excuse me

I love to travel 

    I have been to places I had never dreamed of visiting because my daughter lived in Europe for 20 years.

    I went down a slide in an underground  salt mine in Salzburg, visited David in Florence, saw the Last Supper in Milan, visited Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, and beloved Switzerland.

    I have walked Omaha Beach, visited the Verdun battlefield, riden in mountain gondolas, walked in Cinque Terra and sat in St. Marks square in Venice.

    Twice I biked through the Holland countryside. Once I hiked to the top of a mountain and stayed in a hut in Switzerland.  I sledded down a mountain in the summer in Switzerland.

    Last year I went to London and Liverpool, and Switzerland.

    If I could, I would go someplace tomorrow.  But life changes.

    And if Julia didn't live in Switzerland, there is a 95 percent chance I would never have gone to Europe.  I am fortunate.

    I have been reading a lot about tourists and how they are overwhelming towns.  Even some cities in Alaska are looking at ways to minimize the number of tourists visiting.

    Earlier this year residents of Barcelona, armed with water pistols, squirted people they suspected of being tourists.  Venice is charging a  fee to visit.  Today I read that Austria has more visitors per resident than any other country, and it causes problems.

    Traffic.  Litter.  Crowd congestion. Inflated prices.  Shortages of available affordable housing for the locals.  All these seem to be complaints about tourism.

    I am glad I went when I did, because that was not as much of a concern as it is now.  Seems since Covid people have begun to travel more and farther.  And the cruise ships have gotten larger and larger.

    Even Rochelle faced some problems Sunday, when an estimated 60,000...... yes, 60,000!  people came to see The Big Boy steam engine.  Roads were packed, the tollway had cars lined up for miles on the shoulders as they inched toward the entrance ramps.  Back ups on 251 extended for miles.

    Getting across town was a nightmare.

    And when I tried to order a Starbucks, my drink was sold out!  That has never happened!!  It wasn't even pumpkin, just a plain vanilla latte.  Imagine.

    I wonder if the stores that stayed open on Sunday benefited from all the people.  I certainly hope so.  I especially hope someone bought my box of train stuff at Pickin Station.

    But I think a lot of Rochelle residents were glad this happens once every 4 or 5 years.  I can't imagine what it would be like more frequently.

    Go Cubs.  Go ,la!

Peace and Love