It seemed like a long wait but finally the day came. On May 8th we headed off to join our tour travel group for our European adventure. We knew it would be a long day flying. We started in Winnipeg, then to Montreal and landing in Amsterdam. I had never been out of North America and flying in a plane that we described as the size of a football field was exciting. Even though we flew during the night, sleep managed to escape me. Let's keep it real, I don't sleep in a bed, twisted in an airplane seat was not a place I was going to nod off. I take days to adjust to the one-hour time change, so I knew a 7-hour time difference was going to be a challenge. We had decided when we arrived, we were going to push through the day and reset with the new time. The airport in Amsterdam was massive, and a very long walk was ahead of us. The hurry up and wait had begun. Fortunately for us as we waited, we quickly connected with 3 other women. We knew from the moment we met we would be "5 Strong" on our European vacation. They helped us with our plan to get through the first day, and we all got on a Hop on Hop off bus and explored Amsterdam. Traffic in Amsterdam is ruled by bikes, although the population is not 1 million, there are over a million bikes. I never knew you could get run over by a bike but believe me it nearly happened a couple of times. I knew I was in Europe; the streets were narrow; the buildings centuries old, and every space was used either for commercial space or housing.
We ended the first day with a 5-course meal. This is how we would end each evening, and we certainly looked forward to it. We had the same server every evening, and we got very attached to him. He was from Romania and is a Physio therapist in his country. He is engaged to a woman that is becoming a doctor. His plan is to work on the River Boat and put away money for her to finish her education in Switzerland. Most of the people that worked on the boat were young males. They work for 8 weeks straight from 5:30 to midnight every day. They then get 2 weeks off. They never get a day off; they may get a meal off depending on the number of people on the boat. What tremendous work ethics they had. They never ever complained, they went from one task to another and were skilled at each one. They provided service at each meal, during happy hour and the final meal of the day. They never stopped moving and working.
We were quickly developing an incredible relationship with our new friends. We simply got each other. We ate, drank and laughed the days away. We had big discussions about the days event and life in general. It was like we had known each other forever.
We enjoyed a boat ride in the canals of Amsterdam before we set sail to Cologne Germany. It was astonishing how much river traffic there was. Castles, homes and businesses were all along the river. The river was their highway to transport goods.
Our first adventure in Germany was the Jewish Walking Tour. As Bestie said, the group consisted of 6 geeks and one friend, which was me. I enjoy history to a certain point and then I can't absorb any more. So, when the tour guide launched into sharing his passion and spoke nonstop for nearly 2 hours, I have to say my mind did considerable wondering. The other 6 gobbling it up. Cologne had taken a huge hit during the war. The Cathedral was not bombed as it was used as the marker to center the bombing around. It was an incredible building. It was hard for me to get my head around the fact that every building was made by hand and took centuries to complete. The details and workmanship were unbelievable.
France was up next. We had to walk through another river boat to get to the shore. That is how busy the docks are. We were docked in Germany, but we took a bus to France. There are open borders in Europe but the person in power in Germany has decided to put a heavy police presence at the border. It was just like a scene from a movie with police cars everywhere, it felt very eerie. It was not necessary to show our passports at the border because we were on a bus and because it is open borders, they can't ask Canadians and Americans to show their passport.
The day came for us to leave the boat and go on an "Extension". We were now staying in hotels. One night in Switzerland and 3 in Italy. We are now traveling by bus and train. The train went as fast as 330 kms/hour.
Switzerland was the one country that I have always considered visiting. I wanted to see the Swiss Alps and meet Heidi. We took a gondola up to see the Alps and as luck would have it snowed. We only caught glimpses of the mountains. I was very brave and joined 2 other people that rode down on the open air, top level of the gondola. It was spectacular; the countryside was breathtaking.
Italy was also an interesting country. We stayed in Lake Como and one of our excursions was to go on a boat ride on the lake. It was one of my favorite days. We stopped in Bellagio and enjoyed walking around the town. The hills were covered with houses, that had beautifully groomed yards. It was just how I imagined it.
Health insurance is vitally important on a trip, and they won't let you go without it. It was while we were in Switzerland that one poor woman tripped on a step and did a horrendous face plant. She was taken to the hospital by ambulance which cost $3500, spent time in the hospital, which was an additional $3500, and then took an uber for 2 1/2 hours to catch the boat which was $400. She was not young by any means, but she never missed a beat with her cracked bone in her upper arm and her sling.
As someone that is knocking on the door of "70", when I use the word elderly to describe the age of most of the people on the cruise, I am sure you understand. Many had difficulties walking and used canes to get around. One couple brought a motorized scooter to enable him to get around, it weighed 35 lbs but she folded and unfolded it as they needed it and they missed nothing. No one ever missed an activity, and I am not sure how they endured the many hours of walking. Cruising was clearly familiar to them, they just pushed through, and they were obviously completing their dream of traveling.
I packed some "Hope" bracelets and breast cancer ducks. I had decided to give every captain of any boat I was on, a little pink duck. What an incredible experience. I realized that the pink breast cancer ribbon is universal throughout the world. I gave a bracelet to a tour guide in France. She had a pink ribbon on her bag; she said she wasn't a survivor but that she honors "October Pink Month". The captain on the canal boat shared that his wife was currently going through cancer. There is now a pink duck cruising up and down the Rhine River, in a boat in the canals of Amsterdam and one is on Lake Como. When we were waiting for a river taxi, two little boys were also waiting. They were getting bored, so I gave them each a duck. Their dad shared that he works for Marriott hotels and that during the "October Pink Month", they are very generous to donate to breast cancer awareness and research. Those little pink ducks are going to Dubai with the little boys.
The time came for us to get ready and head to Milan airport. By 8:15 we were loaded on the bus. It seemed like chaos at the airport, but somehow, we managed to get through checking in and boarding the football field to go home. It was an 8-hour flight, and I spent the time eating and watching movies. We had a long, nearly 5 hours layover in Montreal until we headed to Winnipeg. We said goodbye to our new friends, and it was great to lay our heads down in a hotel.
I realized that milestones are often when people celebrate a big event, but you can celebrate a Cancerversary any time, at any number. I feel so blessed to have such cherished memories from my trip to Europe. I am just so proud of my Bestie for how she manages being a Breast Cancer Survivor. It was an honor to celebrate with her. My takeaway from celebrating a Cancerversary is, "life is worth living, live it".
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