Train to Italy from Vienna

We are currently traveling on the train from Vienna, Austria to Udine Italy and then transferring to Trieste Italy; to meet Lydia, a friend who lives there. My nose is red and I have a fever and cough but the trip is still amazing and wonderful – we have been able to see so much of the Austrian countryside – we want to come back in a few years and spend a month in one of the sweet little towns along the train line. In autumn Austria is wonderful but wet. We weren’t worried about the wet and were soaked through at Shonnbronn Palace. I think that's why I'm unwell now. The kids have been fantastic and patient and well behaved.

I was able to politely say Guzentite to a taxi driver who sneezed in Vienna - that was a highlight - apparently it means good health! And, don't get me started on 'fungi va gina'.

So we are on the train - Iggy Quinn and myself and Hamish is sending some stuff back to Australia. He has seven minutes to board the train and he needs to move it because we are the second carriage in a very long train and he will need to fly like the wind to meet us. He stops for donuts and arrives at the door of our booth as the train takes off. I was sure we had left him in Vienna and I was preparing the children for missing dad and meeting him later in Italy. 'Good one dad we were really worried' says Iggy while Quinn with a grin says ' I was going to pretend to vomit on the platform so they would wait for me and you wouldn't miss the train'. I think Quinn was really disappointed to miss this fine acting role. Be prepared for great things in the future - he was holding his breath to make his face red then pale to convince the guards who didn't speak English.

None of the guards on the train could speak English and at the border near Udine they swapped with an Italian crew, who also were non-English speakers. Hamish and I have passable Italian and we were able to stumble through a conversation with the guards in time to realise we may miss our connection to Trieste, which would mean phoning Lydia and a possible bus negotitation that could take all night. Thank fully we made it raced to the next platform and made it to Trieste. For the seven hours we travelled from Vienna the children played an joked and laughed and had a crap load of fun and then on the Trieste train they crashed - we literally could not wake them - Hamish lugged our luggage off the train and I dragged the children, both of them. People ran to help us and this is how we arrived at the city of my mother and my mothers mothers birth; spilling out of a train and coaxing sleep walking children down some very steep steps. We almost fell to the floor with relief when we saw Lydia - glamourous as usual and her partner Umburto who quickly took over as we popped the sleeping children into her car and crammed enough luggage for ten people into her little European boot!

Lydia is an angel. We have spent the day with her today - wandering around Isola and she is now making us Bolognase in Slovenia. We took the boys for a walk along the Marina and then watched a group of old Slovenians play Bocce and we cheered and jeered them and had a lot of fun. Iggy made a friend - a little Slovenian boy who was eventually dragged away by his mother. Iggy showed him the soccer ball and the boy nodded and off they went until they eventually climbed a tree and joined the boccee cheering - across the bay we could see Trieste and in the distance Venice, the sun was shining and a gentle breeze blew around us - we had the best calamari I have ever had in my life hands down, for 1.20 EURO and the children had chips for the first time in our travels.

I know, poor us!