Entry 16 October 16, 2008 A bit of Switzerland

[David and Susan Bratt]

Entry 16--October 16

We looked at the map and decided we were too close to Switzerland to not include it in our non-existent itinerary. So we left Colmar and drove into Germany, following the Rhine south to Basel. This is the height of the fall color season and it is beautiful country.

We were brought down to earth when we learned that Switzerland collects road taxes at the border on all trucks: that piece of information cost us € 17. (“We learn something every day, to our cost” (Tom Stoppard, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead).

Basel is a big city with a very good bus and tram service to the campground, so we had no trouble getting into the city center. We stayed two nights. Our decision to do so was easy: first, we found no fewer than three Starbucks in the central city, and second, we stumbled across a wonderful special exhibition of paintings of Venice by Canaletto (sp?), Turner, and Monet. There is also a very impressive teddy bear and doll house museum which is so large it is hard to take it all in. David was graciously patient through all four floors. (He calls the reader’s attention to the fact that Susan, not he, wrote that.)

Warning: the following deals with European toilets, so if that topic doesn’t appeal to you, skip this paragraph. We have learned to save the ends of toilet paper rolls and carry them with us, because you never know whether it will be provided when you need it. Some places simply do not provide it; others have huge major league rolls; still others have it locked down so it can’t be stolen; or it may be for sale in the office; and a few others just have it out there, like both you and they were real civilized and sophisticated. One place had a single roll by the sinks. Toilets seats are also not always considered a necessity. Since we have been in France, we have encountered several toilets without seats attached. And we have seen several continental toilets, where you simply position yourself over the hole in the floor (a maneuver we have avoided so far). Virtually all are reasonably clean, and in the campgrounds they and the showers have generally been well cared for. Since our hot water does not want to get very hot, we have been using campground showers. There is sometimes a charge of €1 for their use, but many are free. Toilets are always free in the campgrounds but not always in public places.

Between toilets, toilet paper, and our obsession with the levels of Rover’s water tanks (is the fresh one nearly empty? are the grey and black ones getting full?), quite a bit of our psychic energy is devoted to sanitation.


After another night and day of rain (the first in quite a while) we are now in Auxonne, France, parked right on the Saone River. We saw a Montana license plate on a Winnebago last night but did not meet the owners. And we met a woman from Switzerland who said they had shipped their motorhome to the US seven years ago for seven months. We are doing laundry again. This time it is $ 12 (US) to wash and dry one load, but we have two that can’t wait. (For that amount, we could buy eight bottles of wine!)