...When I finished my last blog, I said it was my last post, and then I had one more....Good to be consistent!! In my 293 days away, there were some "traumas" which I opted not to share at the time, but decided to do so later-like now!
I only drove for five weeks while I was away. I had rented a car through Auto Europe for a week in August, and then I had the use of a vintage Mercedes in Burgundy in August for 50 euros! In France they have a (sneaky?-not really) system of catching speeders by taking a picture of the speeding vehicle . Often there are no signs, so the driver doesn't know what the speed limit is. Sometimes you do see the camera flash go off after you have passed! So in the five weeks of driving, I managed to get caught four times!! YIKES!!! My daughter Melissa who was getting my mail at the time, scanned and emailed me these annoying reminders each times. The only good thing about this bad news is that all I had to do was go to the website, plug in the ticket number and pay by credit card. Damage to my trip budget? Approximately 300 euros or $411.
One of the worst fears when traveling is the loss of either a passport or credit and/or ATM cards. When I left Ginger in the Dordogne, I stopped for gas on my way to the Pyrenees. I could not find my credit card. Later I learned that I also lost my license, some other credit cards, and an ATM card!(Please, don't ask where I lost them....If I knew, they would not have been lost!:) So I had to scramble to have them replaced! (I do always travel with two ATM cards, so I did have access to money plus I had made a recent withdrawal.) There was no apparent repercussion from this luckily. I did learn that both my bank (for the ATM card) and the credit card companies were very willing to send me replacement cards via Fedex. I did have to ask, but once I did, they readily agreed!
Previously I did say "no apparent repercussion"....Last summer someone did open a Harley Davidson credit card at USBank in the name of Deborah Toopman with the correct address! By the time that the bills started to arrive in the mail, my sister Helen was getting my mail, so she had the very arduous task of sorting this out, as it would have taken forever for me to do from over there. It was not easy for her to do it, but she did. I never figured out if this was connected to my card loss, but I do not think so. In any case, the charges did not exceed $400. (With the huge number of mobile phone users, it is very difficult, if not impossible to find pay phones, so it is also very hard to call credit card companies collect out of the country.)
I was leaving Portugal on Friday May 2nd, so on the Monday before, I looked for my passport. (It was usually in a pocket in the same bag, but I had taken it out and could not find it.) Since I could not locate it, I called the US Embassy to see what the process was to replace the missing passport. I DID not panic! I took public transportation to the Embassy, and went through very tight security which made me feel like a terrorist! They had me run my backpack and its contents through the radar like they have at airports. The man I spoke with made it sound like a very quick and easy process-no more than two hours, and maybe less. Strangely enough no ATMs were working in Lisbon on this day, so I had not enough cash(91 euros) to pay for my replacement passport. In addition, the Embassy's credit card connection was not working either, so I was going to have to return on Tuesday. I took the necessary forms back to Graca to fill out and return. This was all lucky, as I did find the passport, buried inside of a book, but it was reassuring to hear how easy it is to replace a missing passport!
Originally Melissa was receiving my mail, and then it went to my sister's in Durham, Maine. When I finally got back to the US, I put in a change of address to my Coldwell Banker office for a four weeks until I returned to my home. I am STILL not getting my mail. I did finally talk with the manager of the Weston post office yesterday. HOPEFULLY he will fix it! My mortgage company even called to say that a letter addressed to my home address was returned. YIKES!
And now what do I mean by "miscellaneous recollections"? Well, I was gone for ten months. What did I learn? How have I changed? Have I changed?
Well, I have changed in that I think differently about some things. I am much more aware and curious about the food we eat. We hear much about how understaffed the FDA is and how careless the food watch is. I REALLY do not want to at foods grown or processed outside of the US!!
We in the US generally have too much stuff!!! If I could wear clothes I carried over in a medium-sized suitcase or maybe five outfits...why do I need more clothes than that? (Melissa did send me some clothes to wear for the winter, but in Nice, I really did not need them.) I am trying to throw some things out now that I am home...
I LOVED using buses and trains!! While it is impractical for my current lifestyle, I would love to be able to walk everywhere and take public transportation! Maybe in my next home this will be possible?!
July 29th marked the year's anniversary of when I left....When I was in Nice, friends asked me when I would return. People here ask me where I am going next. I do not know, but in the meantime, I am watching Rick Steves' travel shows on PBS to get the vicarious travel experience! (Recently he has been in Rome!)
Once again thank you so much for coming along with me on this really fascinating and exceptional venture! It was a wonderful opportunity. I am very grateful I took it and also grateful for your companionship along the way! Thank you!
