Gipper Gal's Friday Diary Entry - the train trip from Italy to Germany

August 12, 2005 | Gipper Gal

[NYer]

FRIDAY, AUGUST 12th (from Roma):

It's a beautiful day today. I spent about an hour at Termini. The trains do not move on time here! Public service is pretty much a nightmare. But the time went by quickly because I chatted with a charming Roman my age and we discussed politics. He works for an international consulting firm that specializes in urban planning. Boy did he have great things to say about why he loved visiting the USA. He stayed in LA (LA--the worst of the USA) and loved the low crime rate, the services, and free market. I'll have to post some of our discussion on FR. It was a rare look into the thinking of the younger generation of Europeans--as opposed to the Chirac generation.

My train to St Goarschaun leaves tonight at 9:30. So I'm just rolling my backpack around Rome today. I got on the Metro and stopped at the Piazza Barberini. Great spot to people watch. It's like the motor scooter crossroads. I just watched them fly by. Business men, old and young, men and women. The scooter is the preferred mode of transportation among Romans. The young guy I spoke to at Termini explained that the buses are totally unreliable. They have no timetable or set route; so the Romans all own motor scooters which allows them to zip around this little city. And it is little and very compact.

I'm now sitting at an outdoor cafe and gelato shop near the Ottaviano Metro stop, about four or five blocks from San Pietro. I can see the colonade in the distance. This little cafe is far enough from San Pietro to be avoided by tourists. So every one here is local, from the local shops and the neighborhoods on this side of the Tiber. They all seemed to stop here at about 4pm for coffee. They also all seem to know each other; they greeted each other as they walked up. It's like Cheers. I can't understand a word they're saying, but they're having such a good time and the proprietors are so nice that it's just delightful to sit here in the shade. I'm now eating the best bowl of lemon ice cream I've ever had.

This is by far the best day I've had in Roma. I'm finally getting used to the place and comfortable -- I've even learned from the locals how to ward off the ever present gypsies who hang out near the Metro stations. The locals just shout at them -- cursing them in Italian and then just for good measure to help tourists identify them, they shout "go away thief!" What's sad is how these crooks use their kids in their scams. Child abuse if you ask me. But you can't get into a conversation with them because that's how they distract you and rip you off. You basically have to say firmly and sometimes even repeat more than once, "No, get out of here and leave me alone." They realize the jig is up and then just slink away.

However, this can not blind me to the acts of kindness by the Romans. As I was exiting one of the Metro stations today with my cumbersome luggage, a middle aged Italian woman offered to politely help. I said, "no, no thank you" quickly thinking it was some sort of a scam. If I had paid attention, I would have noticed right away that she was a very well dressed lady. She calmly touch my arm to get my attention and make eye contact, and then she smiled at me and said, "Let me help you." She then helped me carry my luggage to the top of the steps, smiled at me again, nodded good-bye and walked away. And I thought to myself, There goes a true Roman Lady. I could see in her eyes and her manner, the same ageless beauty and nobility captured by Roman sculptors centuries ago in the marble and stone images of this woman's ancestors. She is a daughter of the same culture that produced St. Frances of Rome.

The train tonight goes through Muenchen (which the Italians call "Monoco" whch confused me no end because I though that meant I was going through Monaco -- as in Princess Grace-land. Then from Muenchen, I will go to Frankfurt and from there I'll get a local bus to St Goarshausen.

Here's the cities/stations I'll be passing through:

Roma
Orvieto
Chiusi-Chianciano Terme
Arezzo
Firenze Campo di Marte (I'll see Florence!)
Bologna Centrale
Verona Porta Nuova
Trento
Bolzano/Bozen
Bressanone/Brixen
Fortezza/Franzensfeste
Brennero/Brenner [My good friend, who goes by C2ShiningC on FR) explained that I will pass into Austria at the Brenner Pass (Brennero as the Italians refer to this last Italian town, on the frontier). She told me to "Think of all the barbarian hordes and Roman legions who passed through that gate into and out of the rest of Europe!" Yep, and one more barbarian will soon be passing through!.]
Innsbruck Hbf
Jenbach
Woerg
Kufstein
Rosenheim
Muenchen Hbf
I CHANGE TRAINS HERE
Muenchen Hbf
Augsburg Hbf
Guenzburg
Ulm Hbf
Stuttgart Hbf
Heidelberg Hbf
Weinheim (Bergstr)
Bensheim
Darmstadt Hbf
Frankfurt (Main) Hbf
I CHANGE TRAINS HERE and take a local train from: Franfurt (Main) Hbf
Frankfurt-Hoechst
Mainz-Kastel
Wiesbaden Hbf
Eltville
Geisenheim
Ruedesheim (Rhein)
Lorch (Rhein)
Kaub
St Goarshausen.

I am sitting at a table in Termini station right now in front of the most mean and nasty French woman you could imagine. I mean this lady is the stuff that fairy tale villians are made of. She's practically growling at her kid. And her husband is little better; the guy just pushed his chair back right into me to shove me, and then shook open his newspaper and began reading. Such charming people...

All roads really do lead through Roma one way or another. I've encountered all of Europe and parts of Asia and Australia here this week. No wonder why the Romans know how to speak simple words in so many languages. However, I did encounter some locals today who were quite hostile at any attempt to express themselves in any other language than Italian. I met one American hating hag in a tabacchi shop a few hours ago. For some bizarre reason the only place to buy stamps here is in tobacco "tabbachi" shops. (Gee that's a great way to get people to kick the habit.) Well I went to a shop and asked for postage stamps. I showed her my postcard as a way of explaining myself. She stared blankly at me and snarled, "Dove?" Now if I had been a little quicker on my feet I wouldn't have paused. I do know what "dove" means. But she doesn't give me time to answer, she just snarls, "Dove?! Dove?! America?" Then I nodded, "yes, si, America, USA." She says quattro. I do know that word! I nod -- yes, four stamps. She says "quattro" again and gives me a condescending look like I'm an idiot. I realize now that she's just messing with me for fun. I nod again, Yes, I know, four stamps. How much. She calculates 80 x 4 and then dramatically turns the calculator around to show me the number -- to emphasize what a stupid American I am. I pay Cruella the money. She hands me the stamps, I put them on my card. And as I walk out I hear her snicker about "stupid American". I said under my breath as I walked out, "lady, you're living proof why quitting smoking is a great idea!" I guess there's always got to be at least one such person in every neighborhood...

[NYer]

GG picked the right day to play 'catch up'. One more to go!

[AnAmericanMother]

Same train I used to take to go down into Rome.

I got on at Rosenheim in Bavaria, after taking the local from Bad Aibling (where I lived at the time.)

Rosenheim is a pretty, pretty little town. Bad Aibling is a spa town, and is even prettier.

Rosenheim

Bad Aibling

Ist das nicht gar schön?

[ninenot]

Schoenster, frau!

[floridarolf]

You could have taken the ICE from Munich to Cologne and then some regional trains. Would have save you 2-3 hours and stops like the one at e.g. Günzburg.

[Hermann the Cherusker]

I'm now sitting at an outdoor cafe and gelato shop near the Ottaviano Metro stop, about four or five blocks from San Pietro. I can see the colonade in the distance. This little cafe is far enough from San Pietro to be avoided by tourists.

I think I've been there!