We Speak the Same Language, Want a Ride?

Finally, I ventured further into Eastern Europe, going from the Czech Republic, to Austria, down to Slovenia and eventually to Croatia. To get back to Switzerland, I decided to take the ferry from Croatia to Italy, and then take the train from there back into Switzerland. I did a couple of overnight ferries when I was going to Greece and Italy with Matthew, but this was my first venture on an overnight ferry alone. I was once again staying in the common area, so the first thing I did was find a good couch that I could use as a bed. It was near a couple of other ladies, so seemed pretty safe, and their was a table attached to the floor that I could wedge my backpack under to keep it secure. As I was getting settled I heard a couple, who appeared to be in their 60's, walking around speaking English. This was a language I'd heard very little of in the last week (it was the 5th language to read the safety instructions aboard the ferry, if that's any indication). Eager to talk to someone in my native tongue, I asked the couple as they were passing where they were from. Turns out we're neighbors - they're from Virginia. We made small talk for about 10 minutes then wished each other a pleasant night.

The following morning at breakfast, the couple spotted me and came over to see how I'd slept - they had their own room, so it was a bit plusher. We once again chatted for a few minutes, and then out of the blue they asked me if I wanted a ride - and not just a 5 minute ride to the train station, but a 3 hour ride to Bologna. I was astonished at the generous offer, but eagerly accepted. Italian trains tend to be expensive even when you have a Eurorail pass, so this was going to really help me out in the financial department. As we were docking, I made my way down to where the cars were parked on the ferry and met up with couple. We all got into the car, and within a few minutes, we were off and driving through the Italian countryside. This was my fourth time in Italy, but my first time being in a car there and it was exciting! We sped through the country on the brilliantly sunny morning, and even saw a guy on a moped almost get hit at a traffic light by a car that ran the red light beside us. An hour or so into the ride, we stopped in San Marino, which is one of the smallest countries of the world, and walked around a bit. We had a great time getting to know one another, and swapping stories about Italy, other travels, and life in general. I was so glad I had taken them up on their offer, and though we may never meet again, I will remember this couple from Virginia as being part of my first pseudo-hitchhiking experience, and all that went along with it.