Our time in Trento is now up and we board the train to our next destination; Innsbruck, Austria.  We will be here for a total of three days before heading back to Italy.  Beer, skiing, walking the historic Olympic grounds, beer, wiener schnitzel and beer are on our minds.  To say the least, we were pretty excited about sampling the infamous Austrian beer.

As we approach the Italian / Austria border town of Brennero, we pull into the station and see two to three feet of snow covering the ground.  This brings immediate excitement since we will be hitting the slopes the following day.

As the customs agents make their way through the train checking passports, I glance out the window and see one of the most interesting signs I’ve ever seen.  If I’m interpreting this correctly, inside the station you can’t use matches, you must wear gloves, there’s a chance of being injured by lightning and toxic chemicals, and the movie character Micheal Meyers is wreaking havoc in the station dressed in a Tyvek suit and work boots.

We arrive at the Innsbruck train station and realize we have momentarily lost Teddy.  After a few seconds of searching, we realize Teddy is like a heat seeking missile heading directly towards the Speck Stube.  When we join him in the store the only thing he can manage to say is “Look at all of this meat.  Did I die and go to heaven?”  He is literally drooling and his tongue is hanging out of his mouth.  He was definitely in his Happy Place.

After checking into our hotel it’s finally time to sample some beer.  We forewarn our waitress that we are about to butcher the German language as we order.  She thinks our American accents are hilarious and can’t stop laughing as we mutilate the German pronunciations.  I’m not sure if she understood us or not, but all that mattered is that we got our beer!

The next day, we are up early to hit the slopes.  Teddy is unable to participate in this adventure, so James and I hop on the ski bus and make our way up the mountain.  Today’s destination is Axamer Lizum.  This is no Boyne Mountain.  These are fast, steep and serious slopes.  There are no bunny hills here.  We take the chair lift to the top of the mountain and get some awesome views of the surrounding mountain ranges.  James and I split up and agree to meet in 2 hours back at the top of mountain.

My allotted time for shredding is up and I make my way back to the top of the mountain.  As I sit down next to James I realize he’s holding his arm in a gentile way.  I ask how his trips down the mountain went and he replies, “Well I only fell once…and I managed to either separate my shoulder or break my collar bone on that fall.”  This wasn’t the answer I was expecting to hear.  A few moments later, a group of girls asks to joins us at our table.  Our new friends, Maria and Daniela, soon learn of James’ injury and start to poke fun at him.  After a few minutes of fun and games at James’ expense they offer to guide us to the emergency room back in town.  I ski with the girls down the mountain and realize Maria is an awesome snowboarder and Daniela is a fantastic skier.  I guess I shouldn’t be to surprised since some of the best slopes in the world are in their backyard.

Safely at the bottom of the mountain and on the bus it’s time for James to head to the emergency room.  Before exiting the bus, Maria and Daniela invite us over for a home cooked, traditional Austrian meal later that night.  We graciously accept and agree to meet at Maria’s apartment.

After about two hours in the ER, James is diagnosed with a separated shoulder and is cleared to leave.  After showering we make our way to Maria’s.  For dinner the girls are preparing “kaiserschmarn.”  We have absolutely no idea what that is but we’re hungry and ready to eat.  After settling in and pouring some drinks there is a small commotion between the girls in German and I start to wonder what is going on.  Daniela starts pointing at a container labeled “Zucker.”  They are preparing a dish that looks very similar to pancake or crepe batter.  She tastes the batter and her face immediately shows something is wrong.

Now the commotion in German is even louder and more intense as Maria samples the batter.  I soon learn that “Zucker” translates to “sugar” in English and it turns out that the container labeled “Zucker” is actually salt!  The Zucker was not Zucker!  Imagine substituting 3 cups of salt for 3 cups of sugar in your next batch of crepes.  I can attest that this doesn’t taste well.

Finally James gets redemption and the opportunity to razz the girls.  There is no way to salvage this batch so they are forced to start over.  As the next batch is prepared, they let me assist in the cooking process.  I turn out to be a pretty good sous-chef and had a blast cooking with Maria and Daniela.  Dinner is now ready and they show us the proper Austrian way to eat “kaiserschmarn” is to top it with applesauce and jam.  In this case, I choose cranberry jam.

After dinner we share travel stories and I learn of Daniela’s upcoming trip to New York City and Boston.  I pull a few dollar bills out of my wallet and give them to her in hopes of helping her start her trip to the States in the positive.

Over the next day and a half we visit castles, historic Olympic stadiums, sample fresh milk from a cow and see triumphant victory arches.

As I look back on my time in Innsbruck my most memorable experience was meeting Maria and Daniela.  As the trip progresses, I realize the most memorable experiences are not museums or statues I visit, but the relationships I am forming along the way.  I will never forget my time in Innsbruck and the friendships I made.  I still remain in contact with Maria and Daniela and hope this will be a lasting friendship!

Up next, we head to Bologna, Italy!

I enter the Roma train station excited to soon be at our next destination; Innsbruck, Austria.  This is my first time on a train and just a few hours into our 8 hour trip I’m really enjoying the experience.  After catching a few hours of sleep, we arrive in Trento, Italy to switch trains.  While the others hurry around the cabin, I take my time packing my deck of cards, wireless speaker, and can of Pringles.  I soon realize that Teddy and James have already packed up their bags and exited the train.  After putting the last of my belongings in my bag I hear a buzzer go off.  This buzzer is what I now call the “Oh Shit” buzzer.  If your hear this buzzer while you’re still trying to exit the train you are in trouble.  I start to do the math in my head…Oh shit, I’m definitely in trouble.  I have 3 seconds to get off this train and I’m nowhere near the door.  I sprint towards the door but I’m too late.  I hit the green “open” button 3 times…nothing.  I hit the green button twice, followed by the red “close” button thinking there may be a secret code to getting the door to open…nothing.  I try 3 reds, 3 greens, 2 reds and 2 greens all in a row…nothing.  Maybe if I press the green and red button at the same time the door will open and I’ll win a prize?  Nope. Nothing.  I peer out the window of the door at Teddy and realize I won’t be getting off this train.  I’m now separated from my friends in a foreign country, James has my passport, my phone doesn’t work, my Italian vocabulary is limited and I have no idea where the train will stop next.  Needless to say, a string of cuss words comes out of mouth that would have impressed any sailor.  That’s what I get for dilly dallying.

As the train starts moving, I do my best to gather my thoughts and analyze my situation.  There are no passengers left on the train and the first train employee I find can’t speak a lick of English.  I decide to try some Italian and I start to make some progress but when I accidentally insert a few Spanish words I totally rock his world and our conversation is completely derailed.  He leads me to a lady who thankfully speaks English.  After a few minutes, we decide that the best idea is to get off at the next station and hope the next train heading back south stops in Trento.  When the train stops, the lady and I jump off the train and at the same time a train heading south is arriving at the platform.  After speaking with that other train’s engineer, she tells me to get on and I’ll soon be back in Trento.  If she would have let me, I would have kissed her.  As I arrive in Trento for the second time, I spot Teddy and James and get a giant reunion hug.  I was only gone for about 25 minutes, but it felt like a lot longer than that.

With the excitement and jokes about my disappearance a few minutes behind us, we’re able to explore the historic town of Trento.  A small city nestled in the valley of two mountain ranges, Trento has one of the highest standards of living in Italy.  We soon realize this as we walk down the marble sidewalks.

After walking for a few minutes, we arrive in the city center, Piazza del Duomo, which is filled with Late Medieval and Renaissance buildings including Trenton Cathedral.

Just outside Trento Cathedral, the Fontana del Nettuno (Fountain of Neptune) stands at the city center.

Buonconsiglio Castle, a 13th century fortress that is now a modern day art gallery is located just outside the city center.  Unfortunately, the castle was closed and we didn’t have enough time to stay and visit the art galleries within.

Before heading back to the train station to continue our journey to Innsbruck, Austria we stop and get a much needed breakfast.

I safely make it on to our next train and luckily for me this train’s final destination is Innsbruck so I can’t miss this stop!

My bags are packed, my clothes are laid out, and I’m ready to go.  There’s only one problem…it’s Sunday and I don’t leave until Thursday.  After the agonizing wait, it’s finally time to fly to Rome, Italy.  After 17 hours of traveling I have finally arrived at Teddy’s apartment.  My excitement overpowers my exhaustion and I’m ready to explore.

Teddy and I were roommates in college and have been best friends ever since.  Joining us on our 10 day tour through Italy and Austria is James; a med student from Case Western that Teddy met during law school.

 

I sit at work on Saturday afternoon trying to make the day speed up.  Next thing I know my phone is ringing and I’m talking to one of our company’s on-site foreman, Dale.  After I answer he says hello and asks if it would be possible to have Sunday off.  I oblige and in curiosity I ask what he plans to do with his day off.  He tells me, “I’m taking my son to the Palace to see Nitro Circus Live for his birthday!”  My excitement level immediately goes from 2 to 10.  For those who are lost after this last sentence, let me explain what “Nitro Circus” is.  About 5 years ago, motocross superstar, daredevil, and adrenaline junkie Travis Pastrana and some of his close friends convinced MTV to create a television show titled “Nitro Circus.”  This show depicted the group of friends jumping dirt bikes into foam pits, racing tricycles down steep hills, jumping out of planes with no parachutes and many other extreme acts that you could never fathom.  To say the least, the television show was pretty extreme.

Before I’m off the phone with Dale, I’m already scouring StubHub for tickets.  Soon after, I have two tickets purchased and printed for tomorrow’s “Nitro Circus Live” at the Palace of Auburn Hills.  I enjoy doing spontaneous things and this last minute event fits in perfectly with my impulsive personality.  I call my younger brother, Alan, and let him know that he now has plans for tomorrow night.

Alan and I enter the Palace, find our seats and soon realize the sheer size of the “mega ramps” located in the center of the arena.  The drop-in ramp probably stands 60 feet in the air.  It is massive.

Before we know it, the show starts and the arena is filled with laser lights, fireworks, music, the sound of 4-stroke dirt bike engines, and screaming fans.

The Nitro Circus crew wastes no time amazing us.  Within a matter of 15 seconds about 20 guys glide down the drop-in ramp and soar across a 45-foot and 60-foot gap on BMX bikes, inline skates, skis, Razor scooters, and snowboards.  No more than 10 seconds after the last guy leaves the mega ramp, 10 dirt bikes come roaring into the arena.  Each rider hits the ramp and executes a perfect back flip.  If this is the introduction we can’t wait to see the finale.

Twenty minutes into the show Jolene Van Vugt makes her appearance.  She is a Nitro Circus original cast member, the only girl on the Nitro Circus Live tour and she’s a bad ass.  After proving she is the only girl in the world capable of back flipping a dirt bike, she jumps the mega ramp in a pink hot wheels car.  Like I said, she’s a bad ass.

One of the craziest parts of the show is when the announcers chose 2 people out of the crowd and convinced them to participate in a 3-man back flip on a dirt bike with a Nitro Circus member.  I enjoy extreme sports, taking risks and pushing the limits, but at the time I think this one may have been a little too much for me (looking back on it, I wish it would have been me that the announcers picked).  As the trio leaves the top of the ramp my heart is racing.

The dirt bike rotates in mid-air and lands perfectly!

Over the next two hours we are entertained with back flips, front flips, double and triple back flips, 1080’s, a wheelchair front flip, and so many more incredible and insane tricks.  These guys (and girl) are some of the world’s top athletes in their respective sports and definitely know how to entertain a crowd.

This is by far one of the most entertaining shows / concerts I have ever been to.  They announcers did an amazing job of keeping the crowd involved and excited.  The tricks, crashes fireworks, and lights had everyone on the edge of their seats.  People of all ages would enjoy this show and I highly recommend all to check it out if it comes to a city near you.

Growing up as  a young boy I cherished when the weather was cold enough to make the Moujaw Creek behind my house freeze.  My friends and I could play pond hockey for hours.  It didn’t matter how cold it was, what condition the ice was in or what the score was.  All that mattered is that we were out on the pond playing hockey.  Over the 15 years of my hockey career, I was able to play on numerous outdoor ice rinks.  No matter what level you are playing at, there is nothing more exciting for a player than chasing the puck around an outdoor rink.

          

Adventure – Participation in exciting undertakings or enterprise (Dictionary.com).  This is one of my favorite words in the English language.  When I hear the word “Adventure,” I think fun, new experiences, and maybe something that’s not 100% planned out or safe.  By no means do I condone reckless adventures that may lead to serious injuries, but I believe in life a person must push his/her physical and emotional limits to grow.

The Endeavour is one of the most amazing science exhibits I have ever seen.   This space shuttle was in service for 18 years before being decommissioned in May 2011.  During it’s tenure, the Endeavour flew 25 missions, traveled 122,883,151 miles and spent 299 days in space (Space.com)