two weeks. We have Colorado photos of Bill and Jen and family in the woods; Annie and Sankar are off on 5-day hike in rural Japan (yes there is such a thing as trees in Japan); and Joe and Leonor headed out to West Virginia for a taste of the country. Everett got a close encounter with a bird of prey on his outdoor adventure. And, I may have this wrong, but it looked like Jeff and Melodie were in the Minnesota woods (and lakes.)
We did a lot of walking in Austria, but really only one hike in the woods, up a mountain near Innsbruck. We didn't go all the way up the mountain, but for a while it seemed that's where we were heading. We can now check off hiking in the Alps on our non-existent bucket list. Most of our walking, up to 10 miles a day, was around the beautiful towns and cities, checking out museums and shops, palaces and shops, churches and shops. And restaurants and coffee houses. Since we had walked so much, we mistakenly felt we could splurge.
Food in Austria turned out to be a highlight. From beer gardens to a civilized lunch on the Danube River. But there were other highlights as well. The views obviously; going down, into a mountain, to see the oldest salt mine in the world; the Klimnt exhibit at the Belvedere Museum in Vienna; the medieval fair we happened upon outside of Innsbruck; meeting up with my childhood friend Steve Bidwell who took us under his wing in his adopted hometown, Wien (German for Vienna.) Lots of memories, lots of photos, and few extra pounds. Despite the walking.
Once again, we were not the only ones traveling. John and Marilyn were on a cruise, with Colleen and Laura, but they were back in time for Milton the hurricane. Fortunately, they had only a little flooding on their street as they waited out the 80-mile winds. I should mention that it was a hurricane (Leslie) that caused our 36 hour delay in Lisbon. Never heard of Leslie the hurricane? Neither had I, as it was stalled over the Atlantic, right on our flight path home. (I may try to get the copywrite for changing the way we name hurricanes – from Hurricane Milton to Milton the Hurricane. Sounds so much more combative, like a pro wrestler.)
Speaking of sports, I bet there's some joy somewhere on the streets of Jersey with the Mets defying all odds and surging at the right time. Not much joy somewhere on the streets of Dundee as the Brewers lost again in round one. Maybe even some joy in Fairport with the Yankees.
Let's close out with a happy birthday wish to Janet.
Love from back here where we belong.
