Austria > Everything is wet

When I wake up in the morning, it’s dry outside. Carefully, I poke my head out from under the tent flap. The laundry has suddenly moved to the other side, in the sunshine.

Austria - The terrace with a view of Foaker See

It turns out Monique had woken up earlier. The weak sunlight is soon replaced by new raindrops even while we’re having breakfast. We quickly bring everything back inside. Today, we’re allowed to leave our tents on the campsite, as long as we’re off by 10:00 p.m. Once it’s dry, we hang the laundry up again. My only clothes that aren’t wet are the ones I wore yesterday. I no longer have any dry socks, so I step into my shoes barefoot. The shoes have already suffered enough from the water ballet. It’s touch and go whether these shoes will make it back to the Netherlands (Van Haren, boom, boom, everyone laughs along…). The neighbors at the campsite agree to watch our laundry and bring it inside if it rains. We’ve already given them the newspaper a few times once we’re done with it. We head to Foaker See. According to Frad, there’s a shop open on Sundays, and at the top of the hill there’s a cozy terrace. Fred and Sandra drive up, while we climb on foot. The climb is occasionally quite steep, but we reach the top fairly quickly—I estimate it took no more than half an hour.

Austria - Taking time to update the travel log while waiting for the train

From the terrace, we have a beautiful view of Foaker See. Of course, we play a game of cards. After three hours on the terrace, we head back down. Ron, Monique, and I walk down, while Fred and Sandra take the car. We decide to eat at the restaurant at the bottom of the hill. We hadn’t really planned for this with our cash, but fortunately, we can pay with checks. However, we don’t have a complete set of checks and cards with us. For safety, we carry the cards and checks separately. Ron and Monique didn’t bring their wallet, which had the cards in it. Fred and Sandra quickly drive to an ATM, and then we’re able to eat. After the meal, we finally manage to get in touch with René and Astrid. Luckily, everything is fine, and they also call the others back home. Back at the campsite, we break down the tents and pack up our belongings. All the laundry is now dry. Fred looks on in amazement as we manage to fit all our stuff into four backpacks. The backpacks go into Fred’s car. We walk to the station in about half an hour, where we have to wait another two hours for the train.

Austria - On the train to Prague

We read a newspaper, and I update the travel journal. Meanwhile, Fred and Ron head into Villach. I also try to repair the sole of my left shoe with tape. The sole is now almost completely detached—hopefully it holds. The train arrives at the station half an hour before departure, coming from Venice. Most of the compartments are already taken by travelers. Two people are lying stretched out in one compartment pretending to sleep (as we normally do). Fortunately, we find an empty compartment with narrow benches and plenty of legroom. Ron and I sleep on the floor (just enough space), while Monique and Sandra take the benches. Although no one is completely comfortable, we manage to sleep until the Austrian–Czechoslovakian border control. The customs officer, amused by how we’re lying down, comes back specifically to tell us that the compartment next door is now empty. After that, we sleep much better. Around nine o’clock, the train rolls into Prague.