Start of Easter Vacation (4/5/1982)

Monday, April 5, 1982

At 20:00, Hans-Rüdi arrived with the 8-year old daughter to pick me up. He managed my suitcase and heaved it into the back of his car. The car sank a couple inches (or several centimeters!). I had my French session with Brigitte, then our English session, before 21:50 when Hans-Rüdi took me to the Grenchen North train station. We arrived at 22:00 and the ticket window was closed. It was still closed at 22:20 when my train was at 22:23! Closer inspection of the schedule showed that the station was supposed to be closed at that time and you were requested to buy your ticket on the train. The train arrived on time and Hans-Rüdi helped get my suitcase in the car (I left it in the vestibule). I bought the 7.20 CHF/$3.60 ticket from the conductor.

Grenchen North to Basel train ticket

Arrived in Basel at 23:25. The train to Brussels left the French SNCF station at 00:27. Dragged my suitcase to the French end of the Basel station and purchased a one-way ticket for 70.40 CHF/$35.

Bael to Brussels train ticket

Waved through customs and got a compartment to myself on the train.

Tuesday, April 6, 1982

I stretched across the row of seats as the train left on time, and was interrupted a couple times by the conductor and customs at Luxembourg, where we pulled in at 4:00. In Belgium, a few people boarded, so I sat up for the rest of the trip. I expected to arrive in Brussels at 8:30, and was surprised to see the clock said 7:30. I thought maybe Brussels hadn’t switched to Daylight Savings Time yet, but my watch confirmed that was the time.

Got the 7:43 train to the airport, and had to stand in the vestibule. I had 37 Belgian francs (BEF) with me which I thought was a lot of money (it is confusing dealing with too many currencies!) and so was shocked when the train fare was 50 BEF. The conductor seemed willing to wait for me to change money at the airport. As it turned out, I had less than $1 in BEF and the fare was $1.10! The train speeded along and whipped through some switches and I almost fell. I was worried about crushing the breakables in my backpack. I left my suitcase at the Capitol Airlines desk which was closed and ran to find a money exchange booth. I exchanged 50 CHF and got 1300 BEF! I ran back to the train, but it was gone. I tried to explain to the man at the ticket window the situation, and he took my 50 BEF and gave me a ticket!

Train to the plane ticket

I got an orange juice and croissant for 70 BEF/$1.50 and sat to wait for the Capitol Airlines desk to open at 9:00. A trim older man was also waiting and he was a German, Wolfgang Schmidt. We conversed in German and he was wondering what to do to spend the time waiting for the desk to open. I could tell him it was now open. But they just told us that check-in started at 10:00! Wolfgang told me he was going to travel around the U.S. in his VW camper, and I gave him my parents address. Soon it was 10:00 and we went to check in.

Brussels to JFK ticket

Brussels to JFK baggage check

Brussels to JFK boarding pass

I had only the huge suitcase that weighed 23 k/50 lbs. to check, and when it turned out Wolfgang had one too many suitcases to check, I let him check one on my ticket. (NB. Do not do any of these things today; leave a suitcase alone at a closed desk, give out your address, check someone else’s bag!). Wolfgang also wanted to know what to do until the plane left at 14:00. I was going into Brussels to sightsee, and he thought that was a great idea (i.e., he was coming with me!). We caught the train to the plane back to Brussels Centraal Station, where Wolfgang checked his carry-on bag. We headed for Grand Place/Grand Square that only had a few market stalls open today.

Wolfgang in Grand Place

Down Charles Buls street on one side of City Hall, we found the monument to Everard 't Serclaes (he led a group of patriots to drive the Flemings from the city; statue by Julien Dillens), which we rubbed for good luck or to return to Brussels. A couple blocks farther was the famous Mannekin Pis (1618 or 1619, by Hiëronymus Duquesnoy the Elder), a small bronze sculpture depicting a naked little boy urinating. For only being 61 cm/2’ tall, he has quite a reputation as he stands there filling up a fountain behind a fence.

Tamiko with Mannekin Pis

Today he was wearing a military uniform (Soldat de 1e Classe de la Légion Etrangère/Soldier of the Foreign Legion), so at least he wasn’t cold. Turned right to turn right on Rue du Midi to the Bourse/Stock Exchange.

Bourse/Stock Exxchange

Stopped in at Église Saint-Nicolas/Church of St Nicholas where a Mass was in progress. We wandered the pedestrian shopping streets around Grand Place, and through narrow lanes with quaint restaurants with open hearths. We stopped in a café in Grand Place for drinks, sitting inside near a fireplace. Wolfgang had a beer and I had Schweppes avec citron/Schweppes with lemon, which came with goldfish and mini-pretzels to nibble, as we talked about brothers and sisters. It started to pour rain, so Wolfgang took us through the shopping arcade to the train station, where we retrieved his bag and got the 12:38 train to the plane. Wolfgang began talking about having found, then lost a great love, and about being lonely. I was afraid to sympathize. Arrived at the airport at 13:00 and boarding started at 13:15. Wolfgang had to wait for his standby status, as I went ahead through customs and security.

The seat next to me was empty, but during the flight, the girl in front of me leaned her backrest into my lap, and the guy behind me propped his long legs on the back of my seat. Wolfgang came to visit after drinks were handed out. After lunch of beef chunks in a tomato-ey sauce with boiled potatoes and carrots, with salad, a roll, and vanilla mousse, I slept. There was a German magazine in the pocket of the empty seat, that I thought might belong to the girl in the window seat, but she asked me if she could read it! Wolfgang came to visit again and it turned out he had left it there!

We had a snack of a ham and cheese sandwich as we approached New York, and we were told the airports were closed due to snow, and we had to wait to see when we could land. A little while later I overheard a stewardess, so knew that the pilot was going to tell us we were landing in Philadelphia, at about 22:15 or 15:15 local time. We got off the plane and waited for our luggage. I said goodbye to Wolfgang when my suitcase arrived and headed out through customs. I went out into the wind and blowing snow to catch a shuttle to the domestic terminal, and heard this weather came on suddenly. I joined the long line at US Air, and was able to use my New York to Buffalo ticket for the $89 ticket to Buffalo on the 18:30 flight.

JFK to Buffalo ticket

Philadelphia to Buffalo ticket

Philadelphia to Buffalo baggage check

I checked my suitcase and went to call Buffalo to let them know when I was arriving. Went through security at 17:30, boarded at 18:15. On the plane we got drinks and a handful of peanuts. Had a few roller coaster dips, before arriving in Buffalo at 19:35. At the end of the corridor I did not recognize a tall Paul with a deep voice! We had to wait a half hour for the suitcase, then headed to the new house. When I left the family last July, they were living in Suffern, NY! It was cold at 17 degrees F.

I pulled out all the souvenirs, ate a little supper, then went to bed at 23:00, which was 6:00 Swiss time!