Part I: Headache...
We had rented a BMW 525i that we were driving around in, and the rental car person told us that we couldn't drive the BMW into Italy for insurance reasons so we could just swap the car out. So on Friday afternoon we went to exchange the car, and they told us they were going to give us a stick shift car, as opposed to the automatic we'd been driving. I said fine, although I'm not the world's greatest stick-shift driver... I can at least get by driving stick. So we finish up at the rental car place, get in the car and head back to the hotel to pack up the car and roll out. Well on the way to the hotel, the car just felt funny to me... the gears didn't seem to be catching, and I had to press in the gas just to get the shifter into a gear... and the car just didn't feel right. Although I just chalked it up to me not knowing stick shift cars very well...
So we load up the car with our stuff and leave the hotel parking lot, and pull out onto the main road. We're both settling in for a 5 + hour ride down to Milan, as I go to shift into 2nd gear as I make a left-hand turn... but something is not right. I have the car in second gear and the RPMs are almost up to 6000 and we're barely going 10 km/h. So I try to shift into another gear, and get the same result. Andrea convinces me to pull over and try and figure it out. I initially thought it was the parking brake, and it wasn't disengaging... but after some male stubbornn
ess and calling the rental car service personnel... we determine that it's actually the clutch that has gone bad, and the car is not drivable. GREAT!!! We're now almost 2 hours delayed getting on the road by the time we get to the rental car store, get a new car and FINALLY get on the road. PERFECT start to a drive... although it did get better rather quickly... Something about driving through an area SURROUNDED by the Swiss Alps, has such a calming effect...Part II: Perplexing...
As we were driving in southern Germany, approaching Austria, we kept seeing signs in foreign languages but we had NO IDEA what the signs said. We quickly figured it out because just after we crossed the Austrian border there were two police officers standing in the middle of the highway, and either telling people to proceed or waving them over to the left. So Andrea and I just figured they were going to ask for our passports, and we'd be waved through after we talked to them... ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! Evidently when driving through certain countries in Europe you need a sticker displayed on your windshield showing proof that you paid to drive on the highway (they do this in lieu of tolls). So the police flag us over to the left and he then proceeds to tell us that we now need to pay the 120 Euro fine and we both about lose it. 120 Euro is about $200, and so we proceed to start pleading / begging with this guy to let us go. Now, he only spoke a little English so that just made the conversation all the better... Andrea put on her best sad face, and I did my best negotiating but this guy just wasn't going to budge... He informed me that the sticker was only 7 Euros and we can purchase it at any gas station, and that there were signs in all languages informing drivers of this. We proceeded to ask him where we could buy a sticker, and he said there was a place that sold stickers about 1 km back on the highway. So I asked if I could just turn around and go buy a sticker to which he responded "you can't turn around on the highway" (with a nice thick accent) and he then told us that we either pay the fine or he will "stop our car." I then asked if I could walk back and just buy a sticker from the place 1 km away... and this made him even more mad and he told me "you can't walk on the highway." So this conversation occurred for probably about 5 minutes... and just as Andrea given up on him, and was getting out her credit card to pay the fine... the guy looks at us and says "OK, Bye." And he walks away...
Now Andrea and I are REALLY CONFUSED... So do we drive off without paying the fine and risk going through this again in a little bit, or do we wait and talk to someone else... Well we drove off and stopped at the nearest gas station and got stickers for Austria and Switzerland... and we're still not sure what he meant by OK Bye.
Part III: Rock-Star Treatment...
After finally arriving in Milan almost 2 hours late, we all decided that it would be a great idea to go tour the city. We started our expedition around 10 pm, and we grabbed some food, mingled with the locals, listened to Murjani speak Italian with all of the locals (pretty damn cool to hear) and just had a grand ol' time. We walked through some pretty neat parts of the city, viewed the Duomo at night as they were shooting a fashion shoot... and stopped at various places along the way to get some beer to quench the thirst. Around 3 am we finally headed back to Murjani's place, and we all felt bad for the backpackers (Mel and Amanda) who had to be on a train at 6 am to Venice for the day. So they only got about 2 hours of sleep, while Murjani got a little more since she didn't have to work until almost 8...
After Murjani got back from work we spent the majority of the day shopping in Milan, and Andrea didn't find much but I found lots of clothes that I liked... so at least one of us got to do some shopping... and meanwhile all day Murjani had been talking with her friends trying to plan something to do that night...
The plan sounded something like... meet at the Island of Beer around 9:30-10, and then we were supposed to go to a club that is for the socialites of Milan and one can only get in if they know someone... well Murjani KNOWS people... so the only catch was we had to be there by midnight otherwise we would have to pay a cover to get in...
So the plan was pushed back slightly when the backpackers didn't get back from Venice until almost 9:30... so now they were running around like chickens with their heads cut-off and we managed to get out of the house by 10:30... so we're only about 40 minutes late to the Island of Beer. We grab some food there, drink some great beer and wine... mingle with some of Murjani's friends, and then get back in the car and head over the the club. This club used to be a church, but they sold the church to someone who gutted the interior and made it into a club.
As we're approaching the club it's just after midnight by like ten minutes... and there are a few people standing outside waiting to get in.... but they're mostly all wearing suits and sport coats... Murjani calls her friend who comes out and talks to the bouncer, and asks if we can get it. The bouncer then tells Murjani and her friend that the only way we are getting in is if we buy a bottle (130 Euro, even more than the outr
ageous almost fine!!). So once we hear this we're pretty down and we accept the fact that we're not going to get to shake our booty inside the church club... when all of a sudden Murjani's friend tells us that she is going to buy the bottle for us so we can get in. All 5 of us looked at each other in astonishment. This lady, who has NEVER met us, and only knows Murjani just spent nearly $200 just for us to get into this club... SO we get ushered in to the upstairs VIP lounge, get our own seats overlooking the dance floor below, our own bottle of top shelf rum... and we just had a blast. We partied like rock stars all night long and got home shortly before 5 am... So technically can I say that I got drunk in church??Part IV: Breathtaking...
After recovering from our big party night, we chilled most of the day on Sunday and then Monday the backpackers went to try and see the Last Supper and we headed on our way after saying our goodbyes. We were able to drive all the way up and down the Alps on the way back, due to construction on the tunnels going through the Alps. So instead of just driving surrounded by the Alps, we were able to take the San Bernardino Pass and reach an elevation of over 6000 ft, although the hundreds of switchbacks on the way up and the way down were quite nerve-wracking. The view from the top was blocked because of the clouds/fog... but it was still pretty amazing to be that high up, breathe in the clean air, be surrounded by snow... and just be able to take it all in.
So all in all... it was an AWESOMELY amazing trip... now back to reality
