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I fulfilled my plan to go to Prague in winter in December 2014. I stayed away for five days with a brother of mine; we went by car. In addition to Prague, we stopped in Fussen on the way out and arrived in Dresden, also in Germany, before returning.

This brother had gone to live in Australia, and after three and a half years he came back for a vacation. I proposed that we do a few things together; after the years of the desert and modernity, he was longing for old Europe. I trusted that it would be a good time to find snow in Prague.

To go to Prague, lots of snow in Bavaria.

We found plenty, but not in Prague, but on the road. In arriving at Fussen in Bavaria for the first leg we crossed the Brenner Pass. On the last part of the road we passed through forests with tall fir trees under a blizzard. The contrast between the thick black forest on either side and the whiteness of the road was a marvel.

We arrived late on the evening of December 31, kitchen closed, our dinner was with a sandwich and beers from the bar fridge. Exhausted from the automotive pull we fell asleep well before midnight. Given the awakening, it was one of the most memorable New Years of my life. The blizzard was over and the day was bright; pulling the curtains was a sight to behold. But, the best was yet to come and we reached it in the parking lot of Neuschwanstein Castle.

We knew the interior was closed, but we had had no alternative (I had the obligatory days), and anyway we were fine with seeing it from the outside and up close. We probably saw it in its best and most fairy-tale version. I like to think in the one that made Walt Disney choose it as the inspiration for making Snow White’s castle.

There is a short pedestrian road through the woods to reach it, but we could say we were already satisfied in the parking lot; the featured image, strictly unfiltered, is the one that appeared to us as, closing the car door I said, who knows, maybe you can see it from here, too.

Yay, you can smoke here!

It was cold in Prague, but no snow, and we only caught a drizzle, especially in line for the castle. I remembered streets and places and almost acted as a guide to my brother, we also went back to the inns I had enjoyed so much the previous time. Again we happened to share a table, but not with a couple of beautiful Canadians.

One evening when it was me and him, he began to give me a speech with a big preamble. As he got to the point, the classic cartoon cloud rose from me and I imagined what he was thanking me for.

• The beauty of Prague
• The mini-vacation on the road
• The excellent and cheap beer
• Just the atmosphere of old Europe that they have been missing for a long time
• Being able to spend time together after the years of Australian work and loneliness

But no, he amazed me. What he was so grateful for was that you could smoke on the premises there, which was great for him.

One afternoon we parted, I was aiming for a certain experience that he just didn’t care for, so I did it myself: bathing in beer.

Stop in Dresden

Going to Prague was not enough for us, and to go back we extended the route by arriving in Dresden, Germany. Unfortunately, we had little time to devote to it, and I promised myself that I would return there to visit more leisurely, perhaps entering some of its museums. It was an important evening, because years later I used the anecdote of having lost and then found my camera, to hook up with a lovely Parisian in Cambodia.

The first time I went to Germany, and when I went back the last time: Meetings on the road, bet dinner with a Korean woman in Germany

Finally going to Prague and finding snow

That of the snow in Prague was becoming a fixation, but not enough to make a trip there on purpose; after all, I also had the whole world to discover. I went back two more times somewhat by accident and it was fine. The first was with the boys from the basketball club where I coach, but nothing and basically it was for the best because scarring teenagers is already complex in calm weather conditions.

With very little hope, I passed there one more time, on a stopover on my way to Egypt. My minutes were almost numbered, but I calculated with some hazard that it would be enough to take a look at the Charles Bridge and from a distance at the castle and also eat a sandwich. I found an untypical place that made sandwiches, but with a window on the riverfront, and as I gorged myself looking at the clock, it began to snow! Yay, I had made it!

Home set of trips Going to the Czech Republic and also to Bratislava but not only

Next stage Incredible series of problems with the car on the road

Trips taken, travel stories divided by continent

Countries visited in my travel stories

Anecdotes, divided by type in travel narratives

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Fabio Viroli

Ho sempre avuto tante passioni, ma da sempre più o meno latenti, le principali sono viaggiare e scrivere. Tra le altre cose ho una laurea in psicologia; ho fatto per più di 30 anni l’allenatore di basket; leggo tanti libri; sono stato molto appassionato di sport e di musica rock; e faccio improvvisazione teatrale. IL mio primo romanzo, che non parla di viaggi, si chiama LE TUE GAMBE SONO BELLE COME LE TAGLIATELLE

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