People we met on the way

We met various people, of various nationalities on our holiday, some of whom set my mind thinking. I’ve already mentioned the Kenyan at the Vienna Peace Museum. Another two couples also set me wondering.

The first couple we met on the train back from Vienna to Salzburg. They were the only other two people in our carriage. They were relieved to hear us talking English & so we got talking together.

They were particularly impressed when we explained why we had come on this Austrian adventure – to celebrate our 40^th wedding anniversary. They wondered what the secret was for staying together so long & clearly happily so. It seemed they were on their honeymoon. In both cases this was not their first marriage.

 I really don’t know the answer to their question. I suppose it comes down to finding the right person to marry in the first place. All marriages have their ups & downs, but with the right person, someone you love & share interests with, it is worth persevering through the rough patches.

What I didn’t say is that even at this stage I didn’t hold out much hope for the longevity of their marriage. Even at this stage, the husband looked bored by his wife. When we had entered the carriage, the first thing we noticed was that they had seated about as far apart as they could. Given the choice we always sit next to each other, or face each other, so we can give each other reassuring pats along the way, or whisper things we only want each other to hear. We glance into each other’s eyes from time to time. This couple didn’t, even though they had only got married a few days before.

By contrast, when we got to Fuschl, we met a lovely couple, the epitome of cheerful Cockneys. They had been married longer than us & yet were very much still a couple. The contrast with the first couple & these was startling.

Another lovely lady we met was in Vienna. She was Swiss. We’d gone out to dine & were trying to decide what to eat. Not all the menu had been translated which made it difficult for us to read the day’s specials. When this wondrously aromatic dish came out to this lady, our eyes, & noses, were instantly attracted. She duly told us what it was & we duly ordered it too - Veal Carpaccio with wild mushrooms. She was in Vienna on business. She’d come a bit early to have chance to do a bit of shopping first.

We also met a couple from Taiwan. We were all trying to work out the type of ticket we needed for a trip on the Salzbergbahn funicular & the salt mines above the beautiful village of Hallstatt. When we got up to the top, he offered to help the Fox get me down some steps to get the best views. I thought the couple of steps were too dangerous so the Fox went by himself to take some pictures for me to look at later. They went on with the Fox. When they all came back we sat & had a drink together at the café at the top. 

The Salzbergbahn funicular

The view from the top across Hallstattsee

The village of Hallstatt

The range of styles of coffee to be had in Austria is overwhelming. After a long look, he decided on a “Melange” (which he pronounced it as melongay.) while his wife joined me in a hot chocolate. Why he chose a “Melange” is because that is the name of the top coffee shop in Taiwan. He was very disappointed. His conclusion was that it was a cup of hot milk with a little squirt of coffee. We pointed out that in French melange means mixture & I suppose that’s what he got.

He apparently often visits Europe, especially England on business. It was his wife’s first visit to Europe & her English was poor. They seemed a really nice couple. Young & full of ambition & curiosity about the world, but at the same time kind & caring.

All of this meeting of people makes us too appreciate our friends all the more, especially the long standing ones. We had hoped to be off to Harrogate to see the friend who introduced us to each other all those years ago. However, since we’ve been back, one or the other of us has been down with bad colds. We’ve been cancelling medical appointments every week. Until we’re shot of colds we’re not going anywhere. And by then much will depend on the weather. Autumn has definitely arrived. Soon winter will be upon us.