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Geneva Switzerland
My (Donna’s) *X!*% tooth extraction was a night mare , (for all concerned. )
It’s now 6 weeks since it happened and I still have a crater in my jaw in which I could easily store enough food to last me a day! (eughh)
It’s now healing slowly but still disturbs my sleep. My so called simple extraction developed complications ; infection and “Dry socket”. My dentist said once in every 3-4 years he sees one as slow to heal as mine! Nice to know I’m special.
It sort of ruined our trip home. I naively? expected to be fighting fit again a few days after the extraction but instead felt very poorly and exhausted for over a month by the pain. I was not nice to know a lot of the time, the proverbial Bear with sore head. I must have tested everyone’s patience and I apologise.
Thankfully, we managed to get everything important done that we had planned ; catch up with the family, new bed for the ‘van, motor-mover fitted, vehicles serviced, garden and patio prepared for the summer, and me turned fifty. (Well, didn’t
so much plan that one as have it whether I liked it or not)
Two days after my “big day “ I got a SAGA mailing in the post , nice! It’s not all bad though as I did get a big consolation prize from Martin who bought me a beautiful birthday diamond ring to treasure . Whenever I look at it I will be forever reminded of him and toothache!
We left England on the 30th April . The French trawlermen let us in and hopefully we are taking to the open air life just in time to dodge dreaded swine flu. It’s a worry being abroad in a health scare and I’m very conscious of infectious atmospheres in crowded places but then you can’t lock yourself away all day.
Then again, locking yourself in can be just as bad.
We spent 4 nights on the way here at a pretty place called Langres, north of Dijon. We spent a few healthy days walking round the lake and cycling the canal tow path and spent one afternoon in the pretty walled town of Langres. Parking on car park below the steep
walls we noticed a smart looking elevator/funicular lift that gave you a free ride up to the town. It was a hot sunny afternoon as we stepped in to the over-heated sealed glass cabin of the lift.
The door closed and we suddenly were overwhelmed by the foul smell ... “What the hell is that?!”
Too late. The cabin door had closed and it had started its slow ascent. We looked accusingly at each other and then noticed the brown smears on the floor. A nightmare earthly manifestation of the “fart in a spacesuit” scenario.
Time started to go in slow motion until gagging, we burst out of the lift from hell at the top only to narrowly miss the source of the pestilence , a dog’s equivalent of a bad curry on the top entry/exit platform!
Then there was the bus back to the camp site from smart Geneva. Stuck in the sun in a traffic jam with a driver who had never been taught how to switch on the ventilation . Oxygen was running seriously low as a group of French students climbed aboard. Deodorant was not, obviously, high on their
shopping list . Again, gagging and hypoxic we jumped off at our stop and gulped the fresh mountain air. It never smelled so sweet.
It’s true to say, apart from these unfortunate intervals, we have loved being back on the road and the freedom of the camping life again and it’s amazing to find out to what extremes people will go to enjoy it . We have just had a chat with our neighbouring campers , a couple who have revealed they originate one from Austria and the other from Finland who live in Sydney Australia but keep a motorhome stored in Germany so they can fly to Europe and tour ! There really has to be something good in the lifestyle to go to those lengths I reckon.
Geneva was lovely, swanky and expensive and we had a pleasant day strolling round the old town and lake front. We even attempted a game of chess in the park on one of those giant floor chess thingies. Unfortunately we had to abandon it half way through as the local chess nutter decided to “advise “ me on my moves. Uttering excited gibberish to me and spraying me with saliva ( arggh swine flu!) He mimed my ideal moves with grand gestures until my obvious stupidity forced him to take over my pieces and move them himself! Not content with “helping” me he then focussed on Martin’s moves, eventually taking over his pieces too! We became redundant as the old guy grew increasingly excited that he had managed to hijack our game. In nervous desperation I had to quickly abort the game by laying down my king (the only language I’m sure he understood ). We shrugged , smiled a nervous smile and scuttled away.
We’ll stay around Geneva for another couple of days, I think but we may revise our plans to go through the Mont Blanc tunnel now we have found out the toll costs! 44 Euro!! That’s nearly 4 Euro a minute...Robbery!
Instead, we will now probably make our way through Switzerland via Interlaken and the Jungfrau and Eiger before turning south to the Italian lakes. Even paying the Swiss motorway “Vignettes” will still be a better deal than the Mont Blanc route.
We’re in no hurry to breathe smelly tunnel fumes for a bit.
Stop Press...
We are now at Interlaken after having had a good look at beautiful Evian and Montreaux on Lac Leman( Lake Geneva) but unfortunately will be heading back to Geneva tomorrow.
Just before I got internet access to publish this entry, we got news from home that our son has suffered a nasty injury and is in hospital.
Donna is flying home to see him on the 13th Wed. from Geneva. Updates will follow as and when .
Donna
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